An experiment...
Apr. 27th, 2008 06:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
alexpgpI had this nasty suspicion that I was spending a lot of work time doing stuff other than translating, so I dug out my electronic chess timer to run a little experiment.
For those not familiar with chess timers, they basically consist of two timekeeping mechanisms with buttons that start and stop them. Pressing the button on your side of the timer stops your clock and starts your opponent's clock, and your opponent's button works in a similar manner. As it turns out, the device measures how long each side spends thinking about its moves when it is that side's turn to move.
Anyway, my timer allows some incredible number of different time controls to be set, so I set it for 2-1/2 hours per side and started the clock on... call it side A. For the time I was translating, side A was, um, "ticking." If I got up for a break, or to help Galina with taking apart the bathroom light, or to walk Shiloh, or any other distraction, I'd punch the button on side A and then the clock on side B would start counting down. You get the idea.
So now, after 4 real-time hours, I have a data point: I've spent 2-1/2 hours working and 90 minutes goofing off. However you slice it, I managed to translate almost 1900 words.
FWIW, I have about 2900 words left in the job. Dinner calls. I'll be happy if I can whittle another 1500 words from what's left before hitting the sack.
Cheers...
For those not familiar with chess timers, they basically consist of two timekeeping mechanisms with buttons that start and stop them. Pressing the button on your side of the timer stops your clock and starts your opponent's clock, and your opponent's button works in a similar manner. As it turns out, the device measures how long each side spends thinking about its moves when it is that side's turn to move.
Anyway, my timer allows some incredible number of different time controls to be set, so I set it for 2-1/2 hours per side and started the clock on... call it side A. For the time I was translating, side A was, um, "ticking." If I got up for a break, or to help Galina with taking apart the bathroom light, or to walk Shiloh, or any other distraction, I'd punch the button on side A and then the clock on side B would start counting down. You get the idea.
So now, after 4 real-time hours, I have a data point: I've spent 2-1/2 hours working and 90 minutes goofing off. However you slice it, I managed to translate almost 1900 words.
FWIW, I have about 2900 words left in the job. Dinner calls. I'll be happy if I can whittle another 1500 words from what's left before hitting the sack.
Cheers...
