Oct 2007 Workshop C&D_LETTER.DOC

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Web site FAQ



Why should I join JAT?


Being a member of JAT allows you to:



  • Connect to a community of fellow translators and interpreters.
    Especially for freelancers, being a translator can be a fairly isolating experience, as many of our members work alone from home, for clients on other continents. JAT helps to bring back a sense of community through jat-list, a mailing list where members can ask eachother questions about translation-related topics, monthly meetings about translation topics held in the Tokyo area, annual IJET conferences, and other events around the world.
  • Promote yourself in our database of translators.
    Translation agencies and other companies or individuals looking for translation services can search our open database by language, specialization, and location. And since every member gets their own address on the JAT web site (member.jat.orgmember-name), it’s easy to refer clients to your resume.
  • Get discounts on JAT events like IJET and monthly meetings.
    Being a JAT member entitles you to discounts on IJET conferences, and free admission to our monthly meetings in Tokyo. For our more active members, these discounts offset most of the membership dues.

How do I become a JAT member?


First, you need to create a profile by going to our Signup page. Once you’ve done this, and logged in as a guest, you can become a JAT member by clicking the “Become a member” button from your Settings page. As soon as you’ve paid your dues, you can subscribe to the mailing list and enjoy all the other benefits of membership.


How much does it cost to become a JAT member?


The annual dues for JAT membership are JPY 10,000.


How can I pay my membership fee?


You can pay by either PayPal or Japanese bank transfer. More details are available here.


What is my OpenID identity URL?


OpenID is a protocol that lets anyone log in to any supporting website with a single, unified login. This means that you can use one login for all sites that support OpenID, instead of having to remember a username and password for each. You can learn more about OpenID, or create your new OpenID account in English or in Japanese. Note that OpenID is offered as a convenience, and not required in order to log in the JAT website.


Who will be able to see my profile?


That depends on your profile settings, as set on the Settings page. Logged-in JAT members can view all of the profile for other members. Non-members can see only the information that each member has decided to make public. JAT members can choose to make public any or all of (1) their primary contact information, (2) secondary contact information, and (3) specialties and background. Note that even if contact information is made public, email addresses are replaced with a contact form. This allows members to receive inquiries from non-members, without fear of having their email address out in the open for spammers to harvest.


What is my Web address on the JAT site?


Your web address on the JAT site is http://member.jat.org/username, where username is your JAT username.


What should I do if I’ve forgotten my username/password?


On the Login page, click the Reset password link at the bottom, and enter the primary email address of your JAT member account. Within a minute, you should receive a link that you can click to automatically log in.


Should I make my profile public?


Members are allowed to choose whether they want to make certain parts of their profile public. While some members choose to keep their information hidden for privacy reasons, others choose make it public, to let potential clients get in touch with them more easily. Since there are separate privacy settings for contact information and professional information (such as background and specialties), members can decide what to make public and what to make private. Members can change their privacy settings on the Settings page.


How can potential clients contact me?


Every JAT member receives their own web address on the JAT site (http://member.jat.org/username). All members can be contacted from the page at this address, through a contact form whose contents are sent to the primary email address of that member. Members wishing to be contacted by other means can make their contact information public.


Why are my posts to jat-list being rejected?


There may be several reasons that your posts to the JAT mailing list are being rejected.



  • Your JAT membership has expired.
  • You are posting from an unregistered email address.
  • Your email address has been suspended due to excessive bounces.

If the emails you send to the list are getting bounced, go to the Settings page, and make sure that your membership is current, and that the email addresses under which you are currently subscribed are valid.


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How do I unsubscribe from jat-list?


If you no longer wish to receive jat-list email, from the Settings page, select Do not send jat-list email for the email address for which you would like to stop receiving email. Note that you will still be able to send email to the list, but will no longer receive email. This setting takes 24 hours to take effect.

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XVIII FIT World Congress: Call for presentations

The International Federation of Translators, of which JAT is a an associate member, is now accepting proposals for presentations at its XVIII World Congress, which is going to be held in August 2008 in Shanghai (right before the Beijing Olympics kick off). Proposals are due in about a month (September 30th, to be exact), so if you're interested, head over to their site for more information.

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Welcome to JAT's new site!

Now that we've flipped the switch and officially launched our new site, we'd like to tell everyone a little bit about it.

Why a new site?


