| Страници во темата: [1 2] > | Poll: How many words do you typically translate per day? Лице кое објавува дискусија: ProZ.com Staff
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This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How many words do you typically translate per day?".
View the poll results »
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I work from source characters not words.
My answer would be 12,000+ per day since tech trans invariably has a fair bit of repetition.
Small edit
[Edited at 2013-06-04 08:31 GMT]
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there was a typical day! Last week I translated exactly 31,176 words (Saturday and Sunday included), but there was nothing typical about that!
PS. I use no CAT tools AT ALL!
| | | | 564354352 (X) 
Данска
Local time: 11:23
дански на англиски
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| No typical days here, either | Jun 4, 2013 |
That's the beauty of self-employment, isn't it?
Some days, I don't translate anything at all, other days, when things are completely mad, I may translate as many as 8,000 words and then collapse in front of the TV at midnight and instantly drop off to sleep. My 'comfort' zone is about 3,500 words per day, although in Denmark, I believe the 'expected' output is about 2,000 words per day, proofread and ready for delivery.
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Ty Kendall
Обединето Кралство
Local time: 10:23
еврејски на англиски
| I'd like to meet this 0.7% | Jun 4, 2013 |
Who typically translate more than 8,000 words per day. They must have worn their fingers down to stubs, surely.
Even with a feline friend (I don't use one either), once you start approaching five figures that just can't leave much room for Q&A and really checking your work.
| | | | | no cat tools? | Jun 4, 2013 |
wow, why not use cat tools, they are there to help, I have no idea how you and the other people answering with more than 4000 words a day manage. And what about quality, etc. surely you have to proofread and so on as well?
Sorry, but I have been translating for 19 years now and the past 10 at least with some form of CAT and I got lucky once with a text consisting of 90% repetitions so my record stands at 7k words, but doing more than 3k a day for a week will leave me reeling.
... See more wow, why not use cat tools, they are there to help, I have no idea how you and the other people answering with more than 4000 words a day manage. And what about quality, etc. surely you have to proofread and so on as well?
Sorry, but I have been translating for 19 years now and the past 10 at least with some form of CAT and I got lucky once with a text consisting of 90% repetitions so my record stands at 7k words, but doing more than 3k a day for a week will leave me reeling.
Maybe those who do much the same texts all the time can up their speed but in my case, the topics are so diverse, e.g. this week, lab equipment, sausage machines and measurement equipment.
I can only hope you all have time to enjoy the money you are making, if not, there is something wrong somewhere
happy translating
Heather ▲ Collapse
| | | | neilmac
Шпанија
Local time: 11:23
шпански на англиски
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| Curate's eggs | Jun 4, 2013 |
heathermccrae wrote:
wow, why not use cat tools, they are there to help...
Heather
Although I use a CAT tool myself (WF Classic), I have no time at all for more fiddly and (in my opinion) overly complex CAT tools like Trados, and their underlying ethos, which to me seem to focus more on "helping" producers of the software rather than the users. I am also wary of the depersonalising effect they may have on output, with huge swathes of previously translated material being accepted as okay, without stopping to think that it might be tweaked or improved in some way.
CAT tools are no panacea, and (in my opinion again) exacerbate and encourage market intrusion by bottom feeders and sweatshops.
[Edited at 2013-06-04 11:27 GMT]
| | | | neilmac
Шпанија
Local time: 11:23
шпански на англиски
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Piece of string, etc.
I'm quite happy to turn out up to 5K a day, but I feel any more of that is "taking it a bit too far"....
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This is my answer now, but I do hope it will change in a few months.
As an explanation, I am at the begining of my full-time translator activity and I am still the main persons in-charge for my 2 toddlers (I do have someone who helps me, otherwise I couldn't work at all).
| | | | Josef Šoltes
Република Чешка
Local time: 11:23
англиски на чешки
My record for one day is 14000 words. But that was without check, that I did second day (about 4 hours)... And yes, after that, I almost died.
| | | | Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 05:23
англиски на шпански
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| Another competitive poll | Jun 4, 2013 |
I think I've seen a similar poll months (or years) ago, worded along the same lines.
