FAQs

Q. What about Machine Translation?

A Machine translation feebly approximates live language. It cannot accurately translate cultural concepts, semantic (meaning) phrases that belong to specific contexts such as law, sports, medicine, theatre, literature, business, insurance, banking, music, education ...the list goes on and on. Machines can do translation of rigidly limited pairs of words with unambiguous meanings and with set syntax. Language is dynamic and fluidity is geographical, demographic and contextual. It’s complex!
Languages evolve and you want your translation to be vital and readily understandable to the people you have in mind. Only humans translate language accurately and fluidly. Don’t hang your organization or enterprise out to dry with amateur or artificial translations. You deserve respect and relaxation after getting a translation done!

Q. What are you like to work with?

A We are professional and west coast friendly. We have specialized in translations and interpreting since 1986, from a semi-rural area. We are the hub of teams of professionals located here and there who love to work with us for our steady and casual rapport. You can email us (or call) with questions, changes, worries and thank yous. We meet deadlines and put high quality work first.

Q. Does just one person do my translation?

A Every translation is 'triaged' by a project manager who assigns it to one or more experts in that language and field. The translation is later checked by a professional translator working in the opposite language direction of the original translation. So an English to Russian translation gets a technical and quality review (proofed and edited) by a Russian to English linguist. Who does formatting and desktop publishing depends upon the project.

Q. What's a HubZone?

A It's a federal designation of an area as an 'Historically Underutilized Business Zone'. Usually this refers to rural areas or areas where industry has changed dramatically - such as ours, where fishing and logging are no longer principal activities. Using our services keeps business thriving outside the 'beltways'. We are in a designated HubZone.

Q. What is the difference between "interpreting" and "translation"?

A Translation is written language, interpreting is spoken language.

Q. How long does translation take?

A In some instances it can take just as long to translate a document as it does to write it in English. It is best to allow 3-5 business days for most documents, longer for larger files.

Q. How much does translation cost?

A Translation pricing is generally billed at a “per word rate”, this means you are billed by the word versus by the hour. We are happy to provide quotes free of charge

Q. How do I get a translation quote?

A The best way is to email us the document(s) you would like translated and then we will respond with estimated turn-around time and cost. You may also FAX to our dedicated line: 360-755-9919