According to the wayback machine, JAT has maintained a web site since late 1996. Since then, it has grown from a collection of links to include to a searchable member database and an integrated mailing list. Unfortunately, the infrastructure upon which the site was built wasn't really equipped to handle its new responsibilities, and like a translation that has been revised by generations of editors, was drowning in cruft. The recently elected board decided to make this a priority, and has decided to make the switch from a hand-coded system to one based on well-tested frameworks.

What's new?


Because most of the changes to the new site are in the background, the new site currently looks much like the old one, with a few exceptions:

A linkable page for every member


The six separate directories on the old site have been replaced by a single, unified interface. Instead of a public directory (that anyone can see) and a private directory (that only JAT members can see), there is a single directory that displays all profiles to logged-in members, and only public profiles to everyone else. And unlike the last directory, every member now has their own linkable and bookmarkable page, from which they can be contacted by other members.

Improved site organization


Since the new site is based on a content management system, the JAT admins no longer need to wade through a mess of inconsistent HTML to update the web site, and can manage the entire site from a single web-based interface. This is going to make it much easier for us to not only add fresh content, but add it in both English and Japanese, since multi-lingual support is baked into the platform.

What next?


Searchable archives, linked to member profile pages


Our next goal for the site is to integrate the archives for jat-list in realtime, linked with the profiles of each members. This is currently available separately at jat-lists thanks to the hard work of previous Webmaster Ryan Ginstrom, but we're going to try to integrate it with the rest of the site to make everything easier to find.

More content in both English and Japanese


Now that we have a content management system in place to manage everything, it will be much easier to add content for both languages. The JAT board is going to make efforts to have most of the important site content in both languages from now on.

We'll explain more over the coming weeks about additional functionality available on the new site, including OpenID (a new way to manage your logins) and Gravatars (to put your picture on your profile page).

Keep in mind that we'll be making small tweaks to the functionality and style of the site over the next few months, so please let our Webmaster know if you have any ideas or suggestions.

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JAT Board Vote: Using Basecamp

The JAT board voted this week to use Basecamp as its primary method of communication and project management. See the detailed results here.

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Board






  • Helen Iwata: President, Tokyo Activities Committee (TAC) liaison, e-Juku liaison
  • Charles Aschmann: Vice president, webmaster, moderator liaison, assistant contest liaison, assistant membership officer
  • Chris Blakeslee: Membership officer, Website Development Advisory Committee (WDAC) liaison
  • Michael Hendry: Election liaison, assistant webmaster, assistant membership officer
  • Catherine Nakamichi: PROJECT liaison, Kansai Activities Team (KAT) liaison, assistant IJET liaison, assistant public relations officer
  • Phil Robertson: IJET liaison, assistant PROJECT liaison, assistant election liaison
  • Mark Stevenson: Public relations officer, JATLAW liaison, contest liaison, assistant treasurer
  • Fred Uleman: Treasurer, assistant public relations officer
  • Frank Moorhead: Auditor
  • Emily Shibata-Sato: Auditor

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Archives

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4th Annual Contest


The finalists for both the Japanese to English contest and the English to Japanese contest have been finalized.


The winner will be announced on February 14.

For further information please contact [email protected]

Designed to foster, recognize, and reward excellence in commercial, non-literary translation between Japanese and English by new translators, the fourth annual awards will be given in 2008. A 450-member-strong organization of professional freelance and in-house translators and interpreters, JAT is dedicated to promoting the interests of individual translators and interpreters working between Japanese and English worldwide.


FOURTH ANNUAL JAT CONTEST FOR NEW AND ASPIRING TRANSLATORS




  • Sponsored by: Japan Association of Translators (JAT)
  • Purpose: To cultivate new talent in commercial, non-literary translation
  • Qualification: Anyone with less than three years of commercial translation experience. (JAT membership not required. Except for the winners, entrants in the past contests are welcome to enter again.)
  • Categories: Japanese-to-English and English-to-Japanese
  • Entry fee: Free
  • Awards (each category):
    The First Place winner in each category will receive a free trip to IJET-19, to be held on April 12 (Sat.) and 13 (Sun.), 2008 in Okinawa, Japan, including registration fee, round-trip ticket, and hotel accommodations (3 nights), plus a one-year membership in JAT. Each Second Place winner will receive a one-year membership in JAT.


