Any procedure for checking peers test translations Thread poster: AAAmedical
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AAAmedical 
Belgium
Local time: 10:27
English to Dutch
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Hello everybody,
An agency asked me if I wanted to check the test translations freelance translators return to the agency.
I have never done this before and I was wondering if their is a certain (standard) procedure I should follow in order to do this in the best possible way?
How should I charge, by the hour I suppose?
Any suggestions are welcome
Ann
| | | | DGK T-I
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:27
Georgian to English
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| By the hour, as a translation proof reading (with a brief report) | Jun 17, 2003 |
AAAmedical wrote:
Hello everybody,
An agency asked me if I wanted to check the test translations freelance translators return to the agency.
I have never done this before and I was wondering if their is a certain (standard) procedure I should follow in order to do this in the best possible way?
How should I charge, by the hour I suppose?
Any suggestions are welcome
Ann
That's what I would suggest.
With the same approach as for a translation proof reading - not imposing one's own mere preference on satisfactory translation which is just done differently. I don't know if there is a standard, but this seems logical.
The brief report could include reference to satisfactory use of terminology (particularly important in medical work), and suitability of style employed (if it matters in the type of document being translated).
Best wishes
Giuli
My two penny worth (or two laris, well, six actually )
[Edited at 2003-06-17 18:11]
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Hi Ann,
I frequently do it (medical texts only), for three different agencies.
I correct spelling, grammar and terminology only, and give marks (0 – 10) for:
- spelling and grammar
- terminology
- suitability for intended target group
- style
My fee is 35% of my translation fee (calculated per word).
Have fun!
Sven.
| | | | Jana Teteris
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:27
Latvian to English
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| charge by the hour | Jun 17, 2003 |
I always charge by the hour. One word of advice (!) - use the 'track changes' function, as this provides valuable feedback for all concerned.
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Marc P (X)
Local time: 10:27
German to English
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The best system, in my opinion, is one in which the original translator retains responsibility for the translation, and regards the checker's corrections as "comments" which he or she is free to accept or reject.
The worst system is one in which the checker makes suggestions for improvements, the customer (in this case the agency) regards them as "errors", possibly being shocked by how many there are, and presents them to the original translator as a fait accompli. This often happe... See more The best system, in my opinion, is one in which the original translator retains responsibility for the translation, and regards the checker's corrections as "comments" which he or she is free to accept or reject.
The worst system is one in which the checker makes suggestions for improvements, the customer (in this case the agency) regards them as "errors", possibly being shocked by how many there are, and presents them to the original translator as a fait accompli. This often happens and is almost guaranteed to cause trouble!
If at all possible, work WITH, not against the original translator.
As Jana says, "Track Changes" is ideal for checking.
Marc ▲ Collapse
| | | | DGK T-I
United Kingdom
Local time: 09:27
Georgian to English
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| I think Marc's comments are very good | Jun 18, 2003 |
MarcPrior wrote:
The best system, in my opinion, is one in which the original translator retains responsibility for the translation, and regards the checker's corrections as "comments" which he or she is free to accept or reject.
The worst system is one in which the checker makes suggestions for improvements, the customer (in this case the agency) regards them as "errors", possibly being shocked by how many there are, and presents them to the original translator as a fait accompli. This often happens and is almost guaranteed to cause trouble!
If at all possible, work WITH, not against the original translator.
As Jana says, "Track Changes" is ideal for checking.
Marc
I think Marc's comments are very wise
| | | | | A Suggestion to Checkers | Jun 19, 2003 |
HI,
Sven and marc've provided valuable infos to other newcomers as well. Thx. to both!
Suggestion-
Well, unless translator is totally imcapable of doing translation in his/her language, he'd not be put down by editors/proofreaders. As originally, efforts are put on by translator himself and then is corrected by editor/checker. Checker may correct spelling or grammatical mistakes or may replace some suitable words which normally translator'd not get through because of lack of t... See more HI,
Sven and marc've provided valuable infos to other newcomers as well. Thx. to both!
Suggestion-
Well, unless translator is totally imcapable of doing translation in his/her language, he'd not be put down by editors/proofreaders. As originally, efforts are put on by translator himself and then is corrected by editor/checker. Checker may correct spelling or grammatical mistakes or may replace some suitable words which normally translator'd not get through because of lack of time or say immaturity.
This is a suggestion to all editors/proofcheckers from side!Hope this works for each one of us positively.
Keep on commenting and suggesting dears!
PRAKAASH
[email protected] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Maybe a helpful procedure | Jun 24, 2003 |
I have never done this before and I was wondering if their is a certain (standard) procedure I should follow in order to do this in the best possible way?
I'm not sure if there's a standard way of going about it - I suppose, though, that you may want to check with the agency to see what they look for in a good translation. I've occaisionally had the opportunity to have people do trials for me, and being only a very small fish I end up checking them myself. Here are one or two ti... See more I have never done this before and I was wondering if their is a certain (standard) procedure I should follow in order to do this in the best possible way?
I'm not sure if there's a standard way of going about it - I suppose, though, that you may want to check with the agency to see what they look for in a good translation. I've occaisionally had the opportunity to have people do trials for me, and being only a very small fish I end up checking them myself. Here are one or two tips I could suggest, though, only as general ways that might help speed up the process:
1. Try to forget what was written in the source text, then read the translation with a coffee and a smoke. This is more or less so that you can get an idea of how good the candidate's writing is...Does is read like a translation, or can it stand on its own?
2. Have dinner, light another smoke, then read the source text. Odds are that after reading the translation before something will poke you in the eye & say "Look! I'm a mistake!" Here then you could take a more detailed look, comparing the two.
If after doing this you can't find any mistakes, then you'll just have to go through it in more detail. I definately like the idea of giving comments as opposed to doing corrections - being able to tell the agency to what extent the candidate could be relied on is a good idea too. Even if the job isn't a perfect one, there may still be a role for the candidate in doing rough translations, or proofreading in his or her native language. For instance (& sorry for writing a novel here), I had someone do a trial for me once...and it was horribly inaccurate but the the writing itself was extremely well done. I suppose what I'm getting at is that you'd probably want to judge not only the accuracy, but the level of writing as well.
Anyways, I hope my little novella has helped out, & sorry for not being any more concrete. 'Best of luck to you ▲ Collapse
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uparis
Local time: 10:27
French to English
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| Thank you for the good advice | Jun 28, 2003 |
Oh, it's good to know that at least one person out there still sits at the computer with a smoke !
But the "thank you" is for the good advice. I run an agency (and also translate), so checking translations is part of life - a dreaded part of life. I must confess that I find it extremely difficult not to change words here & there for more glitz & glamor or to remodel whole chunks of text to make things flow better. Not good policy, because it takes a lot of time, not sure the client ... See more Oh, it's good to know that at least one person out there still sits at the computer with a smoke !
But the "thank you" is for the good advice. I run an agency (and also translate), so checking translations is part of life - a dreaded part of life. I must confess that I find it extremely difficult not to change words here & there for more glitz & glamor or to remodel whole chunks of text to make things flow better. Not good policy, because it takes a lot of time, not sure the client appreciates the extra work, and it sure doesn't make the translator happy...
I'll try your method next time. ▲ Collapse
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