Off topic: How many words a person can translate in a day?
Mark Xiang China Local time: 10:48 English to Chinese + ...
In that case, your friend is a millionaire now!^_^
Feb 23, 2005
Let's suppose the rate is USD0.08/word. If one translates 3000 words per hour and works 8 hours per day, 1 week (7 days) every month, he/she will earn USD3000 X 0.08 X 8 X 7=USD13,440.00 every month.
If he/she works two weeks and the rate is USD0.05/word, his/her monthly income is USD16,800.00.
If he/she works 15 days every month and the rate is USD0.10/word, his/her monthly income is USD36,000.00.
Easy to become a millionaire? ^_^
Mark
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Jeff Allen France Local time: 03:48 Member (2011) English to Haitian-Creole + ...
typing speed as one inherent variable of translation speed
Mar 1, 2005
ace-translation wrote:
If we take into account secretarial standards of about 45 words per minute, a well trained secretary should be able to type 2700 words/hour. This, of course, is only possible if she/he maintains the same output for 60 minutes (without blowing her/his nose, drinking, sneezing, yawning...)
It is also worth mentioning that we are only talking about typing here and not translating...
GoodWords wrote:
I hope my post on typing speeds isn't misinterpreted as saying that typing and translating are almost alike. My point is that if a good typist can only type, say 2000 words per hour (allowing time for blowing the nose, drinking, etc.), (and who could keep that up without a break for hour after hour?), then any claim for translation speed has to take this figure as a baseline. It would be unreal to imagine that someone could translate faster than a mere typist could type.
See the following post which provides the reference to my article (available online at no cost) containing a survey of translation speed that I conducted in early 2004. I also explained in that article how typing speed is one (very important but not only) variable in determining translation speed:
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Jeff Allen France Local time: 03:48 Member (2011) English to Haitian-Creole + ...
impossible to type 3000-4000 words in 30 min
Mar 1, 2005
langclinic wrote:
I had the chance of having a chat with one of my friends day before yesterday. During the course of chat, he informed me that he can translate and type 3000-4000 words in just 30 minutes. When I expressed my disbelief, he extended the time and said that he can do so in a maximum time of 60 minutes.
This is impossible. This represents burst typing at a rate of 100-133 words per minute if done during a time slot of 30 minutes.
The word record typing speed is around 150 wpm. I know a person who could do 127 wpm.
I took 2 years of traditional typing courses when I was in junior high school and made it to 72 wpm with 3 mistakes. I don't recall having known any of my peers during that time period who went higher than 75.
Typing is reproducing character by character what is written on a piece of paper in front of you. It is only reflex-based. If the world record is 150, then it is impossible for someone to perform cognitive translation processes plus physical reflex via the fingers at near world-record typing speed.
I've had heard of people in my survey work who dictated into a conventional dictation system at a rate of 15,000 words and up to 22,000 words per day, with typists behind them doing the typing. But then they were completely out of commission without a voice for several days afterward.
The translation workplace 
