As soon as I found out that Google released an API for Google Translate, I quickly viewed their documentation and tried it for myself and I can sum it up in just one word - SWEET!
It uses AJAX which means that you don’t have to mess around with server based implementations such as SOAP or REST. All that’s needed is a Javascript enabled browser and you’re all set. It supports 13 different languages and a total of 29 different language pairs.
With the release of this API, building multi-lingual websites becomes trivial since all you basically need is copy and paste a few lines of code from the documentation and modify it a bit and you’re all set. Check out my sample implementation here: Google Translate Working Example.
Do you think the International Space Station uses Microsoft Windows for at least some of their computers? I think they do and I think it’s not a good idea. I can’t imagine the day that the ISS comes crashing down to earth because of some bug in the Windows Operating System they’re using.
But why do I think that they use Windows for such a huge critical hardware zooming in space orbiting dear planet earth? Here’s why - Where’s Tech Support in Space?. After reading the article, I can’t help but assume that the software being mentioned is none other than MS Windows. The clues mentioned in the article are:
- Licensing problems - this is very common on Windows-based machines where sometimes, even legal copies of the operating system pop up the licensing problem error.
- Reinstall using a software DVD - software installers requiring an entire DVD to install are most likely to be operating systems.
- Blue screen of death - this I would say is the MOST definitive clue. Wikipedia says that it’s most notable in Microsoft Windows.
Well, I can’t really blame NASA for using Windows up their in space as it is the most common OS amongst desktops in the world BUT I strongly recommend that they add Linux in their astronaut training programs. After all, we don’t want to see a billion-dollar floating hardware crash to earth because of some bug, trojan or virus, do we?
