Should Translators Proofread Documents Translated by a Machine?
It is becoming more common for agencies and freelance translators to get requests for proofreading translations done with a machine translation tool. As we’ve discussed before, these are tools such as Google Translate—the most widely used machine translation tool available—which use algorithms to translate text that you put into them. These tools have many shortcomings, […]
The Fallibility of the ‘100% Match’ and How it Affects Agency Rates
Continuing with the topic of Trados, or translation memory software, the ‘100% matches’ moniker warrants a closer look. The term can be both deceptive and misapplied, for reasons including the true accuracy of the matches and the way they affect translation rates, respectively. The term applies to any segment of source text that is an […]
Should translators be paid by the hour or per word?
It is far more common for translators to quote a per-word rate to their clients than an hourly rate. Yet hourly rates still persist in some particular cases. There are many reasons why per-word pricing is the norm and preferred by both clients as well as translators and translation agencies. Chief among these is that […]
Machine Translation vs. Translation Memory Software: Different Methods, Different Results
Most people are familiar with machine translation tools such a Google Translator and Babelfish, for example. They seek to replace the human translator by taking rules that were previously established and put into the software and applying them to new phrases. These rules cover everything from syntax to grammar and individual vocabulary units. But these […]
Do children really learn languages faster than adults?
Traditional knowledge has been that children are better at learning languages than adults, along with a whole host of other abilities like playing a musical instrument. Heavyweights like Noam Chomsky, professor of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, have supported this assumption with theories regarding the critical period of human maturation, among others. Essentially, […]
Social Media, Latinos, and the New Marketing Environment
As the marketing atmosphere changes and evolves faster than ever with new technological developments and new ways for companies to connect with their customers, we are seeing more companies reach out to their Spanish-language audiences. One way that they are doing this is by translating their web pages into Spanish. But they’re also going further […]
The Importance of Providing Written Translations of Company Policies
While US labor laws require that employers provide translations of certain kinds of information regarding company policies to Spanish-speaking employees, the laws which are currently on the books do not necessarily cover all of the information that these employees require. As a result, it is not unheard-of for employees with limited English abilities to be […]
