SAP Language Translation has been there since the birth of SAP. If you are in a project with Global Roll Outs, you must have faced the issue of Language and Translation. In the mid 2000 era, I was working for a USA client who were rolling out for South America and Asia. The USA release was perfect but we had to put major effort for Language and Currency conversions for other geographies.
Application developers (read ABAPer) often get junk character issue during Form Translations in roll out engagements. Though Language Translation activity is one of the basic requirements in SAP Forms (SmartScript, SmartForm or Adobe), at times if can consume high efforts to troubleshoot junk character issues, and stress the developers and the team to great extend, if not approached diligently. 
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We have followed the simple below strategy for smooth Translation Activity for localize requirement. You might use it as a guide for your project needs.
Pre-requisites for any Language Translation Activity
If you are in a team who are performing the language translation activity, do not neglect the below two points:
1. Configure and Use Correct Font for Printing
For instance, we need to use JPMINCHO for language Japanese. Similarly for Chinese language, we should use CNSONG or CNHEI.
2. Configure and Use Correct Device Type and Printer
Having said that, the million dollar question is, how do we really identify the correct font and device type that should be used?
How? How? How?
Do not worry. We are here to help you. Adopt the below simple procedures and you would never see those unwanted characters in your output forms.
Hands on Exercise
For our understanding we would pick Chinese Language for Translation. We know that for Simplified Chinese, ‘ZH’ is the SAP language code.
If you want to know the Language Keys or SAP Language Code, then go to table T002.
Coming back to the exercise, we would see how we can Translate a simple Purchase Order Texts from English to Chinese.
Below steps would help us identify the correct Font and Device Type which in turn would help us address the Language Translation requirement.
Step 1: Prepare Language Translation Template
- A language translation template should be prepared to collate the localize language (Chinese (ZH) for our example) from the business/end/super users.
Step 2: Identify the Correct Font
Identifying the correct font that should be used for the Purchase Order Form is our next step.
- Go to t-code SE71, give the SAPScript name, for PO case it is MEDRUCK and Language as ‘ZH’. Select the Paragraph Formats and hit display.
- Click the Font to get the Chinese Font name. Check the font is CNHEI. We need to leverage the same for our business case.
For some of us, it might look like below.
Also Read : Step by Step Tutorials on SAP Adobe Forms
Step 3 : Identify the Correct Device Type
Now we need to analyse and figure out the correct device type which would support the Chinese font CNHEI identified above.
- The SAPscript Printer Fonts table TFO03 comes to our rescue. Provide the font identified (CNHEI) in above step and get the correct Device Type. It has one to many relationship. Based on the fonts, character per inch, bold, italics etc choose the most appropriate one for your landscape.
Step 4: Identify the correct Printer for the Device Type
- The Spool Printer declaration table TSP03 has the information. Provide the device type CNHPLJ4 and it would provide you the correct Printer.
Above is one of the Printer which supports Chinese Language.
That’s it. Follow the above 4 steps and have a smooth Translation and Printing activity. This is my first article at SAPYard. Please do provide your genuine feedback. It would help me for my next article.
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