Small Business

Windows of Opportunity

Translation Services
Speak Easy
Analysts predict that this year, for the first time, more than 50% of the people who go on-line will live outside North America. That shift in demographics could make using TraceWare, provided by the ASP www.digisle.net, a good business decision. TraceWare is essentially a geographical tool. When a visitor from another country requests an item -- say, a press release -- from your site, the software peruses the item before it goes out and replaces the references that are geographically sensitive (language, measurement units, currency) with ones that will make sense to the visitor. Prices start at $25,000 a year.

If you want visitors to be able to read the text and links on your site in French, Italian, Portuguese, German, or Spanish, check out the Systran Link service provided by the ASP www.systransoft.com ($2,000 setup fee plus $1,000 a month for 200,000-page translation requests). Visitors simply click on the links the service has sent you for your page, and the page is automatically zapped to www.systransoft.com's servers for translation. You can also request a "translation box" for your site. Visitors cut and paste any text they choose inside the box, and when they click on the appropriate link, the text metamorphoses into the language of their choice.

Virtual Reality
Get Real
Virtual reality isn't just for thrill seekers anymore. Now it has a place in the Web component of your business. Commercial applications include product-operation demos, order customization, assembly/disassembly instructions, and the construction of such you-are-there displays as virtual stores or walk-throughs of real estate properties, trade shows, or other exhibitions.

Among the products on the market for creating interactive 3-D environments are Superscape's 3D Webmaster ($499.95), which specializes in landscapes, and MetaCreation's Ray Dream Studio ($349.99), which is especially strong in manipulating objects. The latter comes with 875 reconfigured object templates. If you're concerned about your directorial skills, you can always let Superscape make the environments for you with its Content Solutions Group, based in Santa Clara, Calif., with offices in London and Tokyo. Prices range from $20,000 into the millions, depending on the complexity of your show.

For a preview of virtual-reality environments benefiting the retail sector, check out www.shout3d.com, where you can stroll around and put on a double-breasted camel-hair suit, and www.sharperimage.com, where motorized CD racks compete for space with water-resistant stereos. An admirable demo of the technology as a tool for customizing orders can be found at www.whirlpool.com.

BACK

Pages: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 , 6, 7 , 8 , 9

Get a printer-friendly version of this article