Which question are you asking?
| Your question | Start here |
|---|---|
| How should we specify a translation project? | ISO 11669, ASTM F2575 |
| What does a translation-service standard cover? | ISO 17100 |
| How is human post-editing addressed? | ISO 18587 |
| How should we evaluate translation output? | ISO 5060, MQM |
| How do we transfer previous translations? | TMX |
| How do we share approved terminology? | TBX |
| How do we exchange content for localization? | XLIFF |
| How do we handle locale conventions and dynamic messages? | CLDR, MessageFormat 2 |
Project planning and translation delivery
- ISO 11669 — project specifications, needs and workflow planning. Reference: 2024 edition.
- ISO 17100 — requirements for translation services. Reference: 2015 edition and 2017 amendment; revision under way.
- ISO 18587 — full human post-editing of machine translation. Reference: 2017 edition; a DIS successor remains a draft.
- ASTM F2575 — agreeing and applying translation-project specifications. Reference: F2575-25, listed as active.
Edition and scope records: ISO 11669, ISO 17100, ISO 18587, ASTM F2575-25.
Translation quality evaluation
- ISO 5060 — guidance on human evaluation of translation output. Reference: 2024 edition.
- MQM — configurable error classification and scoring; a maintained framework rather than a single universal scorecard.
- DQF and DQF-MQM — the relationship between a historical harmonized typology and present MQM Core.
- SAE J2450 — a specialized metric for automotive service information. Reference: J2450_201608, stabilized.
Starting records: ISO 5060, MQM Council, MQM history, SAE J2450.
Exchange of localization resources
- TMX — translation-memory interchange; distinguishes the LISA 1.4b reference from the ETSI publication identifier.
- TBX / ISO 30042 — terminology interchange; distinguishes historical TBX from the 2019 reference.
- SRX — exchange of segmentation rules; covers the preserved 2.0 specification.
- XLIFF / ISO 21720 — exchange of localization content; distinguishes specification status and implementation version.
Starting records: LISA archive, ISO 30042, OASIS XLIFF committee.
Technical foundations of localization
- W3C ITS 2.0 — metadata accompanying content and translation work.
- Unicode CLDR — locale conventions and data. Release checked: CLDR 49.
- MessageFormat 2 — dynamic, localizable interface messages.
- BCP 47 — language identification and matching.
Sources: W3C ITS, CLDR releases, Unicode MessageFormat specification, RFC 5646, RFC 4647.
Shared terminology
- ISO 20539 — vocabulary for translation, interpreting and related technology. Reference: 2023 edition. Publisher record.
Historical LISA material
- LISA QA Model — the historical assessment model and its relationship to later frameworks.
- GMX-V — translation-volume reporting, including the 2012 ETSI publication.
- xml:tm — document-linked memory concepts and their historical setting.
These entries explain a legacy. Their presence does not imply active maintenance, broad present-day adoption or a recommendation to start a new implementation.
Reading a guide responsibly
Every guide separates the documented scope from our illustrative advice. Examples show a problem or a possible workflow; they are not official test cases.
Before relying on a standard, obtain the applicable edition and check amendments, implementation support and contractual requirements. For technical exchanges, verify a representative export-and-import cycle. For evaluation, record the criteria and assumptions behind the score.