Meglobe, a Web-based IM client that translates conversations in real time is now open to everyone. Previously in private beta, the service has re-launched with a new design and support for Yahoo, AOL AIM, and MSN chat protocols.
If you have buddies on one of these other services who speaks a different language, Meglobe will automatically translate based on the home language you've set as a preference. Previously they would have had to sign up to be a Meglobe member.
More importantly, the service has improved its translation tools, allowing users to make fixes and suggestions to the ones provided. If you come across a translation you know is wrong you can flag it and leave a suggestion. It's then sent to a consortium of editors who must approve it. The change will then end up in all future translations of that word or particular phrase, which can make the tool better suited towards slang or phrasing that would otherwise require linguistic finesse.
As a general-purpose Web-based IM client, Meglobe still has a ways to go before it can compete with something like Meebo. If you're used to being able to pop your conversations and contact list outside of the browser window you won't find it here. Likewise new message notifications can only be seen inside the window it's running in (unlike Meebo). If, however, real-time translation is what you're going for this service is still tops.
If you've been on the hunt for a tool that lets you chat with friends or clients that speak a different language, MeGlobe is a really simple solution that does all the work for you. Like Meebo, it will turn a single open browser window in a Webtop where you can manage your buddy list and chat windows. There's no software to install, and it handles 15 languages with relative ease.
I gave it a spin using French to English, and as advertised it translates in real time. You see what the person wrote in small letters, with the translation showing up right above. It doesn't matter what language the other user is typing in--everything gets converted to your default language. Changing it with a quick drop down will go back and reverse-translate previous chat items--it's very cool.
Other solutions for real-time chat translation have come from many places including Google. However, Google's system required using chat bots that act as a middle-man. MeGlobe's solution is far simpler, putting the entire process behind what the user sees.
In the future, I'd like to see MeGlobe tap into existing IM networks instead of requiring you to plug into its own, something I'm expecting based on a rather cryptic blog entry from earlier this week.
Embedded below is a video of the tool in action.
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