Ever thought that a particular translation made using Google’s software didn’t sound just right? Now you have a chance to contribute to better translations by using the newly launched Translate Community site.
At the moment, Google Translate is capable of interpreting 80 languages, but many of these have a few dialects. To ensure good translations that involve dialects, and to furthermore expand the number of languages, the search giant decided to launch Translate Community, a site that enables all Google users to make a contribution to better translations.
Sveta Kelman, Program Manager, Google Translate, mentioned in a recent blog post that “We plan to incorporate your corrections and over time learn your language a little better.”
There are four different ways the visitors of the Translate Community site can improve the service. First of all, they have the option of translating words or phrases into their own language, provided that there’s no current equivalent. Secondly, they can match a word to its translation. Furthermore, they can rate the quality of a translation. Not at last, users can compare the contributions of others and choose the better translation. All these aspects are meant to make Google Translate a great service, curated by regular people (who hopefully know a thing or two about linguistics, though).
Correcting current translations, adding new dialects and languages, and fine-tuning the overall experience should make Google Translate an even better service. Apparently, Google has great plans for its translation service, as evidenced by the acquisition of Quest Visual, the makers of Word Lens, earlier this year.
The next thing Mountain View should do is to work on Voice Search so that all the dialects are discerned. That would truly be something, as a language can sound totally different when spoken in various parts of the same country. It would really be a pity to use this great feature (that enables people who can’t type out of various reasons to perform searches on Google) only in a limited number of languages. On top of that, getting results when pronouncing with a different diction would be great, especially if the service were a bit more accurate. The addition of voice translation could make Google’s service even better, especially since there are no true alternatives to it.
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