In part one of this series, we broke down some of the differences between human translation and translation by a program such as Google Translate from a linguistic point of view. In this post, we’ll take a look at some of the more technical aspects of this comparison. What is it, exactly, about the nature of machine translation programs that makes them useful for travelers looking to quickly communicate short concepts to others in a foreign language, but far less desirable for the professional translation of documents? When our translators mention to acquaintances what they do for a living, they are sometimes met with a lack of understanding as to why their job is necessary in this [...]

If you’ve never needed a translation before, or if it’s been a while, it’s normal to be overwhelmed by all your options when choosing a language services provider (LSP). Some may wonder why it’s necessary to pay for a translation at all these days, now that Google Translate and other platforms have started to incorporate AI into their programming for many major languages. Others might ask why the fees at some translation agencies are so much lower than at others, and whether the service called “post-edited machine translation” that is offered by some translation companies is a good option. In part one of this post, we’ll take a deep dive into the linguistic aspects of the world [...]