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Poll: How many typos do you consider acceptable in 1000 words?
ناشر الموضوع: ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
ProZ.com Staff
فريق الموقع
Jan 8, 2022

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How many typos do you consider acceptable in 1000 words?".

View the poll results »



 
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
البرتغال
Local time: 06:28
عضو (2007)
أنجليزي إلى برتغالي
+ ...
Other Jan 8, 2022

It depends. Do you mean typos in a translation or typos in the source text? Typos in a translation are unacceptable. My spell-checker is always on and I revise, edit and proofread my translations several times (the last time I read my work aloud). Typos in the source text might be acceptable though my work will be more difficult if the text is riddled with typos and grammar errors. If it is really bad, to the extent where it becomes unintelligible, I just turn it down. This actually only happene... See more
It depends. Do you mean typos in a translation or typos in the source text? Typos in a translation are unacceptable. My spell-checker is always on and I revise, edit and proofread my translations several times (the last time I read my work aloud). Typos in the source text might be acceptable though my work will be more difficult if the text is riddled with typos and grammar errors. If it is really bad, to the extent where it becomes unintelligible, I just turn it down. This actually only happened to me once or twice…Collapse


neilmac
ahartje
Stepan Konev
deseji
Yaotl Altan
Muriel Vasconcellos
MollyRose
 
neilmac
neilmac
أسبانيا
Local time: 07:28
إسباني إلى أنجليزي
+ ...
None Jan 8, 2022

This poll question brings to mind an article in yesterday's Guardian, about a young man working as a lawyer, who keeps giving up on his jobs after a few months. His concerned mother wrote to the agony aunt and stated: " In his current job he resents his young superior’s constant rewriting of his contracts, mostly for minor grammatical details."
As most of our colleagues will (I assume) be aware, "grammar details" are anything but "minor", especially in legal contracts, where even a mispl
... See more
This poll question brings to mind an article in yesterday's Guardian, about a young man working as a lawyer, who keeps giving up on his jobs after a few months. His concerned mother wrote to the agony aunt and stated: " In his current job he resents his young superior’s constant rewriting of his contracts, mostly for minor grammatical details."
As most of our colleagues will (I assume) be aware, "grammar details" are anything but "minor", especially in legal contracts, where even a misplaced comma can lead to serious problems.
In general, I aim for zero mistakes of any kind in the texts I translate or revise/correct. I also usually notify my clients of any errors in their source material, even if they are "only" typos.
(PS: The query in itself seems rather daft, sort of like asking a mechanic how many bolts they consider necessary to hold your vehicle together.)

[Edited at 2022-01-08 10:57 GMT]
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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
ahartje
Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
Stepan Konev
deseji
Yaotl Altan
Muriel Vasconcellos
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
المملكة المتحدة
Local time: 06:28
عضو (2008)
إيطالي إلى أنجليزي
0 Jan 8, 2022

ProZ.com Staff wrote:

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "How many typos do you consider acceptable in 1000 words?".

View the poll results »



0 (in my translations)

[Edited at 2022-01-08 12:23 GMT]


Josephine Cassar
Philip Lees
 
William Yang
William Yang
الصين
Local time: 13:28
عضو (2021)
أنجليزي إلى صيني
+ ...
For me Jan 8, 2022

I wouldn't accept any typos, but they occur thanks to autocorrection in action sometimes.

 
Barbara Cochran, MFA
Barbara Cochran, MFA  Identity Verified
الولايات المتحدة
Local time: 01:28
إسباني إلى أنجليزي
+ ...
None Jan 8, 2022

Although I do have to say that when I have translated historical texts that describe rulers, etc., and places that were around in more ancient times, I have to make sure I double-check and be very careful when typing out their names in their Anglicized versions, since they often appear in Word as misspellings, anyway.

Christine Andersen
 
Anton Konashenok
Anton Konashenok  Identity Verified
جمهورية التشيك
Local time: 07:28
فرنسي إلى أنجليزي
+ ...
None Jan 8, 2022

None are acceptable, but some will creep in anyway despite the use of spell/grammar checkers. Were it not the case, we wouldn't need proofreaders. By the same token, some typos will remain after proofreading, just proportionally fewer.

Christine Andersen
Veronica Montserrat
John Michalis
Edward Potter
William Yang
Philip Lees
Kardi Kho
 
Christopher Schröder
Christopher Schröder
المملكة المتحدة
عضو (2011)
سويدي إلى أنجليزي
+ ...
None Jan 8, 2022

As far as I am aware, I have never made a typo.

