h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi,

As Mina said, we tried a translator scheme when I was Community Editor of h2g2, and it didn't work.

One of the problems (but definitely not the *only* problem!) with the scheme is that swearwords or offensive postings are a reasonably small issue, but they're the thing that we're most likely to be alerted to, or be able to identify, in foreign postings. Things that break the law, like libel and defamation are far more important to the BBC - because we can be sued - but it's not possible for us to offer sufficient training to volunteers in other countries to enable them to identify this type of content.

It's also reasonable to expect us to moderate foreign language postings to the same standard that we moderate other postings, but again, this proved very difficult for us to do. The moderators are intensively trained and monitored by their supervisors to help to ensure consistency and accuracy, yet we still, understandably get complaints about unfair decisions and have to intervene. To moderate at the same level, and be able to intervene in disputes etc, necessitates a good understanding of the language by the Editors, or access to a BBC translator, and that's something the team just don't have. It's just unfair to the *English* speakers to moderate foreign languages to a different standard than we do English.

We also have no control over volunteer moderator schemes. We have no way of assessing anyone for suitability for the role of moderator - although we'd still have full responsibility for the content they moderated. When we pay a moderation company we have a contract with them, and they have insurance that covers them in the event we're sued because of an error made by them, but this wouldn't be the case with a volunteer group.

Moderating is also a pretty souless job. It's boring. Believe me I did it for a couple of weeks when we came over to the BBC from The Digital Village. There's no real reward for the moderators. One's own conversations on h2g2 are interesting, but reading through pages and pages of strangers' idle chat is pretty boring to be honest, which is why I think most of the pilot volunteers soon lost interest. They'd rather spend their time online visibly contributing to the Guide themselves.

So doing this is not really realistic, for a number of really valid, practical, reasons.

As Jimster says, the Guide is for everyone and it's really key that people can all share and participate in it equally.

It's also worth noting that we do allow people to post email addresses and MSN contact details on site - unlike most of the rest of the BBC! - so members can reasonably easily contact their h2g2 friends and talk in their native language if they chose to.

>It's also worth noting that we do allow people to post email addresses and MSN contact details on site - unlike most of the rest of the BBC! - so members can reasonably easily contact their h2g2 friends and talk in their native language if they chose to.<

That would be assuming that everyone who wants to post something in a foreign language is a foreigner...

I was more thinking of the Researchers whose English is their first language but might need some help with translations etc... Or enjoy sharing their knowledge of a foreign language as well as improving it...

But, hey... I obviously misunderstood the message given last year...

Anyway, as it seems that pratically none of the points I've raised have been answered or even acknowledged I will just unsubscribe now...

I checked what was given to me, but none came after the first batch. And I never got a badge. I didn't realise the project had been scrapped, I was still waiting for the next batch to moderate. If you like, I'll give you references from my doctor, priest, husband, boss and children as to my moral integrity, and am quite prepared to take on an assault course or intelligence test or do some similtaneous translating.

However, the idea seems to have been given up, so I'll stop worrying about it.

I remember having volunteered before anything happened with the TransVol scheme. And I am pretty sure that the scheme never went past a testing stange ... And I thought the reason for the scheme not going ahead was that it was rather impossible to get the translated/checked postings back into the original conversations.

to check it out

Tube

PS: Nice to see that someone picked up my question from posting # 11, though.

Seems my memory serves me correctly.
cf. F55683?thread=133655&skip=80&show=20#p1413145

Peta @ # 96

Just updating....

Hi Tube,

"And I thought the reason for the scheme not going ahead was that it was rather impossible to get the translated/checked postings back into the original conversations."

Yes, you're right, well remembered, that was a huge problem!

Because the foreign language posts are in a random queue - and we can only see the top 20 at a time (like all the items pending moderation) we couldn't post any back up until we had *all* the checked items back from all of the translators, because the ones at the front end of the queue had to be processed before we could get to the ones at the end and sod's law meant that the people who had the ones at the back would send them back first. So we had to wait until we had them all back - and then attempt to match up posts we didn't understand to find the start of any one translators sequence. It was amazingly tricky to handle this end.

All of the volunteers did a grand job , but it just wasn't practical to run it with the technology available.

Well worth a try though!

