| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | The KudoZ "addiction" Thread poster: Todd Field
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Well, I\'m hardly someone to brag about my KudoZ points, but I can tell you why I answer these questions. It\'s fun. I enjoy it for several reasons -
1. I like to be helpful. If someone is really stumped, and I can provide enlightenment, why not?
2. I have the time for this at this point in my life. My translation business is not yet fully established, and my other businesses are at a low ebb during the summer anyway.
3. It keeps my translation ... See more Well, I\'m hardly someone to brag about my KudoZ points, but I can tell you why I answer these questions. It\'s fun. I enjoy it for several reasons -
1. I like to be helpful. If someone is really stumped, and I can provide enlightenment, why not?
2. I have the time for this at this point in my life. My translation business is not yet fully established, and my other businesses are at a low ebb during the summer anyway.
3. It keeps my translation skills sharp.
4. Sometimes, I learn a new word. Or two. Or three.
5. I like to think I\'m good at it. And it\'s fun to do things one is good at. Besides, I\'m horrified at the number of replies I see that are ungrammatical, incorrect, or both. If I can supply a correct answer, I feel somewhat obligated to do so, and rescue a fellow translator from a grievous error.
LM ▲ Collapse
| | | | Henry Hinds 
United States
Local time: 05:19
English to Spanish
+ ...
In memoriam | It is a bit addictive | Jul 9, 2004 |
I get up, fire up the computer, get some coffee and see what is on Proz.com. Depending on how much work there is that day I may sign on quite a bit or only a few times during the day. There have also been times when I have been traveling for long periods with only very sporadic Prozing.
I have done it for several years now with no idea I could ever amass so many points, and no real desire to do so except that I enjoy helping my colleagues, learning new things and meeting new people,... See more I get up, fire up the computer, get some coffee and see what is on Proz.com. Depending on how much work there is that day I may sign on quite a bit or only a few times during the day. There have also been times when I have been traveling for long periods with only very sporadic Prozing.
I have done it for several years now with no idea I could ever amass so many points, and no real desire to do so except that I enjoy helping my colleagues, learning new things and meeting new people, either virtually or in person. I am one of those who had to grow in isolation and I welcome the contact that modern technology has given us.
I don't see that I have made much money out of it and indeed, when making money gets in the way, making money gets all my attention.
I have always shunned competition with others, so I guess my only motivation in that area is competing with myself. That guy that's just behind me will never let me rest, he's my shadow. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Juan R. Migoya (X)
Local time: 13:19
English to Spanish
| What about "the other" attitude? | Jul 9, 2004 |
Todd and Monica Field wrote:
I'm writing out of pure curiosity in an attempt to unearth the motives for some of the intense participation levels that exist in KudoZ.
...
Todd
Dear Tood: I understand your curiosity, and hope you have got enough explanation in those previous replies.
You question is recurrent: It appears several times in a year.
I suspect you will never get a definite answer: each person may have his/her own motivation to participate in the Kudoz system.
Personally, I think Kudoz is an excellent tool to get help from other colleagues with deeper knowledge about an specific field, and I take advantage of it whenever I need.
Your curiosity about some people answering too many questions is quite understandable, but I have a bigger curiosity about another related question: How can a person make questions in Kudoz, and never answer anyone? Is it possible that those people never see a question and think: “Oh! I know a lot about this. Lets help!” Well, may be they are so busy they have only time to enter in the site to make his/her question and run out before anybody catch him/her with a stupid question. Oh, they are very professional, have no time to “play”.
Just curious.
Juan R. Migoya
| | | | tazdog (X)
Spain
Local time: 13:19
Spanish to English
+ ...
I’m a regular (if not addicted) Kudoz participant, and have wondered the same thing on many occasions, i.e., how anyone can answer hundreds of questions a week (and where they find the time!). I have the definite impression that some of them are just in it for the points, while others really are trying to help so askers can benefit from their experience. In the former case, for example, I have seen assiduous answerers just disappear altogether for months on end--until one day they drop out of... See more I’m a regular (if not addicted) Kudoz participant, and have wondered the same thing on many occasions, i.e., how anyone can answer hundreds of questions a week (and where they find the time!). I have the definite impression that some of them are just in it for the points, while others really are trying to help so askers can benefit from their experience. In the former case, for example, I have seen assiduous answerers just disappear altogether for months on end--until one day they drop out of the top 10/15 etc. in the ranking of Kudoz leaders for that particular language pair, at which time they make a sudden reappearance and take up where they left off so they can recover their lost position in the ranking.
I tend to be very selective in answering questions. Since a large part of the appeal for me is the challenge, I seldom answer easy questions, or questions that are outside of the subject areas I regularly work with. If I have time, I don't mind spending 15 or 20 minutes to track down a term, especially if it's one I might run into myself one day (which happened earlier this week, actually, where a term I had researched a couple months ago for someone else's question came up in my text). Even if I'm short of time, I'll answer questions when I’ve got the terms (and references) right in the glossaries I've carefully compiled over the years.
I have to admit that I’m also a bit selective about whose questions I answer. There are a few regular askers whose questions I simply ignore, because I have seen in the past that they either don't make an effort to find the answers themselves, are consistently working on jobs that are way over their heads, which means that they often choose answers that are way out in left field, etc. (So I guess that answers the philanthropy question in my case!) There are others whose questions I will always try to answer if I can, because I know they don't ask questions lightly, have helped me with my own questions on many occasions, etc.
I don’t know for sure if Kudoz points help get jobs. No one who’s contacted me to offer me a job has ever mentioned them. I think they may play a role, but are just one part of the overall “package” a translator can present on Proz (along with profile, portfolio, CV/résumé, etc.). ▲ Collapse
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