A Guide to Technical Translation
The rapid growth of the technical translation industry is proof to the growing necessity seen by businessmen around the world. This is opening up many job opportunities for professional translators. However, just like any other industry, this work also requires a specific skill set and also technical know-how regarding the topic. Many people think that translation requires only a mastery of both the languages, but technical translation requires the person to also have a good in-depth knowledge regarding the industry, as they have to mostly write about that particular industry. Both these skills are required in a combination to provide accurate translations.
Even though there are several machine translation software available in the market, people still usually look for a human translator, because they are able to understand the thoughts behind the text and can add more feeling to the translation. They can also control the style, which a machine cannot accomplish.
The popularity of conversion done by trained professionals can also be accredited to the fact that the material produced is of the highest quality. Along with the software used by these companies, the inputs of the professionals are of the highest quality and incomparable to what you would get from a machine translation. To reduce the burden of the work and also the cost factor, translators are beginning to use translation memory. This is useful, as a lot of repetitive parts of the text are saved up and can be used whenever required. This helps in finishing faster and allows more projects to be completed in time. The added benefit is that a human translator can find alternative translations that will sound better or be more relevant to a particular group.
However, there are occasions when you will require the services of a machine translation. You will be faced with clients with different requirements; some may need a single page translated, while others may need a number of pages converted in a short time period. In case of the latter, using the services of a machine translator may not be such a bad idea, as it will allow you to provide large turnover in a short time period.
Another benefit of machine translators is to find the meaning of a particular word in another language. This can help you when you are converting a text and cannot seem to find the meaning of a particular word. Machine translators will give you an apt word which can be used to translate it.
However, machine translators are not advised for technical translators, as many technical terms will be hard to literally translate and need to be explained. So, according to your requirement choose carefully which translator you need.