The Top 10 Misconceptions about Translation


10. Paying promptly for the services of a plumber/lawyer/doctor is a must. However, the translator doesn't mind waiting indefinitely for payment...

9. Anybody with two years of high school language (or a foreign-tongued grandmother) can translate.

8. A good translator doesn't need a dictionary.

7. There's no difference between translation and interpretation.

6. Translators don't mind working nights and weekends at no extra charge.

5. Translators don't need to understand what they're translating.

4. A good translator doesn't need proofing or editing.

3. Translation is just typing in a foreign language.

2. A translator costs $49.95 at Radio Shack and runs on two 'C' batteries.

And the #1 misconception about translation and translators is:

1. The document that took a team of 20 people two months to put together can be translated overnight by one person and still retain the same impact as the original.