So, you’re working along, deep in concentration, when up pops a value written with units that won’t be understood in the target language. What next? Do you: a) Pull out an old battery-powered calculator and a printed conversion chart. b) Use an online conversion chart and the infuriatingly crummy calculator built into Windows/OSX c) Type […]
Category Archives: tips
There’s more to Wikimedia than Wikipedia…
Wikipedia is so helpful to translators that most of us don’t like to admit quite how much we rely on it – partly because, as everyone knows, Wikipedia has a bit of a (deserved?) bad rep for accuracy. However…
Five other useful things to do with Google Search
In light of the somewhat surprising popularity of our last post (Fifteen Helpful Google Search Operators), we figured we’d continue with the Google theme by revealing a few more not-so-secret Google-secrets. Read on to learn…
Fifteen helpful google search operators
First came the World Wide Web, and then came the search engine (presumably to try and make the whole thing more accessible/manageable). And it wasn’t long (relatively speaking) before one particular search engine proved to be…
Techniques to help spot typos in your translations
Typos, or lack of them, can mean the difference between a happy client and an angry client. They are, quite simply, your worst enemy. Spotting mistakes in someone else’s work is relatively easy, but spotting them in your own work…
Seven ways to improve your source-language proficiency
If you’re able to make a living as a translator then you’ve obviously already reached a relatively high level of source-language proficiency – a level of proficiency that no doubt gives you the means to impress even native speakers without…
Ten tips for agencies trying to attract/impress new translators
In the eyes of many freelance translators, agencies often get it wrong, and surprisingly, many of the best-known agencies survive (even thrive) whilst continuing to get it wrong – speak to any freelancer who’s been in…
Why translators might like to go on Safari with Lion
Coinciding with the release of their latest OS (Lion), Apple have made some huge improvements to Safari – too many to mention really… for a full list check out the ‘Safari’ section of Apple’s…
Boost your window-moving efficiency with ‘Three finger drag’
If you’re not already addicted to ‘Three Finger Drag’ on the mac, put aside any stick-in-the-mud ways you might have and give it a try. After a few minutes (worst-case-scenario a few hours) of ‘this feels a bit unnatural’ you…
Ten things to try when you’re completely and utterly stuck
Assuming you’ve tried all the usual things – reading around, umpteen Wikipedia searches, as many dictionaries and thesauruses (online or offline) as you can find – you’ll no doubt begin to worry that you might be getting stuck…