FreeTranslation.com Blog

Regular updates about FreeTranslation.com technology, products and services.

Welcome to the FreeTranslation.com Blog!

1/23/2006 08:40:00 AM
Posted by Jay Marciano, Director, Machine Translation Development

SDL International, the corporation behind FreeTranslation.com, is one of the world's leading providers of translation services and technologies. Throughout the company, we are always looking for new ways to fulfill the translation needs of our customers. In the world of providing translation services and technologies to multinational corporations, SDL prides itself on developing long-term relationships with its customers. These relationships are based on communication, the kind of communication that allows SDL to truly understand its customers' needs. Only with such information are we in a position to develop solutions that exceed the customers' expectations for quality and return on investment.

But here at FreeTranslation.com, it's not so easy to communicate effectively with the millions of visitors. We don't have a good unobtrusive method for discussing new developments or for explaining what we can do for you. So, the basic idea behind the FreeTranslation.com Blog is to have a non-intrusive forum for communicating regularly with visitors. We know that our visitors are interested in languages; they're interested in translation; they're interested in communicating with people around the world. We're continually improving the quality of the translations produced by FreeTranslation.com; and we are always looking for ways to improve the various applications and special functionality that we provide to our subscribers. This blog will give us a way to share such information with you. Postings will be written by a number of people who are involved in the development of SDL's translation technologies and in the design and maintenance of FreeTranslation.com. We already have lots of ideas for postings. They include: a history of the web site; tips on how to write to ensure maximum translation quality; insight into how the technology works; and sharing some of the stories about how FreeTranslation.com is used.

And of course we also want to hear from you. For in the end, this web site is here to fulfill your translation needs. The more information we have about your needs, the better we can do exactly that.

Permalink  |  Comments (23)  | 

Comments

1/26/2006 06:01:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous mathew (but u can call me matt)
hey. wats sup little dudes n dudettes. my nam is matthew. but u can call me matt. i luv ur site. it relly helps me with my french homwrk. keep it up, u guys!
1/26/2006 06:03:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Jennifer
Hello. My name is Jennifer. I would like to say that this website is VERY helpful. I would like to congratulate you guys on your hard work. Keep up the good work!
1/30/2006 04:18:00 PM
Comment by Blogger Johnny Loff
Your website has been invaluable to me over the past few years for work and school. I have studied and fluently speak French but I frequently have to translate Spanish and German texts from web pages or from clients.

Many words in every language have several meanings depending on the context. However, as a programmer, I realize that it would be very difficult to create code that can look at the text holistically and then make adjustments.

I suggest adding a selection box where the user can specify if the translation is geared toward a particular industry. Such as; Legal, Construction, finance, agriculture, medical, etc.

Either way, thank you for providing such a great service!
2/01/2006 10:28:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Serge VR
Very neat and practical!

I just used the free translator for the first time. It works so fast. Of course I still have to tweak of few words and phrases, but all in all it works great.

The try I just made was from English to French. French being my first language, I understand what works and doesn't not, but to speed up and avoid the initial write-up this is a great tool...so fast. The rest as I mentioned is to finalize and make appropriate grammar corrections.

Thanks very much for the free try and for your services.

Kind Regards,

Serge
2/01/2006 10:30:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Serge VR
Very neat and practical!

I just used the free translator for the first time. It works so fast. Of course I still have to tweak of few words and phrases, but all in all it works great.

The try I just made was from English to French. French being my first language, I understand what works and doesn't not, but to speed up and avoid the initial write-up this is a great tool...so fast. The rest as I mentioned is to finalize and make appropriate grammar corrections.

Thanks very much for the free try and for your services.

Kind Regards,

Serge
2/03/2006 05:21:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Sara
Hey!...This website is totally cool! i always use it for my reports!..Haha!! well g2g to go ! cya lata alligata!
2/15/2006 07:49:00 AM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
C'est tres probablement que j'adore www.freetranslation.com
2/19/2006 09:14:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
I agree that the site is a great help, but be careful if you are a student. The university I graduated from considered using the site to be cheating.
2/27/2006 09:51:00 AM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
Alan

Este sistema es muy util ya que nos ayuda a las personas que necesitamos de buenas traducciones.

