Online Machine Translator - Call in the Humans!
15 Feb Online Machine Translator - Call in the Humans!
Machine Online Translator: “Google Translate Has Great Uses, Disastrous Misuses,” according to an article in the newspaper Desert News. We agree.
How to choose the best online translator
Translation machines and their usefulness
There are useful times for an online translator run by a robot. I sometimes use one myself to see a description of a European car for sale online just to know what options it has. But as soon as I need to contact the seller, I need a better option.
Basically any serious business requires a serious translation agency. Generally, reasonable people agree: using a free robotic online translator to do more than monkey business is foolhardy. Robotic for serious business is idiotic.
Mistranslations
There are more than a few stories about people who thought that this rule didn’t apply to them. In some cases, these mistakes just caused amusement and laughter. For example, one newspaper mistranslation repeatedly misquoted a former president of Kazakhstan as referring to the important issue of “passing gas” when talking about the newly installed pipeline across the country.
However, sometimes the online translator mistranslations cause anger and hurt. One automatically translated tag on a piece of furniture in a Canadian store had a racial slur that reportedly offended and angered customers.
It can’t be stressed enough. If you are doing something that matters in translation, you need to get a professional translation company to do it.
No substitute for human translators
This will mean that real humans will interact with the text and ensure that it makes sense to the readers. It will be handled professionally and mistakes will be a rarity if they happen, because of thorough proofreading. Recent research by Arnold IT, the authors of the blog “Beyond Search” on the subject comes up with the same conclusion: “There’s no substitute for knowledgeable professional humans when it comes to the important stuff. It’s worth the investment of time and money.” We could not agree more.
Online Translator
Language is very culturally specific. An online translator can provide word-for-word translations, but it is incapable to understand the differences of various societies and how that influences language. For instance, things like slang, indirect or direct communication and non-verbal signals can have an influence on which terms people use to communicate and speak. Only people who have an in-depth knowledge of a specific culture can understand the differences and social connections of the associated languages.
Languages have different styles, sounds, and syntax. An online translator might be able to learn what each word means, but it will not be able to understand the deeper meaning that word has. Each piece of content needs a different sound to tell its story. Speeches are typically polite, educational and can be serious. In contrast, poetry can be more playful and involved and have very creative and expressive words. The analysis is needed to decide which style to use for translation.
While a machine powered online translator is useful to a certain limit, when it comes to business you must employ professional translators for your translation needs.