| Pages in topic: < [1 2] | Poll: Could you work without a computer? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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PAS 
Local time: 01:03
Polish to English
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| The letter of the poll, not the spirit - no computer | Jan 16, 2007 |
Actually, simultaneous or even consecutive interpreting with a computer, google, dictionaries etc. would probably get most of us fired in no time flat...
Cheers,
Pawel Skalinski
| | | | | There's really food for thought here | Jan 16, 2007 |
I voted never, because it just would not work in my present situation, living in a small town off the beaten track, miles from the nearest reference library and totally dependent on e-mail.
But I too remember the days when even a university had no more computers than you could count on the fingers of one hand - if it had more than one. There was no monitor, and people like me with dusty fingers were not allowed near it.
I do still do quite a lot of preliminary work (ter... See more
| | | | Maciek Drobka
Poland
Local time: 01:03
Member (2006)
English to Polish
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Giles Watson wrote:
I would imagine that most of us can do the business on paper or computer at more or less the same speed,
(...)
Giles, do you really mean that? Is your paper-based speed the same as your computer-based speed for translations?
As a touch-typer, one of the key reasons why I can't imagine going back to pen and paper is because the process is SO slow.
Selected Never, by the way. I absolutely love computers in translation.
Regards,
Maciek
| | | | | Glad to have the experience | Jan 16, 2007 |
It may be difficult or not even possible but I am glad that I know how to do it. When I started my current job I was asked to do an "urgent" translation of a letter even before my PC was installed. Also - no spellcheck, no proofreading time. I still think it was then and there that my skills were evaluated. So, my advice is - it is an excellent training - when you have the chance try it:)
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| All things I would need and have never had | Jan 16, 2007 |
I got my first computer when I was 15 (very few small Spanish companies had a computer at that time) and all my life has been about computers, first as a programmer, then as a software localiser, now as a more general technical translator. So I cannot really grasp what the world would be without computers...
I try to imagine what things I would need to have in order to work without electronic means. Some things I have never used at work (I reckon I would know where to buy them):
... See more I got my first computer when I was 15 (very few small Spanish companies had a computer at that time) and all my life has been about computers, first as a programmer, then as a software localiser, now as a more general technical translator. So I cannot really grasp what the world would be without computers...
I try to imagine what things I would need to have in order to work without electronic means. Some things I have never used at work (I reckon I would know where to buy them):
- Tippex
- Typewriter and its ink tapes
- Pencils with a little eraser at the top
- Pencil sharpener
- Handwriting exercise books (or the reviewer would not understand my writing)
- Phonebook with space for customer addresses, etc.
- An archiving cupboard with motor to keep copies of all communications (would we have electricity, or should I get one with a crank?)
And places I would go to nearly every day, as opposed to nearly never as today:
- The bank branch (it would have to be a local one, instead of one 5 km away from our office as it is today)
- The post office (we would need to work near the post office, not 4 km away as we do today)
- Customer offices (we would mostly have local customers, whereas our nearest customer today is 1.500 km away)
So far it looks challenging, and a lot of driving around. BUT the good point is:
- I would be able to buy me a company car and include it in company expenses, without any complaint from the tax authorities!! Yeepeeeeee!! ▲ Collapse
| | | | Anthony Baldwin
United States
Local time: 19:03
Portuguese to English
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Aurora Humarán wrote: I HAVE worked without a computer.  If, for whatever reason, I had to translate without a PC, yes, I would do it (would probably charge more). Two years ago, a client contacted me by telephone. He wanted me to translate HIGHLY confidencial documents. (No problem, I replied. I will sign an NDA). "Not enough," he said, "I will go to your office and will hand deliver the document and you will not use a computer." Client wanted me to deliver a handwritten translation, which I did. I was really surprised by the request, but when I started translating (wow...) I understood. That was really confidential stuff. (To be honest, I couldn't wait to get rid of the document. ) Au [Editado a las 2007-01-15 19:27]
That sounds creEpy...
| | | | Anthony Baldwin
United States
Local time: 19:03
Portuguese to English
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| Sometimes I do work without | Jan 16, 2007 |
but, that´s when I´m interpreting, not translating...
