An Englishman, a Frenchman, and an Armenian

walk into a bar...

They don't speak each other's languages very well, but the bartender has an idea.

"Polyglotte"

Polyglotte.am was upgraded in June 2026. 

https://polyglotte.am/

translation tool for conferences & webcasts (and maybe Congresses)

(uses Google Translate to handle multiple languages at once) 

Polyglotte.am is a quick and easy way to set up multilingual translation.  It's a step up from Polyglot (ending in -t instead of -tte) which was constructed on a Google Sheet)

Polyglot (without the -tte) is the prototype that was developed into Polyglotte. It's a Google sheet.  There is a link to the original Polyglot Multisheet prototype that you can play with, below.  (with thanks to Jake Miller, the producer of Educational Duct Tape).

 https://polyglotte.am is a more convenient tool that lets you select languages from dropdown menus.  Click on the "Demo" button in the upper right corner.  It handles up to 4 languages of your choice.  It can be configured to show more languages, but then screen area becomes limited. 

Polyglotte.am is being upgraded.  For now please use test.polyglotte.am

 Official languages for meetings in Armenia have tended to be Armenian and English, sometimes Russian.  Medical congresses have utilized live translation, a specialized booth in the back of the room with a live interpreter and headphones which are distributed to the audience. Besides being equipment- intensive, life translation is typically not provided at breakout sessions. Meanwhile, there are often participants from Europe and elsewhere who are not necessarily fluent in Armenian or English. 

The Polyglotte program stems from my own difficulty with foreign languages. It utilizes Google translate API to accommodate multiple languages at once. Voice to text is available for many languages.  Text to voice is also available for many languages; we have utilized a separate API to accommodate Armenian Text to Voice. 

When navigating to the polyglotte.am website, the option to use "Demo" mode by clicking a button in the upper right corner. This will enable a multilingual discussion within a few seconds. Sign in is also available, allowing the preparation of pre-written presentations which can then be translated to an additional three languages for a total of four languages on the screen. Google Translate accommodates over 100 languages, and the limitation to four languages on the screen is to avoid overcrowding on the screen. 

When pre-written presentations are given, they can include a conference code. This allows audience members to navigate to polyglotte.am, enter the simple code, and view the presentation on their personal device. This can be done at the conference or remotely.  Additionally, the viewer can choose their own preferred language from the 100+ available choices.  

Using conference codes also allows for multiple Polyglotte sessions to run at the same time (although as of June 2026, we have not tested concomitant sessions!)

In its current form, Polyglotte will benefit from a dedicated person to operate the computer, with the translations projected onto a screen or monitor.  This can be updated as we gain experience using the program and receiving recommendations from users.  Other minor changes are anticipated, with slide advancement, button size and position, etc.

There are some similarites to PowerPoint.  Images can be included in the slides, but not at the same time as text.  Also the space for text is limited to 1/4 of the screen for each language.  My own belief about PowerPoint and lectures in general is that they force the audience member to read and listen to too much speech.  Polyglotte could be used for the important highlights that the listener would actually want to remember.  Most images in typical slide presentations, if they are relevant, can be viewed in a matter of a few seconds to transmit information.  After that they might be distracting.

The source language can be chosen from the 100+ languages supported by Google Translate.  For English, it's handy to have a voice-to-text program like Dragon.  This allows rapid text entry through dictation, but cutting & pasting or rapid typing also works well.  Drag & Drop also works.

The sign-in version of this allows prefab slide shows, where you enter text in advance.  Pictures can also be shown by clicking an icon.  You can show the source language + several translated languages shown in columns or rows.  Remote viewers (including audience members with personal devices) can log into the Polyglotte website and view the text in any supported language that they prefer.

The sign-in version also has a toggle between column and row orientation.  Rows are easier to read for long sentences.  Sometimes the lower rows are "off screen" requiring scrolling down to view the translations.

Columns may fit better on a screen, allowing all languages to be viewed at the same time.  The Demo version will show columns on standard view.  But when the screen is zoomed to 125%, it will change to rows.

  The roots of Polyglotte:  Polyglot

Polyglot  - Multisheet is the prototype from which Polyglotte.am was developed. It basically is an adapted Google Sheet that translates English text into multiple languages at once. 