And I take it that even though the technology is maybe more advanced now, the recent cut in h2 staff and liability concerns mean that TransVol will not be reanimated...?

Hi Tube,

Unfortunately the moderation technology isn't more advanced now, it's *exactly* the same as it was then.

The job was too labour intensive even *with* the larger sized team, so no, there are no plans to restart the scheme in the forseeable future.

Thank you for the belated badge.

Ah, ok. Thanks for clarifying.
Badge?!

Oh, neat!


Tube

PS: What's green and sits on my personal space? - A TransVol badge!

When the yikes button is activated, instead of just and edit box, how about a group of radio buttons for the main offences. So the moderators can see the aim of the yikes before reading text.

[_] Defamation
[_] Copyright
[_] Abusive to a group
[_] Liar, liar pants on fire
[_] Banned words
[_] Non English

That sort of thing? To speed-up gettinf to the point.

Plus it's a pitty ACEs can't be flagged as multi-lingual, or even a dropdown for translators.

It's also a pity that there isn't a TransVol badge for the Brunel skin

There is (see A1916714) it just doesn't show up.

The appears to be a choice of two for Brunel...



Plus one in: /small/

One for Classic (Goo) and one for some other skin - pass.

The link SEF provided has a 'test' link to aid copy & paste.

Having skimmed parts of this thread, I couldn't resist the opportunity of a free plug...

The h2g2 Language Thing! A1145477! We have threads for all sorts of languages, and you're welcome to start more...

We managed to get round the English-only rule by insisting that all of our contributors post an English translation under everything written in foreign languages. And we're not breaking the rules 'cos we've been approved by h2g2 Support in the Community Choice thread

So, if you want to brush up on your language skills, fancy trying yourself at a bit of basic teaching, etc, you could do worse than visit us

JoeC

In German

Dieser Aufstellen ist vorübergehend versteckt worden, weil ein Mitglied von unserer Mäßigungsmannschaft es zur Gemeinschaftmannschaft für eine Entscheidung bezüglich verwiesen hat, ob es die Häuserregeln in mancher Hinsicht zuwiderhandelt. Wir werden alles machen, das wir können, zu sichern, daß eine Entscheidung so schnell wie möglich gemacht ist.

Sie können ungefährer Mäßigung auf h2g2 hier erfahren



and now in english,

Dieser Aufstellen ist vorübergehend versteckt worden, weil ein Mitglied von unserer Mäßigungsmannschaft es zur Gemeinschaftmannschaft für eine Entscheidung bezüglich verwiesen hat, ob es die Häuserregeln in mancher Hinsicht zuwiderhandelt. Wir werden alles machen, das wir können, zu sichern, daß eine Entscheidung so schnell wie möglich gemacht ist.

Sie können ungefährer Mäßigung auf h2g2 hier erfahren


German

Dieser Aufstellen ist vorübergehend versteckt worden, weil ein Mitglied von unserer Mäßigungsmannschaft es zur Gemeinschaftmannschaft für eine Entscheidung bezüglich verwiesen hat, ob es die Häuserregeln in mancher Hinsicht zuwiderhandelt. Wir werden alles machen, das wir können, zu sichern, daß eine Entscheidung so schnell wie möglich gemacht ist.

Sie können ungefährer Mäßigung auf h2g2 hier erfahren

and once again in english

Dieser Aufstellen ist vorübergehend versteckt worden, weil ein Mitglied von unserer Mäßigungsmannschaft es zur Gemeinschaftmannschaft für eine Entscheidung bezüglich verwiesen hat, ob es die Häuserregeln in mancher Hinsicht zuwiderhandelt. Wir werden alles machen, das wir können, zu sichern, daß eine Entscheidung so schnell wie möglich gemacht ist.

Sie können ungefährer Mäßigung auf h2g2 hier erfahren


Now you try!

sorry i forgot, heres the english translation



This Posting has been temporarily hidden, because a member of our Moderation Team has referred it to the Community Team for a decision as to whether it contravenes the House Rules in some way. We will do everything we can to ensure that a decision is made as quickly as possible.

You can find out more about moderation on h2g2 here.


sorry!

Ahem you seemed to have missed a copy of that past master who has at times acted as a spokesman for the Illustrious BBC granted in 70/80
Stanley Unwin (writes a lot of political speachs)
or would prose such as that be moderated