| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | How can I take a course with a teacher to learn CAT Tools? Thread poster: joannebenz
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I can't seem to find out if it is possible to work as a professional translator without knowing any CAT Tools.
I have a degree in T&I, but don't know any CAT tools as I don't remember it from decades ago when I graduated.
I never worked as a translator, but know several languages fluently.
I was told one absolutely needed to know CAT tools before getting any translation work.
is this true?
if so, how can I learn CAT tools if I am not good at self-study... See more I can't seem to find out if it is possible to work as a professional translator without knowing any CAT Tools.
I have a degree in T&I, but don't know any CAT tools as I don't remember it from decades ago when I graduated.
I never worked as a translator, but know several languages fluently.
I was told one absolutely needed to know CAT tools before getting any translation work.
is this true?
if so, how can I learn CAT tools if I am not good at self-study and need an actual live course with a teacher?
is there a school or any institute that teaches CAT tools the way they teach it in a T&I program at translation school? ▲ Collapse
| | | | Natalie 
Poland
Local time: 14:54
Member (2002)
English to Russian
+ ...
MODERATOR SITE LOCALIZER | Please take a look at your own thread of 2020 | Oct 5 |
joannebenz wrote:
I can't seem to find out if it is possible to work as a professional translator without knowing any CAT Tools.
....
I was told one absolutely needed to know CAT tools before getting any translation work.
is this true?
if so, how can I learn CAT tools if I am not good at self-study and need an actual live course with a teacher?
is there a school or any institute that teaches CAT tools the way they teach it in a T&I program at translation school?
Your previous thread received some 5 pages of discussion and advice:
https://www.proz.com/topic/342524
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joannebenz wrote:
...if so, how can I learn CAT tools if I am not good at self-study and need an actual live course with a teacher?
is there a school or any institute that teaches CAT tools the way they teach it in a T&I program at translation school?
...one of the numerous experienced colleagues here at proz who live in your area whether one of them is willing to teach you against a reasonable price per hour or out of pure kindness at home or in a public library or cafe or elsewhere. I wouldn't rely on an expensive course limited for a weekend only without the opportunity to ask for further advice when it becomes hot in terms of performing true work.
[Bearbeitet am 2024-10-05 20:38 GMT]
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| Lookinf for CAT course,not an individual translator | Oct 6 |
I stated I was looking for a CAT Tools course (with s live teacher & classmates)
just like one would be taught CAT tools in a translation school.
( I have a degree, just dont know the tools)
There is no place in the world that offers classes for Trados, etc?
I am NOT looking for self study.
How are other people learning it, does one need to take a whole new Masters course, just to properly be taught CAT tools?
| | | | | Do they even offer such things? | Oct 7 |
I mean, if someone is willing to pay for something, then someone else will probably show up to grab the money. In my case, nobody taught me how to use Trados and memoQ. It was pretty easy to figure out how to make them do what I wanted from them, and the rest of their features are something I never wanted. I remember how Trados's Workbench just died on me, and the only thing I could do to fix it was reinstall Windows. Had to work in SDLX in the mean time. When my company brings on a new hire, th... See more I mean, if someone is willing to pay for something, then someone else will probably show up to grab the money. In my case, nobody taught me how to use Trados and memoQ. It was pretty easy to figure out how to make them do what I wanted from them, and the rest of their features are something I never wanted. I remember how Trados's Workbench just died on me, and the only thing I could do to fix it was reinstall Windows. Had to work in SDLX in the mean time. When my company brings on a new hire, the first thing they have to do is learn Trados (and the mad requirements of our main customer) as if the ability to translate were of secondary importance. I once got to train a girl, and the next day she quit. Maybe I'm just evil, but I don't think I've done her any evil. I just gave her a translation test, and she didn't want to do it. I don't know how things work in the heads of people who were born in this century. Anyway, I no longer get to train anyone anymore. One thing I find really useful in CAT tools is how you can use regular expressions for filtering and replacing identical bits of text when editing someone else's translations (which for me is an indispensable feature; maybe MS Word can do it as well but I don't know how to enable it). Again, nobody taught me how to use regex; all done by self-study ▲ Collapse
| | | | | I'm not clear why you're asking this again... | Oct 7 |
... but I don't think it needs taught classes. There's not much to learn, and you pick it up pretty quickly, just like Word or PowerPoint. Also, CAT tools have a ton of features that most of us never use.
| | | | Stepan Konev
Russian Federation
Local time: 16:54
English to Russian
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| | | It is enormously helpful to go to classes | Oct 8 |
I did that. However, it was twenty years ago, in Denmark, so I can't recommend precisely the setup that helped me.
Another time, a colleague gave an hour-long demonstration in Trados at a pow-wow, back in the days when the annual Danish pow-wows were more like conferences with an agenda as well as social meetings! They have never been the same since Covid.
On the other hand, online webinars took a great leap forward during the lock-downs, and webinars are not always is... See more I did that. However, it was twenty years ago, in Denmark, so I can't recommend precisely the setup that helped me.
Another time, a colleague gave an hour-long demonstration in Trados at a pow-wow, back in the days when the annual Danish pow-wows were more like conferences with an agenda as well as social meetings! They have never been the same since Covid.