Judges




  • Japanese-to-English: Malcolm James, Steve Venti, Ken Wagner
  • English-to-Japanese: Junko Ogawara, Ayako Sato, Yukari Ishihara



Contest Schedule




  • Oct. 15, 2007 - Source texts available for downloading from the JAT website
  • Nov. 30, 2007 (24:00 Japan Time)- Submission deadline

  • Jan. 18, 2008 - Five finalists announced on JAT website
  • Feb. 14, 2008 - Awards announced on JAT website and by direct e-mail to the winners
  • April - Winners invited to IJET-19 in Okinawa, Japan

CONTEST GUIDELINES


About the Source Text


The material to be translated will be content intended for the general public educated in the source language. Refer to Previous JAT Translation Contests for the source texts used in the previous contests.


Download the source text for the J>E contest here
Download the source text for the E>J contest here

Submission Guidelines


ENTRY FORM – JAT Translation Contest

  • Submissions must be sent as an MS Word .doc file or a plain text file by file attachment with your entry form.
  • Your file should only contain the translated text. Do not write your name or comments.
  • Name the file as follows:

CONTEST E your name (e.g. CONTEST E Maria Sharapova)


  • Submissions will be confirmed by return e-mail.
  • Only one entry per person is allowed in each category.

Copyright



  • All submissions become the property of JAT and will not be returned.
  • JAT retains the copyright to all submitted entries.

  • JAT reserves all rights to publicize the winners' names, winning entry, photo and/or likenesses, and background information on its web site, mailing list, and electronic or printed publications.

Judging



  • Entries will be judged in three stages in accordance with the evaluation criteria provided by the judging panel. The ID numbers and translations of the five finalists will be announced on JAT website on January 18, 2008.
  • The decision of the judges is final. There is no appeal or contesting of the results.


Awards in Detail


JAT will pay the following:

  • Round trip economy travel from home to IJET by the most direct route.
  • If traveling by train, "economy" includes a seat reservation, but excludes first class and sleeper fares.

  • If traveling by personal vehicle (e.g., car), base mileage allowances (as defined by the relevant tax authority) plus parking expenses (for a maximum three nights at the hotel where the winner is staying) shall be paid.
  • Hotel for three nights standard accommodation at or near the IJET venue.

  • Receipts are required for all reimbursements.
  • Travel arrangements and details will be discussed with the winners in advance of purchase.


Disqualification


The following are cause for disqualification.

  • Incomplete application
  • Entry received after the deadline

  • Entry under someone else’s name, or work done by someone other than the contestant
  • Dishonesty about one's qualifications


For further information please contact [email protected]

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Mailing Lists


Terms of Use: Introduction



These terms are the official JAT policy with regards to the use of the JAT mailing lists (also see the JAT Bylaws, Section VII). See the FAQ for information on how to access the lists, manage your account, and send and receive email in English and Japanese.


Preface: What are the JAT mailing lists?


The JAT mailing lists are the official mailing lists of the Japan Association of Translators. Only paid-up members are allowed to use these lists.


1. What is the focus of the lists?


JAT-list


JAT-List ([email protected]) is the main mailing list for all JAT members. This list is for the discussion of issues related to translation and interpretation, whether they be about language, technology, trends in the industry, or how to translate 等.



Messages regarding JAT as an organization and matters concerning how JAT is (or should be) run are not suitable for this list. In the past members have complained about such messages, and some have left the mailing list in order to avoid these discussions.


2. What type of mail is appropriate?


Generally, the only restrictions are that your post should pertain to translation between Japanese and English for JAT-list. Please don't cross-post information from other lists or Usenet newsgroups unless it relates directly to discussion on the list. Since the list is concerned with the use of language, we sometimes do discuss crude language, but we still try to be polite about it.


We can discuss anything on the mailing lists as long as what is said is "true and fair". For example, we can say that Company XXX has not paid up promptly in the past, but not that Company XXX is the worst payer in existence.


2.1. Agency enquiries (JAT-list)


When requesting an agency check please give as many details as possible. There are two basic reasons for this:


  1. It will avoid possible confusion. There are a lot of agencies out there with the same or very similar sounding names.
  2. One agency could get a bad name and start up business under a new name. It has happened in the past. In this case knowing the address, telephone number, person in charge, etc may give us a hint.



    And remember, when replying keep your comments fair and true. It is safest to stick to what you know first-hand and can back up with evidence. Someone who works for the agency in question may be on this list.

2.2. Use your full name


Contributors must include their full name, as registered with JAT, at the end of each post.


