Our Arabic DTP and typesetting services include:

  • Arabic translations
  • Arabic proofreading
  • Arabic desktop publishing using InDesign
  • DTP QA quality assurance checking of documents
  • The localisation of graphics in documents
  • Dedicated project manager
  • Fast turnaround
  • Print ready PDFs set to your specifications
  • 100% work carried out In-house by our own typesetting studio

Clients

We work for companies and organisations such as Disney, Vidal Sassoon, and Jaguar Land Rover, to list a few. Plus international aid agencies such as Amnesty International, Refugee Action, UNICEF and the Refugee Council as well as many translation agencies and publishing companies all over the world.

Adelphi is an Arabic Desktop publishing and translation agency that aims to provide a full DTP localisation service to our customers. 

What is the difference between desktop publishing and typesetting?

Simply stated, DTP (desktop publishing) and typesetting are the same things. It is putting the translated text into the original layout using software programs like InDesign, Quark, Illustrator etc. Historically typesetting was just that, the setting of wood or metal type into blocks to print from. Desktop publishing was first developed at Xerox PARC in the 1970s and is often used to describe using a computer and software to set the type for publications.
  • Typesetting is also defined as: Typesetting is the process, the craft, of setting the type for a document, not to be confused with typography, which is the art of designing the type.
  • Desktop publishing is also defined as The production of printed matter by means of a printer linked to a desktop computer, with special software.

Desktop Publishing tips when designing English materials for translation

  1. In some designs the pages are simply filled with text, leaving no room for text expansion. Most languages (with some notable exceptions) run longer than English and some of them run much longer. This causes the localised versions to have to make some sort of compromise: either text becomes smaller or a condensed font is used, or some material is completely cut out for brevity. Neither scenario is ideal, so it is much better to consider this aspect of the task at the design stage.
  2. Overuse of text formatting features like drop caps, CAPITALISED TEXT,  coloured text, bold text, and italic text, etc. can slow down the localisation process, as the formatting needs to be applied to the precise word or phrase in translation that is equivalent to the English. Sometimes, this does not work at all if the target language has a dramatically different word order. Some languages such as Arabic do not use CAPITALS.
  3. Embedded, non-editable text in images require extra attention and can slow things down dramatically, especially when over the main part of the image. Where possible, the text should be made available for editing in InDesign. If not, we will require all of the PSD files to work with.
  4. Avoid designing paragraphs or “word clouds” with mixed font sizes that look good in English but have no chance of being replicated in the target language: quite often they do not have the same impact when localised and can often be “lost in translation”. Furthermore, due to word order difference, keywords in English at the beginning of a sentence might end up in the middle or at the end of the sentence when translated.
  5. One of the most frequent issues we encounter is the incorrect and inconsistent usage of style sheets, in particular where one style has been used but in some instances, bold text, italics or even different fonts have been changed manually. This can cause significant delays in the localisation process.
  6. Sending the artwork to be typeset before it is signed off by the client is never a good idea, and neither are new design changes after we have already started the work. We can do nothing in situations like these where significant changes are requested mid-project but start again and present new figures for the work, delaying deadlines and incurring further costs for the client.

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