I’ve received several e-mails from people asking about the banner photo on this blog. I purchased it from iStockphoto, and the photographer is Hanoded Photography. Those of you who have traveled in the Himalaya will recognize this as a Buddhist Mani stone, bearing the inscription “Om mani padme hum,” often translated as “Hail to the […]
Continue ReadingTraining for Translators: Blog
The new ATA compensation survey: some interesting statistics
The current issue of the American Translators Association‘s Chronicle includes an article on the results of the most recent ATA compensation survey, which uses data gathered for the year 2006. The survey is interesting enough that I’m thinking of purchasing the full report ($45 for ATA members, $65 for nonmembers), but even the summary that […]
Continue ReadingGetting things done
When asked why they failed at freelancing, many former freelancers say that they simply couldn’t deal with the unstructured nature of the freelance day and ended up working out/watching TV/cleaning the closets etc. instead of working. Succeeding as a freelancer (translator or any other freelance job) requires that you be able to meet tight deadlines […]
Continue ReadingIBM's new English>Arabic translation device
Here is an interesting article from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer on IBM’s new English>Arabic translation software and hardware, with an interesting comment from ATA public relations guru Kevin Hendzel. I actually found the most disturbing part of the article to be the statistic that of 1,000 employees at the newly constructed U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, only […]
Continue ReadingIt's not just Facebook…
Here’s a post from the blog of Canadian communications consultant Deborah Zanke, dealing with poorly done translations at 5-star resorts in Cuba (which are understandably popular with Canadians at this time of year). She poses the question of whether these translations should be criticized if the resort staff’s spoken English is excellent, and also highlights […]
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