DTP & Design
The core of my daily work — multilingual layout, PDF prep, and delivery.
- Adobe InDesignPrimary layout tool for AR / JA / EN documents.
- Adobe IllustratorLogos, vector assets, complex typographic work.
- Adobe PhotoshopImage prep, retouching, print-ready rasters.
- Adobe Acrobat ProPDF comparison, preflight, final delivery checks.
File Languages
Scripts I typeset and QC in DTP production — from RTL shaping to CJK rules to Latin diacritics.
- Japanese — 日本語CJK — horizontal & vertical (tategaki), kinsoku shori, mixed kanji/kana/latin.
- EnglishLatin baseline, standard Western typography.
- Arabic — العربيةRight-to-left, contextual shaping, ligatures, kashida, bidirectional text.
- Korean — 한국어Hangul with CJK typesetting rules and punctuation.
- Simplified Chinese — 简体中文CJK with simplified glyph set.
- Traditional Chinese — 繁體中文CJK with traditional glyph set, often vertical setting.
- French — FrançaisLatin with French spacing rules around punctuation (« » : ; ! ?).
- Spanish — EspañolLatin with inverted opening punctuation (¿¡) and accented characters.
- Italian — ItalianoLatin, standard Western rules with Italian diacritics.
- Indonesian — Bahasa IndonesiaLatin alphabet, straightforward Western typesetting.
Translation & Localization
The software and AI tools I use alongside DTP to keep multilingual work consistent.
- SDL Trados StudioPrimary CAT tool — TM, glossary, segment-level QC.
- Microsoft WordTrack changes review, client-facing deliverables.
- ChatGPTTerminology research, draft translation review, quick cross-language sanity checks.
- Google GeminiSecond opinion on translations, especially for JA ↔ AR nuance.
Interpretation & QC
Services I provide alongside production work.
- Arabic Language QCProofreading and quality checking of Arabic deliverables — catching typesetting issues, shaping errors, and translation inconsistencies.
- Simultaneous InterpretationOccasional live interpretation (AR / JA / EN) for phone and video meetings on short notice.
Development
For building DTP Master and this site.
- Visual Studio CodePrimary editor.
- Claude CodeAI pair-programmer in the terminal — how I build most things now.
- Git + GitHubVersion control and hosting.
- Next.js + Tailwind CSSThis site's stack — React 19, App Router, TS.
- Python + PySide6DTP Master is built on this.
Daily System
The hardware and accounts I actually sit in front of.
- Windows 11Primary OS — required for most DTP production tools.
- Japanese + Arabic IMEsDaily input switching between three scripts.
- Dual monitor setupSource document on one screen, target on the other.
- iCloud+ Custom Domainm@mahmoud.jp — professional email through iCloud on my own domain.
Updated periodically. Happy to answer questions about any of these — drop me a line.