| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Pro or non-pro? That is the question Thread poster: matt robinson
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matt robinson 
Spain
Local time: 06:32
Member (2010)
Spanish to English
What criteria should we apply when deciding whether a terminology question is pro or non-pro?
| | | | Samuel Murray
Netherlands
Local time: 06:32
Member (2006)
English to Afrikaans
+ ...
Matt Robinson wrote:
What criteria should we apply when deciding whether a terminology question is pro or non-pro?
If you're just curious about something, mark it "non-pro" but if you're planning on using the answers in a paid translation that you're doing, mark it as "pro". If you think your question can be answered by anyone with a dictionary, mark it as "non-pro", but if you think your question requires answerers to have actual translation skills, mark it as "pro".
| | | | | Criteria for pro vs. non-pro | Jul 18, 2015 |
If you think your question can be answered by anyone with a dictionary and you're getting paid to do a translation for which you need this term, don't post the question.
[Edited at 2015-07-18 12:55 GMT]
| | | | matt robinson
Spain
Local time: 06:32
Member (2010)
Spanish to English
TOPIC STARTER | I get it for my questions | Jul 18, 2015 |
...but I was more interested in the voting procedure.
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| I hope this will help | Jul 18, 2015 |
Hi Matt,
I hope this FAQ will clarify the issue:
What does the "Vote PRO" or "Vote non-PRO" button do?
In a "help" KudoZ question marked as PRO, participants may vote to have the question marked as non-PRO, and vice versa. Moderators and KudoZ editors have a single vote, like any other user of the site.
Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual pe ... See more Hi Matt,
I hope this FAQ will clarify the issue:
What does the "Vote PRO" or "Vote non-PRO" button do?
In a "help" KudoZ question marked as PRO, participants may vote to have the question marked as non-PRO, and vice versa. Moderators and KudoZ editors have a single vote, like any other user of the site.
Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary. All other questions are PRO. "Glossary-building" KudoZ questions are always PRO and can't be voted into non-PRO.
Three votes for either PRO or non-PRO are required to reclassify a question for the first time, and after that it will reverse its status as soon as there are more votes for the change than against it.
For instance a question asked as non-PRO will require three votes to turn it into PRO (voting 3-0). At this point the button will change to "vote non-PRO" and four votes will turn it into non-PRO (voting 4-3). After that it will take two votes to change the question again in either sense (voting 5-4, 6-5, etc.).
If you have fewer than twenty (20) KudoZ PRO points, you will not see this option.
Access to the voting feature may be limited or revoked at the discretion of ProZ.com staff.
Regards,
Enrique
PS: Following Erik's worthy suggestion below, the definition in the FAQ was changed from
Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary while PRO questions are those that are suitable for professional translators.
to
Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary. All other questions are PRO. ▲ Collapse
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 06:32
Spanish to English
+ ...
| Set criteria | Jul 18, 2015 |
As Enrique points out, there are already criteria in place: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary while PRO questions are those that are suitable for professional translators."
However, there us still room for a lot of subjectivity and there seems to be a tendency in some people to judge others by their own abilities, so anything that doesn't come up to their own high standards is instantly pooh-poohed as non-pro. P... See more As Enrique points out, there are already criteria in place: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary while PRO questions are those that are suitable for professional translators."
However, there us still room for a lot of subjectivity and there seems to be a tendency in some people to judge others by their own abilities, so anything that doesn't come up to their own high standards is instantly pooh-poohed as non-pro. Personally, I'm fed up to the back teeth with it, which is why I now post all my queries as non-pro, even though I've been making a living as a translator for over 15 years now... ▲ Collapse
| | | | | I always vote PRO... | Jul 18, 2015 |
For roughly the same reasons as neilmac always asks as non-pro!
A few questions are really non-Pro - typically when people for one reason or another ask about something in a language they don't normally work in. (Thanks to Dutch and Swedish colleagues for baling me out on occasions...)
Often the question is actually a lot more subtle than it looks at first glance. If a professional translator needs to know, then I think it is probably PRO.
But that is just ... See more For roughly the same reasons as neilmac always asks as non-pro!
A few questions are really non-Pro - typically when people for one reason or another ask about something in a language they don't normally work in. (Thanks to Dutch and Swedish colleagues for baling me out on occasions...)
Often the question is actually a lot more subtle than it looks at first glance. If a professional translator needs to know, then I think it is probably PRO.
