The Translation User's FAQ
(Frequently Asked Questions)

What is a "good" translation?
Will machine translation eventually replace human translators?
Is a bilingual individual automatically qualified to translate between his or her languages?
Should I choose an individual translator or a translation company for my translation project?
A translation bureau I contacted claims that they have 500 translators and that they handle all languages and all subject matters in house. Is that true?
What should I look for in a translation bureau?
Am I better served by a small or a large translation company?
What can I do to ensure quality translation of my text?
How is the cost of a translation calculated?
Is a more expensive translation necessarily a better one?
Why does my large translation project take so long to complete? Can't you just put more translators to work on it?

Q: Is a more expensive translation necessarily a better one?

When buying translations from a reputable source, you do pay for the resources and experience of the translation provider, accumulated over many years, and for the time during which this expertise is used in your project. This time will include preparation for translation, translation, editing, and proofreading by highly skilled individuals using up-to-date (and expensive) technological tools and reference materials. In some cases you may also pay for the company's fancy offices at a prestige address, slick advertising, and a large administrative/marketing overhead, which contribute nothing to the quality you get for your translation budget. So beware of cheap translations that may betray the novice attempting to get his or her first translation job, but don't automatically assume that a high price equals high quality.

Q: Why does my large translation project take so long to complete? Can't you just put more translators to work on it?

There is more to managing a large translation project than splitting it up among a number of translators. The entire project must be carefully coordinated prior to assigning portions of it to different translators, glossaries and style sheets must be prepared to make sure that what was called a "screw" on page 4 is not called a "bolt" on page 325, or 2" are not converted to 51 mm in Section 2 and to 5.08 cm in Section 9. Upon completion of the project, the entire text must be carefully proofread and edited for consistency of terminology, style, and format, placement of graphics and captions, not to mention completeness and accuracy. Similar considerations apply to multilingual projects. Specialized "translation memory" software can make this process easier and more reliable by automating some steps, but (especially for the first project for a given customer) the old saying still applies: "Haste makes waste."