In my 21 years in translation, I've been using CAT (or TEnT) tools for the last 12 at least. With repetitions, exact matches and the like, it's difficult (and pointless) to calculate how many words per hour or day I can do for a given assignment.
Even if I work with similar documents (medical reports) for the same client, using the same TM and termbase, my so-called daily output ... See more I think I've seen a similar poll months (or years) ago, worded along the same lines.
In my 21 years in translation, I've been using CAT (or TEnT) tools for the last 12 at least. With repetitions, exact matches and the like, it's difficult (and pointless) to calculate how many words per hour or day I can do for a given assignment.
Even if I work with similar documents (medical reports) for the same client, using the same TM and termbase, my so-called daily output varies greatly from one day to the next. On Monday I could be doing 1700, then it drops to 600. Why? Because I type slower on the second day? Because my mind slows down then picks up? Because I drink an extra cup of coffee? Who cares?
The poll results show that the top average is 1000-2000 words per day. That's what I tell any prospective client or how I answer their questionnaires.
A recently acquired client was operating under the impression that the minimum output is 4000 words per day. I kindly asked for the basis of such astonishing piece of information (more like assumption). I got nothing. Then again, client stopped bugging about it.
How I wish to explain to my fellow translators that a higher daily output in words is not meaningful or helpful, especially when they push themselves to the limits of human endurance, as with 5000-8000 words per day. But I'd be wasting my breath. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Mario Chavez (X)
Local time: 05:23
англиски на шпански
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Cristiana Sima wrote:
This is my answer now, but I do hope it will change in a few months.
As an explanation, I am at the begining of my full-time translator activity and I am still the main persons in-charge for my 2 toddlers (I do have someone who helps me, otherwise I couldn't work at all).
How cute! I have a toddler...but he's my sister's son and they live 2500 miles from me. Snif.
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| Interesting but hard to draw conclusions | Jun 4, 2013 |
I'd expected the competition to be "I do more words than you so I'm better than you" but it's actually "I do fewer words than you so I'm better than you"
The question would be better if it asked more specifically how many words you typically translate in an eight-hour working day when you have work in. As it stands, the results are going to be distorted by some translators working fewer (or more) hours per day for var... See more I'd expected the competition to be "I do more words than you so I'm better than you" but it's actually "I do fewer words than you so I'm better than you"
The question would be better if it asked more specifically how many words you typically translate in an eight-hour working day when you have work in. As it stands, the results are going to be distorted by some translators working fewer (or more) hours per day for various reasons. ▲ Collapse
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See him (her) as much as possible. They grow up so fast! Be part of their universe, even if by Skype
In addition to the above, I would like to mention that my children are the main reason for changing my career. I was an attorney-at-law for 8 years, spending in the office at least 10 hours per day, sometimes would work in wkds, too. And I had to stop, I felt like my life was passing by me and I was a simple spectator.... See more See him (her) as much as possible. They grow up so fast! Be part of their universe, even if by Skype
In addition to the above, I would like to mention that my children are the main reason for changing my career. I was an attorney-at-law for 8 years, spending in the office at least 10 hours per day, sometimes would work in wkds, too. And I had to stop, I felt like my life was passing by me and I was a simple spectator. Maybe it sound like a cliche, but it's my truth now.
As a freelance translator, from this perspective, I don't understand people with a daily average of 5.000 or more. For me it's a trap and I hope I will never fall in it. I would not sacrifice my time with my family for a vacation house or for a better car or for same goods that we all think that make our lives better. But, who knows, never say never). ▲ Collapse
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Chris S wrote:
The question would be better if it asked more specifically how many words you typically translate in an eight-hour working day when you have work in. As it stands, the results are going to be distorted by some translators working fewer (or more) hours per day for various reasons.
Absolutely. I based my poll response on the 8-hour day, which is 3,000-4,000 working at my maximum pace... when I know that the agency expects a solid translation to be checked by another linguist.
But of course, it varies widely depending on the type of document--I have done legal translations where I can barely complete 300 words/hour, and HR surveys at nearly 800 words/hour. I wish agencies would vary their rates accordingly!
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