Are multi-language translations needed for the Editing Rules? I notice a couple of the most recent disqualifications have been members who (presumably) don't speak English as their primary language. These are people who don't participate in forums, etc. Maybe their English skills are basic enough to get them registered, but little beyond that.
Is this something that could be done by bi-lingual volunteers?
From what I can see, the main problem with doing the translations is that the wording in the rules is very precisely chosen in order to convey very specific concepts, and any discrepancy between the meanings of the original & translated rules could result in a mess...
As long as you can accurately translate one sentence every time:
* Translations are provided as a convenience by volunteer translators and may be subject to discrepancies. In all cases, the original rules are overriding.
while the idea is a noble one, i foresee problems when it comes to editing rules discussions because there would be even more discrepancies to debate on! maybe simpler english should be used for the rules?
Your reasons why this would be difficult make sense, but... I can't shake the mental picture of some poor photographer (e.g., darasbulba; katOsu) being disqualified and not understanding why.
Your reasons why this would be difficult make sense, but... I can't shake the mental picture of some poor photographer (e.g., darasbulba; katOsu) being disqualified and not understanding why.
Well, anyone submitting an entry must check off a box attesting (in pretty simple English) that they've read, understand, and agree to abide by the rules.
It seems to me that if anyone doesn't understand any part of the rules, the burden is on the photographer to ask for clarification before submitting.
Well, anyone submitting an entry must check off a box attesting (in pretty simple English) that they've read, understand, and agree to abide by the rules.
It seems to me that if anyone doesn't understand any part of the rules, the burden is on the photographer to ask for clarification before submitting.
I still think it's a kind gesture and one very much worth pursuing. We have many bilingual members here who could pitch in and translate the rules. Maybe do Spanish first? Any volunteers?
If we provide translations of the rules, would people then assume that they could communicate with the SC in that language? That's one concern that I would have - we aren't really set up to provide multilingual support.
I could see rules-only translations. The one thing that would be a *must* would be that the translations would need to be done by someone fluent in both languages and photography terminology. There would be nothing worse than ambiguity or outright error created by translation.
How about having the translation made by one or more users who are fluent in that language and work on it in a forum thread so as to find the best wording?
[...]We'll never really know whether the translation says what we mean.
No, that is a certainty. A translation that is absolutely accurate is an illusion. In Luxembourg, a lot of official documents come in two languages. In order to avoid confusion, both versions state clearly which one is relevant in case of doubt. Thus, the translations would offer a great possibility for those not fluid in English to get a grasp of the rules, while for DQs the English versions would be the ones on which decisions are based should a subtlety of languages make a difference.
you could make a unofficial translation in the forums, and just lead those who cant read english there, and make sure its stated as unoffical... it would be funny if some one went through the trouble to translate it to Spanish then to french (from spanish), then translated to german, translated to chineese then to engligsh.. (the lost in translation idea) and then it says somthing like "your little red cart must be taken between the year of the ram." instead of "photo must be taken between challenge dates"
thats my 2 cents. but the main part, is make it unofficial so we cant to the google translate and spit it back in your faces...
Okay, I gave the Basic Editing a quick try so you could get an idea how this could work. Here's what a German version could look like:
Einfache Bearbeitung
Übersicht
Die Einfache Bearbeitung erlaubt allgemeine Anpassungen um Ihnen zu helfen ihr Bild aufzupolieren. Diese Regeln sollen Ihnen erlauben Feinabstimmungen an ihrem Bild vorzunehmen und leichte Abweichungen der Belichtung, des Kontrastes, der Farbe usw. zu korrigieren. Selektive Bearbeitung oder sogenanntes "Spot Editing" sind nicht erlaubt. Einzige Ausnahme is das überklonen von Sensorstaub oder "Hot Pixeln".
You'll note that there are some English terms that found their way into German photoshop jargon. Translating them - in my opinion - doesn't make much sense. I think this is an interesting project. I'd be interested to help with some translations.
Okay, I gave the Basic Editing a quick try so you could get an idea how this could work. Here's what a German version could look like:
Einfache Bearbeitung
Übersicht
Die Einfache Bearbeitung erlaubt allgemeine Anpassungen um Ihnen zu helfen ihr Bild aufzupolieren. Diese Regeln sollen Ihnen erlauben Feinabstimmungen an ihrem Bild vorzunehmen und leichte Abweichungen der Belichtung, des Kontrastes, der Farbe usw. zu korrigieren. Selektive Bearbeitung oder sogenanntes "Spot Editing" sind nicht erlaubt. Einzige Ausnahme is das überklonen von Sensorstaub oder "Hot Pixeln".
You'll note that there are some English terms that found their way into German photoshop jargon. Translating them - in my opinion - doesn't make much sense. I think this is an interesting project. I'd be interested to help with some translations.
The sample -sense and syntax- is clear enough. The English terms can't be soundly translated and should, as you rightly said, remain as they are. I would, however, examine punctuation and re-read the text to find all the nouns, to assign capitals.
Uhm, okay I missed the capital for "das Überklonen", and the t for "ist", 't was a quick job. Can't find anything else though? Can't find any problems with punctuation either... But this nicely illustrates the idea of having multiple users work on the same translation.
I think there should be rules posted in about 5 or 6 languages. They do not have to be the 6 official languages of the UN and should be voted on. These should not be the official rules, but merely act as guidelines for non-English speaking members. Arguably, providing members with several languages to chose from would detract from the sites "English" character. On the other hand, I would argue that this is a good thing because it would open the site to a great deal of new photographic talent that has yet been untapped due to DPChalleng's choice to use english as its only language.
