Mozilla 推出在本地端直接翻譯的 Firefox Translations

Mozilla 推出了「Firefox Translations」這個 Firefox 上的套件。

主打的就是 offline 這件事情,保有隱私性:

Firefox Translations provides automated translation of web content. Unlike cloud-based alternatives, translation is done locally, on the client-side, so that the text being translated does not leave your machine.

Hacker News 上的討論「Firefox Translations: Translate websites in your browser without using the cloud (addons.mozilla.org)」可以看到有些人有提到效果,雖然沒有像雲端服務的準確,但算是可用:

I've just installed it, and I'm impressed so far. I've only run it against some sample German Wikipedia articles (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_of_Xymox), but it produces surprisingly readable text. I also particularly like the "highlight potential errors" option to flag stuff that even the translation service thinks might be a bit off.

It's not nearly as speedy as Google Translate, but I'll take that happily if it means keeping it local.

從頁面上列出的支援語言可以看出還是以歐美用到的語系為主,然後下方也有說明這個專案是包括其他計畫的贊助累積出來的:

Firefox Translations was developed with The Bergamot Project Consortium, coordinated by the University of Edinburgh with partners Charles University in Prague, the University of Sheffield, University of Tartu, and Mozilla. This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 825303.

不過比較好奇的是在頁面上有提到 CPU 需要 SSE4.1 能力... 這樣就有兩個問題了,第一個是 browser extension 可以直接跑 SSE4.1 指令集?另外一個疑問就是,AppleARM 架構就無法支援嗎 (應該也有類似的加速指令集),現在是 x86 限定?

A CPU that supports SSE4.1 extensions is required for this addon to function properly. If it doesn't, an error will be displayed when the translation is being started.

就算現在限制很多,看起來還是個很有前途的計畫,也許有機會移植到其他瀏覽器上?

Cloudflare 宣佈漲價

Cloudflare 寫了一篇很長的漲價公告:「Adjusting pricing, introducing annual plans, and accelerating innovation」。

25% 的漲幅,本來的 Pro Plan 從 $20/mo 漲到 $25/mo,本來的 Business Plan 從 $200/mo 漲到 $250/mo:

Cloudflare is raising prices for the first time in the last 12 years. Beginning January 15, 2023, new sign-ups will be charged $25 per month for our Pro Plan (up from $20 per month) and $250 per month for our Business Plan (up from $200 per month). Any paying customers who sign up before January 15, 2023, including any currently paying customers who signed up at any point over the last 12 years, will be grandfathered at the old monthly price until May 14, 2023.

然後丟出年費方案,就跟原來的月費方案寄算十二個月一樣的價錢 ($240/y 與 $2400/y):

We are also introducing an option to pay annually, rather than monthly, that we hope most customers will choose to switch to. Annual plans are available today and discounted from the new monthly rate to $240 per year for the Pro Plan (the equivalent of $20 per month, saving $60 per year) and $2,400 per year for the Business Plan (the equivalent of $200 per month, saving $600 per year). In other words, if you choose to pay annually for Cloudflare you can lock in our old monthly prices.

後面就是很長的解釋...