Felicidads y Muchas Gracias!!
3/13/2006 07:58:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
great work guys!
3/17/2006 01:49:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
good site v. useful
3/31/2006 03:28:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous "rusty espanol"
THANKS so much for your great service. I used it to communicate quickly with customers in Mexico, and couldn't have filled the order without you. Muchas gracias.
6/08/2006 05:58:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
I would like to personally congratulate you on your good job. Your site has helped me enormously with my Francais and I use it almost every class. My French is now excellent and I owe it to you. The one suggestion I have is that you have a translation pour latin.
bien soir et au revoir!
6/17/2006 11:48:00 AM
Comment by Anonymous Stefan
I am amazed with the speed of the translations. I have used it a couple of times to translate phrases between German and English. What fascinated me was that apperantly the translation from English to German works much better than a translation from German to English. It seems to me your software has a pretty good parser understanding the meaning of a phrase in a foreign language. I guess this is the most fundamental thing when translating from one language to another - somehow you have to 'understand' what a phrase means. I have not tried yet translating multiple phrases to see if it can actually recognize the context and apply it to phrases accordingly.
9/27/2006 03:48:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
I love this website and I use it all the time to translate to my employees. I do wish you could also have Creole as a translation choice. Yes, they understand the French translation, but some phrases are different. Is there any possibility of adding Creole as a choice translation in the future?
10/17/2006 01:05:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous jp fenton
Somewhat by accident, i just read this blog for the first time; but, it just may be that I am one of those who found the prototype FreeTranslation web site in 1999. You see, I was preparing to take a sabattical from teaching and planning to go to le Cordon Bleu in Paris for a year. I'd been a Transparent Language customer for language courses (French, Italian, Spanish), but needed to find a quick way to work on translations for the French Visa application, apartment rentals, etc. I don't really recall how I found FreeTranslation, perhaps it was then connected with Transparent Language, but I've used it frequently ever since then - to this day, in fact, as I was communicating with the owner of a French restaurant where I've been working. I'd not discovered the "platinum" membership until now, but that's something I must try. A recent review of sites, including Free Translation and others similar, complained about the errors; well, yes, but - I find it a tremendous aide, helping me to at least construct what I need to say, then I use my (very limited) knowledge of the language to "personalize" the text. For me, this really works. My sincere thanks for a very useful web service.
1/25/2007 03:33:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
Thank you, this site is more than helpful for students, but it also brings love and passion into peoples life. Communication is mucho importante.
2/02/2007 04:38:00 PM
Comment by Blogger Nigel
I am "deçu en bien" as the Swiss French say. I looked up "agony column" in my dictionaries to find .... nothing. Using your free translation I found acceptable results for French, German and Spanish (Italian was a 'nono'). The result of the back-Translation were not so good, nor was the translation of "Agony Aunt".
However as a linguist I realize that I am asking an awful lot of (free!) software in an area where conventional dictionaries just don't even try!! My group of French speakers (in an Italian lesson!) also could not come up with anything!
So keep up the good work, I'm really impressed, and will recommmend your site to all and sundry.
3/03/2007 09:04:00 AM
Comment by Anonymous Anonymous
Thank you so much for the free translation section. It has added a new dimension to my life!
3/20/2007 06:40:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous spanish student
hey! i just wanted to say, first of all, that this site has been an invaluable aid (that's a good thing, for those of u who think that sounds bad)in my endeavors to succeed in doing Spanish hw. i also wanted 2 ask a quick question... i saw "anonymous" said that in his/her university, using this site was considered 2 be cheating. do u recommend asking your teacher prior 2 using this site? i think it might be a good idea. also, can u get into trouble for aiding a "cheating" student? btw, thanks for having the "free translate" option. i use it all the time, and have found it is the best of the few free ones that i've found online. - very easy 2 use. also, could you post a response 2 me on your blog, explaining how it works that the site can instantly translate lots of stuff? i'm interested in how it works. thank you. :-) u guys and/or gals rock! keep it up.
5/18/2007 09:57:00 AM
Comment by Anonymous Tim Gilbert
I agree that free translation can be a very powerful tool but care is needed. I just tried translating a phrase that I entered just to get the translation of one word. The phrase was "We toasted Brian". The Norwegian translation I got said that we had grilled him or put him in a toaster. In reality we were drinking to his good health. Users take note! You need to understand the limitations of your tools.
10/24/2007 03:44:00 PM
Comment by Anonymous Not Telling
I must say, this site has been VERY helpful for me over the years. I do have trouble when the translations don't come out right, but I'll get over it. Keep up the good work. Salut, tout le monde! :D
3/10/2008 07:31:00 PM
Comment by Blogger Christine
Finally, a way to tell you how effective your services have been! I am an avid user of eBay. At first I only purchased things from the U.S., but in wanting to expand my collection, I needed to buy internationally. That becomes impossible if you only speak English. FreeTranslation.com to the rescue! It is an invaluable service and I am most greatful.

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