| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Off topic: What's the most annoying event that can happen while translating? Thread poster: Gianni Pastore
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Gianni Pastore 
Italy
Local time: 09:55
Member (2007)
English to Italian
Anything goes, from call centers phoneing you up to promote the latest vacuum cleaner to being forced to go out to do something you really really hate.
Personally, the infamous Blue Screen of Death saying: "*** STOP 000000x000r NOT_LESS_OR_EQUAL" or similar wins hands down.
Come on people, scream it out LOUD!
| | | | | In my case... | Mar 18, 2006 |
... cat spilling Pepsi all over the keyboard and making it unusable on a Sunday evening, while translation was to be delivered on Monday morning.
But... fortunately, I always have a spare "everything" (keyboard/ mouse/ monitor etc.).
... and a spare cat, too
[Edited at 2006-03-18 21:23]
| | | | Tina Vonhof (X)
Canada
Local time: 01:55
Dutch to English
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I do a lot of work for private clients. The most frustrating thing is when I have a question that only the client can answer and he/she doesn't respond to my e-mail or phone call for 3 days, or doesn't know the answer, or says "can't you just leave it out?"
| | | | Ines Burrell
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:55
Member (2004)
English to Latvian
+ ...
| Kids going down with cold | Mar 18, 2006 |
It happends to me quite often - I have three of them. I have had to finish several projects with the little one sitting on my lap at the same time. You feel sorry for the poor child but also wish he/she could be more of a man and less of a mouse and let you work at least 15 minutes every now and then.
The seceond most annoying thing is talkative relatives (abovementioned and others). Deep down they probably do not believe you actually might be working and not just fooling around the Int... See more It happends to me quite often - I have three of them. I have had to finish several projects with the little one sitting on my lap at the same time. You feel sorry for the poor child but also wish he/she could be more of a man and less of a mouse and let you work at least 15 minutes every now and then.
The seceond most annoying thing is talkative relatives (abovementioned and others). Deep down they probably do not believe you actually might be working and not just fooling around the Internet. ▲ Collapse
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David Russi
United States
Local time: 01:55
English to Spanish
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| 3 of the most annoying things that have happened to me | Mar 18, 2006 |
1. You asked at the outset if there was previously translated software or other reference material for the user manual you are to translate, they said no; now you are two thirds through, and you get an email saying "Sorry, we just received this from Spain...". Of course, nothing matches what you're doing.
2. Related to 1: You are following the previously translated SW that you asked for and were provided, and now that you are half way through, the PM calls you and tells you that the... See more 1. You asked at the outset if there was previously translated software or other reference material for the user manual you are to translate, they said no; now you are two thirds through, and you get an email saying "Sorry, we just received this from Spain...". Of course, nothing matches what you're doing.
2. Related to 1: You are following the previously translated SW that you asked for and were provided, and now that you are half way through, the PM calls you and tells you that the client just realized that they sent you the unedited version.
3. You are editing your own work, and Trados mucks everything up with Samsung font. ▲ Collapse
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When I have a deadline to meet and a backache to endure... just like now. Need I say more?
Seadeta
| | | | Irene N
United States
Local time: 02:55
English to Russian
+ ...
| 5 minutes ago | Mar 18, 2006 |
Last pair of batteries in my cordless mouse went dead. Clever me, forgot to buy spares yesterday. A tight deadline is tonight and I must run to the store.
Right now I appreciate the value of mastering more than 1 language - more swearing options:-)
Cheers
Irene
| | | | Jack Doughty
United Kingdom
Local time: 08:55
Russian to English
+ ...
In memoriam | "Don't confuse me with the fax!" | Mar 18, 2006 |
My fax machine packs up. I wonder whether to replace it, since I hardly ever use it these days, but decide I’ll get a cheap one just in case. About three days later, a client wants to send me 31 pages by fax because her scanner is not working. My new fax prints 14 pages and packs up. It is out of ribbon (it has a roll of something that looks a bit like carbon paper instead of the usual ink cassette or toner cartridge). Go back to the store where I bought it (about a 40-mile round trip), t... See more My fax machine packs up. I wonder whether to replace it, since I hardly ever use it these days, but decide I’ll get a cheap one just in case. About three days later, a client wants to send me 31 pages by fax because her scanner is not working. My new fax prints 14 pages and packs up. It is out of ribbon (it has a roll of something that looks a bit like carbon paper instead of the usual ink cassette or toner cartridge). Go back to the store where I bought it (about a 40-mile round trip), the sales person says “Oh, they always give you as little as they can in the peripherals that come with faxes, you’ll find a standard one will last longer”. It has, and it printed out the rest of the job with plenty to spare. But it annoys me that makers skimp on the peripherals in this way. ▲ Collapse
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Henry Hinds
United States
Local time: 01:55
English to Spanish
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In memoriam
You're just winding up the translation when you get a message saying "STOP, we've decided we do not need it after all, hope you haven't started yet".
