Amazon is Testing an AI Tool That Automatically Translates Books Into Other Languages (engadget.com)
- Reference: 0179986782
- News link: https://news.slashdot.org/story/25/11/06/1931204/amazon-is-testing-an-ai-tool-that-automatically-translates-books-into-other-languages
- Source link: https://www.engadget.com/ai/amazon-is-testing-an-ai-tool-that-automatically-translates-books-into-other-languages-183056809.html
> Amazon just introduced an AI tool that will automatically [1]translate books into other languages . The appropriately-named Kindle Translate is being advertised as a resource for authors that self publish on the platform.
>
> The company says the tool can translate entire books between English and Spanish and German to English. Amazon promises that more languages are coming down the pike. It's available right now in a beta form to select authors enrolled in the Kindle Direct Publishing platform. There's a broader rollout planned for a later date.
[1] https://www.engadget.com/ai/amazon-is-testing-an-ai-tool-that-automatically-translates-books-into-other-languages-183056809.html
Great idea in theory (Score:3)
In practice, translation is difficult and more development will be needed before AI can do it really right
As usual, companies afflicted by FOMO are deploying immature tech so that they can tell shareholders that they have an AI strategy
Sounds like a terrible idea (Score:2, Informative)
They won't have all the nuances like colloquialisms and idioms and whatever other personality could be part of the text. They couldn't adapt it for the culture properly.
Re:Sounds like a terrible idea (Score:5, Funny)
Yeah, everyone knows it won't be the same if you don't read your Shakespeare in the original Klingon.
Already thrilled to learn what erotic literature.. (Score:3)
.. will read like, after it has been dragged through the automatic translation process. Even the automatically translated descriptions of sex toys on Aliexpress are hilarious, and those are really short and not sophisticated.
Re: (Score:2)
> Already thrilled to learn what erotic literature..
> .. will read like, after it has been dragged through the automatic translation process. Even the automatically translated descriptions of sex toys on Aliexpress are hilarious, and those are really short and not sophisticated.
I can see it now:
> "I put on my robe and wizard hat..."
The horror. The horror. (Score:3)
If this is anything like AI generated subtitles, it's going to be really awful.
Funny example (Score:2)
For those who'd like a chuckle at how sideways translations can go, take a look at English as She is Spoke , circa 1883.
The book was meant to be a serious attempt to offer a Portuguese to English translation guidebook. Unfortunately, the (Portuguese) author knew no English, but he knew some French and he knew a guy who knew French and some English.
It's still in print - there is even a version with a Foreword by Mark Twain: [1]https://www.powells.com/book/e... [powells.com]
[1] https://www.powells.com/book/english-as-she-is-spoke-9781312007987?condition=New
Smart Phone's Translating Apps & Websites (Score:2)
I'd like to see smart phones translating apps not translated to the local language.
Why stop at apps? Web pages too. iBooks? Kindle etc.
As an App developer, a lone one man app developer, I'd love to reach a wider audience but translation is a big overhead to take on.
My hope is that the phone's will take care of this at some point,
Opt in/out with caveats and I think most using it would accept it as a good compromise.
Good (Score:1)
Now I can read Tolkien in the original Middle Earth languages and Star Trek novels in the original Vulcan.
Or at least a cheap facsimilie thereof.
That will work well (Score:5, Insightful)
This type of translation doe not even really work for technical texts. For other books, they will just lose their soul.
Re: (Score:2)
I would think technical texts would be *harder* for an AI tool to get right, not easier. This is because technical texts contain many words that *should not* be translated, even if there is a translation. For example, the word "Windows" as in the Microsoft product, should not be translated, even if the rest of the document is translated.
Re: (Score:2)
I work in localization. Technical writing is often easier for machine-translation systems, because the writing is (ideally) deliberately clear, concise, and structured.
The terminology issue you mention can be addressed at least partially by feeding any such machine-translation system a list of words and phrases to keep as-is in the target text.
Fiction, meanwhile, often involves complicated and subtle wordplay, which no AI system is going to handle very well.
Re: (Score:2)
Interesting!
Re: (Score:2)
"My hovercraft is full of eels"
Re: (Score:2)
It doesn't matter how much soul a book has if someone can't read it.