2013 is coming to an end. Quite a great
year for inWhatLanguage! However, we are never satisfied: we want more
challenges, and we want to reach more people!
This month, a new era begins for
inWhatLanguage. We are working on projects that are larger than anything we
have ever done before, we are reaching new clients and taking new
opportunities, and we have some pretty exciting plans in the pipeline!
We are looking forward to strengthening our
social commitment and keep helping those who need it the most with the fruits
of our work, that which we do best: provide high quality translations at
affordable prices.
Not only that: in the next few weeks, we
are going to see new faces in the team... And we are moving to a brand new
office!
Our new location is:
inWhatLanguage Translation Services
2507 S. 300 W. Salt Lake City,
Utah 84115
Don't hesitate to pay us a visit if you are
close by – we’ll be delighted to have a good cup of coffee and get to know you!
This week, inWhatLanguage got another nice
surprise from a very special client of ours! Another video testimonial, this
time from TechLaw Ventures, “a professional limited liability company created
by its founders to be a venture and technology law firm”, as described in its
official website.
TechLaw Ventures provides “legal counsel to
software, computer, biotech, healthcare, chemical, and other technology and
innovative companies”, and they are actively working with clients in Taiwan and
Japan.
I won’t write much more, since I think
that, in this case, the video in itself is more than enough content for this week’s
blog post. It is incredibly sweet, and we feel proud to have clients say these
things about us. But I’ll just point out a couple of things, really quickly.
First of all, the fact that TechLawVentures trusts us to do their translations says a lot. We are talking about a
technology law firm, here. They need very, very specific translation services
for which they probably wouldn’t risk going to just anyone for. It is amazing
that they've asked us to do it – let alone the fact that they actually produced
a video to let others know that we are indeed what we promise to be: a
trust-worthy, competent translation agency that is there for their every need.
Secondly, I just love how Mr. Smith,
spokesperson for TechLaw Ventures, highlights our selection process in the
video. What he says about having read many different translated versions of one
text made by different linguists in order to make a decision about which
professional is best suited for his projects is kind of our trademark. Because,
even though we trust and love all of our linguists, it is the client, at the
end of the day, the one who really knows how they want their work to be
displayed to the world, and who could get closer to that ideal. The fact that
our clients recognize that, and choose us for it, really means the world to us.
The translation industry is a competitive
world, and we know that better than anyone. As much as we want to provide our
clients and potential customers with high-quality translation and
interpretation services at the best prices, we know that there are millions of
capable professionals out there who can also do a good job and appeal to those
whom we are trying to reach.
Ty Palmer and Cody Broderick at DevLearn!
The more reason to keep improving
ourselves.
The best thing about inWhatLanguage may be
our youth – that means, our energy, and our will to learn new things. We know
that we are living in a time where written translations are quickly losing
importance in favor of new media, and we are more than willing to be part of
this revolution. eLearning, in
particular, is becoming one of our main focuses, as it grows daily in
popularity, and its potential for translation is, well, immense!
And so, it should come to no surprise that
inWhatLanguage took grasp of the amazing opportunity of being present at the
DevLearn Conference 2013, the most cutting-edge training and learning event in
North America, that took place last month in Las Vegas.
In the very own words of the event’s
official website, “DevLearn 2013 is for training and learning professionals who
are leading or engaged in their organizations’ use of learning technologies.”
Who should go to Dev Learn? Those who want to “find out what’s next in the
world of learning, discover new technologies and approaches and learn
side-by-side with colleagues and experts.” No wonder iWL fit like a glove in
there!
iWL CEO Cody Broderick leaves little room
for doubt when asked what his opinion of the experience was. “DevLearn was
fabulous! It was great to be surrounded by the leading creators and providers
in the eLearning and training development industry.”
iWL’s booth at the conference was a cozy,
well-lit 10x10 space that was quite well received, in Broderick’s words. “Our
presence was definitely felt at the conference. We had countless people
complimenting the professionalism of our team and the look of our booth.”
Well, you know what they say, right?
Nothing like a good first impression to keep the people coming! The iWL
team’s efforts didn’t go to waste, at
the end of the day. “We spoke to hundreds of people and walked away with many
valuable new relationships,” says Broderick. “And even better, many new
projects!”
Now if that isn’t killing two birds with
one stone, what is? Three, actually: the opportunity to learn about an interesting
topic, a wonderful experience and atmosphere, and new contacts and projects.
Really, iWL hit the jackpot in Las Vegas last October!
“Overall, it was a success, and
inWhatLanguage will definitely be expanding as a leading provider of expert
level translation services for all developers and service providers in this
industry,” Cody Broderick assures with a smile.
Isn’t it funny how, when trying to
understand a foreign language, it is always easier to read it than to simply
listen to it? Take movies, for instance. How many of us have turned on the
subtitles option, even just to have the same dialogues that are being recited
by the actors, displayed in its written form at the bottom of the screen?
