One of the best things about being a freelance language translator is the mobility and freedom that comes with the job. Instead of having to go to the office to work, you can instead stay home, go to the library, or head over to your favorite coffee shop to work on your translation projects.
However, in order to be able to take advantage of this freedom and mobility, you need to have the right equipment. Here are some tools that you shouldn’t go to Starbucks without:
1) Compact Laptop: There are a ton of different laptops on the market these days. Some of these so-called laptops hardly fit on your lap at all. If you’re going to be carting your computer around with you to work on your jobs, invest in a smaller model of laptop. Not only will it weigh less, but it will be easier to carry around because of its smaller size.
2) Cell Phone: You never know when a client is going to contact you. Sometimes, a potential client will be in a tight situation and is wiling to award a job to the first translator they can contact. If you don’t have ready access to your phone, that business could go to another translator.
3) PDA (Maybe): The reason that I say “maybe” is that many people use their laptops for everything they would use a PDA for and thus have no need to buy an additional device. However, if you’re not comfortable keeping all your contact information and schedule on your laptop, an inexpensive PDA will be essential.
5) External Storage Device: Many people don’t realize that one of these devices are necessary for a translator. The reason why can be illustrated by an example. Let’s say you’re at your local library finishing up a translation job and you suddenly get a call that the client needs the product yesterday and they want a printed copy. You don’t even have time to go home and print out a copy. Well, luckily you have a flash drive. You copy the job on the drive, take it to your local copy shop, get it printed out, and then mail it off. That is why it’s important to have that device. Not only that, but it can be a good backup drive to have in case something happens to your computer while you’re out.
By investing in these mobile computing devices, you will be better prepared to reach your ideal of becoming a mobile language translator, doing your translations anywhere you want, instead of having to sit in front of your computer at home everyday.
Clint Tustison is a translator interested in helping other translators improve their businesses. His website, http://www.spanish-translation-help.com Spanish-translation-help.com is filled with information helpful to translators regarding the translation industry, and his free monthly newsletter, href="http://www.spanish-translation-help.com/free-translator-newsletter.html">Translator Techniques, has tips and techniques for translators.
Tags: language translator, language translation service, Articles, PDAs, Handheld Devices and Gadgets, language translation, Mobile, Mobile Computing
