Last week I noticed this announcement in my message center:
New feature: Message Center translation
MC74640Published On : Aug 12, 2016Expires On : Sep 30, 2016In an effort to make Office 365 communications more relevant to you, no matter the language you speak, we are introducing new functionality in the Office 365 Message Center to allow you to personalize your view. Based on your feedback, we are implementing the ability to translate messages, into the language of your choice.How does this affect me?Machine translation of communications allows you to ensure our notifications are relevant and clear. The translation and filtering options will appear in the Message Center over the coming weeks.What do I need to do to prepare for this change?Message Center translation will be available in August, and no action is required. The default language is English, and this can be configured in the “Settings” gear at the top right of your Admin Center. Please click Additional Information to learn more about change management and communications in Office 365.
A while back machine translation for one of my variation sites. So I now tried my Message Center in different languages as my past experiences with machine translation were … well not very good.
As a native Dutch speaker I tried it out. So first switch the admin center over (Settings -> Language)
Then I got the translation for the messages:
Nieuwe functie: Message Center vertaling
MC74640Gepubliceerd op : Aug 12, 2016Verloopt op : Sep 30, 2016In een poging om Office 365 communicatie relevanter voor u, ongeacht de taal die u spreekt, introduceren we nieuwe functionaliteit in de Office 365 Message Center zodat u kunt uw weergave aanpassen. Op basis van uw feedback, zijn wij de uitvoering van de mogelijkheid berichten te vertalen, in de taal van uw keuze.Hoe beïnvloedt dit me?Automatische vertaling van communicatie kunt u ervoor zorgen dat onze meldingen zijn relevant en duidelijk. De vertaling en de filteropties worden weergegeven in het berichtencentrum in de komende weken.Wat moet ik doen om deze veranderingen voorbereiden?Message Center vertaling zal beschikbaar in augustus, en is geen actie vereist. De standaardtaal is Engels, en dit kan worden geconfigureerd in de versnelling van de “Instellingen” bovenaan rechts van uw Admin Center. Klik op meer informatie voor meer informatie over change management en communicatie in Office 365.
Well, I can understand what this message is talking about but there is plenty of improvement possible. It’s a bit like I foreigner who has learned to speak a language from a dictionary.