Keep Translating

I recently discovered Crowdin and realized I could use it to translate technical docs — super convenient. I set myself a goal of contributing ~30 minutes daily. I’m translating the Ionic framework (hybrid mobile; can target desktop too).

After five consecutive days, a few observations stood out.

Takeaways

1. Translation quality depends on subject-matter knowledge and language fundamentals. I’ve shipped apps with Ionic v1–v4, and I’m used to reading English docs, so most strings are effortless—except when I hit commands I’ve never run, such as publishing to the App Store. The more you know the tech, the smoother the translation. Ideally translate topics you already use, or learn them as you go.
2. Progress accumulates slowly. Back in 2016, when Angular rewrote everything, Chinese docs were scarce. I forced myself to read English sources. From there it snowballed: reading official docs → translating Webpack/Angular/Bootstrap → switching OS/app UIs to English → regularly browsing Twitter, Medium, O’Reilly, even framework source. The change wasn’t overnight, but now I can read technical material without fear—though vocabulary and grammar still need work.

Keep Translating

• Crowdin turned out to be the missing channel. Lots of engineers want to give back; they just lacked an efficient path. Crowdin makes contributing painless.
• As engineers we shouldn’t only consume—we can build tools, translate docs, and share knowledge. Contribution sharpens skills and might open unexpected doors. If it’s the right thing, it’s worth doing.

Closing Thoughts

Just a quick journal entry about the past few days. Onward and upward.