10  Transcription & Translation

10.1 Transcription

Transcription tools & software

The UF International Ethnography Lab has access to Trint Transcription Software, which has detailed tutorials

Reviews of transcription tools

1. Comparison Video

2. NY Times’ Wirecutter review of transcription services

Tools: Automated Transcription via file upload

Top-Tier {.unnumbered}

1. Otter.ai. English only (US & UK with regional accents); free (600 min/mo) and paid plans. Can transcribe zoom meetings (e.g., if you do interviews via zoom) and can integrate with Dropbox. Phone app is available for iOS. There is an online tutorial. English-only

2. Happy Scribe - see descriptionabove.

3. Temi. English Only, less accurate than Otter.ai and Happy Scribe.

4. Online (free demo) version of Watson; note the “detect multiple speakers” option.

5. Zoom via UF; see also this Link and this announcement about the addition of new languages for UF users

Second-Tier

1. Spext. Speech-audio-text editing; free and paid plans.

2. Amazon Transcribe

Tools: Automated transcription via API

1. googleLanguageR. Uses the Google Cloud machine learning APIs for text and speech tasks. The Cloud Speech API transcribes sound files to text and the Cloud Text-to-Speech AP

2. AWS transcribe uses the Amazon Web Services to do transcription via API. Has program for NGO/non-profits.

Tools: Automated transcription via dictation

1. Google Docs. See also Google Docs Voice Recognition and helpful how-to blog post on transcription using google docs and voice recognition

2. SpeechNotes

3. Apple Dictation and Dictation Commands

4. How to use Windoes Voice Dictation and Windows Speech Recognition Commands

Tools: “Manual” transcription

1. oTranscribe Incredibly easy, web based, with time stamps, variable speed.

2. Express Scribe and a tutorial. There is a free version.

3. Transcribe

4. Nvivo

5. Listen N Write

6. InScribe

7. Pearnote for Mac: make text annotations that connect to locations in audio and video recordings (30 day free trial)

8. Dragon Speech Recognition Software

9. Sonix

10. Adobe Premiere: Speech-to-Text Tutorial and Workaround if you are using a version later than 7.2.2. UF Students can use Adobe products on UFApps

Transcription Style & Coding Guides

1. Samuel Proctor Project Style Guide

2. Library of Congress Guide: How to Transcribe

3. Smithsonian Archives of American Art Style Guide

4. Smithsonian Volunteer Transcription Program’s Guide and Expert Tips

5. Guide to Transcription Coding

6. Hepburn, A., & Bolden, G. B. (2017). Transcribing for social research. Sage. linkto book descrption on Sage website

7. Manchester University’s very useful Transcription Toolkit and Guide

8. Manchester University’s Quick calculator for estimating transcribing time (.xls file)

9. Programming Historian Guide to Text Automation

Examples of Transcription Notes

1. Sample 1

2. Sample 2

10.1.1 Setting up Text Shortcuts

1. Google Docs

2. MS Word

Useful Websites and Tutorials

Dictionaries, Slang, and Colloquialisms

1. Linguee Good for slang and expressions;searches different ways in which one word has been translated. Can also enter several words or even a sentence to find different translations.

2. Thesaurus.com; equivalent in foreign language.

Text comparison

1. Side-by-Side Text Comparison Website

Tutorials and Reviews

1. Jennifer Marie’s YouTube channel on Transcription Tools & Tips

Equipment

Pedals

1. Infinity

2. Kinesis

Misc. Software & Apps

1. SayMore: tools for common Language Documentation tasks

2. Lameta tool for metadata associated with files made in the course of documenting language, music, and other cultural expressions.

3. voice recorder app for iPad

4. App for recording phone interviews (note: be aware of relevant local and national laws regarding recording phone calls).

Post-Transcription Text Analytics

1. Planning for text analytics (extraction and organization) in R
   
2. Silge and Robinson’s outstanding book ‘Text Analysis in R’

10.2 Translation

Tools: Automated Translation of Text

1. Google Translate and help documents.

2. Google Docs: in-doc translation. See also how to translate using google sheets

3. MS Word: in-doc translation

4. DeepL

Tools: Automated Translation of Audio

1. Happy Scribe. 40+ languages. 30 min. free then paid; student pricing available. Can integrate with Zapier to up/download files from Google Drive and Dropbox Multiple languages

2. Google Audio Translation in Beta ### Text or Audio: API or Command Line

3. googleLanguageR. Uses the Google Cloud machine learning APIs for text and speech tasks. The Cloud Translation API does detection and translation of text.

4. aws.translate uses the Amazon Web Services to do transcription via API. Has program for NGO/non-profits.

1. Watson (IBM) 500 minutes free

2. DeepL

3. Translate Shell via API

10.2.1 Tools: Manual Translation of Text with Computer Assisted Technology (CAT)

1. Video overview of different CAT Tools from ‘Freelanceverse’.

2. OmegaT CAT Software. (Free)

3. WordFast Anywhere (free online; desktop version are paid)

4. Across.net (basic version free)

10.3 Sources & Additional Readings

1. Young, JC, Rose, DC, Mumby, HS, et al. 2018. A methodological guide to using and reporting on interviews in conservation science research. Methods Ecol Evol 9:10-19 [link]

2. Michael Henry Heim & Andrzej W. Tymowski. Guidelines for the Translation of Social Science Texts. American Council of Learned Societies

3. Sophie Chabeda, Jane Kahindi, Manya Van Ryneveld. Preparing data: the not-so-simple stage of transcription and translation

4. Squires, A. 2009. Methodological challenges in cross-language qualitative research: A research review.. International Journal of Nursing Studies 46(2):277-287.

5. Hepburn, A., & Bolden, G. B. (2017). Transcribing for social research. Sage.

6. McLellan E, MacQueen KM, Neidig JL. 2003. Beyond the Qualitative Interview: Data Preparation and Transcription. Field Methods. 15(1):63-84. [link]

7. MacLean LM, Meyer M, Estable A. 2004. Improving Accuracy of Transcripts in Qualitative Research. Qualitative Health Research.14(1):113-123. [link]

8. Hughes, M. Are Online Transcription Services Safe and Private?. How-to-Geek.

9. Duca, Daniela. Who’s disrupting transcription in academia?. Sage Ocean.

10. Oliver, D. G., Serovich, J. M., & Mason, T. L. (2005). Constraints and opportunities with interview transcription: Towards reflection in qualitative research. Social forces, 84(2), 1273-1289. [link]

11. Moore, E., & Llompart, J. (2017). Collecting, Transcribing, Analyzing and Presenting Plurilingual Interactional Data. Research-publishing.net. [link]