Strategies

• Usually equations do not need to be modified in a translation and so they can be copied and pasted.

• Be careful with texts where the symbols for individual variables are used within ordinary paragraph text. It is easy to confuse symbols which look similar - for example В and p or u and u - so take care if you are trying to insert them yourself. A useful way around this is to copy and paste the symbol from elsewhere in the text or, if you can find one, from a parallel text on the Internet.

• If you cannot tell what a particular symbol is, try changing the font. For example, "I" and "I" look identical because of the font used but if you change the font, you can see that they are actually "I" and "I".

Errors in the Source Text

Hans Honig once said "lebende Texte sind defekte Texte" (1998:162), or living texts are faulty texts, and this nicely prepares us for the fact that source texts can often contain errors. The errors which can occur in texts range from the simple spelling mistake to more serious and fundamental factual mistakes. The way in which these errors are dealt with depends as much on the translator as it does on the error itself.

A key consideration in deciding how to tackle these errors is the question of whether the errors need to be corrected or whether they should be preserved. This essentially boils down to whether we are producing an instrumental translation or a documentary translation. In an instrumental translation, our translation will be used in place of the source text; it will be expected to perform as a freestanding, autonomous text in the target language. Conversely, a documentary translation is intended to describe what was said in the source text and how it was said. The real problems arise with regard to subject-related errors where, depending on our knowledge of the topic, we may not even recognize errors, let alone be in a position to correct them. In Germany, for example, the standard DIN 2345 published by the German Institute for Standardization provides some relief for translators because it relieves us of the responsibility for errors in the source text, saying instead that the client is responsible for resolving errors and for answering questions from translators.

If a translator spots what looks like an error in the source text, the translator should notify the client. Hopefully, similar provisions will make their way into law on a wider scale in the not too distant future. Depending on the specific text, how long it is, the subject and the deadline, you may decide to raise questions with the client as you go along.

This is particularly true with large projects or projects involving several translators where you may have to stop translating until you get an answer or if the answers will affect how you translate the rest of the text. Alternatively, you might decide to keep a list of such queries and include them in an email when you return the finished translation to the client. Whether or not you choose to send questions individually or all at once may depend on the client's preferences; they will let you know quickly enough which option they prefer.

Strategies

• Instrumental or documentary? Find out from the client what the tended purpose of the translation is. You may need to be persistent and possibly explain what your concerns are but in any case you need to find out whether your client needs an instrumental or a documentary translation. Generally, a translation for publication purposes will be instrumental so this helps in some cases, although the converse is not true; information purposes texts cannot be assumed to be documentary translations. If it is instrumental, fix the errors wherever you can. If it is a documentary translation, preserve the errors and translate faithfully as you can. Bear in mind, however, that your client will most likely not understand the difference between an instrumental and documentary translation so you should be ready to explain these tern in simple language.

• Linguistic errors: Simple linguistic errors such as misspelled words, incorrect punctuation and certain forms of unclear or awkward language use can be corrected quietly and without any fuss. More serious linguistic errors where the intended meaning is completely incomprehensible should be referred back to the client for clarification.

• Factual or subject errors: This is the trickiest category of error and detecting them depends on your own knowledge of the subject area. Minor factual errors such as a text saying, for example, that distance is measured in kilograms, can be corrected although it is usually advisable to at least notify the client that you have done this.

• Fix definite errors: If you spot a serious error and you are absolutely sure it is an error and you are certain that you can fix it, you should still contact the client and ask for clarification.