[Germany] Bab.la, the wiki-style language portal, has created a Twitter app that effectively turns the microblogging service into a real-time translation dictionary.
The Hamburg-based startup says that the idea was suggested by users, which seems appropriate given the crowdsourced nature of bab.la itself.
The way it works is that you follow bab.la dictionary on Twitter (@babladict). You can send a tweet in the form of an @ mention with the word you want translated and what language to and from. So, for example, I asked for the word ‘hello’ to be translated into French, a good test since even someone as bilingually challenged as me knows the answer.
And here’s what I got back:
Pretty neat, huh.
Bab.la says its Twitter app enables users to access millions of translations in 14 different languages. All of the data comes from its user-driven language portal which offers free access to bilingual dictionaries, vocabulary lessons, language quizzes, and language games. The wiki-style model lets users contribute content and give feedback.
Bab.la was founded in 2007 by Dr. Andreas Schroeter, Dr. Thomas Schroeter and Patrick Uecker.