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If we are talking about something that may or may not be related to environmentalist hippies then I am in agreement.
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Oct 2, 2013 03:03
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Spartan421 posted:If we are talking about something that may or may not be related to environmentalist hippies then I am in agreement. Oh god, there's another one? What am I saying? Of course there's another one.
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Oct 2, 2013 03:25
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Oh wow! I totally didn't get those, but I stuck with "we'll film it to help you out...from behind!" till the bitter end...and that one whiny individual pocket recording all of her friends to prove she's awesome and they suck.
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Oct 2, 2013 04:18
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Slightly Used Cake posted:Oh wow! I totally didn't get those, but I stuck with "we'll film it to help you out...from behind!" till the bitter end...and that one whiny individual pocket recording all of her friends to prove she's awesome and they suck. I feel like we just need a private mailing list or something to bitch about this in 'slightly looser terms,' but I know that would be a bad idea. Still, it'd be nice if we at least all made comments about the 'problem clients' consistently, so that DT could pass along the information. I'm not ever sure that they do. For the one I've been dealing with, I've mentioned their audio-based shortcomings plenty of times. Old Boot fucked around with this message at 04:38 on Oct 2, 2013 |
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Oct 2, 2013 04:24
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If you have issues with a particular client's work, by all means talk to DT about it. That last transcription job I was bitching about a month ago went from a friggin' nightmare to my most lucrative work ever because I pointed out to my liaison that it was a ton of work for the pay and they got their client to double the rate. DT may not be that responsive, but if a significant portion of their transcribers balk at a troublesome client they'll have to figure something out to solve the problem. Worst case scenario, if you're a pain in the rear end about a particular client's work, they'll learn not to send those tapes to you. 
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Oct 2, 2013 04:59
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Actually I can say from talking to boss lady regarding some, that's already been a thing, when people refuse to take the jobs she just stops accepting the work from them because there's no way to fulfill it, that's why we stopped seeing the filming from behind research client.
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Oct 2, 2013 05:29
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kazmeyer posted:A Good Post Slightly Used Cake posted:Actually I can say from talking to boss lady regarding some, that's already been a thing, when people refuse to take the jobs she just stops accepting the work from them because there's no way to fulfill it, that's why we stopped seeing the filming from behind research client. It's something to keep in mind. I don't want to blackball the one I just took because it was honestly a worthwhile cause, but when it comes down to it, it's hard to justify the amount I was paid vs. the amount of work that had be done. Like I said: I wish I could contact the client directly and let them figure out a way to better coordinate their recordings. In the meantime, I guess if any of us land one of THOSE assignments, we can bat around some PMs and see if the others are willing to deal with it when any of us aren't feeling up to it. Seems like a fair way of dealing with it. I just had to turn down a lucrative one because of an absurd amount of Accents Happening that I seriously could not understand.
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Oct 2, 2013 08:09
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Spartan421 posted:If we are talking about something that may or may not be related to environmentalist hippies then I am in agreement. That actually wasn't the one I was referring to, but that one also makes my skin crawl, and it just keeps showing up.  e: I'm also down for a casual mailing list or closed FB group for when we need to discuss something under the NDA in slightly less vague terms or to trade work, while still keeping the casual chatter to the thread. Crunch Bucket fucked around with this message at 12:43 on Oct 2, 2013 |
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Oct 2, 2013 12:22
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I wouldn't mind doing it if it didn't feel totally pointless. It's just a bunch of dudes dicking around and not doing anything remotely interesting. I'm down for a group.
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Oct 2, 2013 13:01
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Is it normal for the Zerys Job Board to be bare for long periods of time? I got admitted with a 3 star rating, so I know I can't see everything that's available, but I just wanted to doublecheck if there's some good work to be found there once I manage to get my rating up or if it's like this most of the time.
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Oct 10, 2013 19:28
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Not a lot gets posted there regularly, and a lot of it's garbage. I worked my way up to five stars and see 210 jobs, a grand total of six of which are at or above 2.8 cents a word.
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Oct 10, 2013 20:01
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Good news! Textbroker rolled out a new look and new homepage. Bad news: As soon as you log in it's all the same old code and layout. Writers get nothing fancy or streamlined or new.
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Oct 11, 2013 00:47
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My experience two weeks in and I'm looking for some advice. I like Zerys so far. I've found it isn't that terrible when it has stuff and you can make some money on it. But then again I am comparing it to Textbroker which is basically worthless in terms of making any real money on at lower levels. I'm hoping once Writers Access lets me in they'll have a lot of work with good pay. Because otherwise it's back to an office desk which I'm past wanting to do anymore. Textbroker ranks me at a three meanwhile Zerys has me at a low five. I don't think I'll be doing any work for TB in the future. Any other writing sites I should look into ? I'm trying to figure out Odesk it seems cluttered and Demand Media looks like it may be a bit above my skill/areas of study level given what they seem to be looking for.
