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Machine Translation: Capabilities And Limitations
Since automatic translation translates texts without the aid of professional translators or native speakers who can discern the nuances and influence of context, it is important to remember that the accuracy and appropriateness of the results is not guaranteed. Human language is full of ambiguities, exceptions, plays on words, subtle expressions, mistakes, and logical associations that computers cannot handle (at least in 2011). Machine translation always returns a translation result for any given source text, sometimes one that is useful, very often one that does not fit the context, and in some cases even a direct copy of the source text (whenever the translation cannot be resolved). All this said, there are good things to say about machine translation. In certain scenarios, it can be sufficient to get an imprecise translation that reveals what the text is about without everything being translated correctly. And, at the same time, there are circumstances where it can be more important to get the result without delay than to get a good translation. One easy way to understand what these systems can offer is by having them translate into your native language. You can see some machine translation examples from Spanish and Japanese into English at: http://www.localversion.com/index.php/en/faq/51-tmexamples.html Alternatively, you can also visit the following popular sites to run your own tests. http://translate.google.com http://www.microsofttranslator.com The advantages of machine translation compared to the work of human translators could be summarized as: cost, speed and mathematical consistency. Companies considering using machine translation should spend a reasonable amount of time evaluating its capabilities and limitations, and assessing its customized implementation in their daily workflow. At LocalVersion, we strive to keep up to date with the latest trends and technology development in order to improve our costs and efficiency, and with the final aim of transferring these advantages to our clients. If you are considering adopting machine translation in your workflow, it is advisable to discuss your plans with a professional translation or localization company. Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com LocalVersion is a tight-knit, high-performance team of senior specialists offering full translation and localization services for the PC, Mac OS X and iOS platforms. Other Frequently Asked Questions about the translation and localization industries are available at: www.localversion.com/index.php/en/faq.html |
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