ProZ.com Translation Forums

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | NO WAY!

Gabriel Csaba — Tue, 09 Sep 2008 06:40:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Gabriel Csaba
Post title: NO WAY!

I wouldn't even leave my bed without the aid of the Internet & PC!

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Most definitely

Matthew Preston — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 11:06:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Matthew Preston
Post title: Most definitely

I think that Textklick's response to the ambivalent wording of this question clearly illustrates lateral thinking and vision and I am tempted to follow suit with his concept.

[Edited at 2008-08-27 11:11]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Yes but...

Interlangue (X) — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 06:56:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Interlangue (X)
Post title: Yes but...

Needing (much) more time to check and confirm things without the Internet, I'm not sure I still could make a (decent) living.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | I would translate ...

Erzsébet Ráczné Czopyk — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 01:28:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Erzsébet Ráczné Czopyk
Post title: I would translate ...

[quote]jccantrell wrote:

I became a translator in the mid-70's, before PCs and the internet. Dictated onto tape, had it transcribed and then edited (slightly) and delivered.

Primitive, but the best there was then.

Things are better now. Editing is much simpler and the texts can be more consistent.

Now I dictate onto the PC, edit it more extensively as required, do more research. All in all, I can now offer a better product due to the technology.

Enjoyed the job then, still enjoy it. [/quote]
Started in 1992, without PC, with typewriter. Slower, but with the same head/brain.
Things changed a lot, tools are better, prices available, everything is faster.
My hair become slowly grey, the brain is slower, but with experience and modern technology the final product is better now.

but if I was alone on an island, I would translate even on a piece of rock writing with a piece of carbon ;-)

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | No PC

Angela Dickson (X) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 15:47:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Angela Dickson (X)
Post title: No PC

I do know one translator who works without a computer - I estimate that he's in his seventies, and has just kept using his old methods. I imagine his clients wish to retain his expertise. I know several translators who have picked up computer skills very late in life, so it's not just a matter of age!

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | probably not

Kathryn Litherland — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 14:27:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Kathryn Litherland
Post title: probably not

I think Marie-Hélène mentioned that she came to translation by the back door from another career, and that's the same for me. I doubt I would have made the shift to translation living in a pre-Internet/pre-PC time. It was only by starting to use online translator's resources (such as Proz!) during my days as an English-language editor specializing in Latin Americanist texts and working with Spanish-speaking authors (as well as the occasional Spanish-language text) that I became exposed to the wonderful world of freelance translation.

Beyond that, at least what I perceive to be the accouterments of running a freelance business in the pre-Internet/pre-PC days would have also made it an unappealing choice for me. At least, that's how I imagine it--that it must have been more difficult to get established and find clients, etc. Perhaps I'm wrong about that--back in the olden days, did most freelancers just hook up with a few good agencies (and if you were decent, the work came to you), or did you have to hunt down your own direct clients with clubs and hand axes?

[Edited at 2008-08-26 14:28]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Interpetation

Marie-Hélène Hayles — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 11:42:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Marie-Hélène Hayles
Post title: Interpetation

[quote]M. Ali Bayraktar wrote:

[quote]Jenny Forbes wrote:

Of course I'd still translate without them, but I'd certainly miss their convenience and speed. [/quote]

Sorry, but I am really wondering;
What kind of works can still be translated without PC?

I really can't imagine anything, so I am asking this question.

[/quote]

I (and I think most other posters) interpreted the question as "would you still be a translator [b]if the internet and PC hadn't been invented"[/b], so obviously we would all be in the same boat. It's clear that with the possible exception of some very limited markets and locations, anyone without a PC and the internet competing against other translators who did use them would find it very hard to survive.

[Edited at 2008-08-26 11:47]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Think of it as a new business opportunity

Textklick — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:13:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Textklick
Post title: Think of it as a new business opportunity

[quote]Sundar Gopalakrishnan wrote:

No need for PC and Internet. If you have pen and paper, you could become a translator. [/quote]

Thanks for the idea. It has prompted me to take action to boost biz.

