If you are a busy translator and look for a tool to organize your work and take advantage of shared translations the Google Translator Kit will prove more than helpful. Using the Toolkit you can upload HTML, Microsoft Word, Rich Text, OpenDocument Text, Plain Text docs for translation. However the size of each file is limited to 1MB. Plus it also lets you enter a URL of any page, an article from Knol or Wikipedia as well. Once you are done with uploading a file or a URL, the translation is performed and the results displayed in a neat interface that show the original article along with its translation side by side. The toolkit also has the translation memory feature that loads suggestions from previous translations to see if a certain segment of a document already has a translation available. Overall the toolkit is pretty impressive and simple to use, like everything about Google is.
As a translator – and a user of translation memory software – is it going to make my life a lot easier? I really hope so. I don’t think many translation agencies will transfer their translation memories – especially their corporate memory – but I bet freelance translators such as those who work on OneHourTranslation.com etc. will happily use the new free toolkit.
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That is exactly what i meant there. Think of the countless translators doing all that freelance translation. Each can benefit from the time spent by the other and save their time in return. Plus it also puts in the human element into action. As for corporates, why would they want to add to the Memory and loose where they can tap in revenues.
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