Everyone else seems to do it all the time. Odd that.


Edward Potter
Kardi Kho
Kay Denney
Roman Kirilchuk
 
Christine Andersen
Christine Andersen  Identity Verified
الدانمرك
Local time: 07:28
عضو (2003)
دانماركي إلى أنجليزي
+ ...
It depends on the purpose of the text Jan 8, 2022

If it is one of those jobs where the source comes in late in the afternoon, and the client needs a translation first thing in the morning, for internal communications, then as long as teh menaing s clear, teh odd typo will probably not matter too much. Anything really important can be retyped and edited afterwards.
I have sat up late on that kind of thing, working on coffee and adrenalin, and I do not see all the typos in the time available.

Normally, I try to take the time I
... See more
If it is one of those jobs where the source comes in late in the afternoon, and the client needs a translation first thing in the morning, for internal communications, then as long as teh menaing s clear, teh odd typo will probably not matter too much. Anything really important can be retyped and edited afterwards.
I have sat up late on that kind of thing, working on coffee and adrenalin, and I do not see all the typos in the time available.

Normally, I try to take the time I need to check and make sure there are no typos at all when I deliver a translation. (But nobody is perfect, and the spelling checker does not catch in/on or that kind of error - I know they slip through occasionally!)
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Edward Potter
Christopher Schröder
expressisverbis
 
Edward Potter
Edward Potter  Identity Verified
أسبانيا
Local time: 07:28
عضو (2003)
إسباني إلى أنجليزي
+ ...
Zero Jan 9, 2022

Always try to keep it at zero.

However, the guy who says his translations are always perfect is a dubious individual.


[Edited at 2022-01-09 02:43 GMT]


William Yang
Christopher Schröder
Robert Rietvelt
Becca Resnik
Robin LEPLUMEY
expressisverbis
Kay Denney
 
Philip Lees
Philip Lees  Identity Verified
اليونان
Local time: 08:28
يوناني إلى أنجليزي
None Jan 9, 2022

No typos are acceptable, but some are inevitable. It's just the way the world works, the way the human brain processes written text, and so on.

So I won't deliver a translation until I believe it to be typo-free (but I know in my heart that it may not be).


Thayenga
William Yang
Robert Rietvelt
Becca Resnik
Erik Freitag
expressisverbis
Roman Kirilchuk
 
Robert Rietvelt
Robert Rietvelt  Identity Verified
Local time: 07:28
عضو (2006)
إسباني إلى هولندي
+ ...
In principle none, but ..... Jan 9, 2022

..... we are human beings, and as such we are falible. If you don't believe me, read the Bible, it already went wrong with the creation, hence "in principle".

In short, nobody is perfect (and who is, please throw the first stone)


expressisverbis
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
المملكة المتحدة
Local time: 06:28
عضو (2008)
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Some people still believe that.... Jan 9, 2022

Robert Rietvelt wrote:

..... we are human beings, and as such we are falible. If you don't believe me, read the Bible, it already went wrong with the creation, hence "in principle".

In short, nobody is perfect (and who is, please throw the first stone)



Some people still believe that the universe was created, and the God was just a big bang (so he's gone now).

Annoyingly, just yesterday I was re-reading a translation I did a few weeks ago (YOU SHOULD NEVER DO THIS) and found a typo.

I can't stop thinking about it- and why the client didn't pick it up. It was for a website, and is now live....groan...


Beatriz Ramírez de Haro
 
Robert Rietvelt
Robert Rietvelt  Identity Verified
Local time: 07:28
عضو (2006)
إسباني إلى هولندي
+ ...
@Tom Jan 9, 2022

Tom in London wrote:

Robert Rietvelt wrote:

..... we are human beings, and as such we are falible. If you don't believe me, read the Bible, it already went wrong with the creation, hence "in principle".

In short, nobody is perfect (and who is, please throw the first stone)



Some people still believe that the universe was created, and the God was just a big bang (so he's gone now).

Annoyingly, just yesterday I was re-reading a translation I did a few weeks ago (YOU SHOULD NEVER DO THIS) and found a typo.


I rest my my case.


Tom in London
Ruth Wye
 
Inga Petkelyte
Inga Petkelyte  Identity Verified
البرتغال
Local time: 06:28
ليثواني إلى برتغالي
+ ...
Zero tolerance for myself Jan 10, 2022

But when proofreading the work of others, I really prefer several typos in an otherwise clear, natural text rather than no typos yet the feeling of reading English expressed in another language.

Kay Denney
 
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Poll: How many typos do you consider acceptable in 1000 words?






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