computer science

Skype Translator

Skype Translator is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Skype Translator rather than just read about it. In short: Skype Translator is a speech to speech translation application developed by Skype, which has operated as a division of Microsoft since 2018. Skype Translator Preview has been publicly available since December 15, 2015.

Key takeaways

Skype Translator belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Skype Translator to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Skype Translator from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Skype Translator is a speech to speech translation application developed by Skype, which has operated as a division of Microsoft since 2018. Skype Translator Preview has been publicly available since December 15, 2015. Skype Translator is available as a standalone app and, as of October 2015, is integrated into the Skype for Windows desktop app. Skype Translator was built on developments in deep neural networks for speech recognition and Microsoft Translator's statistical machine translation technology. Users converse in their native languages, and the speech is translated from one language to the other in “near real-time”, with the output translation presented by computer-generated speech synthesis. The current version supports speech translation to and from English, French, German, Chinese (Mandarin), Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Arabic, Japanese and Russian. The application also features on-screen text transcripts of the spoken phrases in their original language along with the translation. In addition, Skype Translator supports Skype Instant Message, which can translate users’ instant messages into more than 70 languages supported by Microsoft Translator. In October 2015, Skype announced that Skype Translator has been integrated into Skype for Windows desktop. This functionality is available to users following automatic updates to their Skype desktop app. In March 2016, Microsoft Translator announced that the Microsoft Translator API that powers Skype Translator is available as service for businesses that want to add speech translation to their custom apps and solutions.

See also Machine translation Microsoft Translator Language

References

External links Skype Translator Preview Microsoft Translator: Skype Translator Milestones on the path to Skype Translator Skype Translator – How it Works

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Skype Translator

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Skype Translator claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Skype Translator before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Skype Translator ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Skype Translator

In research: Skype Translator appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Skype Translator in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Skype Translator is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Skype, Translation software, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Skype Translator outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Skype Translator in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Skype Translator means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Skype Translator out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Skype Translator in simple terms?

Why does Skype Translator matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Skype Translator?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Skype Translator.