Archive for September, 2008

Many times clients will request what is called a back translation which is essentially a way to verify the accuracy of a translation. The most common areas for back translations are science and medicine, whether they are medical forms, informed consent forms, research study protocols, etc. For instance, let’s say a client submitted a document in Spanish for translation into English. A back translation would involve using the translated text in English as the source document and translating it back into Spanish. The client would then compare the original Spanish text with the translated Spanish to make sure the English text was a correct translation of the original. For medical and science translations, it is especially important that all information is accurately represented in both languages.

Back translations can also be a helpful tool for freelance translators, especially when wanting to ensure absolute quality of a translation. Although it implies an extra cost, it is worth it to know that the document you translated represents the original text to the highest degree.

Today, clients commonly deliver files in PDF format for a price quote for translation, edition and proofreading services.

This format, which is very practical for sending a file through the Internet, cannot be edited, and thus, when the translation, edition and proofreading services are purchased, it would be helpful if the client would send the original document in an editable format, whether in Word, Excel, InDesign, Quark, Publisher, etc. so that the translator can easily work with the same format of the original document, without having to read the PDF with some conversion program.

If this original editable document is not sent, graphic design services have to put in an extra effort to recreate the file, which will likely be reflected in the translation costs billed to the client.

Therefore, in order to reduce costs for the client for graphic design services and in order to facilitate the translation process, ideally the client would send the freelance translator or translation agency the original editable documents for translation, edition, etc.

When delivering projects to larger translation agencies or clients who use the Trados CAT tool, learning how to export and import translation memories is fundamental for smooth deliveries. Instead of delivering the five files that generate the translation memory (TM), which usually implies a large file size, you can simply export your TM into an easy-to-use .txt file or import the .txt file into an existing translation memory.

To begin, first open up your TM exclusively. (This means that you are the only one that can have access to it and modify it when you open it.) Next, under the File menu, click on Export.

The screen that pops up is predetermined and you do not have to do anything besides click OK.

Now, the dialog box will ask you where you want to save your .txt file. It is usually best to save it in the folder designated for the TM. Or, you can also create a sub-folder called “Export” if you are working with both imported and exported memories.

Once you click OK, the export process will run automatically. The final product is the .txt file in the folder you designated.

Be sure to check that the process ran smoothly by looking at the bottom portion of your TM window. Look for the Export finished successfully message, which will also indicate how many translation units were exported.

Now that you have a .txt file, you can also import it into an existing TM. Create your TM first (or open an existing one), then go to File and Import.

Again, the window that appears is predetermined and many times no modification of the settings is required. However, you can change the Existing translation units settings so that the segments are merged, overwritten, etc.

Next you will need to select the .txt file you are going to import and click OK.

The import process is now finalized and the segments from the .txt file will appear in your Translation Memory. As with the export step, if the import was successful the following message will appear: Import finished successfully.

As we already know, one word can have several different meanings which will be defined according to the context. For example, the word trial can have one meaning in a legal document about litigation and another meaning in a document about labor relations. What’s more, these meanings shouldn’t be confused with the meaning that the word has in a medical document.

Unfortunately, not all examples are as clear as this one, and in this case, the translator must have vast knowledge of the topic in order to properly translate the document. We have all been in uncomfortable situations where we are concentrated on reading the document and have found a rhythm when suddenly an unintelligible phrase or word makes us put on the brakes.

This phrase is unintelligible to us precisely because the person who wrote the document did not understand it and thus formulated a completely incoherent sentence lacking basic logic. Of course, we can’t all be specialists and translators in different areas at the same time, but we must rely on specialists in the diverse areas of our translations as much as possible in order to clarify questions or doubts. It is important to keep in mind that the client can act as the specialist and help resolve these types of problems as well.

For many agencies and translation service providers, the process of translation for client delivery involves more steps than simply the translation. It typically requires both an edition and proofreading stage before the document is ready for delivery. However, as translation is the first step in this process, also known as TEP (translation-edition-proofreading), delivering a quality translation from the start is essential for the other steps to run smoothly.

For this post, we have put together some simple tips that will help the translator deliver a higher quality product and thus facilitate later revisions:

1. Before agreeing to a translation, be sure to revise the document first and make sure that you feel comfortable both with the subject matter and language flavor.

2. Also, make sure you are familiar with the file format or requested translation tools such as CAT tools.

3. While translating, use any reference material, style guides or translation glossaries sent to you so that your terminology and style are consistent with other documents for the same client.

4. While you are working, have dictionaries or other online resources specific to the topic you are translating at hand for easy reference.

5. Contact the project manager or client immediately if you foresee any problems with the document.

6. When finished translating, read over the document once more to make sure that the text makes sense and there are no errors.

7. You should always look at your translation as if it were the final product, and don’t count on editors or proofreaders to fix your mistakes.

