Dec 1st, 2009 | ATA, Conferences, Reports | No Comments
As it reaches a milestone in its history, the ATA returns to its birthplace, NYC, with a stronger commitment than ever to promote our profession. BY NINA BOGDAN & KAREN TKACZYK
The opening session of the 50th Annual ATA Conference
THE FUTURE IS HERE
Pavel Palazhchenko, Mikhail Gorbachev’s interpreter for many years, spoke to standing room only crowds at the ATA conference, and as I soaked in his words, admiring both his insightful perspective about the world of interpreting and translation as well as his wonderfully elegant English, I reflected also on the importance of this event. At the closing session of the conference, ATA President Nicholas Hartmann announced that ATA membership, as of now, numbers more than 11,000. In an interview that same day with Fox Business News, past president Jiri Stejskal stated that the profession of translator is just that—a profession (meaning, not a hobby or something one can take up after taking a Berlitz course) and that a proficient translator may well earn in the six figures. → continue reading
Dec 1st, 2009 | Business, Continuing Ed., Reports | No Comments
Frank self-assessment of both linguistic and business skills are necessary in order to be successful as a freelance translator. BY ADA LUZ RESTREPO
Do you find yourself translating documents at work because your co-workers know you speak Mandarin? Or find yourself serving as “interpreter” between your Mexican family and American husband who doesn’t speak Spanish? People admire your abilities to speak two languages and help others who are still living in a monolingual world; but have you asked yourself if you are truly bilingual and truly bicultural?
These were some of the topics covered during the “Getting Started in Translation and Interpretation,” workshop organized by the NCTA, which took place on Saturday, September 19, at the San Francisco State University downtown campus. → continue reading
Sep 1st, 2009 | Business Tools, Continuing Ed., Reports | No Comments
San Francisco’s resident Trados guru concludes his teaching and eating trip to India. BY TUOMAS KOSTIAINEN
The good start I had with the first workshop led to another pleasant surprise: a full Indian lunch buffet! Incredible. We have nice refreshments at NCTA workshops thanks to our Events Director, but this was something else, and we had it at every workshop, showcasing the local cuisine from the milder Delhi affair to certainly much spicier Southern Indian dishes in Bangalore. And although the local power strips and extension cords didn’t completely fulfill my standards for safe electronics, these buffets more than fulfilled my requirements for a lunch. And of course, we had plenty of chai breaks in between. → continue reading
May 1st, 2009 | Business Tools, Continuing Ed., Reports | No Comments
A Bay Area Trados guru travels to the Indian subcontinent to spread the word, sample local cuisine, and experience a fascinating culture. BY TUOMAS KOSTIAINEN
It was too cool to pass up – you can’t be a real “Trados guru” unless you go to India to teach Trados, and if that wasn’t enough there was always a chance you might meet some of those beautiful Bollywood dancers. Or at least there would be plenty of good Indian food every day. So considering all of this, I said “yes” and agreed to teach three two-day Trados workshops in India last September. That was before I realized that it takes about 24 hours to fly there from San Francisco and I would need to subject myself to substantial needle poking by the Kaiser travel health nurse. Oh, well. There was also the less selfish point of view, and that was to spread the “happy Trados message” around the world… → continue reading
May 1st, 2009 | Interpretation, Interviews, NCTA Events, Reports | 1 Comment
At the NCTA February meeting, Iraqi interpreter Haitham Jasim was interviewed by Steven Goldstein and shared some of his experiences working for U.S. Forces in Iraq. BY SARAH LLEWLLYN
Haitham Jasim answers Steven Goldstein's questions.
The first meeting of 2009, held February 7th, began with a presentation by NCTA President Tuomas Kostiainen of current Association data and was followed by the announcement of the results of the 2009 Board elections. Re-elected to the Board were Tuomas Kostiainen as President, Yves Avérous as Vice President, and Raffaella Buschiazzo and Sonia Wichmann as Directors. J. Mónica Pérez was newly elected as Director.