[IMG] [url removed] [/IMG]

;-)

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | The good old days

Muriel Vasconcellos (X) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 09:06:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Muriel Vasconcellos (X)
Post title: The good old days

Like Jack, Henry, Will, and Jenny, I worked almost half my career without these tools.

And guess what!?! The deadlines were just as tight, and we delivered the same amount of work. The difference was that those of us who typed our translations expended a lot more energy. It was very intense. I clearly remember banging out a translation at the rate of 1,000 words an hour on a manual typewriter. And I was not the only one; other translators working for the same client were even faster.

Those who couldn't (or refused to) type kept a bevy of transcribers in business. Some colleagues who dictated their work put up vehement opposition to computers because they would have to change their mode of operation and learn how to type.

I think the ratio of in-house translators was probably higher: we tended to learn our area(s) of specialization and memorize our terminology. We kept shoeboxes full of 3x5 cards recording the tricky terms and our favorite translations.

Another thing to remember is that our clients had no use or need for digital files. Translations got retyped in typing pools. Our job was to deliver double-spaced copy - or triple-spaced if someone was going to review it.

Bottom line: The good old days weren't so bad - just different.

[Edited at 2008-08-26 09:16]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | No,definitely not...not any more...that time is over by now

savaria (X) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 08:35:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: savaria (X)
Post title: No,definitely not...not any more...that time is over by now

Well,without the computer no...I could not imagine myself writing any translations by hand,or by a typewriter...it is awfully time-consuming,and it would definitely not worth it any more,especially not if the expectations remained the same as they are today.

And I could not possibly manage without the Internet either,as the Internet is the most updated dictionary in itself.It is the most reliable source of information,provided that you know which www sources to consider as reliable and which to be forgotten.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Old, but not old-fashioned

Miet Ooms (X) — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 08:23:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Miet Ooms (X)
Post title: Old, but not old-fashioned

I am one of the computer-generation: I learned to work on the computer and on internet during my university studies. But I learned to type on an electrical typewriter, so I know the both. Translator is a very old profession, even the monks in the Middle Ages were translators (Greek into Latin), but no one expected them to finish a translation in one day and to send it on the same day to the other end of Europe. What I mean is this: the profession is old, but together with broad technical possibilities, the expectations are changed. You can finish and deliver a translation much faster then twenty years ago, but the client knows and wants it too.
And for the answer, unlike the fact I never translated in the pre-internet-period, it's a profound yes!

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Yes, but would not have made it my career then

Balasubramaniam L. — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 03:16:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Balasubramaniam L.
Post title: Yes, but would not have made it my career then

I have been translating into Hindi before the PC hit the scene in India in a big way sometime in the 1980s. The first PC I bought cost Rs. 25,000. It ran on DOS and had a black and white screen and I think 16MB of RAM. Earlier I had been using an electronic bilingual (English, Hindi) typewriter with 16K of memory that cost a whopping Rs. 35,000. It had two daisy wheels, one for English and one for Hindi. To type in either language, you had to insert the correct daisy wheel. I finally sold it for Rs. 5,000 after I got the PC.

Before that I had a remington portable Hindi typewriter.

I have also translated and written (original stuff) with the age-old pen-and-paper method. Regretfully, I am not ancient enough to have had the opportunity to try the stylus/clay-tablet method of translation mentioned by others on this thread!

I took up translation as a profession only when the Internet became reliable and cheap enough and I happened to discover proz.com. I cannot think how I would have got the jobs from the four corners of the world and submitted the translations if there had been no PC or the Internet. I progressed from a phone-based dial-up connection to broadband. Today I have two broadband connections to the internet from two different service providers, to increase redundancy.

If there had been no internet, I would have been doing something else to earn a living and doing translation only for pleasure or as a public service.

[2008-08-26 03:29 पर संपादन हुआ]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Other - interpreting

Alexandra Goldburt — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 00:53:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Alexandra Goldburt
Post title: Other - interpreting

I'm mainly an interpreter, and translate only occasionally, so I voted "other".

If the internet were gone, I would still translate occasionally, as I now do, but if PC were gone as well - then I can only say, as Amy did, "No way!" I would simply interpret 100% of my time (which would not be much of a change).

