Off topic: How do you find time to post topics and keep track of forums? Thread poster: Vanessa Rivera Rivier
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This is just a curiosity I have...I see that a lot of people are constantly posting topics or giving replies...ALL OVER THE FORUMS. I mean, how do you do it and still manage to work? Where do you find the time? It takes some serious work to be actively engaged in 10+ forum topics at the same time.
[Edited at 2006-06-15 06:32] | | |
Elena Pavan Local time: 03:09 Member (2005) French to Italian + ... Use the Proz.com options | Jun 15, 2006 |
Hi! I am always in a hurry, I never have enough time to do what I would like to, but still... As for the forums, it's a kind of "coffee break" for me. When I'm tired and want to have a break, I often like to look up at the forums. And when I see an interesting subject, I simply tick "All posts" in the right upper corner of the page, then click on "Update email tracking". You will receive all new answers for that specific forum by e-mail, you can read the beginning of the answer on yo... See more Hi! I am always in a hurry, I never have enough time to do what I would like to, but still... As for the forums, it's a kind of "coffee break" for me. When I'm tired and want to have a break, I often like to look up at the forums. And when I see an interesting subject, I simply tick "All posts" in the right upper corner of the page, then click on "Update email tracking". You will receive all new answers for that specific forum by e-mail, you can read the beginning of the answer on your message and click on the link to the forum, if the answer looks interesting. As for the Kudoz, I selected the options in the Dashboard to get all the Kudoz questions concerning my couples of languages by e-mail. But I must say that I often have a quick look to the message and don't click on the link all the time.... not enough time!!! ▲ Collapse | | |
The unlimited benefits of using the forums | Jun 15, 2006 |
Hello Vanessa, I can only speak for myself, although I think many of us will agree. Every morning, I spend about 30 minutes "getting ready" for work. It's not as sudden as starting to work right away. The routine is make coffee while I turn on the computer, and when the coffee is ready, I sit and read my e-mail. I fix everything I can right away and take note of stuff for later in the day. Then, on to ProZ. I take about 15 minutes out of the 30 I spend getting ready for... See more Hello Vanessa, I can only speak for myself, although I think many of us will agree. Every morning, I spend about 30 minutes "getting ready" for work. It's not as sudden as starting to work right away. The routine is make coffee while I turn on the computer, and when the coffee is ready, I sit and read my e-mail. I fix everything I can right away and take note of stuff for later in the day. Then, on to ProZ. I take about 15 minutes out of the 30 I spend getting ready for work to check out what's new. I check if there are any KudoZ I can help with, if there are any changes to the site I need to be aware of, take a look at jobs (and hardly ever like what I see) and then I check the forums. This will sound like a corny infomercial, but by spending just 15 minutes per day on the forums, you get news about the industry you work in, get information on how to fix things, how to get paid, how to say no when you need to, how to work on a computer, where to go for specific terminology, etc. I find that 15 minutes of my day is not too much to pay for being aware of the industry and learning things that will eventually come in handy with work. The same goes for helping others. To me, investing a couple of minutes per day to help someone who's stuck or who wants to get paid is worth it, because the few minutes I spend helping that person might save them a whole day of work, which is great - and I sure would appreciate someone doing that for me one day when I'm in need. It doesn't really take that much time, either, to post. If you compile the number of posts a person makes in a day and calculate the time it may have taken them to type it out, you will find that they probably still have plenty of time left for work. To me, the key is to not wander onto ProZ when you are actively working, unless you want to use KudoZ for a term you have trouble with. By keeping focused on work and not interrupting what you are doing to get lost in the forums, you can be efficient and read plenty of stuff, as well as post. So, make sure you only check the forum before and after work, not during - you can often drift off, according to my experience ▲ Collapse | | |
Sonja Tomaskovic (X) Germany Local time: 03:09 English to German + ...
I use an RSS reader software and have added the RSS feeds for those forums that are of interest to me. Whenever there is a new post, I am notified automatically and can choose to read only such posts that I find interesting. Sonja | |
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Heinrich Pesch Finland Local time: 04:09 Member (2003) Finnish to German + ... There are only few postings each day | Jun 15, 2006 |
Considering the amount of professionals registered there is amazingly little traffic here, even in the English fora. I have a glimps once in a while when refreshing the start page. Even in the German forum there is only one or two new threads a day. Compared to the mailing list for Finnish translators with its hundreds of messages each day proz.com is a quiet place. So no problem. Playing SolSuite takes much more of my time than Proz.com, alas! Regards Heinrich | | |
Samuel Murray Netherlands Local time: 03:09 Member (2006) English to Afrikaans + ... I have fast internet... at the office | Jun 15, 2006 |
Vanessa Rivera Rivier wrote: I mean, how do you do it and still manage to work? I have fast internet at the office, so during office hours I can sneak a peek at the forums at any time if there is a lull in the work. I work in the advertising department of a daily newspaper, so you get quiet times and then you get verrrrrrrry busy times, and during the quiet times you have to keep yourself busy somehow. I use the "most recent posts" feature of Proz and I only read the topics that seem relevant to me. If the thread seems to be a chatty thread, I skim-read only (and I reply only to the first post). I don't nit-pick (I don't have time for that). However, when I'm busy with a single piece of work, I prefer to shut down my browser so that I can focus on the work. This is when IM can be a bother... | | |
Aurora HumarĂ¡n (X) Argentina Local time: 23:09 English to Spanish + ...
Vanessa Rivera Rivier wrote: I mean, how do you do it and still manage to work? Where do you find the time? It takes some serious work to be actively engaged in 10+ forum topics at the same time. Don't sleep! I agree with what the prozmates say above: forums are a coffee break for me, a very good company. These days I am extremely busy with the coming conference, but I used to be the heaviest poster in the site (still are, I guess) and I would say that sharing all types of topics with fellow translators (who feel passion for the same things I feel passion) is something I love. No obligation whatsoever, just talking with people who love etymology as I do, who care about literature as I do, and the origin of languages, and dialects vs languages... You know, our world. Au | | |