On the other hand, online webinars took a great leap forward during the lock-downs, and webinars are not always isolated self-study today. You certainly do not need a whole new Master's course just to learn to use a CAT-tool.
Still, however you learn the basics, you will need to practise to work up a routine, and that IS best done alone, at your own speed. Preferably with real work from clients, but you can find texts to see how formatting and tags work, for example, or things that may come up specifically in your languages.
Best of luck! ▲ Collapse
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 14:54
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
joannebenz wrote:
I can't seem to find out if it is possible to work as a professional translator without knowing any CAT tools.
It's definitely possible, but if you can only work in a limited number of tools then you can't cast your net very wide. That's not necessarily a problem -- if you focus your marketing efforts on clients that do not require CAT tools, then you don't need them. In fact, even if you work for translation agencies, many agencies now use online tools that you can't download and which you just have to learn as you go along.
Added: I've just noticed that my reply today is very similar to my reply in your 2020 thread:
https://www.proz.com/forum/translation_theory_and_practice/342524-can_a_translator_work_without_any_cat_tools.html#2840663
[Edited at 2024-10-08 08:47 GMT]
| | | | | I dont learn anything by self study | Oct 8 |
Denis Fesik wrote:
I mean, if someone is willing to pay for something, then someone else will probably show up to grab the money. In my case, nobody taught me how to use Trados and memoQ. It was pretty easy to figure out how to make them do what I wanted from them, and the rest of their features are something I never wanted. I remember how Trados's Workbench just died on me, and the only thing I could do to fix it was reinstall Windows. Had to work in SDLX in the mean time. When my company brings on a new hire, the first thing they have to do is learn Trados (and the mad requirements of our main customer) as if the ability to translate were of secondary importance. I once got to train a girl, and the next day she quit. Maybe I'm just evil, but I don't think I've done her any evil. I just gave her a translation test, and she didn't want to do it. I don't know how things work in the heads of people who were born in this century. Anyway, I no longer get to train anyone anymore. One thing I find really useful in CAT tools is how you can use regular expressions for filtering and replacing identical bits of text when editing someone else's translations (which for me is an indispensable feature; maybe MS Word can do it as well but I don't know how to enable it). Again, nobody taught me how to use regex; all done by self-study
self study does not work for me, neither for word
or excel or anything else
hence my question:
is there no school or program that teaches
CAT tools?
if not, can translators just skip those tools altogether?
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| I need a class- not self study | Oct 8 |
philgoddard wrote:
... but I don't think it needs taught classes. There's not much to learn, and you pick it up pretty quickly, just like Word or PowerPoint. Also, CAT tools have a ton of features that most of us never use.
and unfortunately I dont learn anything through
self study
hence my question if CAT tool classes exist?
| | | | | can I work without CAT tools? | Oct 8 |
Christine Andersen wrote:
I did that. However, it was twenty years ago, in Denmark, so I can't recommend precisely the setup that helped me.
Another time, a colleague gave an hour-long demonstration in Trados at a pow-wow, back in the days when the annual Danish pow-wows were more like conferences with an agenda as well as social meetings! They have never been the same since Covid.
On the other hand, online webinars took a great leap forward during the lock-downs, and webinars are not always isolated self-study today. You certainly do not need a whole new Master's course just to learn to use a CAT-tool.
Still, however you learn the basics, you will need to practise to work up a routine, and that IS best done alone, at your own speed. Preferably with real work from clients, but you can find texts to see how formatting and tags work, for example, or things that may come up specifically in your languages.
Best of luck!
because the webinars are 1 day long
I didnt learn CAT tools in a whole year in university, and certainly no webinar would be enough
can I translate without any CAT tools?
| | | | | Try asking a colleague to guide you | Oct 9 |
joannebenz wrote:
...
I didn't learn CAT tools in a whole year in university, and certainly no webinar would be enough
can I translate without any CAT tools?
You can certainly translate without a CAT tool, as many brilliant translators have done for thousands of years, and many still do. Others find there are advantages in CAT tools that are worth the effort of learning to use them. It was quite an effort, I admit, and with the great range of features available, I am sure it is not easier than when I learned 20 years ago.
If you can learn in a class, you could probably learn from a colleague. You need someone willing to guide you through the first practical steps, preferably in several sessions, so you can go home and practise or just have a rest in between.
The breakthrough came for me when the instructor helped us to set up a project without discussing all the options - or you could get your colleague to do it for you.
That way you start translating and get the feel of what the CAT tool does and how it works.
You can see when the memory suggests a match or a partial match (called a fuzzy match) to the sentence you are translating, and decide what to do with it - does it fit this time around, or how do you change it?
THEN, when you have an idea what you are working with, you can make decisions about the setup for a specific job. (When you work with clients, some of the decisions may be made for you in a so-called package, but it is still good to be able to link up your own translation memories and glossaries as appropriate.)
You can gradually try out new features like learning to use a glossary, and when you have seen how t works, you can build up your own, so you can use it creatively! For me, the glossary is one of the most important features - it is far more than just a word list.
All this is much easier to understand hands-on, while you are sitting at the keyboard with your CAT, so I do understand why you want to find a class.
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