Currently a translator, I'm embarking on a journey to interpreting in 2011 and it seems the right choice after reading the article that follows, even if I'm not in America. In the USA "Employment of interpreters and translators is projected to increase 22 percent between 2008 and 2018, much faster than the average for all occupations, according to the Labor Department." This is encouraging news! Now, I wonder what are the statistics about potential increase of employment for translators and interpreters in London during the Olympic Games in 2012? Best Careers 2011: Interpreter/Translator - US News and World Report

Language Translation: Test Product Names before Entering New Countries The above article shows other reasons why translators need to be human... As I said on my previous post, translators need to experience a feeling about the source and target culture and avoid word by word literal translations that sometimes sound weird in the target market... This article about localization and product names illustrates how literal translations have a negative effect on marketing and the importance of considering factors such as the sound of words, different meanings associated with the same word, and cultural differences when translating or developing a new brand name in a specific country. It is obvious that machine translation would not be able to make this process possible. If you attempt to translate your brand name or image using free software or google translator, beware... your potential customers may have a laugh at what you are offering!

Are you a human translator? or human at least? GREAT! I thought it was another search engine browsing through my blog...  This post is to be shared with humans and if you are a translator, that's even better because you will understand what I am talking about.  Why is it important to be a human translator?  Wow... that's one reason: million of answers coming to your head... you are creative, resourceful, you can answer one simple question within seconds, you have brains.  Another important reason is that you have feelings...(I hope you do).  And why are feelings important in translation?  Because we are communicating with people. Communication can trigger feelings. For instance, while you are reading this blog, you may feel bored, you may feel I am talking nonesense, or you may actually feel I have a point.  My intention is to entertain you and share my feelings about human translation with you. That's how communication is about feelings; translation is about communication,