It is evident that, if you want to convey a
message and you don’t want to risk having to deal with misunderstandings,
misinterpretations or misspellings, you have to have this message written down.
When words are transformed into written text, they become timeless, eternal,
and they are never lost.
But, of course, writing down a speech, or
more accurately, the act of transcription, is one of the most mind-, patience-
and time-consuming exercises I can think of.
The Canadian novelist and playwright
Ann-Marie MacDonald said it once: “Writing is a hellish task; best snuck up on,
whacked on the head, robbed, and left for dead”. Transcribers could easily add
to this: “And transcribing is the epitome of this definition”.
Most people are just not made to be
transcribers: it requires a great short-term memory and unbelievable typing
speed. And you just have to like it, otherwise it can feel like a punishment.
Transcription is simply one of those jobs that one has to leave to
professionals: those who are born with the gift to do it, and to do it well.
inWhatLanguage not only provides superior
quality transcription services, but it also offers a huge array of languages in
which our expert translators and transcribers can deliver perfectly transcribed
texts out of any audio and video file you might need. From recorded meetings
and telephone calls to video surveillance and legal recordings, you can rest
assured knowing that whatever your transcription translation project might
consist of, we have the translation experience and expertise to deliver
excellent results at our translation firm. Our transcription translation firm
handles all file types and we work with over 160 different languages at our
office while tailoring solutions to your unique transcription requirements.
Our trick is to combine expert in-country
translators, exceptional word-processing skills, detailed quality reviews, and
unmatched client support throughout the entire process. In actuality, nothing
that we don’t already provide with any of the other services iWL has to offer –
but of course, we have the big advantage of a large network of linguist all
over the world, some of whom specialized in this particular field of the
translation industry.
Need a long, important speech transcribed?
Don’t sweat it. Just entrust it to us, and get a load off your shoulders!
October 31st and November 1st are special
dates in several countries where many different languages are spoken. As an
international translation agency with professional translators and clients from
all over the word, inWhatLanguage didn’t want to miss the opportunity to wish
you all a happy celebration… And to share some general language-related trivia
about these holidays.
For example: it is generally known that
Halloween is a abbreviation of “All Hallows Evening”. “Hallow” is, in fact, Old
English for “holy”. But how exactly did it transform into “Halloween”?
Well,
first of all, “Evening” was shortened to “Eve”, same as in many other
celebration names.
However, in the Scots language, “Eve” is pronounced “Even”,
and this form got shortened to “E’en”. So first take All Hallows Eve, then take
off the “All”, the “s” in the middle, and give it a Scots touch… And voilá. We
got ourselves a Halloween.
In the same spirit of shortening words, the
popular Jack-o-lanterns is in fact a shortened version of “Jack of the lantern”
a fictional character whose origins date back to old folk tales. According to
the information on Wikipedia, “an old Irish folk tale from the mid-19th Century
tells of Stingy Jack, a lazy yet shrewd farmer who uses a cross to trap the
Devil in order for him not to take his soul”.
Unfortunately, this meant that,
when Jack died, even though his life had been too sinful for him to be allowed
into heaven, he could not go to hell, either. Jack had nowhere to go. He asked
about how would he see where to go, as he had no light to guide his path, and
the Devil mockingly tossed him an ember from the flames of hell that would
never burn out. Jack carved out one of his turnips (which were his favorite
food), put the ember inside it, and began endlessly wandering the Earth for a
resting place. He became known as "Jack of the Lantern", or
Jack-o'-lantern.
Nowadays, the popular form of
Jack-o’-lantern is in the shape of a pumpkin, but in some parts of Great
Britain, turnips are still the preferred option for Halloween!
As for today, All Saints’ Day –or All
Hallows-, it is interesting to see the different celebrations –and it’s names
in different languages- from around the world. Again, quoting Wikipedia, “In
Mexico, Portugal and Spain, offerings (Portuguese: oferendas, Spanish:
ofrendas) are made on this day.” Furthermore, in Mexico, this day “coincides
with the first day of the Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) celebration.
Known as "Día de los Inocentes" (Day of the Innocents), it honours
deceased children and infants.”
“Portuguese children celebrate the
Pão-por-Deus tradition (also called santorinho, bolinho or fiéis de Deus),
going door-to-door, where they receive cakes, nuts and pomegranates. Hallowmas
in the Philippines is variously called "Undas" (based on the word for
"[the] first"), "Todos los Santos" (literally "All
Saints"), and sometimes "Áraw ng mga Patáy" (lit. "Day of
the Dead"), which refers to the following day of All Souls' Day but
includes it.”
“In English-speaking countries, the
festival is traditionally celebrated with the hymn "For All the
Saints" by Walsham How.”
So as a conclusion to this blog post, here
is a video with this hymn. Enjoy!