8. Be sure to run a spelling and grammar check before delivery.

9. Check the translated document against the source for any missing text or formatting issues.

10. With your file delivery, be sure to include any notes or comments for the client or for the editors about the translation.

From the beginning of time there have always been conflicts between mankind, and in order to settle these matters without violence or reprisal, these parties come together before the courts so that an impartial third party can analyze the evidence presented by both sides and ascertain their claims.
Without any kind of personal or commercial connection to either of the parties, this impartial third party must analyze a variety of evidence and as such, must use the assistance of individuals specializing in diverse matters.
These specialists are the experts, and in our case, translation or interpretation experts. Their task is to translate documents or interpret declarations so that the judge(s) involved in the case can analyze and understand the extent of the presented evidence or other matters that are essential for its resolution.
Similarly to how translators with the necessary experience and background are required in the business world, translators must also have the proper academic certification and experience in the case of legal translations, since only legal translators can act as experts. Aside from translating and interpreting, their task also includes presenting the corresponding documents according to the file’s procedural status.
As such, translators and interpreters who wish to work in this exciting field must be further trained in the specifics of this discipline.

One of the helpful tools in the Trados program is the Clean Up function. This function removes all the hidden text and updates the translation memory so that it includes any changes you may have made to the document outside of the translation segments. Whether you are working directly with clients or with translation agencies, knowing how to clean up your file is a fundamental part of the translation process with Trados.

1. To begin, select the Clean Up option in the Tools menu:

2. Next, you need to select the file that you want to clean up by selecting “Add…”

3. Once the file is selected, you can create a log file which will enable you to keep a record of the clean-up process and view any errors that occurred during the process. Select a location for the log file and give it a name:

4. Now that your log file is created, you can select one of the four options for how your document will be cleaned up. The best option to use is Update TM so that any changes made are incorporated into the TM, regardless of whether or not the translation segment was open when you made them:

5. Now you can click on the Clean Up button to complete the process. Once the function has been executed, the window will look like this:

6. If there were any errors in the process, simply go to Log File - View and the .txt file will open, displaying any errors such as broken tags or corrupted segments. If there were no errors, the following message will appear at the end of the file: “Cleanup finished successfully without errors!”

7. As part of the clean-up process, the program will automatically generate a .csv file (same as the .txt log file) and backup file with the .BAK extension. This file is the bilingual file, i.e., it has both the original and target text and is simply a safety measure so that you don’t lose the bilingual file in the clean-up process.

Today, national markets are just not enough when it comes time to market businesses’ products and services. Although a company may be successful on a national level, the competition is already massively prepared to compete abroad and thus increase their chances of attracting new clients.

As a consequence, in order for a business to reach new markets, it is necessary to have one new essential characteristic: polyglotism. Within the framework of this new essential requirement for companies is the need for translation and interpretation services which are fundamental in order to compete within the same national market in order to provide a full service offering.

Most translators are familiar with the expression “traduttore, traditore” meaning “translator, traitor” and have their own personal experiences with the difficulties in translation. We have all seen poor-quality translations, translated text that is virtually unintelligible for a native speaker, translations that misrepresent the original text and blatant mistakes whether in subtitles, song lyrics, or in day-to-day document translations. Translators become the villains in this story–the easy targets when pointing the finger. After all, translation is really about just taking words from one language and finding the equivalent in the target language, right? So how hard can it really be?

Well, for starters, translation is no easy task and involves much more than simply transferring the words into another language. It requires research, thorough understanding of both the original and target languages, cultural knowledge, and specific training on the topic you are translating. And even then, there are still inherent problems with the language itself that lend themselves to numerous interpretations and glaring mistakes. There are just some phrases that are so connected to cultural context that it is next to impossible to provide an equivalent translation of the text that also bears the same meaning.

So, what exactly is the translator’s job when faced with these difficult expressions? Is it better to translate them literally so as not to “betray” the text but at the risk of a lower quality translation, or is it better to find the closest alternative that makes sense in the target language, even though the translated version may slightly modify the idea? Most translators would say that their task is to effectively communicate the same idea so that it makes sense to native speakers, but does that mean we are doomed to constant criticism?

The accusations and criticism aside, translation is an essential and rewarding task. As Goethe puts it, “Say what we may of the inadequacy of translation, yet the work is and will always be one of the weightiest and worthiest undertakings in the general concerns of the world.”

As translators, we frequently work on high-volume projects, but keeping consistency within one or several documents can be tricky. In order to delivery a quality product to the client, we need to use the CONCORDANCE function within the TRADOS CAT (computer-aided translation) tool, which is widely used, or should be, among translators.

In order to apply this function, do the following:

1. Highlight the expression you want to search within the translation memory:

2. Click on the CONCORDANCE function in the TRADOS bar:

3. The translation memory will display the other occurrences of the expression you highlighted within this document or within the other documents used with this same translation memory:

If we make it a habit to utilize this Trados function when translating or editing, all documents that we deliver to the same client will always be consistent in the terminology.