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Poll: Do you think DeepL is something for human translators to worry about?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
Dan Lucas
Dan Lucas  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:51
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
Tides and currents Jul 24, 2023

Carlos A R de Souza wrote:
There's only so much we can do, but does that mean we shouldn't try to organize at all?

I don't think "there's only so much we can do". I think trying to organise in this environment is pointless and naive, for all the reasons already enumerated. If I were convinced that there were no future in a particular industry I wouldn't waste my time on an initiative I considered futile. I'd be using my energy and talents to switch careers.

Anne Brackenborough wrote:
We're all at different stages in a process that will go different ways at different speeds depending on our language combination and and specialities. It makes no sense to argue as if it's all down to our translating skills and no more.

Good point, but I think there are multiple albeit similar processes, rather than one monolithic process. There are different areas of specialisation, which in turn influences the need (or otherwise) for confidentiality, and also the perceived scarcity of translators, and of course the language pair itself carries with it a significant cultural load. Some clients are more risk-averse and slower to adopt new technology than others.

However, by the same token I would caution against assuming everybody is going to end up at the same level, at least in the medium term. I suspect there will be significant local maxima and minima in terms of the degree of MT use.

Rather than seeing the future end point as the uniform bottom of an artificial swimming pool, I speculate that it will resemble a rocky sea bed with significant variations in topography - boulders large and small, corals, patches of sand, hollows, kelp beds, clefts, undersea mounts, even spires of rock patrolled by shoals of fish, and of course tides and currents moving through it all. There may well be opportunities in such an environment.

As for the long term - pfft. We're all dead anyway. And that's about the only verifiable statement in this thread so far.

Regards,
Dan


P.L.F. Persio
Liviu-Lee Roth
Jorge Payan
 
Anne Brackenborough (X)
Anne Brackenborough (X)  Identity Verified
Germany
Local time: 18:51
German to English
Not in the same boat = multiple processes Jul 25, 2023

Good point, but I think there are multiple albeit similar processes, rather than one monolithic process.
I appreciate your summary of the point I made


Dan Lucas
 
finnword1
finnword1
United States
Local time: 12:51
English to Finnish
+ ...
DeepL is better than Google Jul 25, 2023

Google Translator thinks that "legal briefs" means judicial underpants in Finnish.

Tom in London
P.L.F. Persio
 
David GAY
David GAY
Local time: 18:51
English to French
+ ...
So... Jul 25, 2023

Dan Lucas wrote:

Carlos A R de Souza wrote:
There's only so much we can do, but does that mean we shouldn't try to organize at all?

I don't think "there's only so much we can do". I think trying to organise in this environment is pointless and naive, for all the reasons already enumerated. If I were convinced that there were no future in a particular industry I wouldn't waste my time on an initiative I considered futile. I'd be using my energy and talents to switch careers.

Anne Brackenborough wrote:
We're all at different stages in a process that will go different ways at different speeds depending on our language combination and and specialities. It makes no sense to argue as if it's all down to our translating skills and no more.

Good point, but I think there are multiple albeit similar processes, rather than one monolithic process. There are different areas of specialisation, which in turn influences the need (or otherwise) for confidentiality, and also the perceived scarcity of translators, and of course the language pair itself carries with it a significant cultural load. Some clients are more risk-averse and slower to adopt new technology than others.

However, by the same token I would caution against assuming everybody is going to end up at the same level, at least in the medium term. I suspect there will be significant local maxima and minima in terms of the degree of MT use.

Rather than seeing the future end point as the uniform bottom of an artificial swimming pool, I speculate that it will resemble a rocky sea bed with significant variations in topography - boulders large and small, corals, patches of sand, hollows, kelp beds, clefts, undersea mounts, even spires of rock patrolled by shoals of fish, and of course tides and currents moving through it all. There may well be opportunities in such an environment.

As for the long term - pfft. We're all dead anyway. And that's about the only verifiable statement in this thread so far.

Regards,
Dan

So, apparently, we are not in the same boat and some have already capsized and lie on the sea bed.

[Edited at 2023-07-25 19:56 GMT]


Dan Lucas
 
Dan Lucas
Dan Lucas  Identity Verified
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:51
Member (2014)
Japanese to English
That's about right Jul 26, 2023

David GAY wrote:
So, apparently, we are not in the same boat and some have already capsized and lie on the sea bed.

Good morning David, I have been expecting you and your merciless refusal to use selective quotes. But yes, some have already capsized, some are trawling with nets in the shallows, some are fishing with long lines at the surface, some are diving for pearls...

Regards,
Dan


Helena Chavarria
 
Stephen Emm
Stephen Emm  Identity Verified
Local time: 17:51
French to English
+ ...
Of course! Jul 27, 2023

Translation, like other industries, is slowly being "de-skilled" - first CAT software, then MT, then google translate, then DeepL and next AI.

Of course, translators will still be required in highly-specialised areas and this does not preclude translators in niche languages who have a stable of well-paying direct customers, but the industry will be increasingly unattractive for young translators and translation rates will continue to stagnate/decline for most.

An intere
... See more
Translation, like other industries, is slowly being "de-skilled" - first CAT software, then MT, then google translate, then DeepL and next AI.

Of course, translators will still be required in highly-specialised areas and this does not preclude translators in niche languages who have a stable of well-paying direct customers, but the industry will be increasingly unattractive for young translators and translation rates will continue to stagnate/decline for most.

An interesting article in the Telegraph cites a translation degree as being the second worst in terms of "value for money" and career prospects.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/consumer-affairs/worst-university-degrees-damage-career-prospects/

Of course, there will soon be articles on how there is a "shortage of translators" - capitalist code speak for "why aren't people prepared to work for the rates we are offering".

It should be an interesting ride...
Collapse


Matthias Brombach
Dan Lucas
Chris Says Bye
Kay Denney
Michele Fauble
Sabine Braun
MagnusRubens (X)
 
Bibsy
Bibsy
United Kingdom
Deepl Aug 2, 2023

I was wondering whether there is truth in the rumour that Deepl keeps copie of whatever I am translating when I am using the free version. Does anyone know if that's true, please?

 
Mr. Satan (X)
Mr. Satan (X)
English to Indonesian
@Bibsy Aug 4, 2023

Bibsy wrote:
I was wondering whether there is truth in the rumour that Deepl keeps copie of whatever I am translating when I am using the free version. Does anyone know if that's true, please?


DeepL's privacy policy (see section 3 and 7):
https://www.deepl.com/en/privacy

Notwithstanding their claims, as long you don't have access to their infrastructure, there's no way to verify whether they abide by their own policies. Always assume they log everything and keep your data forever.

[Edited at 2023-08-04 11:43 GMT]


Kevin Fulton
Daryo
Ariyantri Tarman
 
Daryo
Daryo
United Kingdom
Local time: 17:51
Serbian to English
+ ...
Most probably is. Feb 21

Bibsy wrote:

I was wondering whether there is truth in the rumour that Deepl keeps copie of whatever I am translating when I am using the free version. Does anyone know if that's true, please?


If it's technically feasible - and it definitely is - you can safely assume that DeepL is doing it. Especially when given the continuously falling costs memory and processing power are not much of a limiting factor.


brovxidfmgan (X)
 
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