Greg L.
ProActive PC Support & Training. Proprietor, LauverSystems.com Edwardsburg, Michigan
Site translation feedback requested
I added Google Translate to http://LauverSystems.com/ with the intention of helping non-English readers. I know that automated translations are imperfect - it even interferes with some of my JavaScript.
I would appreciate feedback, from those who speak English and another language, on whether the translation helps, does not help, or is completely silly.
There are no bad answers. In fact, if you find something that's a good laugh, I would like to hear about it - maybe I can change the English wording so it improves the translation.
Thanks in advance!
Clarification added November 10, 2009:
Also - please tell me which non-English language you are using.
Clarification added November 11, 2009:
These are great responses, and I appreciate that you take the time to do it.
One motive I forgot to mention is that these responses can serve as a test for LinkedIn members who have considered adding Google Translate to their sites.
Since my site is directed at local business and does not draw high traffic, I decided try Google Translate so people could move from discussion to actually seeing the results.
Clarification added November 13, 2009:
Are there any Arabic, Chech, Hindi, Norwegian, and other speakers who wish to respond?
Good Answers (8)
Luis Miguel A.
Experienced IT Executive, Entrepeneur and Investor
Best Answers in: Databases (1), Web Development (1)
I translated the main frame (the one with the "Welcome" message) to spanish and it did a mediocre job. Although the main concepts were translated, the syntax was so poor that I had to read each paragraph two or three times before understanding what it was meant. I did not read the english version before translating to avoid knowing what it was about.
The word $ales was not correctly translated, as Google thought $ was not part of the word and translated "ales" into the spanish equivalent of "beers¨. That was funny, but probably unintended humor.
Also, several terms like "rocket science" or "outside the box" were not translated at all or got outrageously wrong results, because those are english-only. They have no direct meaning in other languages.
To be honest, this is an interesting experiment but in my opinion it gives the web site an image that I´m sure you´re not trying to convey to your potential customers. I find it more humorous than useful, really.
I like it, looks good and clearly describes what you do and how you plan on going about doing it for others.
Lance
Dmitriy N. G.
CEO at Applied Med Therapy®
Best Answers in: Health Care (3), Health Administration (1)
Tried Russian translation with Chrome:
Menu: 4 lines unreadable, 2 lines not translated
Home page - mine frame - not translated
Affiliated sites - most not translated (beside images)
Fees & Payments - not translated
In general, rest is Google translation from English to Russian and understandable (nothing common with native speaker). Will work if someone really wants to get service of yours but does not understand English it all. If you look at Russian web site of Kaspersky Lab ( http://www.kaspersky.ru ) you will see the difference. Please don't develop LauverSystems.ru with this translation.
Randall G.
Drupaler → Web Developer → SEO & SMO Strategist → Writer
Best Answers in: Web Development (57), Graphic Design (3), Career Management (2), Small Business (2), Starting Up (2), Software Development (2), Occupational Training (1), Accounting (1), Viral Marketing (1), Search Marketing (1), Project Management (1), Product Design (1), Enterprise Software (1), Information Security (1), Telecommunications (1), Using LinkedIn (1)
Automatic translation is at best a rough tool.
Human translation is the only way to ensure quality.
I discovered a funny example of an article I wrote that was automatically translated to Thai and back to English
Links:
Lyubov I.
Staff Specialist Product Developer at BMC Software
Best Answers in: Web Development (5), Starting Up (1), E-Commerce (1)
Greg,
I tried Russian translation of the landing page. As others mentioned, while it is possible to understand the general idea, the translation itself is nowhere near the quality of a page translated by a human.
To improve the quality of machine translation try to avoid idioms (e.g. Rocket Scientist) and words that have double meaning (e.g. free).
Links:
Google translate is good for conveying the meaning of simple sentences, but is not a replacement for professional translation services. Go to any foreign website and cut and paste the text into Google Translate. You can usually understand the meaning, but the grammar is terrible.
Links:
Kimberly M.
Community Manager at Sitecore
Best Answers in: Personal Investing (1), Retirement and Estate Planning (1), Web Development (1)
I tried in French - it doesn't translate Tired or Made Easy Computing in the right column. In the central part it doesn't translate Building. Its not perfect French but it is understandable.
K
Patricia L.
Cross-Cultural communications & marketing specialist: copywriting, adaptation and intercultural services
Best Answers in: Staffing and Recruiting (1), Internationalization and Localization (1), Writing and Editing (1)
Kimberly,
For French, a native speaker can decode the translation if he/she has some knowledge of English, but otherwise it is a real stretch!
For example, the first sentence "nous fixons les ordinateurs de maladie" back translated suggests they attach illness to computers :) Google transposed to fix as fixer and the two verbs do not have the same meaning at all :)
I tested a variety of automatic translation services on the last paragraph of the White House's white paper on innovation. The results are on my blog.