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May 1st, 2009 | Reports | No Comments
An English to Spanish translator, system engineer, and teacher takes on the challenge of living and working in a new country. BY GABRIEL AREVALO, EDITED BY NINA BOGDAN
One day, on a beautiful, motivating, rainy morning, I was contacted by a stranger with a proposal about doing business in China. It surprised me, but, as I had been working for several years in my country, Colombia, as a teacher and translator, I decided to explore a new world full of diversity, uncertainty and challenges (using my chief asset: persistence or, as I like to call it, “useful stubbornness”). → continue reading
May 1st, 2009 | ATA, Business Tools, Continuing Ed., Reports | 2 Comments
An ATA-sponsored translation tools seminar in San Francisco provided information about ways to increase professional productivity. BY RON TISCHLER
The translation tools seminar held on March 14, 2009 at the Westin Market Street in San Francisco was divided into morning and afternoon sessions, plus there were exhibitors, a networking session, and a parade! The parade down Market Street, which seemed to have something to do with the color green, could be watched (until you got too cold) during the lunch break. The morning session, given by Rosalie Wells was titled “Productivity Tools for the Professional Translator.” The afternoon session, given by Dierk Seeburg of IcoText, was titled “Computer-Assisted Translation (CAT) Tools, from Term Extraction to Integrated Translation Environments.” There were about 100 attendees and four exhibitors: Across, Payment Practices, Total Recall (product named Snowball), and Wordfast.
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Feb 1st, 2009 | ATA, Conferences, Reports | No Comments
Poolside breakfast to gear up for the workshops of the day.
The 2008 ATA Annual Conference in Orlando, Florida drew a diverse crowd and positive reviews from NCTA attendees. Poolside receptions, balmy weather, and great workshops were enjoyed by all. BY KAREN TKACZYK, FARAH ARJANG VEZVAEE, AND RENATE CHESTNUT. → continue reading
Dec 1st, 2008 | Literary Translation, Related organizations, Reports | No Comments
On October 7, the Center for the Art of Translation began its 2008-09 “Lit & Lunch” series with a reading by Katherine Silver. BY ANDREA BINDEREIF
Katherine Silver, a renowned translator of some of Latin America’s leading contemporary authors, read from her latest translation, Senselessness, a novel by Salvadoran writer Horacio Castellanos Moya. This is Moya’s first novel to appear in English. Silver received grants from the PEN translation fund and the National Endowment for the Arts to complete this translation and she has since been recognized with an NEA award for her outstanding work. → continue reading
Dec 1st, 2008 | Business, Machine Translation, NCTA Events, Reports | No Comments
At the NCTA September meeting, Dr. Anthony Pym discussed his research findings and explained “what happens” when translators work under pressure. BY RAFFAELLA BUSCHIAZZO
The September General Meeting took place on Saturday the 13th in downtown San Francisco and was presented by NCTA President Tuomas Kostiainen. Vice President and Translorial Publisher Yves Avérous offered potential volunteers free training on layout and Translorial blog site management. Then he praised the excellent work Translorial’s new editor, Nina Bogdan, did on the September issue. He also showed everyone how to join the new NCTA Group in LinkedIn, the professional network website. All active NCTA members are welcome to join the group. At the December General Meeting we will present the most popular network websites where you can promote your professional skills online. → continue reading
Dec 1st, 2008 | NCTA Events, Reports | No Comments
On October 11, more than 60 NCTA members gathered in San Francisco’s Chinatown for dinner, wine, conversation, and a fireworks show. BY INGEBORG WEINMANNN WHITE
The 30th anniversary celebration dinner of the NCTA, held at the Empress of China, one of San Francisco’s oldest and most prestigious Chinese restaurants in the heart of Chinatown, was truly a joyous event. The large windows offered a beautiful view of the downtown skyline and distant bay basking in the rose-colored light of the sunset. It was easy to break the ice and feel at home among our family of peers (the delicious welcome champagne helped too). People greeted old friends, met new ones, and eventually settled down at the round tables, where the Chinese feast was soon to begin. → continue reading