I remember times years ago in what back then was Soviet Union. I was a new mother and tried to make some money at home by typing on a monstrosity of a typewriter [b]without a "correct" key[/b]. Makes me shiver when I think about it... no.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Yes, definitely

Percy Balemans (X) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 21:54:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Percy Balemans (X)
Post title: Yes, definitely

I became a translator because I loved the profession, not the tools involved. Besides, the tools involved at the time were just pen, paper, typewriter, paper dictionaries and libraries. ;-)

I obviously wouldn't want to miss modern-day tools, they make the job so much easier. But I still love what I'm doing, so I wouldn't give that up.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Theoretically, yes...

Steven Capsuto — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 21:19:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Steven Capsuto
Post title: Theoretically, yes...

If PCs and the Internet didn't exist I'd certainly be a translator. After all, I started out in the 1980s drafting and revising in various colors of pen, then typing (hopefully) final versions on an electric typewriter.

I'm not sure what the parameters of the poll are. Would I want to be a computerless translator in an era when most of my competitors *are* using computers? No... I'd save up and buy one.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | No

Williamson — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:29:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Williamson
Post title: No

Beginning of the 80-ies there were pcs, but no word-processors (except for AppleWriter), spreadsheets (except for visicalc), databases, powerpoint, no trados and no electronic dictionaries.
Which is why I have a bookshelf full of paperback dictionaries.

Somewhere in 1986, I was using Eurodicautom and a primitve pc (64 Kb). During military service as a translator at the equivalent of the JAG's office, we had to type texts on a typewriter and used a lot of tippex. I remember a file of a murder case of about 500 pages...

A couple of years later an entire translation department of a communications company still wrote their translations by hand with a pencil and handed them on to the typing department of that company.
I brought my own pc with me and it wasn't a laptop.
If you had to look something up you either asked professors at a university for the correct terminology or you sat there leafing through dictionaries and encyclopeadia.

I never intended to become a translator in the first place, but was lured into it. So, my answer is "no", with or without the internet.

P.S.: You forget to ask: would you be a translator without TradosSdlx or other CATS. Have CAT, will translate, remember?

[Edited at 2008-08-25 20:33]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | What kind of works?

Ali Bayraktar — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:27:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Ali Bayraktar
Post title: What kind of works?

[quote]Jenny Forbes wrote:

Of course I'd still translate without them, but I'd certainly miss their convenience and speed. [/quote]

Sorry, but I am really wondering;
What kind of works can still be translated without PC?

I really can't imagine anything, so I am asking this question.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Same here, Jack

Jennifer Forbes — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 20:13:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Jennifer Forbes
Post title: Same here, Jack

[quote]Jack Doughty wrote:

I have been one for 38 years with neither, then with PC only for five years, then with both for 12 years. But it's certainly a lot easier with than without. I recall the days of Tippex fluid and papers for corrections with no great enthusiasm. They were also the days when if you made quite a minor omission or error, you might have to retype a whole page or more in order to produce copy which you could post off by snailmail (no emails in those days of course). Sometimes you would have to take pages to a print shop to get copies made (few translators had their own copiers then, they were much too bulky and expensive), because a copy would not show all the glaring white blobs of Tippex disfiguring the page.
And of course, your reference material meant only the collection of paper dictionaries and reference books on your own shelves, with maybe a visit to the library occasionally to look something up in an encyclopedia.
So even though they were also the days before spam and computer crashes, no, I wouldn't want to go back to them; but I'm sure I would still be translating even without these modern conveniences.

[Edited at 2008-08-25 14:53] [/quote]

Just like you, Jack, I was a translator (among other things) before PCs and the Internet were invented. Of course I'd still translate without them, but I'd certainly miss their convenience and speed.
Watch out geese! We may be after your tail feathers soon.
Jenny

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?

Ali Bayraktar — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:56:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Ali Bayraktar

[Edited at 2008-08-25 20:20]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | How about...

Amy Duncan (X) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:32:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Amy Duncan (X)
Post title: How about...

