There's Something About Translation...

A real-life translator blogs about lessons learned at the wordface, experiences as a freelancer and the changes facing the translation profession.

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Introduction to OmegaT and BiText2TMX: free and open-source translation tools

Dec 8, 2009 3:16pm

Two quick screencasts with my take on OmegaT, a translation environment, and BiText2TMX, an alignment tool. Both are cross-platform, multilingual, free and open source. OmegaT (4 mins 57 sec) Note: a newer, slicker-looking version has been released since this screencast was made. This new version automates some of the steps I cover...

Getting paid across borders: multi-currency banking for freelance translators

Nov 30, 2009 4:27am

When it comes to accepting payments from overseas, I’ve learned the hard way that there is no single answer as to what works best. It all depends on a range of factors, such as: the country in which you live the country or countries in which you hold bank accounts the facilities available...

Copy cats are NOT cool

Oct 28, 2009 8:37pm

I don’t normally like to use my blog as a platform to criticise others. But today I’m making an exception. [edit 30 October 2009: Scroll to the end for an update] There are many reasons why I have a blog, and gaining a good, strong Google ranking is just one of them....

5 Qs with Amy Williams, French and Italian to English translator

Oct 22, 2009 4:30pm

Amy Williams is a freelance translator working from French and Italian into English, and a director of Eggplant Translations. She specialises in marketing and advertising, and the arts, media and music in particular. In the early stages of my freelance career, Amy was kind enough to give me some great...

Building a Strong Online Presence

Oct 13, 2009 4:23am

Hello to translators and interpreters surfing by following my recent Chartered Institute of Linguists (CIOL) webinar. I intend to blog about this in more detail later this week, but until then, here are some resources you might find useful: A series of short videos introducing Twitter. Some 5 minute videos on how...

5Qs with Andrew Bell, AAA Scandinavian Translations

Sep 29, 2009 4:30pm

After working as a nurse in several countries, Andrew Bell set up AAA Scandinavian Translations in 2001 and now specialises in medical/pharmaceutical translation services. He also runs the popular translator-networking site Watercooler. Here Andrew tells us about how he became a translator, and offers a wealth of advice for new...

5Qs with Karen Stokes, French to English translator

Sep 21, 2009 4:30pm

Karen Stokes has been providing French to English translation services through KES_Translate since 2002. In 2008 she was awarded Chartered Linguist (Translator) status, one of the first five translators in the UK to be awarded this distinction. Read on for more about Karen’s background, her approach to marketing and the...

Social Sunday: Wordpress from behind

Sep 12, 2009 9:07pm

A quick peek behind the scenes at There’s Something About Translation and my website www.sarahdillon.com. I’m sure I’m preaching to many of the converted here – what other kinds of blogging systems have you used? Got any favourite plug-ins you’d like to share? Leave a comment to share tips of...

Conferences for Introverts: 15 Top Tips

Aug 18, 2009 6:17pm

Translators attend conferences for lots of reasons. Networking and professional development are probably my main ones. Like most knowledge workers, the professional development part comes easy, but launching myself into a room full of people I don’t know doesn’t. Here are my top tips for making the transition from home-worker...

Social Sunday: RSS Readers

Aug 15, 2009 7:14pm

A quick overview of some of the ways I use my feedreader to manage information from a range of different sources (5 mins). If you know a bigger, better or just plain different way of managing your RSS feeds, I’d love to know. Why not leave a comment with your own...