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Oct 11, 2013 01:17
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Carbon Tiger posted:My experience two weeks in and I'm looking for some advice. Some people here seem to have had a good amount of success at oDesk, but in my experience, without a nice portfolio, you're going to be stuck fighting it out on the mud with dozens if not hundreds of other applicants for each job, who will happily lowball you all day long. ELancer or People per Hour are probably better options. Maybe CloudCrowd? I thought the application was asinine and the editors are ridiculously nitpicky, but it's a good place to diversify and you can get daily Paypal payments which is very attractive.
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Oct 11, 2013 19:15
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Are About.com's standards for accepting guides super high? I submitted an application to be a guide with them a few weeks ago which included a really strong sample article that I wrote specifically for them, and my qualifications, which they asked me about, include a degree in the exact field they're looking for as well as several years of experience working in that field. I also have some professional writing experience, which I mentioned to them. Yesterday I got an email saying they rejected my application. I'm really bummed out because I worked pretty hard on the application and I figured that my degree and experience would make me a shoe-in. What do they want from their guides, exactly? They said I can apply again; I was thinking of submitting an application for a related field, but I want to know what it is they're looking for first before I put in all that time and effort again.
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Oct 15, 2013 20:20
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Decided to check out CloudCrowd. They want my SSN. That makes me uncomfortable. Does anyone know how legit that place is? Is anyone doing work there?
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Oct 17, 2013 10:56
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I've heard mixed things. One writer on Writer Access says they make a good living there, but others are just as skeeved out as you are. I vaguely remember reading someone say they were really inconsistent about a few things and seemed to drop some writers on a whim. So, seems like they're legit but not necessarily worth the time? Up to you if you decide to investigate, and let us know how it turns out if you do. Bears: All I know about About is that they didn't accept me back when I was first starting out, which was understandable because I was first starting out and, in retrospect, had no idea what I was doing. I haven't tried since.
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Oct 17, 2013 12:22
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Yeah, after I posted, I looked around for reviews of CloudCrowd. Various complaints, various praises. They were all so different, I still don't know what to think. I'm a wuss, though, so I think I'm gonna back away from that one for now. If anyone has good experiences with them, post about it.
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Oct 17, 2013 13:39
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Sara T. Biggun posted:Decided to check out CloudCrowd. They want my SSN. That makes me uncomfortable. People paying you usually want your SSN for taxes. I looked into it, it seemed really.. bleh. Isn't that the place where other writers edit your work, and if something is wrong they get half the pay?
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Oct 17, 2013 14:17
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I don't know that it was half, but they get a cut, so there's an incentive for the editors to be pedants, yeah.
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Oct 17, 2013 14:37
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I did a little work for CloudCrowd a while back. It's legit, but you're not going to get rich doing it. Most of what I did at the time was stuff like "rewrite this item description/title" stuff.
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Oct 17, 2013 17:38
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Does anybody here do any freelance translation work online? (English <> Spanish) I've managed to pick up the occasional job on freelance hubs and I'd like to transition a bit away from writing.
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Oct 18, 2013 17:52
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I've never done any (not fluent enough) but if you're really good with Spanish you might look into Spanish transcription work. One of the outfits I used to work for paid something over $2 a minute to start for Spanish transcription.
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Oct 18, 2013 20:44
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kazmeyer posted:I've never done any (not fluent enough) but if you're really good with Spanish you might look into Spanish transcription work. One of the outfits I used to work for paid something over $2 a minute to start for Spanish transcription. I think I know which one you're referring to, but my options are limited considering I'm not a US resident. Thanks anyways. Besides that, I know there's been some talk about Constant Content here before, but after trying it out for myself I wouldn't recommend the place to anybody. That is unless you have the patience of Buddha, because their editors will outright reject articles multiple times if you so much as forget a single line of spacing. Your mileage may vary of course, but the whole experience (over multiple articles, including some which were accepted) seems to be designed specifically to either minimize productivity or piss off new authors.
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Oct 18, 2013 21:36
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I was actually just about to post about how well Constant Content has gone for me in the past couple weeks haha. I can definitely see how everyone's experiences will vary, but after experiencing what you're talking about I've actually found my rhythm. I had a few sent back for corrections because of comma issues, but now take a bit more time to proofread my stuff, am used to the style rules they're looking for, and jack all my Word grammar check settings way up. Since then I haven't had any returned to me. In the two weeks I've been on it I've only made a dent in a folder full of old stuff I'd written for Demand Studios back in its heyday. One by one I'm just picking any that have a topic that would make a good article and am re-writing it. No research and hardly no thought required. So far I've sold about 10, all within a day of being approved. Like mentioned earlier it's tough at first to get a handle on what to charge, but I got some tips reading a few of the most popular threads in the "general author help" forum there. So far it's not too bad for essentially re-writing my own content that I'd saved from a couple years ago.
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Oct 18, 2013 21:44
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warheadr posted:I was actually just about to post about how well Constant Content has gone for me in the past couple weeks haha. I can definitely see how everyone's experiences will vary, but after experiencing what you're talking about I've actually found my rhythm. I had a few sent back for corrections because of comma issues, but now take a bit more time to proofread my stuff, am used to the style rules they're looking for, and jack all my Word grammar check settings way up. I'm glad it's working out better for somebody else! I suppose I'll give them another go eventually because the pay is attractive, but editorial processes like theirs always piss me off. That being said, their nitpickiness is probably the reason people pay so well for content there.
