tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20155610.post4631001021103367905..comments2024-03-06T02:46:19.929+00:00Comments on Translation Tribulations: Another approach to OCR for translationKevin Lossnerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14727800526216764023noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20155610.post-77414248776375116092012-04-20T12:32:15.474+01:002012-04-20T12:32:15.474+01:00If your "multi-column patent with small type&...If your "multi-column patent with small type" is a published European patent, you can get an XML version from the European publication server:<br />https://data.epo.org/publication-server/search.<br />I guess it's the same as the file they did the publishing with, so the only OCR difficulties are those that the EPO did not spot.ASMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-20155610.post-37840815774002647792012-04-17T12:50:02.250+01:002012-04-17T12:50:02.250+01:00Hi Kevin & all,
I usually do OCR the way you ...Hi Kevin & all,<br /><br />I usually do OCR the way you describe, with manual zone definition where needed and saving as plain text with embedded images to be reformatted as much as possible according to the original before loading into a CAT tool for translation.<br /><br />This can seem to be a somehow long and painful process, but it is worth the effort, as the result is most of the time completely fit to be sent to the customer as it is, after you export it from MemoQ.<br /><br />But my trouble and question to you about this is more on the accountings than the technical side : <br /><br />1) in pages containing quite little text to be translated, but more pictures or tables full of figures or references, how are we supposed to count and value our work, when preparing a quote ?<br />Should we charge extra for OCR + DTP, besides the translation on a per word rate ? Or should we charge a flat fee per page, whatever its content ?<br /><br />2) the time spent for OCR + DTP is rarely valued by the customer, but is it by translators themselves ? Are we actually aware of the the time we spend with these (eventually unpaid) tasks / chores, and do we manage to get duly rewarded for them ?<br /><br />3) And if we are lucky enough to get paid for them, and in some (most) cases where we are short on time, should we do this OCR + DTP work ourselves or outsource it to colleagues with more spare time at the moment ? And if outsourcing, what would be a fair price per page to pay or to receive, for this type of work, given the time it takes to do it right ?<br /><br />Well, this topic has probably been tackled many times and in many other blogs, sorry if this is off-topic or repetition.<br /><br />Thanks for your insight on the matter,<br /><br />MartinMartinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17106554913726933532noreply@blogger.com