What customers are saying about Inline Translation Services, Inc.

 


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Request a quote from Inline Translation Services, Inc.


FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Need more information?
If your question is not answered below, please email Inline and we'll reply promptly.

How much does a translation cost?
Text translations are priced on a per word basis. Rates will vary by language and subject matter. Translations of widely spoken Western European languages generally cost somewhat less than Asian languages.

Ad copy, taglines, slogans, and business cards, involve a combination of creative time, research, and translation skills, and are priced on an hourly basis. For a free quote, use Inline Translation Services’ Request A Quote form and we will respond promptly. TOP

What is your turnaround time for quotes?
Inline Translation Services can respond to your request with a detailed proposal and fixed price quote within four hours of receipt of the complete materials in electronic format that need to be translated and/or typeset. In addition to an itemization of all fees, Inline Translation Services’ quotes provide detailed project specifications. TOP

What is your turnaround time for translations?
Turnaround time for translation jobs is based on the word count of the source language document and formatting requirements. Inline Translation Services’ translators work at a rate of about 2,500 to 3,500 words per working day, which will vary depending on the complexity of the material being translated and languages involved. In addition, some time must be allowed for review and editing. TOP

Do you charge the same to translate long [big] words and short [little] words?
Yes. Most translation assignments are priced on the basis of estimated or actual word counts. Likewise, translators and editors are paid on the same basis. In reality, word count is a proxy for professional time spent on a translation. Each translation has a wide variety of words—big ones, little ones, medium size ones, and so forth.

If you were to convert the typical charges for a translation project into hourly rates, you would find that the professional charges for translation services are relatively low compared to those of accountants, consultants, lawyers, and doctors, and seldom higher than those of plumbers, auto mechanics, and electricians. TOP

Why do I have to pay twice for the translation of the same word?
The purchasers of translations are not buying a bushel basket of words, but rather they are paying a professional to place the right words in the right places, with the proper grammatical structures, which often involves gender changes as well as declensions of adjectives, articles, nouns, etc; complex verb conjugations, and so forth. One could always purchase a foreign language dictionary to avoid paying twice for the same word, but you would still need to hire someone to create the right form of each word and then put them all together properly. TOP

What are your “rush charges”?
Inline Translation Services does not charge rush fees for quick turnaround projects. A translation is either physically possible within a given time frame or it's not. Translation is labor intensive, and even the best translators work at the rate of 2,500 to 3,500 words per day. Throwing more money at translators does not increase their output. Whenever humanly possible, your Inline project manager will give you an expedited turnaround time. TOP

Do you offer volume discounts?
Yes. For projects that consist of large blocks of repeated text, Inline Translation Services uses translation memory which recycles a professional translator's previous translation of the same text. Repeated text may occur within a single file and/or among several files of a large project. Inline Translation Services uses the Trados analysis tool to identify these opportunities, which can lead to discounts ranging from 20% to 40%.

Inline Translation Services also offers a special volume discount program to clients that purchase blocks of 15,000 words (or more) in a number of major languages on a monthly basis. Clients that commit to and purchase pre-set volumes in advance for a twelve month period will receive a 15% to 20% discount on Inline’s normal per word prices. TOP

How do you handle translations that are targeted for audiences with lower levels of education than that of the original English text?
The reading level of Inline’s translations generally matches that of the English source text. However, when a client wishes to target individuals with lower levels of education, Inline Translation Services’ project managers/editors and translators work closely to make sure the translation accommodates that need.

For requests involving Spanish, Inline translators and editors draw upon Inline’s proprietary list of Spanish high register/low register synonyms, which has been developed during the past 13 years. Use of these synonyms often results in lower reading levels without distorting the meaning of the target (Spanish) text as compared to the source (English) text.

When the register of the English source text is significantly above that of the target audience, and use of common high register/low register synonyms will not meet the needs of the target audience due to the complexity of the English source text, Inline Translation Services works with clients to simplify the source English text before beginning translation. By lowering the register of the English text prior to translation, the client sees the exact message given to the target audience and Inline Translation Services is able to certify that the translation accurately reflects the English document. TOP

How can I display foreign-language text on my computer?
Most versions of Microsoft Windows XP and Microsoft Office will allow you to display foreign language text. Depending on your current settings, many common European and Asian languages will work on your computer without any changes. Some specialized settings and configurations are needed for other languages.

Word offers varying degrees of support for a wide variety of languages, including character-based languages such as Chinese and Japanese and languages written from right to left such as Arabic and Hebrew. You can review current settings or change them by using the “Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options” link after clicking on Window XP’s “Control Panel”.

Then you will need to configure Word by using its language settings tool. Even if you can’t configure your computer to display the translations, Inline Translation Services can provide an Adobe Acrobat PDF file that you can view and print on almost any computer using Adobe Acrobat. TOP

What automated tools do you use to enhance productivity and reduce costs?
Whenever cost justified and possible, Inline Translation Services uses translation memory tools such as Trados, SDLX, Atril's Déjà vu, Wordfast, and/or STAR Transit, as well as their automated glossary managers, such as Trados MultiTerm and Concordance features.

Note that translation memory tools recycle a professional translator's previous translation of the same text, which is not the same as “machine translation.” (For quality reasons Inline Translation Services does not use machine translation or edited output of machine translation.)

In addition, Inline Translation Services participates in the annual American Translators Association's Translation and Support Tools Forum to keep abreast of the latest developments in translation support tools and technology. Inline Translation Services also visits with the translation tool memory vendors and demos their latest upgrades and products. TOP

I found lower prices in the market place. How do you explain that?
Given the nature of the translation industry, you will always find a wide range in rates. Literally tens of thousands of participants—including aspiring translators, one-person translation agencies, full-service translation companies, graduate students, part timers, retirees, job hunters, professional freelance translators, etc.—all advertise their services. From the outside, it is not easy to differentiate among all these participants, other than price. If you have questions about a quote from another vendor, please contact Inline. We will provide a detailed analysis of the quotes and services you would actually be receiving. TOP

Does your company have ISO or other certification?
Inline Translation Services was one of the first corporate members of the American Translators Association to fully comply with the ASTM International Standard Guide for Quality Assurance in Translation, which was approved on May 1, 2006.

ASTM International, originally known as the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM), is one of the largest voluntary standards development organizations in the world and a trusted source for technical standards for materials, products, systems, and services.

Does Inline translate personal documents such as birth certificates, academic transcripts, diplomas, marriage and divorce papers?
Inline Translation Services’ primary customer base includes large corporate and eleemosynary institutions. Unfortunately, Inline Translation Services is not staffed to handle personal, non-profit projects for individuals. TOP

How do I request a quote?
Use Inline’s Request A Quote form and you will receive a prompt response. TOP