Article bY Professional Japanese Translators Tokyo: What is Computer Translation, Can These Things Actually Translate?

Like most things translation, this term is the stuff of no small amount of confusion!

Stick with me here; we’ll clear it all up

But first, since you’re reading this article you have a need for translation. You are also probably wondering what type of translation option is best for your requirements. Below are the different types of translations at a glance:
1 Computer Translation
2 Post-edited Machine Translation (PEMT, also known as the Sow’s Ear of Translation!)
3 Translation Crowd-sourcing
4 Translation Cloud
5 Professional Human Translation

Getting back on track, computer translation is a generic term that actually refers to 2 completely different types of translation using -no surprise here- computers:

• Machine Translation (MT) and
• Computer Assisted Translation (CAT).

Machine Translation
A human translator supports the machine. That is, a computer program, or software, translates the source text, with the resulting translated text then edited by the human translator (if it is edited at all). Google Translate is an example of machine translation most folks are familiar with.

In terms of translation quality possible, machine translation is a thoroughly discredited technology. Anyone that’s run even a rudimentary sentence through Google Translate, or any other MT software, would know this!

Computer Assisted Translation
A machine supports the human translator. A human translator translates the source text aided by a software program. The heart of this technology is a:

• Terminology base
• Translation memory

Used appropriately by experienced & professional human translators, CAT can improve efficiency. However, quality is not at the same level of a professional human translation, such as professional human Japanese translator. And, the utility of CAT translation tools vary according to the source language. For example, a French English language combination is more likely to realize the promised efficiencies than, say, a Japanese English translation.

Your project. Unless you have material that is rigid and lacks creativity -the type of material most suitable for machine translation- Professional Japanese Translators using the Full-cycle Translation Method (TEP) is the only way to ensure you get quality Japanese translation.