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The work of a "beginner" translator must be 100% up to standard
Thread poster: Tom in London
Post removed: This post was hidden by a moderator or staff member because it was not in line with site rule
Natasha Ziada (X)
Natasha Ziada (X)  Identity Verified
Australia
Local time: 19:27
English to Dutch
+ ...
Why not? Jan 15, 2017

Sounds like a perfectly reasonable view on editing/proofreading, nothing to worry about for a seasoned, non-beginner translator?

 
Preston Decker
Preston Decker  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:27
Chinese to English
Lack of societal, industry support Jan 15, 2017

For better or worse, 21st century society has determined that while translation is a necessary evil of global commerce and exchange, it is not a specialty to be valued on par with the legal,medical, scientific, and academic fields. The translation "industry" is therefore under-regulated by governments, and the entire translation sector largely resembles a Wild West in which translators and translation agencies compete for business based upon unsubstantiated claims of quality and service. Globa... See more
For better or worse, 21st century society has determined that while translation is a necessary evil of global commerce and exchange, it is not a specialty to be valued on par with the legal,medical, scientific, and academic fields. The translation "industry" is therefore under-regulated by governments, and the entire translation sector largely resembles a Wild West in which translators and translation agencies compete for business based upon unsubstantiated claims of quality and service. Global organizations such as Google are allowed to make grandiose, sweeping proclamations of technological advances without any objective, third-party verification of their veracity, while the national organizations,(ITI, ATA, etc.) do not have the funds and/or the willpower to provide the sort of quality guarantees that even the most basic of trade guilds provides.*

Simply put, Planet Earth has determined that when it comes to translation, 97% correct is good enough. This is why beginners enter the translation sector without the ability to provide entirely "professional" services--the world economy encourages (and perhaps needs) such translators. Arguing that beginner translators shouldn't "jump headfirst into the fray" is missing the point: the problem (if there is one**) lies with the value attached to translation in the global economy, not with the beginner translator who decides to go for it before he/she is objectively ready.***

* I have a friend who decided last year to enter a trade guild (union);guild members are trained industrial plant workers who repair and build advanced machinery. Many only have a high school degree. Nonetheless, the guild requires four years of apprenticeship before granting full membership and benefits. This would clearly be the way to structure an "ideal" translation industry association.

** Would the world as a whole be better off with higher translation fees and 99.5% accuracy vs. "97%" accuracy? Hard to say.

*** Most beginner translators feel they are capable of providing good translations when they begin, even if they are objectively not. The problem is not a moral one on the part of the beginner translator, but rather a failure of the industry to provide checks on the entrance of under-qualified translators into the marketplace.

[Edited at 2017-01-15 18:55 GMT]

[Edited at 2017-01-15 18:56 GMT]
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jyuan_us
jyuan_us  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 05:27
Member (2005)
Chinese to English
3D printer? Jan 16, 2017

Anna Sarah Krämer Fazendeiro wrote:

I recently bought a 3D printer to assemble at home following an incomplete manual in Spanish, containing pieces of bad quality. I got the machine to work after a lot of tweaking and research. Now I am the proud owner of a 3D printer.


What do you use your 3D printer for? Just curious.


 
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