To name the changes in the translation profession over the past decade or so, I would have to start with the source. The way that we manage information and the software and processes that we use to create content have had an enormous impact on translation workflows.
Translators today not only need an excellent command of their target and source languages, but they should also possess a vast knowledge of authoring and content management tools, mark-up languages, and programming codes, as well as an understanding of product lifecycles and development processes. The emergence of Localization as an industry in its own right underscores this. Translation/Localization Managers, Multilingual Documentation Project Managers, or Language Consultants are just some of the job titles that companies have created in recent years to find (and give credit to) translation professionals who have a broader skills set than would previously have been expected from the average in-house or freelance translator.
Of course, language is still an important issue. Take English translators: Good native speakers, especially those who have specialized in a particular area, have always been sought-after. However, I suspect that many more native English speakers are hired nowadays to optimize text in a pre-phase to translation or to "write for translation". English is increasingly the source language, but not just any old language: many companies strive to implement a form of controlled language.
On the flip side, authors, too, are slowly recognizing the benefits of tools that were traditionally only used by translators and are integrating authoring memory and terminology databases into their workflows. I predict that we will be hearing the term "structured authoring" more often, in connection with cleaning up the source and cutting costs through greater consistency, fewer redundancies, and easier translation.
The role of the modern-day translator is not easy to define - arguably, it never was. However, one fact remains true: There is rarely such a thing as a translator who "just translates".
13.12.07
Helen Fawcett - Technical Communications Manager bei Comet Computer
Herausgeberin:
Comet Computer GmbH
Rückertstr. 5
80336 München
Tel.: 089-54 45 60 45
Fax: 089-54 45 60 46
E-Mail: comet@comet.de
Verantwortlich:
Prof. Sissi Closs
Comet zählt seit Ende der 80er Jahre zu den führenden Anbietern im Bereich Technische Dokumentation. Mit unserem Team aus Informatikern, Natur- und Geisteswissenschaftlern sowie Grafikern und Web-Designern entwickeln wir anspruchsvolle Lösungen, die passgenau auf Ihre Anforderungen zugeschnitten sind. Wir erstellen Handbücher, Online-Hilfen und Bedienungsanleitungen – mediengerecht und in mehrsprachiger Übersetzung. Selbstverständlich übernehmen wir auch die Lokalisierung Ihrer Software und unterstützen Sie bei der Umstellung Ihrer Technischen Dokumentation auf Single Source Publishing.
In unserem modernen Schulungszentrum bieten wir Kurse zu allen aktuellen Themen der Technischen Dokumentation – von den Grundlagen bis zu den Tools wie RoboHelp, AuthorIT und Framemaker.
Die Comet Communication GmbH bietet Ihnen Beratung, Schulung und Service rund um die Technische Redaktion, Technische Dokumentation und Technische Kommunikation.
| 21.09.2010 | DITA (Darwin Information Typing Architecture) |
| 22.09.2010 | InDesign als DTP-Programm |
| 24.09.2010 | Lokalisierung |
| 29.09.2010 | Online-Hilfen - Grundkurs |
| 06.10.2010 | Captivate - multimediale Tutorials für die Software-Dokumentation |