And, if you ask me, interpreting is much harder work.
But, for translations, in general no, with the exception of sight reading
materials for interpreting clients, assisting folks with medical, legal or other bureaucratic forms, etc.
| | | | Chowdhury
Bangladesh
Local time: 05:03
English to Bengali
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| I may be different from others | Jan 16, 2007 |
I may be different from others but I still work on paper for large English to Bengali translation. For editing, small or urgent work, I type Bengali on computer. Let me explain it.
I can easily type English but my speed in Bengali typing is not very fast. That is why for large projects, I always work on paper for speed and timely delivery! You may wonder how do you deliver work? Well I have a full time typist working with me, who is a very fast typist and can easily understand my zi... See more I may be different from others but I still work on paper for large English to Bengali translation. For editing, small or urgent work, I type Bengali on computer. Let me explain it.
I can easily type English but my speed in Bengali typing is not very fast. That is why for large projects, I always work on paper for speed and timely delivery! You may wonder how do you deliver work? Well I have a full time typist working with me, who is a very fast typist and can easily understand my zigzagged (!) super fast handwriting.
In Bangladesh, most educated people can type English but very few can type Bengali because it is very difficult to type Bengali as it has a lot of compound letters that takes a lot of time to type. Apart from compound letters, typing a Bengali letter is also difficult because for a single letter you often have to press two keys.
Interesting thing is that there are many professional typists (We call them 'computer operators/composers') in Bangladesh, whose only job is to type. If you roam around Dhaka city, you will find lots of shops that offer typing service, and there is also a dedicated market in the city named Nilkhet where there are hundreds of computer typists. ▲ Collapse
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Exactly the right question after a whole morning of power outage in my village - I definitely could not work at all without my electronic helpers, especially the computer and its modem!
[Bearbeitet am 2007-01-16 12:55]
| | | | Giles Watson
Italy
Local time: 01:03
Italian to English
In memoriam
Maciek Drobka wrote: Giles Watson wrote:
I would imagine that most of us can do the business on paper or computer at more or less the same speed,
(...)
Giles, do you really mean that? Is your paper-based speed the same as your computer-based speed for translations? As a touch-typer, one of the key reasons why I can't imagine going back to pen and paper is because the process is SO slow.
Hi Maciek,
What I meant was that the actual typing takes about the same time on a typewriter as it does on a keyboard.
I learned to touch-type on a typewriter about thirty five years ago. With a typewriter, though, you spend a lot more time Tippexing out mistakes, removing, inserting and adjusting sheets of paper and generally messing around. In fact, your overall workflow is different.
I haven't used pen and paper seriously since I was at university (I graduated in 1976). Even there, I used to practise writing timed longhand essays and translations before the exams to improve my speed because for all my other work I would just make notes and then type up the important stuff.
Cheers,
Giles
| | | | | I was about as fast on a typewriter, but it took a lot more energy! | Jan 17, 2007 |
I answered "never," though I translated on typewriters full-time from 1963 until 1979, when our office got Wang word processors, and part of the time for another 4 years (total 20 years).
Maciek Drobka wrote:
As a touch-typer, one of the key reasons why I can't imagine going back to pen and paper is because the process is SO slow.
Looking back, my daily average was 2,000-3,000 words, and I remember sometimes doing 1,000 words in an hour. With age, my pace has slowed, so a lot of the time I don't work even as fast as I did on a typewriter. Or maybe today's young people really ARE faster on a computer than I was on a typewriter and the comparison is unrealistic because of the slow-down effect.
For me, the real difference is that I don't exert as much physical energy on the computer. And of course, research takes a fraction of the time.
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