3. What type of mail is inappropriate?


3.1. Mail from companies:


Since these lists are for JAT members and only individuals can join JAT, even if you happen to be an employee of, for example, a translation company, please post in your name, not the company's name.


3.2 Personal attacks:


Discussion is welcome. Lively discussion can certainly be healthy but make certain that these discussions do not get personal. You can criticize a point of view all you like but do not turn this into an attack on the sender. If you wish to continue this kind of dialogue, please do it off-line.


3.3. Only members may post.


Many members share computers with work associates, spouses, family members. However, only JAT members may post to these lists.


3.4. Anything covered in Section VII of the JAT Bylaws.


4. Who is responsible for content?


This list is not "moderated" in that a post is ordinarily not screened before it is distributed to list members. Moderators do read the mail after it has been distributed; however, even they are not responsible for the content of a post.


As for responsibility for any defamatory comment (if it ever comes up), it lies with the person who made that comment *as long as the JAT-list Administrator has informed all subscribers to make comments which are true and fair*. As long as the JAT-list Administrator makes this point clear to all concerned, it will be considered that the JAT-list Administrator has taken *reasonable care* in ensuring that no defamation arises. Members are reminded of their responsibility in the footer at the bottom of each post.


5. Mailing list rules


All JAT lists are covered by JAT mail policy as stated in the bylaws and these terms of use.


Offenders will lose mailing privileges according to the following schedule:


First offense: 2 days to one week


Second offense: one week to one month


A third offense will bring an automatic review of the person's membership standing by the board.


Concerning the above


The severity of the penalty will be at the discretion of the the list administrator.


Obviously the timing of offenses is crucial. Although a second offense that occurs within days or weeks of a first offense will certainly incur a more severe penalty, a second offense 5 years after the first offense would not. Again this decision is at the discretion of the list administrator.


Please send all correspondence regarding these Terms of Use to the Webmaster.


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JAT Contest for New and Aspiring Translators

Designed to foster, recognize, and reward excellence in commercial, non-literary translation between Japanese and English by new translators, the annual JAT award for new and aspiring translators was started in 2004 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Japan Association of Translators.

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Past Events

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Past Articles

2007



2006


2005

2004

2003

2002

2002

2001

2000

1999

1998

1997

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Past Interviews

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Past IJETs


  • IJET-21 in Miyazaki, Japan
    April 24-25, 2010
  • IJET-20 in Sydney, Australia
    February 14-15, 2009
  • IJET-19 in Okinawa, Japan
    April 11–12, 2008
  • IJET-18 in Bath, England
    June 23–24, 2007
  • IJET-17 in Kobe, Japan
    June 17–18, 2006
  • IJET-16 in Chicago, USA
    June 4-5, 2005
  • IJET-15 in Yokohama, Japan
    May 22-23, 2004
  • IJET-14 in Dublin, Ireland
    May 17-18, 2003
  • IJET-13 in Yokohama, Japan
    May 11-12, 2002
  • IJET-12 in Monterey, USA
    May 26-27, 2001
  • IJET-11 in Kyoto, Japan
    May 20-21, 2000
  • IJET-10 in Austin, USA
    May 15-16, 1999
  • IJET-9 in Yokohama, Japan
    May 23-24, 1998
  • IJET-8 in Sheffield, England
    May 19-21, 1997
  • IJET-7 in Yokohama, Japan
    May 18-19, 1996
  • IJET-6 in Vancouver, Canada
    May 25-27, 1995
  • IJET-5 in Urayasu, Japan
    May 28-29, 1994
  • IJET-4 in Brisbane, Australia
    July 14-17, 1993
  • IJET-3 in Fuji Yoshida, Japan
    May 21-24, 1992
  • IJET-2 in San Francisco, USA
    June 21-23, 1991
  • IJET-1 in Hakone, Japan
    May 26-27, 1990

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IJET-22

IJET-22 will be held in Seattle, Washington on the weekend of 14-15 May
2011. For more information, see the official IJET-22 website.

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IJET Conference

The International Japanese English Translation (IJET) Conference was started by the Japan Association of Translators (JAT) nearly 22 years ago, as an effort to enable translators working between the Japanese and English languages to meet, share knowledge and skills, and network.

IJET has since grown to a highly successful annual conference. It is held each year, alternating years between Japan and an overseas venue. The next IJET, IJET-22, will be held in Seattle, Washington on the weekend of 14-15 May 2011.

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