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Oct 18, 2013 22:13
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Couldn't possibly be as bad as the douche nozzle brigade that's editing DMS right now. There's two in particular (they've made them start signing their edits now) where it never fails, if any of my articles cross their desks I get a request for about 200 more words on a completely ancillary topic or a complete misunderstanding of the format, subject, or both.
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Oct 18, 2013 23:25
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Labradoodle posted:Does anybody here do any freelance translation work online? (English <> Spanish) I've managed to pick up the occasional job on freelance hubs and I'd like to transition a bit away from writing. What about Gengo.com? I do German > English stuff there.
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Oct 18, 2013 23:48
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Jedi Knight Luigi posted:What about Gengo.com? I do German > English stuff there. That's perfect, thank you!
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Oct 19, 2013 16:49
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Will I be screwing myself with DT if I send back a file because I think the difficulty level is particularly outrageous compared to the rate that they're paying? I'm getting regular, consistent work from them and I'd like to think that I'm in pretty good standing with them, but this file is just ridiculous. Audio only, 5 male speakers that I'm supposed to keep straight, and they just talk ALL OVER each other (full verbatim too, so all the little interruptions have to be transcribed as well - such bullshit) I really want to tell them to fly a kite, but it would be the first time I flat out refused to do a file. There is about 30 hours left until the deadline. Advice? Crunch Bucket fucked around with this message at 15:30 on Oct 25, 2013 |
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Oct 25, 2013 15:18
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Have you already confirmed on it?
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Oct 25, 2013 17:38
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I did, but the assignment came in really late last night (I was asleep) so I didn't get a chance to confirm until this morning. I sent an email and just laid it out politely and she seemed cool with it and it's now been reassigned. I didn't want to wait any longer so that the new person that gets it will have plenty of time to work on it. I won't make this a regular thing, obviously, but I feel like I've taken some real stinkers from them in the past (including one awful one yesterday, actually) so darnit, I deserve this one.
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Oct 25, 2013 17:44
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You'll be fine. I've done this a couple times for files that I legitimately can't understand. It's more a matter of not doing it all the time/not accidentally putting them in a bad position over it. 30 hours is more than enough time to complete a file (and I know they can adjust deadlines with the clients if need be, so). BTW, when did you guys end up working ABS? Did it just show up in your mailbox one day, or did you ask for the assignment?
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Oct 25, 2013 19:48
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I was asked if I wanted to try some. The first one I had to do had jump cuts everywhere and took a really long time, but it was cool to learn something new. I've only done a few and I'm usually directly asked if I want to do them before it's assigned so I can look at the format and say yes/no based on how much time I think it'll take me. Honestly though, I'd rather just do the rush files because ABS doesn't pay any more than those and they are usually much faster
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Oct 25, 2013 20:56
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"This isn't worth the pay" is always my least favorite conversation to have. I just feel like a jerk, so I usually try to couch it in terms like "I can't finish this in time for the deadline with my other commitments" or something like that. Eventually, you'll just get to a point where somebody's going to be offering you work at a rate not commensurate with your other opportunities, though, and you just can't keep everyone happy. That's why I don't do work for DT anymore; if I could just put myself on the schedule for their rush stuff I would, but they don't work like that and their base rate is so far below my other gigs I just can't justify taking the work. DT may not pay great for ABS, but you definitely want that experience. One of my clients is like 90% ABS, and the pay is always good. I'm actually working ABS porn right now, which is pretty hilarious.
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Oct 25, 2013 21:45
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What's ABS? I tried looking it up but it's one of those search terms that gets mixed up with all kinds of other stuff.
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Oct 25, 2013 23:32
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As-Broadcast Script. Basically, instead of working on a raw interview tape, you have a completed episode of a show (or nearly completed). In some cases, all you're doing is recording dialogue, sometimes you're timecoding it, and sometimes you're doing a three-column script with timecode, on-screen action and graphics, and dialogue. They can range from really simple to nightmares where you have to timecode each separate shot (CU - Jane/WS - Jane and Mike in room/CU - Mike/Mike walking to door etc). They tend to pay on a scale from "better than normal transcription" to "holy poo poo I'm buying a new laptop" depending on the complexity and the client.
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Oct 25, 2013 23:50
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Ah, got it. Thanks! As someone who is severely hearing impaired, I think I can appreciate the end results
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Oct 26, 2013 01:26
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Now, it's actually different from closed captioning. A lot of the ABS scripts I get, I also get the CC file as a reference. As-broadcast scripts are used for a variety of different purposes; some of them are professionally formatted and the ones where the public can send in $10 for a transcript of tonight's episode of 20/20 or whatever, other times they're used for international syndication so countries with different broadcast standards can go over episodes to spot any potentially troublesome content.
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Oct 26, 2013 01:44
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I think there was a A/T thread about deaf and hard of hearing people. I work at a closed captioning company and answered questions about that process in that thread too. I can't find the thread itself, though. Must've went into archives already.
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Oct 26, 2013 02:01
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