yndigo

“The reason English-speaking readers can barely tell the difference between Tolstoy and Dostoevsky is that they aren’t reading the prose of either one. They’re reading Constance Garnett,” Joseph Brodsky once proclaimed.
Style or individual voice in literature is paramount, and whereas we often contrast style and substance, some would argue that in Literature with a capital [...]

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The October issue of the American Translators Association’s ATA Chronicle features an article by Diane Howard called Ethical Codes: Where Are We? The article, besides being very clear and well written, made the argument that much more precision is needed in ATA’s Code of Professional Conduct and Business Practices, which is currently under review. [...]

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Crowdsourcing and Translation
According to Wikipedia, crowdsourcing is “the act of taking a task traditionally performed by an employee or contractor, and outsourcing it to an undefined, generally large group of people, in the form of an open call.”
Even though the term is new as of 2006, and the internet has allowed the practice to [...]

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How to achieve a good translation

Although finding the right translator for the job is arguably the most important task an agency performs, most translation agencies do more than just outsource translations. They edit and proofread them, too. And while there’s no such thing as perfection in the translation business, we, like many other firms, try [...]

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Until you actually need one, it’s hard to imagine how many translators and translation agencies are out there. Especially the first time, how can you be sure you’re getting a good translation?

Get a recommendation: Ask a colleague or friend. Chances are good that if they received quality and service at a fair price, you [...]

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Translation pricing

When you talk price with someone who’s never bought translations before, there are frequently two reactions: laughter and then shock.
Laughter at the idea that translators charge by the word or that a penny higher or lower makes a big difference. For example, I was interviewed by SmartMoney.com about working with freelancers and the [...]

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Is there such thing as neutral Spanish?
This question has been asked time and time again in translation circles. To many Spanish speakers the very idea is laughable. When people from different Spanish speaking countries strike up a conversation, they recognize, often understand, and sometimes chuckle at, the words and expressions the other uses. But these [...]

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There is some confusion over what a Certificate of Accuracy is, who may issue it and under what circumstances it is required.
A certificate of accuracy is a statement in writing that claims, “I was qualified to do this translation and I believe it is faithful to the original.” It does not claim the translation [...]

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A clear future for machine translation

Machine translation (MT) knows its limits and is targeting internet and technical texts according to Mike Dillinger, President of the Association for Machine Translation in the Americas and Adjunct Professor, Department of Psychology, San José State University.
In yesterday’s article in innovations report, Dillinger goes on to explain where Machine [...]

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A controversial quality control tool
An article in The Ottawa Citizen about the French translation of a license plate motto illustrates how back translation as a quality control measure can often fall short.
Back translation is the translation of an already translated text back to the original language. Normally this is done by an independent translator who [...]

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