Why invest in CAT tools?

Why invest in CAT ( Computer Aided Translation ) tools ? The question is worth asking, because translation is a crucial issue at a time of internationalization of commerce and exchanges in general.

Since there is automatic translation software (Google Translate is the emblem) accessible in one click, instantaneous and mixing a dizzying number of languages, what is the point of investing in other translation tools? Why then favor Computer-Assisted Translation, an improbable hybrid between machine translation and human translation? Quite simply because it is the ideal combination to optimize the efficiency and quality of your translations. This revelation certainly deserves some clarification…

CAT tools: definition and challenges

Computer-Assisted Translation consists of the simultaneous collaboration of a professional human translator and translation software. First of all, it must be distinguished from Machine Translation (MT). Automatic translation (like Google Translate, or Reverso) consists of rapid translation, without human proofreading.

It provides many services when it comes to translating a general email , a simple text, or a contact form. Indeed, automatic translation allows you to understand the main points, to grasp the general idea without taking the time to invest in a specific translation tool, to contact an agency, or even to open a dictionary.

On the other hand, as soon as the text to be translated becomes more complex, automatic translation, too approximate despite its recent progress, shows its limits. This is where CAT takes over, because it much better handles the complexity and even the great technical specificity of the texts to be translated.

How does TAO actually work?

A specialized human translator translates the text, but relying on a tool capable of memorization. Clearly, the CAT tool gradually feeds what is called a translation memory and a terminological glossary as the translations progress. In these two databases, enriched over the course of translations, the CAT tool records segments of sentences to keep as they are and to translate automatically (such as for example a formula dedicated to the company, an advertising slogan, or a scientific expression to above all, do not rephrase otherwise it will lose its sharpness).

The terminology glossary focuses on very specialized terms (for example, in the legal or even medical fields): it allows not only systematic precision, but also great homogeneity of the text. It prevents the translator from modifying key passages (believing he is doing the right thing by avoiding repetitions to make the style more fluid), as this could undermine the credibility or logical coherence of the entire text to be translated.

Invest in CAT tools to save time

Why invest in CAT tools, when on both sides, human translators and automatic software have made enormous progress given the current global boom in translation?

First of all, to save time. And this, whether you plan to carry out your translations in-house or prefer to entrust them to an external service provider . Indeed, being able to use a rigorous and pre-established terminological base saves considerable time, both for you and for the translator, and before, during and after the translation process itself.

Before starting the translation, you have two options as a client: either you want to go as quickly as possible and provide the text to be translated with simple instructions, or you waste time designing a style sheet and establishing it yourself. a terminology glossary based on your reading memories.

In the first case, you save a little time in the moment, but you may actually lose a lot of time. Without instructions or a specific glossary, the translator, however good he may be, will not be able to guess your objectives and your requirements, because they are closely linked to the vision you have of your business. As a result, you risk a lot of time-consuming back and forth once the document is translated.

Not only will you waste your time, but you risk not meeting your own deadlines when opening up internationally .

In the second case, you take the time to design yourself a style sheet and a homemade terminology glossary. However, as involved as you may be in your business or your area of ​​expertise, you will not be as exhaustive as a technical dictionary. Hence the interest in using a CAT tool configured for your field of specialty, to optimize the time a translation takes, both for you and for the translator. This is especially true when dealing with large volumes of translation and multilingual translation.

invest tao toolSource: freepik.com

Also read: Simultaneous translation of a videoconference: 5 tools

Invest in CAT tools to save money

What we perhaps imagine less spontaneously is that investing in CAT tools is also a good way to save money, without compromising on the quality of the translations of course. Indeed, it has been proven that the use of CAT tools boosts the productivity of human translators, who work significantly faster.

Second, the fact that the CAT tool contains a list of previously approved problematic technical terms significantly simplifies the work of translators.

Finally, you should know that CAT tools have the major advantage of being able to analyze the “difficulty” of a file to translate by relying on your translation memory.

From then on, no more wet-finger quotes, both in one direction and another. CAT tools offer you the possibility to calculate the translation workload based on the words already analyzed by the provided glossary and the translation memory. This therefore allows invoicing as close as possible to the work actually carried out, and provides you with substantial savings.