TransType: Text Prediction for Translators

Text prediction is a novel form of interactive machine translation that is well suited to skilled translators. It has the potential to assist in several ways: speeding typing, suggesting possible translations, and averting translator errors. However, recent evaluations of a prototype prediction system showed that predictions can also distract and hinder translators if made indiscriminately. We demonstrate an experimental prototype intended to address this problem by selecting the prediction that has maximal expected benefit to the user in any given context. This leads it to make longer predictions where it is more certain and shorter ones—or none at all—in contexts where it is less certain.