[quote]M. Ali Bayraktar wrote:

[quote]Henk Peelen wrote:

Of course!
What about clay tablets or animal skins? Who would stop us? [/quote]

And interpreting by smoke :D [/quote]

Drum beats? :D

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Probably not

nelly matthews — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:25:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: nelly matthews
Post title: Probably not

With the high volume translations and with very short deadlines it would probably be impossible to keep up without a PC and, in my case, without the internet. I live in a country where my pair of languages is not so much in demand so I rely on the internet to get jobs and send them back. I am one of the big fans of modern technology, I just think it's fantastic what we can do nowadays and how small (in the good sense of the word) the Earth has become.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Interpreting

Ali Bayraktar — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:24:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Ali Bayraktar
Post title: Interpreting

[quote]Henk Peelen wrote:

Of course!
What about clay tablets or animal skins? Who would stop us? [/quote]

And interpreting by smoke :D

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Time has changed, but not our striving for best quality

Ilona Hessner — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:19:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Ilona Hessner
Post title: Time has changed, but not our striving for best quality

[quote]jccantrell wrote:

I became a translator in the mid-70's, before PCs and the internet. Dictated onto tape, had it transcribed and then edited (slightly) and delivered.

Primitive, but the best there was then.

Things are better now. Editing is much simpler and the texts can be more consistent.

Now I dictate onto the PC, edit it more extensively as required, do more research. All in all, I can now offer a better product due to the technology.

Enjoyed the job then, still enjoy it. [/quote]

Jccantrell reflects exactly my position. I started in 1976 - in those times it was sometimes hard to find the correct expression. The technological development has been enormous, indeed! But I remember the time, when turning page for page in my Langenscheid or other dictionaries. Checking words vice versa ...

Always looking for the best word,

my best wishes to Jccantrell!

Ilona Hessner

[Bearbeitet am 2008-08-25 19:42]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | I would have to reconsider...

Mirella Soffio — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 19:09:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Mirella Soffio
Post title: I would have to reconsider...

... not so much because of the technical aspects of this trade, but because it would be MUCH harder for me to find work.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | I voted yes.

JaneTranslates — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 18:35:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: JaneTranslates
Post title: I voted yes.

I started with a manual typewriter that had Spanish characters on it and a bilingual dictionary that I bought at random from a bookstore (bookshop, for those following the ise/ize thread). I was doing volunteer work for a non-profit, and I could do that still, without PC or Internet.

However, I doubt I could make any money as a translator, unless all the rest of you were sent back to the pre-digital age with me. How could I compete? Better tools raise expectations.

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Translator do translate.

humbird — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:48:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: humbird
Post title: Translator do translate.

Translator have been translating since the time of the Bible (or even prior to that).
Translator do translate with or without Internet and PC.
But that's a general statement. As for me, however, it would pose a great difficulty and a lot of money.

Thanks to Internet and online dictionaries, I haven't bought new dictionaries for nearly a decade.
It is whole a lot cheaper to use them than having to buy a bunch of very specialized dictionaries with great big hole in my pocket (besides, they don't update themselves).

Would I be still a low tech translator without those high tech help?
Well, that question is for the routine tasks such as what I am doing in daily basis.

When it comes translation of novel and other literally works, then that's a wholde different ball game. I am born to playing with words, so it'll be hard to do away with this stuff called translation.

[Edited at 2008-08-25 18:01]

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | It is impossible

Ali Bayraktar — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:43:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Ali Bayraktar
Post title: It is impossible

If you could find one translator who still works without the aid of internet and PC, I would be glad to take acquaintance with him/her. (we can write letters to each other)

And the biggest problem would be; to whom he/she would submit his/her outputs-done works?

So my answers is NO!

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | Too naughty a question, this one!

Henk Peelen — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:40:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Henk Peelen
Post title: Too naughty a question, this one!

Of course!
What about clay tablets or animal skins? Who would stop us?

Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC? | No way!

Amy Duncan (X) — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 17:19:00 +0000

Forum: Poll Discussion
Topic: Poll: Would you still be a translator without the aid of the Internet & PC?
Poster: Amy Duncan (X)
Post title: No way!

I was trained on computers in a newsroom back in the early 1970s, so I've never done much of anything on a typewriter or by hand. It would absolutely drive me nuts to have to use whiteout, retype pages, NOT HAVE PROZ, or Google, and other stuff like that!