Website translation – do any special conditions apply?
Thread poster: Joy Lewis
Joy Lewis
Joy Lewis
Barbados
Local time: 14:43
Member (2007)
French to English
+ ...
Mar 12, 2007

Dear All,

First let me apologise if this query has been addressed before but I was not able to find any related topics in the forums I visited.

I have been asked to provide a quote for the translation of a web site. Although I’ve been translating for 17 years, this would be my first website translation, and so I was wondering how I would structure my rates; would my usual per source word tariff actually be feasible? What major differences would I be likely to encounte
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Dear All,

First let me apologise if this query has been addressed before but I was not able to find any related topics in the forums I visited.

I have been asked to provide a quote for the translation of a web site. Although I’ve been translating for 17 years, this would be my first website translation, and so I was wondering how I would structure my rates; would my usual per source word tariff actually be feasible? What major differences would I be likely to encounter while working in this format than say a Word, PP or Excel file?

Thanks in advance for all replies/suggestions. I look forward to reading them

Best regards,


Joy
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Mulyadi Subali
Mulyadi Subali  Identity Verified
Indonesia
Local time: 01:43
Member
English to Indonesian
+ ...
same rate should be ok Mar 13, 2007

the only difference is in the format. usually web pages are in html format. to translate them properly, you might need special tools, as it contains tags. if you use trados, you can use the tageditor to do the translation.

 
Margaret Schroeder
Margaret Schroeder  Identity Verified
Mexico
Local time: 12:43
Spanish to English
+ ...
Some other posts on the topic Mar 13, 2007

http://www.proz.com/topic/63568
...
See more
http://www.proz.com/topic/63568
http://www.proz.com/topic/59884
http://www.proz.com/topic/39187
http://www.proz.com/topic/38677
http://www.proz.com/topic/19511
http://www.proz.com/topic/17365
http://www.proz.com/topic/15548
http://www.proz.com/topic/15014
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Samuel Murray
Samuel Murray  Identity Verified
Netherlands
Local time: 20:43
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
If CAT, same rate Mar 13, 2007

Joy Lewis wrote:
...I was wondering how I would structure my rates; would my usual per source word tariff actually be feasible?


If you're using CAT tools capable of handling HTML files, then you could charge your normal word rate and get away with it, because the formatting won't slow you down.

What major differences would I be likely to encounter while working in this format than say a Word, PP or Excel file?


HTML files are full of code, with the text to be translated inbetween. You should know which codes to touch and which not to touch (if you're using CAT, this won't be a problem because the CAT tool will separate them for you).


 
NMR (X)
NMR (X)
France
Local time: 20:43
French to Dutch
+ ...
If no CAT but dogs, charge more Mar 13, 2007

If the client asks you to use special software (to be downloaded from Internet, or directly on-line) charge more, because you cannot use your normal working methods in this case and you may have problems (internet not available, slow answering time, software "without memory", etc.). Special service = special price. Always give it a try before quoting.

 
Erik Hansson
Erik Hansson  Identity Verified
Germany
Swedish
+ ...
Prepared file Mar 13, 2007

Hi Joy,

In your quote you should also consider if client has prepared the source files for your work or not.

One solution would be to get single HTML files - often a huge number but at least you can see the context.

Worst case is when a client throws everything into a two-column table, source text in left column, translation to be fit in into right column, and has an alphabetical order of the source text fro A to Z. This will drive you nuts as you have no
... See more
Hi Joy,

In your quote you should also consider if client has prepared the source files for your work or not.

One solution would be to get single HTML files - often a huge number but at least you can see the context.

Worst case is when a client throws everything into a two-column table, source text in left column, translation to be fit in into right column, and has an alphabetical order of the source text fro A to Z. This will drive you nuts as you have no context at all, same words repeated several times, but every time in another context.

Erik

**********************************
Erik Hansson ( SFÖ )
Technical translator DE-SV
Hansson Übersetzungen GmbH
Website www.hansson.de
ProZ profile http://www.proz.com/pro/21654
***********************************

[Bearbeitet am 2007-03-13 17:15]
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Joy Lewis
Joy Lewis
Barbados
Local time: 14:43
Member (2007)
French to English
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Thanks for all suggestions Mar 14, 2007

As most of you mention CAT tools as facilitating the website translation process, it would seem that I could be in for an interesting/challenging experience as I don't yet use them. But what’s life without a little challenge. Then again, hmmm..

 
Paul Betts
Paul Betts  Identity Verified
Local time: 20:43
French to English
An alternative might be to... May 10, 2007

agree a joint venture with a person who has a similar language pair and is a professional web coder (designer/developer).

You could then also add to your own 'skills package' the legitimate claim that direct work on web pages (static and dynamic) can be carried out, as well as any changes to text locked in graphical elements.

It might swing a contract or two, and be of service to your client if they required other domestic page updates at the same time.


 


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Website translation – do any special conditions apply?







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