Joomla Module Review – Google Translate for Joomla
I have a client who wanted to have his Joomla website available in multiple languages. There are basically two options for this type of request:
- Create a copy of the website for each language and have each copy of the site translated by a professional.
- Use Google Translate for Joomla, also known as GTranslate
There are advantages and disadvantages to both methods.
Use of professional translations: Creating copies of your website and having them professionally translated is the best way to get an accurate translation of your website. However, this is very expensive, especially if you want your site to be translated into multiple languages. Also, every time you change or add content to your site, you need to update all of your translations as well. You can see how this would get VERY expensive quickly.
Using Google translate: Google Translate is free and instant for up to 40 different languages. Unfortunately, the translations are not very good. But they are close enough that the user can get the gist of what he is saying.
Unless you have a LOT of spare cash, I highly recommend Google Translate. And if you have a Joomla website, I highly recommend the GTranslate module for Joomla. It is easy to install and manage.
Once installed, turning a language on or off is as simple as clicking on the language and saving the module. When a user selects a language, GTranslate launches a timeframe that loads Google Translate. But once the page has loaded, the Google Translate frame disappears. Pretty slippery.
Another drawback: your translated site will not have search engine friendly URLs, will not be indexed by Google, and will display the IP address of Google translate. If you don’t want to see the Google Translate framework while the page is being translated and you want to have SEO friendly URLs, you can buy the pro version of the GTranslate module for $80.
I highly recommend this great Google Translation Module for Joomla Websites.