But that is just my opinion, and I know that it is not shared by everyone.
[Edited at 2015-07-19 10:08 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | Erik Freitag
Germany
Local time: 06:32
Member (2006)
Dutch to German
+ ...
| The official guideline can be improved ... | Jul 18, 2015 |
neilmac wrote:
As Enrique points out, there are already criteria in place: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary while PRO questions are those that are suitable for professional translators."
In my opinion, the official guideline could be improved a lot by dropping the second half, so it would read:
"Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary."
This would be a lot less prone to subjective interpretation - quite a useful definition if I'm any judge.
Edited to add: In order to satisfy the habit of reiteration that particularly American English is fond of, I'd suggest: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary. All other questions are PRO."
[Bearbeitet am 2015-07-18 17:43 GMT]
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| Definition changed, thanks! | Jul 18, 2015 |
Erik Freitag wrote: neilmac wrote:
As Enrique points out, there are already criteria in place: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary while PRO questions are those that are suitable for professional translators."
In my opinion, the official guideline could be improved a lot by dropping the second half, so it would read: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary." This would be a lot less prone to subjective interpretation - quite a useful definition if I'm any judge. Edited to add: In order to satisfy the habit of reiteration that particularly American English is fond of, I'd suggest: "Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary. All other questions are PRO."
Thanks Erik, you are right!
I have changed the definition in line with your suggestion.
Regards,
Enrique
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neilmac wrote:
However, there us still room for a lot of subjectivity and there seems to be a tendency in some people to judge others by their own abilities, so anything that doesn't come up to their own high standards is instantly pooh-poohed as non-pro. Personally, I'm fed up to the back teeth with it, which is why I now post all my queries as non-pro, even though I've been making a living as a translator for over 15 years now...
Point hunters will refrain from answering your non-pro questions, but maybe there are still enough people that don't care.
More often, I vote the other way round, non-pro questions to pro.
| | | | Kevin Fulton
United States
Local time: 00:32
German to English
| I once posted a non-pro question ... | Jul 18, 2015 |
... and got a couple of complaints from people who thought I was depriving them of the opportunity to get points. I don't recall the question, but it was so embarrassingly elementary that it defied simple research (I couldn't come up with the solution myself, due to brain failure).
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 06:32
Spanish to English
+ ...
Christine Andersen wrote:
If a professional translator needs to know, then I think it is probably PRO.
I agree, and I'll take that notion one step further. If I post the query, then it's PRO by nature, even if I'm posting on behalf of someone else.
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| A question is a question | Jul 18, 2015 |
I find that all this constant worry and arguing about "pro" and "non-pro" is becoming really silly. These categories have to do with the question, not the asker or answerer. Sadly many people are extremely concerned about their "Proz" image and get into an instant huff if one of their questions (asked or answered) is voted 'non-pro' even though it just means the question is easy. We all have moments when the simplest of terms simply escapes us. It doesn't mean we aren't "pro", it just means we'r... See more I find that all this constant worry and arguing about "pro" and "non-pro" is becoming really silly. These categories have to do with the question, not the asker or answerer. Sadly many people are extremely concerned about their "Proz" image and get into an instant huff if one of their questions (asked or answered) is voted 'non-pro' even though it just means the question is easy. We all have moments when the simplest of terms simply escapes us. It doesn't mean we aren't "pro", it just means we're human.
To stop all this non-stop controversy for once and for all, why not just have "questions". Why should every question be judged and categorized as easy or difficult? If a colleague takes the time and trouble to answer a question whatever the supposed level of difficulty, why not "reward" such an effort with Kudoz points? It would stop all this childish whinging and moaning and peoples' feathers would no longer be ruffled. Imo, it would also make the site appear more professional. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Henry Hinds
United States
Local time: 22:32
English to Spanish
+ ...
In memoriam | Right, Writeaway. | Jul 18, 2015 |
I agree, let's get rid of "Pro" and "Non-Pro" and just have questions.
| | | | Rachel Fell
United Kingdom
Local time: 05:32
French to English
+ ...
I tend to agree with writeaway: just have questions.
In any case, this definition has irked me for some time:
"Non-PRO questions are those that can be answered by any bilingual person without the aid of a dictionary."
No. Non-Pro questions are those that can be answered by anyone who has a reasonable command of the language and purports to be a translator.
Bilingual people are far fewer in number.
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