Of course, when they authorized it they needed it yesterday.
| | | | Ford Prefect
Burkina Faso
Local time: 07:55
German to English
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Maria Diaconu wrote:
... cat spilling Pepsi all over the keyboard and making it unusable on a Sunday evening...[Edited at 2006-03-18 21:23]
Does your cat really drink Pepsi?
| | | | | mine drinks tea :-) | Mar 18, 2006 |
My cat was drinking my jasmine tea yesterday... He always walks over my laptop and sits on my keybord, and yesterday evening I discovered he had typed some words in my translation! Fortunately I caught it in time! But the most annoying thing is talkative people yeah, and the power going down five times every hour (I live in an old house in Portugal)...
| | | | sarahl (X)
Local time: 00:55
English to French
+ ...
| Anxious client | Mar 18, 2006 |
calling every 5 minutes to know where you are and if you'll meet the deadline -which you probably won't if s/he keeps this up.
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Clarisa Moraña
United States
Local time: 02:55
Member (2002)
English to Spanish
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| My dear family! | Mar 19, 2006 |
1)
Let's say that I'm working in a huge and difficult project. I have to deliver it tomorrow morning. Thus, I instruct my three kids to pretend thay mummy is not there. They behave surprisingly well and my husband arrives. He understands the situation and decides to help me preparing dinner.
-Dear, which pan do I use for the spagetthi?-
-Honey, do you think this is enough water?
-Dear, does the water need salt?
- How do you know that the pasta is ready?... See more 1)
Let's say that I'm working in a huge and difficult project. I have to deliver it tomorrow morning. Thus, I instruct my three kids to pretend thay mummy is not there. They behave surprisingly well and my husband arrives. He understands the situation and decides to help me preparing dinner.
-Dear, which pan do I use for the spagetthi?-
-Honey, do you think this is enough water?
-Dear, does the water need salt?
- How do you know that the pasta is ready?
- Could you please taste it?
2) My mother, she lives six blocks away. And she decides to visit me and brings something really delicious for teatime, or homemade spaghetti. But I'm finishing a translation, the delivery time is quite near, and I can only say hello to her and sit back on my chair to go on translating. My mother gets offended, I get offended also, I miss the opportunity of having a great time chatting with my mum and eating something delicious, and at the end I hate my clients for having asked such a horrible job.
3) It's two o'clock in the morning. I've just finished a translation job and I'm really tired. I've been working all the day long, and I want to go to bed right now! And my eldest girl - a teenager who barely wants to speak to me - asks me to help to organize her 15th birthday party!
But please, don't let mislead. I do love my family!
Regards
Clarisa
[Edited at 2006-03-19 04:41] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Why do you need more information? | Mar 19, 2006 |
Well, that's one thing I've heard so often... that I'm asking myself the same question
A client asks me to do a technical thing... without knowing anything about the project. No inormation about what are those things that they are talking about...
After all, you just have to put it in another language.
Talk about quality... come on that's not important.
I've been asking myself wh... See more Well, that's one thing I've heard so often... that I'm asking myself the same question
A client asks me to do a technical thing... without knowing anything about the project. No inormation about what are those things that they are talking about...
After all, you just have to put it in another language.
Talk about quality... come on that's not important.
I've been asking myself what am I doing? I'd be better off getting a MT done from Altavista What do you think? ▲ Collapse
| | | | sergey (X)
Local time: 08:55
Russian to English
+ ...
| source text ... | Mar 19, 2006 |
realising that the source text is poorly written, later finding words, expressions that a native would never use ...
realising that calling the dutch, german etc... client to find out what he wanted to say in that sentence would mean questioning his english language skills ...
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