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Community Learning Videos
- posted by: Rushali Chanana
By Rushali Chanana
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4GCczkDhkw
translation, transcription, subtitling, all three are related and slip-up in one will cause inaccuracy in the others. Only if the transcription is done properly, proper translation and subtitling can be performed. Here are some points to keep in mind while carrying out these works.
Margaret explains: transcription is the process of converting audio or video into a written format. It is performed mainly for dead and hard-of-hearing individuals, thus includes a written form of background noises like 'clouds thundering'. It is of two types: Full-verbatim which includes every word and sound of non-verbal communication too; Non-verbatim which excludes unnecessary speech to make the transcript more readable. One can follow some tips like saving the text regularly, only transcribing, not correcting the audio, making a short form for recurring things like names, concepts, etc, re-reading the complete document to verify mistakes. Often beginners complain of poor quality audio. To overcome this, we have a multitude of audio editing programs for volume-boosting and background noise reduction. Another method is using auto-correct.
Mr. Ravi, adding to this, shares that listening to the whole audio first, to understand the totality of the subject, can help correct transcription and reduce chances of errors. He explains the importance of cultural awareness and not doing direct translation, by giving examples of Hindi sayings that have no meaning when translated to other languages.
After translation, is subtitling. A subtitle is a translated version of the transcription of the video. The reason for adding subtitles to videos are many: sometimes one watches videos without subtitles; it makes videos more accessible and also boosts SEO. It has restrictions on time and space. To ensure that the translation has to be well-performed, thus, when translating the text, one should use simple language, avoid direct translation. We can summarize the concepts but make sure not to omit important words and respect the speaker's style. We can avoid translating repetitions, interjections like 'oh, uh, um' as they are heavy to read.
Moving on to subtitles, we should try that every subtitle contains an independent sentence with the subject, verb, and direct object. Every line should be 35 letters long, or a maximum of 40, and we should have a maximum of two lines per subtitle, which becomes easier for the human eye to read. When two lines are used, the upper should be kept short to keep most of the image free. Next, there are some as well. The maximum length of a subtitle is 4 seconds for one line, 6 for two lines, and a pause of at least 0.2 seconds between each subtitle. One must ensure that when the image changes so do the subtitle.
Punctuation too is used while subtitling, suspension points (….) are used for hesitation/interruption; hyphen (-) to indicate two speakers; inverted commas ("") for quotes; italics for songs and other background noise. The use of capital letters can be avoided, as they are heavier to read.
After this discussion, Vineeta explains the exact steps of adding subtitles to videos. With Shubhnagi, the discussion moves to the international and Indian markets, and how we can demand extra payment and time if the video is difficult to subtitle. Mr. Ravi adds that instead of running away from the problem we must try out new projects to improve our skillset. Dr. Yamina shares what we can do to improve further.
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Hits: 1120
- posted by: Aniket Kulkarni
The rise of technology in recent times has seen various fundamental changes in many sectors. It has also brought some huge changes in the vast field of translation. The job of a translator is to render the translated version with perfection. It is not an easy job, and it requires experience and holds over the language. Although, even a well-experienced human translator is vulnerable to mistakes. Thus, CAT tools were made to help fellow human translators deliver top-quality translations. In this insightful webinar, Mr. Ravi Kumar along with his team has discussed translation technology in today’s world as well as the pros and cons of CAT tools along with a small demo in the latter part of the video which sheds light on the basics of using a CAT tool.
Human translators discern and translate meaning, while CAT tools do what they do best: compare, store, and retrieve data. But many confuse it with Machine Translations. They both are both different from each other. MT works on its own, while CAT tools require human intervention. In this video, the following core components of CAT tools are discussed – Translation Memory Term Base (Stores words or expressions) Dictionary Machine Translation Desktop Publishing Spell Check Connecting Furthermore, there are various types of CAT tools, too: Translation memory software like SDL Trados Studio, Similis; Multilingual dictionaries like Linguee, Contexto; Terminology management services like Logiterm, and alignment software like You Align. CAT tools are really helpful, but like every machine, these tools also have a fair share of pros and cons which are discussed in this webinar.
There three key benefits of CAT tools – Cost Savings, Speed, and quality. It also increases productivity and efficiency and is recommended for technical documents’ translations. But there are also various cons such as Context-based choices have to be made by human translators, literary translation poses a challenge, security issues.
The most asked question “ Will AI take over the translation industry totally?” has also been discussed in this video. Although machine translation cannot replace human translators, the improvement of the translation process with AI and CAT tools is very much a necessity and a reality today. But the truth is that neither can be fully capable of translating perfectly. There has to be a blend of both to deliver quality translation services. As machines cannot decipher emotions, morals, ethics of the source text, and its author, human intervention will always have importance; while CAT tools will lead to great improvements in translator efficiency and accuracy and in cost savings which can provide benefits to the client. Despite the growing importance of AI-assisted translator tools, human translators remain the foundation of a quality translation process. Thus, in this video, Mr. Ravi Kumar and the webinar team thoroughly discuss and highlight all the above points and provide very helpful insights about the translation technology and CAT tools in today’s world.
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Hits: 1440
