| Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | Poll: Is there any part of the translation process you don't really enjoy? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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| | R. Alex Jenkins 
Brazil
Local time: 11:34
Member (2006)
Portuguese to English
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I voted for "other", because the part I dislike the most is personal marketing. The necessary percentage of my life devoted to hoop jumping.
| | | | | I like it all! | Oct 28, 2010 |
It's my passion, so I love all the challenges involved 
| | | | | DTP and personal marketing | Oct 28, 2010 |
I loathe these occupations and try to avoid them to the extent possible.
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Interlangue (X)
Angola
Local time: 16:34
English to French
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as time goes by, that is what I enjoy least... so I 'adopted' DNS
| | | | Gianni Pastore
Italy
Local time: 16:34
Member (2007)
English to Italian
| Proofreading | Oct 28, 2010 |
I absolutely loathe it.
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when looking up terms in a dictionary, especially when I know what they mean but cannot come up with suitable translations.
| | | | Alison Sabedoria (X)
United Kingdom
French to English
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It doesn't seem to be getting any better!
Unlike most people, I quite enjoy editing/proofreading, as long as I've got enough time to get away from the initial translation and come back to it with fresh eyes.
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For me, the most disgusting part of translation is when the material from the client is thoroughly 'inadequate' to work on it as-is, though I'm quite resourceful in conversions. Some examples:
- Poorly scanned/faxed originals (e.g. too light, too dark, too skewed, or in lo-res)
- Poorly OCR-ed files by client
- Flawed video, gotta fix codec & other issues before being able to watch
... See more
For me, the most disgusting part of translation is when the material from the client is thoroughly 'inadequate' to work on it as-is, though I'm quite resourceful in conversions. Some examples:
- Poorly scanned/faxed originals (e.g. too light, too dark, too skewed, or in lo-res)
- Poorly OCR-ed files by client
- Flawed video, gotta fix codec & other issues before being able to watch
- Poorly written material, must read 2-3 times each phrase to get the meaning
- Unusual files (e.g. MS Publisher) - a distilled PDF would be easier
- Fruit salads, i.e, a patchwork of very different materials - some handwritten - that must be assembled in a certain order as per skimpy instructions, and translated to appear like one seamless thing.
- Messy and misbehaving Excel spreadsheets.
The second place goes to improperly delivered originals. Some examples:
- Client wants me to rummage their FTP site, match all files to their translations (often with strikingly different filenames) to find those that have not been translated yet, and do it!
- Client sends me umpteen short videos to translate via some free online system that forces me to wait X seconds/minutes before each download, unless I pay their fees for premium no-delay service.
Third place - only because I got rid of most of these - goes to reminding clients when their payment is past overdue. ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Proofreading other people's work | Oct 28, 2010 |
I love proofing my own as part of my quality assurance process, but I can't seem to come to terms with checking anyone else's translations.
Cheers!
| | | | Britt Laux
Local time: 16:34
German to Norwegian
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| marketing and writing bills | Oct 28, 2010 |
although it is nice to get the money of course...
| | | | | Getting edited by incompetent peers... | Oct 28, 2010 |
...and having to defend my translations.
That pretty much sums it up.
A close second would be payment delays. Invoicing is a distant third.
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mediamatrix (X)
Local time: 10:34
Spanish to English
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| Translation is evil! | Oct 28, 2010 |
If the truth be told, I get very little enjoyment out of any part of the translation process.
That stems from my firm preference for being creative in my own right, rather than spending time regurgitating the (often minimal) creativity of others.
That’s the main reason why, many moons ago, I moved on from full-time translation to other far more satisfying areas of the communication business.
Now, translation is still a significant consumer of worki... See more If the truth be told, I get very little enjoyment out of any part of the translation process.
That stems from my firm preference for being creative in my own right, rather than spending time regurgitating the (often minimal) creativity of others.
That’s the main reason why, many moons ago, I moved on from full-time translation to other far more satisfying areas of the communication business.
Now, translation is still a significant consumer of working hours – time I consider well spent only to the extent that it enhances the divulgation of my other activities across the globe. However I am myself the author of most of the source texts (material for my multilingual websites, in particular), and there comes a point where déjà vu and utter boredom kick in to make life a real misery. Worse still, there's no-one to send the bill to!
MediaMatrix ▲ Collapse
| | | | sarandor
United States
Local time: 10:34
English to Russian
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| Having to use a glitchy CAT tool | Oct 28, 2010 |
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Galia Williams wrote:
Having to use a glitchy CAT tool
IMHO having to use a(ny) CAT tool is disgusting enough. I'm sick of clients that are more concerned with me using a CAT tool than with the quality of the translation I deliver.
If my passengers get a smooth and safe ride, it should be none of their business if my car has automatic transmission or a stickshift.
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