BabelPix™
Update: Babelpix appears to have disappeared, but the software is still available from ZDnet as a download. It's unclear at this point whether you are able to use this past the expiration of the trial period.
This multi-platform software will enable photographers and stock photography distributors to make their images available in markets beyond those that operate in their native language by translating photo keywords to foreign languages. BabelPix™ takes .jpg or .tif image files with embedded keywords (in the IPTC format) and translates those files to foreign languages using a simple, batch process interface. The software is a Java-based application, and operates under Windows 98/ME/Win2K/XP, Mac OS X (PowerPC and Universal Binary) and Linux platforms. Please note, you must have Java SE version 1.4 or higher (built-in to OS X, freely downloadable from java.com for Windows and Linux) in order to operate this software..
The application is capable of batch-translating large numbers of previously keyworded files to another language. It does so by extracting keywords in the native language from the embedded IPTC data and translates those keywords, while creating a new file with the foreign language keywords in the same field as before. Only the metadata in this one field is changed. The actual pixels of the image remain untouched, so there should be no concern about the degrading of any image files, including Jpegs. It is also possible for users to customize dictionaries and correct translations for context.
The parent company, Bedouin Ventures, LLC, has only officially
released the English-Spanish/Spanish-English version at this time, but reported
that more versions are in the works. In the coming months, The company plans
to offer additional modules, including Chinese, German, and other languages.
For details, including a trial version, FAQ, and a short Quicktime presentation
of the software in action, see the BabelPix
website. (see note above)