Trados & Word: differences in counting words?

["Hart, Geoff" <Geoff-H -at- MTL -dot- FERIC -dot- CA>]

Jennifer O'Neill reports: <<I sent out a few manuals to 2 translation
agencies and have received different quotes back from them. One used Trados
for its calculations of word count, the other Word. There's an 8% difference
in word count between the two methods with Trados coming in with the lower
count (so a cheaper translation price).>>

I can't speak to the differences between the two programs, other than to
note that wordcounts remain something of a work in progress from what I've
read. What's most important here is that you compare Apples with Apples--and
not with PCs. The fact that the Trados quote is lower is important if you're
awarding the contract solely on price, but that should only be one aspect of
the total deal. While many professionals use a translation system such as
Trados (i.e., using it is a promising sign), you can get very good
translations from professionals who don't. How good are the two translators?
I'd look beyond word count (Word count? <g>) and see what other services the
cost includes; for example, the Trados approach, even were it more expensive
initially, might prove more economical in the long run because it will make
subsequent translations easier and more accurate. Similarly, someone who's
made the investment in Trados might be more experienced at localisation and
controlled terminologies, both of which are likely to be important in your
context.

--Geoff Hart, FERIC, Pointe-Claire, Quebec
geoff-h -at- mtl -dot- feric -dot- ca
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