Because the Google Sheet updates with a click of the ENTER button, anyone who is logged into Polyglot will see updated translation every few seconds, on their computer, hand-held device, on a separate screen at a live conference, or with a separate window during a live internet event.

The tool allows entry of text in English, with simultaneous translation into several other languages.  As the person entering text hits the Enter key, the translated text will update on all computers that are logged into the Google Sheets document. It is helpful if the person entering the text is already familiar with what will be discussed, and is able to summarize into short sentences.  Polyglot could easily be configured to translate from other languages besides English.  But that takes a bit of time to set up, whereas Polyglotte.am lets you do this in a few seconds.

Polyglotte isn't image-focused like PowerPoint or other slide shows.  Our intent is translation of text into multiple languages.  However, the slide presentations give the option to include a picture which appears with the image icon is clicked.  (The image covers the translated text until the icon is clicked again.  Remote viewers have the option to view the image in the same way by clicking an icon.)  Pictures can be added to presentations by selecting a file or simply dragging and dropping.

The updated Polyglotte will have speech to text and text to speech options built into the platform.   

0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0

Everything below this line is for translation nerds or people who want to steal this technology!

The key is to have a live person, fluent in the speaker's language, summarizing and editing what is said into brief summary sentences which will translate accurately using the Google translate app.  The speaker can dictate directly into the yellow box, but should dictate clearly into the correct box.  Otherwise he/she might change the code!

The English cell (A2 box, yellow background) is where we enter text. It works best if the main idea is translated without too much extra verbage.  With voice-to-text software,  one can enter text very quickly.  It's better to speak clearly, avoiding idioms.  The translation tools work much better with simple sentences. 

Examples:

Providing an outline of the presentation to the person entering the information would allow cut-and-paste for convenience.

Using an application like Dragon voice-to-text allows rapid entry into the yellow box. Typing rapidly or using cut & paste will also solve the problem.

Adapting this spreadsheet to translate any language is very simple.  Other cells in the spreadsheet are coded to translate the cell in the text box.  The code looks like this:  =googletranslate(A2,"en", "fr"),  where Google Translate will turn the text in the English box (in this case cell A2), from one language (English) to another (French).  You can find a directory of language codes at   https://www.loc.gov/standards/iso639-2/php/code_list.php

The first page has several languages on it (new languages can be added in seconds).  Each subsequent Sheet is dedicated to a single language.  Imagine sitting at a conference with a tablet computer, with the Polyglot opened to the language of your choice.  The translation will be updated each time the person entering text into the English cell hits the Enter key.

Tabs on the Google Sheet show single translated languages.  These tabs have a column on the right for back-translation into English.  This helps to spot translation errors, syntax, etc.  On Polyglotte.am, the back translation is compared to the original using AI.  

Currently the text can only be added into the A2 box on the front "Polyglot" sheet.  Other cells are protected, as many of them contain code.  We can add additional cells for text entry as needed.

The translations update each time the speaker hits the Enter key.  For a live conference, simultaneous translation could be projected onto a screen.  For a web conference, it could be included on the speaker's screen, or on individual computers for people desiring the service.  If you like, log into Polyglot and type some text into the  yellow box. You can also save a copy for yourself and experiment with your own translations and layout.

Link to Polyglot (Polyglot is the spreadsheet, Polyglotte.am is the nice tool:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1eDToEG7fA7POh3GXHGV2na0bK9NvWTyoTVpZkb3GUdQ/edit#gid=0

 For info or suggestions, please contact  This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

--Jerry Manoukian  

Notes

Oct 2024 - update to the Google API

December 2023 - Polyglotte prototype online.  Creating talks is cumbersome with invited speaker etc.  Fantasy Space creates a "Demo" option.  The "Sign in" version allows for "live updates" at bottom of screen, e.g. Coffee break in 5 minutes

July 2023 - prototype Polyglot demonstrated at 6IMCA

 22 July 2020: 

I know that the translation is sometimes not good. So I try to use short sentences.
Sometimes the voice recognition and the computer slow down and freeze. Then it is difficult to catch up.
If the speaker changes the subject quickly, then rapid translation is more difficult.
If I make a small spelling error while typing, then the computer will not recognize it.
You may see other problems, Please help me identify them.

-Jerry