Machine Translation and Human Translation (Professional) - What's the Difference?

When you need documents translated, you have two options to choose from: machine-translation or professional translation. There are plusses and minuses to both, and you need to know the details to make an informed choice.

What is Machine Translation?

Machine translation (MT) is an automated program that translates documents using algorithms and rules. You type in text and the machine compares what you wrote to its dictionaries and phrasebooks to produce and automated, instant translation.

MTs are available on websites like AltaVista’s Babel Fish, and are good for quick translations of single words or short phrases. Users can enter their own text or translate whole websites online.

The benefit of MT is its speed. The drawbacks, however, are many. MTs are word-for-word and quite literal. If a particular phrase isn’t in the machine’s phrasebook, it won’t translate it correctly. Also, MTs don’t understand speech rhythms, fluency, or word choice, so many MTs sound unnatural and awkward.

What about Professional Translation?

Professional translations use real, live humans to translate text based on their expert knowledge of the language. Quality can vary by translator, and those with significant experience produce the best quality translations.

Professional translators can be found at agencies or working free-lance. A good way to determine the quality of translators’ work is to check their references and speak directly with their past clients. Make sure your translator speaks both languages fluently to ensure your translation will be right.

The benefit of professional translation is accuracy. Expert translators know the language and produce fluid, correct, and natural translations. When you need good quality translations, this is the only choice. The drawback is speed. Professional translations take time and money to produce the best results.

The Bottom Line

MTs are useful when you need to get a sense of text quickly, or need to translate only a single word or a short phrase. You shouldn’t rely on MT in any situation where you need to know exact wording or need to produce readable documents in another language.

Professional translation is the method of choice when accuracy and fluency matter. Choose this option when you need to know exactly what a document says or need readable copies that will make sense.

So, the bottom line is: Go with the pros whenever you need to know what’s really being said.

Whether your translation is big or small or simply want a second opinion contact TechnovateTranslations.com and we'll deliver your translated document when you need it. We are also available toll free 1-800-736-7764.

Creating a Clear Line of Distinction in the Translation Industry

Although I’ve been in the writing business for over 10 years, I find myself writing my first blog. I feel a bit like a tailor that has made suits for dignitaries and statesmen, but hasn’t made time to make one for himself. That’s all about to change. My name is Marcel Vilanez and from this blog and many more to come you will get to know a little bit more about me. I find myself trying to communicate a plethora of ideas and thoughts I have about the translation industry in a simple and meaningful manner. Without sounding pompous or pointless, I hope to shed light on certain issues that pertain to both the industry and, most importantly, to my clients (to whom I owe so much).

I came into the translation business, as I have most businesses I’ve created: sprung from something that I needed myself, or after receiving a product that I knew I could provide much more effectively or efficiently. In this case, I needed to translate one of my websites … and had a … not so thrilling experience.

The first problem I encountered was that it took so long to even get a quote (after having to submit my documents and answer umpteen questions). I realized that many translation companies are not run in an e-world. Although I am not saying the word “all”, my research and experiences have shown that I can safely make a general statement to this effect. To my distress, at the time, most agencies wouldn’t give even a ballpark figure over the phone, unless they could see the document first. They made me feel like a fish out of water. Next, after following everyone’s rules, answering innumerable questions, and finally getting a quote, I realized that there were sizeable price disparities between different companies without much reasoning behind one or the other. How was I to know what was standard? Which company would give me the highest quality? It felt too official and detached to me. I didn’t feel that I knew a translation specialist well, who I could call with questions and who had a thorough understanding of my project. In the end, after receiving simply an OK product but with much hassle I decided that I could definitely offer a better product and overall experience.

I’ve made my living catering to clients by, not only giving them what they want, but by doing that and making them feel good about buying from me (ie. delivering a great product under ridiculous conditions) and not making them regret it. I always like being treated that way and am loyal to many people I personally do business with in my own daily life because they share this philosophy. And I’m loyal to them even though I’m not getting the lowest price. For me, it’s always been about who makes me feel good about the situation I’m in, about whether they are able to deliver the product, and deliver it at a reasonable price, and about whether they can deliver exactly what they say they will. I try to do this with my translation division and so far we’re doing great.

I’m a newbie compared to some of the big companies in this industry, but there are core differences that you get when you call us:

For one, you’ll get a live friendly voice when you call us (including after hours).

Secondly, we’re confident in the capabilities of our translators and many times won’t even need to see the document in order to give you a ballpark price. For some reason, most agencies will ask for the document even if it’s a simple marketing document and will regurgitate the same price time and time again.

Thirdly, we’ll give you a flat price for general government documents. Thus, we can eliminate the hassle of bargaining by setting a flat rate for certain translations.

Fourthly, we talk to our callers rather than read from a script. We’ll find out about your project and even give you a quote over the phone. In fact, we close many of our deals in one phone call.

We’re very confident in our highly qualified translators and we’re certain that they can handle their specialty and deliver great quality. We know this because we like to build relationships with our translators as well, and we’ve discussed their past projects, their experience, their strengths and weaknesses... As a result, they would do anything they can to remain in our good graces because they understand we’d do the same. Of course, we’ll (nicely!) weed out competitors who are fishing for info… but even so, we’re always polite.

The translation business is constantly evolving with new software and new upstarts, however, there’s still much to be said about doing business the old fashioned way. After all, even though we’ve gotten much faster and the world has gotten smaller, business is still about people – and everything that comes with that.

If you feel your translation company has taken you for granted and you would like to try someone new, look no further than TechnovateTranslations.com. If our commitment to quality and work ethic doesn’t persuade you ... our charisma and personal approach to our business will.