Living By The Word

Mac for translators

Just an update on a topic vital to translators who wish to work with technology that's much better than what Microsoft has to offer.

Finally a truthful article about conference interpreters

Kudos to the Globe and Mail for writing a truthful article about conference interpreting. The article is a profile of Andrew Dawrant, the world's most eminent Chinese-English conference interpreter - and a native of Alberta to boot.

Read the article for yourself. But what stands out is that, for once, the job of conference interpreters is explained and described accurately, for example, that it is a highly stressful job - let's hope clients read this and start compensating interpreters accordingly.

New Trados Studio coming in September

I got an email the other day from SDL, the maker of the Trados software. Apparently, the company is about to launch a new version of the Trados Studio this September.

Translators' associations are completely useless ... and counterproductive

Egged on by a discussion on a message board for translators, I feel it's necessary to say a few words, again, about translators' associations and their usefulness to professional translators.

Unless you have talent, training won't do you much good

Yesterday I posted a brief message online to air some quick thoughts on one of my bêtes noires. I hadn't realized that one of my followers on Twitter/Facebook was currently attending a journalism course, and so his feedback to my statements was a succinct "Unlike".

So, let me expound on this subject some more, then.

Agencies come and go

Most of us work for direct clients and translation agencies. Over the years, I have reached the following conclusion: bend over backwards for your direct clients, because they are more likely to stick with you through thick and thin. Agencies, by contrast, don't care much about loyalty, no matter how much time, sweat and blood you've sacrificed for them

I didn't know I lived in Edmonton

Have you ever been contacted by a potential client and wondered whether he or she has actually done his or her homework?

Freelance translators - condemned to a sedentary life

As translators, we spend a lot of hours glued to a computer screen and keyboard. Excessive typing, which may become quite frenetic in view of an upcoming pressing deadline, coupled with the angle of one's arms and position of one's back can leave even the most passionate translator feeling worn out - and even broken - at the end of a long day.

Yes, Trados works very well on Mac

Thanks to the wonderful software made by Apple, writers and translators prefer to work on Mac screens, as text on screen is more soothing on the eyes than it would be on a Windows-based PC.

Living By The Word

Living by the word, rather than the sword, is the title and motto I have chosen for my new standalone translation blog.

After spending some time away from translation-related blogging, I have decided to resume sharing my few nuggets on what I know about the translation business (after 24 years in the field, I know quite a bit).

If translation or language issues aren't your cup of tea, and you'd rather read about current affairs, business, society, etc., feel free to visit and bookmark my other sites - www.WernerPatels.com and www.CanadianViews.com.

And if you require professional translation services, contact me via my business site at www.WernerPatels.biz.