Samuel Murray Netherlands Local time: 02:42 Member (2006) English to Afrikaans + ...
The problem with a technical text
Oct 10, 2010
Ali Al-Saqqa wrote:
I simply can't see the reason for not applying this suggestion, you will have, say, a literature, medical and technical contests. Maybe also an economics one.
The problem with any technical text is that you're limiting the pool of participants to people in that specific field. Anyone can translate a literary text (okay, that is not 100% true, but the principle is that you need only a general dictionary and no subject-specific knowledge).
If a second text is to be offered, it should be something that any translator can translate (which is why I suggested a current-affairs text).
What makes a contesdt text challenging should not be the density of the terminology but the eloquence required to maintain the same effect as the original.
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Katalin Szilárd Hungary Local time: 02:42 Member (2006) English to Hungarian + ...
Maybe a poll should be done
Oct 10, 2010
Samuel Murray wrote:
The problem with any technical text is that you're limiting the pool of participants to people in that specific field. Anyone can translate a literary text (okay, that is not 100% true, but the principle is that you need only a general dictionary and no subject-specific knowledge).
Hi Samuel,
I don't know how many people on proz.com are working as a literary translator, but in my opinion there are more people, who are working as a technical, medical, economic etc. translator. So I assume there would be a demand for technical contests as well.
Maybe contests should be held regularly and more often: 2 or 4 times a year and every time in different technical fields. I haven't participated in any of the contests yet, for example the text from the last contest was already published in Hungarian...
In case of literary texts it is more likely that it is published in other languages, meanwhile this is not the case if you choose technical texts (legal, medical, technical).
Regards,
Katalin
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Samuel Murray Netherlands Local time: 02:42 Member (2006) English to Afrikaans + ...
Literary versus technical
Oct 10, 2010
Katalin Szilárd wrote:
Maybe contests should be held regularly and more often: 2 or 4 times a year and every time in different technical fields. I haven't participated in any of the contests yet, for example the text from the last contest was already published in Hungarian...
More frequent contests would be nice, yes. And the fact that the contest text was already translated into your language was no excuse for not attempting your own translation.
But the problem with technical texts is that these entries are likely to be judged not on skilled language usage or ability to come up with clever solutions to difficult problems, but on what the person judging it would consider to be correct terminology. A text may be excellent but if it contains terminology that the judging translator disagrees with, he will vote it down.
Also, technical texts are often perceived to be more literal, and this may cause a non-technical translator to vote down a text as "following the source text too closely" whereas another may vote another text down for "not following the source text close enough". So which technical translation is better -- the one that reads more like an original but isn't 100% accurate, or the one that's 100% accurate but reads like something a robot would have translated?
[quote[...meanwhile this is not the case if you choose technical texts (legal, medical, technical).[/quote]
I can see how legal and medical can be considered types of technical, but what do you mean by "technical" in that list?
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Katalin Szilárd Hungary Local time: 02:42 Member (2006) English to Hungarian + ...
Literary vs. technical
Oct 10, 2010
Samuel Murray wrote:
More frequent contests would be nice, yes. And the fact that the contest text was already translated into your language was no excuse for not attempting your own translation.
I do think it matters a lot if a text has already been translated. Who is going to check whether somebody has been using the already translated text as his/her own contest text?
Samuel Murray wrote:
But the problem with technical texts is that these entries are likely to be judged not on skilled language usage or ability to come up with clever solutions to difficult problems, but on what the person judging it would consider to be correct terminology. A text may be excellent but if it contains terminology that the judging translator disagrees with, he will vote it down.
I don't really understand what you mean here. Of course terminology would matter, and of course people could disagree or agree. This is the same with literary translation. Actually literary translation is much much more subjective than legal, technical, medical etc. translations... It is much easier to disagree in case of literary translations than technical translations for example. Literary translation is a question of preferential voting (like or dislike) and not the question of correct or not correct. Probably people would think it twice before they vote. And this is a good thing. Don't you think so?
Samuel Murray wrote:
Also, technical texts are often perceived to be more literal, and this may cause a non-technical translator to vote down a text as "following the source text too closely" whereas another may vote another text down for "not following the source text close enough". So which technical translation is better -- the one that reads more like an original but isn't 100% accurate, or the one that's 100% accurate but reads like something a robot would have translated?
I think this potential risk is the same with literary translations. Which literary translator is better? Who is using totally different metaphors or proverbs than what are used in the source text, or the one who is trying to translate the text almost word by word?
Samuel Murray wrote:
I can see how legal and medical can be considered types of technical, but what do you mean by "technical" in that list?
According to my English knowledge and to many translation agencies in English-native speaking countries when it comes to translations, "technical" can also mean a collection of fields which are related to specific professions: like medical, legal, marketing etc. Technical texts (for example legal, medical, technical etc.) and non-technical texts (for example general, literary).
[Edited at 2010-10-10 20:12 GMT]
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
cc in nyc United States Local time: 20:42 French to English
Type of translation
Nov 17, 2010
My 2¢... I think that even with a technical or scientific text, people who do not work in the particular corner of the field represented would pass it up. In my opinion, a general text would draw the best sampling of translations. And oh that's right – it might tax participants with phrasing, tone, etc. But – um, maybe I'm a little lost here – isn't that exactly the point of a contest?
Wishing everyone a great day!
[Edited at 2010-11-17 22:32 GMT]
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
cc in nyc United States Local time: 20:42 French to English
In the meantime...
Jan 21, 2011
...2010 has ended and we still haven't had any news about a new contest. Boohoo!
Subject:
Comment:
The contents of this post will automatically be included in the ticket generated. Please add any additional comments or explanation (optional)
Start and finish your translations faster than ever with Fluency Translation Suite 2011. TMs, Terminology, and Online Resources are all fully integrated and only a click away. Download a free trial today!
SDL Trados Studio 2011 is the latest market-leading translation memory software from SDL. Now with Track Changes, Bilingual Word Files support, new Display Filter, AutoSuggest and more great details.
The translation workplace 
