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September 17, 2006, #002
Table of Contents

1. Translation Tool of the Month - Meetup.com
2. Ectaco Dictionary Fall Promotion
3. Free Translation Books Anyone?
4. Quote: Jorge Luis Borges

Translation Tool of the Month: Meetup.com

Translators are traditionally solitary individuals in their work. One of the hardest things a new translator has to get accustomed to is working relatively alone without much interaction among collegues.

However with the Internet, this has slowly changed with people from different parts of the world being able to interact virtually. Email, translator forums, and online blogs allow us to feel like we are part of a group of translator friends and collueages.

As good as these things are, though, many people (translators and interpreters included) feel the need to "get out and meet people." This can be difficult for a freelance translator that spends most of his/her time at home working online.

I recently came across a website that can help relieve this need that we all have of being with other people that share our passion for language and translation. It's called www.meetup.com and seems to be a great place for translators and language lovers to meet up and hang out with others that have the same passion.

The way it works is that you can search for any type of interest you have (like Spanish, translation, linguistics, interpretation) and it's search engine will find all the groups available related to the topic you're interested in. You then sign up to be a part of this group and they will email you when they have activities that you can go to and meet others will that same interest. It's a great concept and a great way for translators to get out from in front of our computer screens and remember what it's like to meet people in person.

2. Ectaco Dictionary Fall Promotion

One of the most popular sites for electronic dictionaries is Ectaco.com and if you've been thinking about buying an electronic dictionary for either yourself or a friend or family member, now's the time to do it.

As part of Ectaco's fall promotion, you can get their current 3 for 1 dictionary offer. The promo is only for their high-end translators ($500 - $600) but they also have a number of other less expensive dictionaries that might suit your needs just fine.

You'll have to hurry, though, because the promotion ends tomorrow.

3. Free Translation Books Anyone?

When Google decided to digitize as many public domain books as it could get its hands on, I didn't pay much attention. However, I recently started to think about how I could use it in my translation work.

Well, much to my suprise and satisfaction, I found a virtual treasure of books not only about translation, but also dictionaries, Spanish/English quote books, and Spanish history books, along with many other types of books.

Most of these books are relatively old books (as they're in the public domain) but they provide an awesome resource for us because we would have no access to them otherwise. After selecting the book, you can read it page by page online or print it off as a PDF file.

Check it out and see if you can find something that makes you smile.

4. Quote - Jorge Luis Borges

"Cualquier destino, por largo y complicado que sea, consta en realidad de un solo momento: el momento en que el hombre sabe para siempre quién es."

"Any destiny, long and complicated as it may be, in reality is defined by a single moment: the momemnt in which a man knows forever who he is."

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Anything you want to say? Let me know. I'd love to hear anything you've got to say, from suggestions to comments to your translation experiences. Just reply to this zine and tell me what you think!