Strange translations in the Genius dictionary

Kanji Sonomama DS Rakubiki Jiten 漢字そのままDS楽引辞典 is a real godsend for Japanese students (English sources tend to leave out the "DS" part, I suspect out of a combination of ambiguous typesetting on the box and not really understanding what it means). The name itself is rather self-explanatory -- basically, something like "dictionary where you can put in kanji just like that and pull them up on your DS." The appeal of the software, of course, is that writing in kanji for recognition is a lot faster than looking them up by radical and stroke number.

Though there are other utilities that offer similar features -- for example, JEDict for OSX, Kotoba on the iPhone with Chinese handwriting recognition, the upcoming Chinese handwriting recognition built into Snow Leopard -- but none work as well as it, short of dedicated electronic dictionaries, which are much more expensive.

The real problem with it is the dictionary itself. The Genius G3 dictionary usually gets the job done, but it seems to be designed with limited input from native English speakers, something especially clear in the example sentences. Here are some suspect bits I've discovered:

	From aji 味: This potato eats like a chestnut This would seem to suggest that the potato we're talking about has a chestnut-like texture (something I can't even begin to imagine) but what it actually says is "Kono jakaimo wa tabetemiru to kuri no yô na aji ga suru このジャカイモは食べてみるとクリのような味がする," or "This potato tastes like a chestnut" (rendered more literally, "When you have a go at eating this potato, it gives off a chestnut kind of flavor").
	From shit: No shit! "No shit!" is translated as "Masaka! 　まさか！," or "No way!," which is literally the opposite of what it actually means.
	From shikai 視界: be lost to her view Not awful, as the meaning is more or less right, but definitely not natural either. A more natural translation of this sentence, "Kanojo no shikai kara mienakunaru 彼女の視界から見えなくなる," might be "to disappear from her sight." The "her" sounds a little strange, but so does the "kanojo 彼女" it's standing in for, I think.
	From fuck: I don't care a fuck Not much to add. Does anyone really say "I don't care a fuck?" It could be a British usage, I guess, but I've never heard it.
	From fuck: Fuck me if... Another expression I've never heard -- maybe "I'll be fucked?" Anyway, it's translated as "zettai ni... suru mon ka 絶対に．．．するもんか," or "There's no way I'll..."
	From fuck: to be fucked out This can only call one image to my mind, but apparently not the one whoever wrote this intended. It is translated as "tsukarekitteiru 疲れ切ってる," "to be dead tired."
	From utsu 撃つ: to shoot oneself in the side of the head with a pistol Um, sort of. This actually says "pisutoru de sokutôbu wo utte jisatsu suru ピストルで側頭部を撃って自殺する," "to commit suicide by shooting oneself in the temple." So quite a bit of information has disappeared.
	From shit: shit hot There really isn't much wrong with this, I'm just tickled by the inclusion of "shit hot." It's translated as "totemo yoi, ikasu とてもよい、いかす," or "really good, cool."
	From shit: when the shit hits the fan "When the shit hits the fan" is translated as "yokunai koto ga okoru to 良くない事が起こると," or "when things that aren't good happen." Which isn't really wrong, but kind of funny nevertheless.

I'm not just here to make fun of this thing, however. This game has a couple easter egg terms. If you look them up, they will be silver, and there will be a Mario coin noise when you select them. Check it out:

	Rakubiki 楽引 To pull up easily. To pull up in a fun way. *This is a word coined by Nintendo. A trademark of the Nintendo Corporation.
	Nintendo An entertainment system manufacturer and seller located in Kyoto. Generally deals in home entertainment systems, playing cards, and other amusements. Founded in Meiji 22. Incorporated in Meiji 22.

Anime fansubbers

Anime fansubbers are convinced they're much better than professionals a lot of the time. Nevertheless, here are some regularly occurring problems with their work:

Overly literal translations

Here's an example: in the fansub community for Dragon Ball, jinzô ningen 人造人間 is regularly translated as "artificial human"　(and scorn is heaped upon the better translation "android"). While technically, yes, it is true that jinzô 人造 means "artificial" and ningen 人間 means "human being," jinzô ningen 人造人間 is not some bizarre novel coinage but a regular word for "cyborg" or "robot" or "android." From 　the first sentence of the Japanese Wikipedia article:

人造人間（じんぞうにんげん）とは、主に人によって製造された、人間を模した機械や人工生命体のことであり、人型のロボット、アンドロイド、バイオロイドなどの総称である。
The term jinzó ningen 人造人間 generally refers to manmade machines in humanoid form or man-made lifeforms. It is a general term for humanoid robots, androids, biodroids, et cetera.

To translate it as "artificial human" in most contexts is to introduce a strangeness that isn't there in the original.

Untranslated words

There is, of course, a case to be made for transliterations in some contexts. However, when there is a commonly used English word with exactly the same meaning it's a practice that ought to be avoided. For instance, there is essentially no reason not to translate nee-san 姉さん as "sis" or something. This can be done without losing any meaning (and indeed, while adding meaning for the people who are presumably your primary audience: people who speak English, but not Japanese)

Honorifics

More often than not they're better off omitted. Why, you ask? Simply because they serve to make the quotidian sound strange and exotic, which is not really a desired effect (or it shouldn't be). No one walks around using honorifics while speaking English, so of course it comes out unnatural.

Crazy karaoke effects

Of the small minority of people who will actually watch the credits sequence, maybe half of them will enjoy this

Hard subs

Hard subs, of course, reduce the quality of the movie, irritate people who want to turn them off, and force people who already have an untranslated version to re-download the same file. "But people might steal my work without giving me credit!" That's a funny attitude for someone illegally distributing someone else's show. On a related note...

Plastering your name all over the credits, watermarks, etc

Not only is this unsightly, it's tacky. The amount of work put into fansubbing a show pales in comparison to the amount of work put into making it in the first place (you know, by the people whose names you're covering up).

The Wolf and the Lamb

Well, why not start with a translation of a fable by La Fontaine? It bears mentioning that this is a prose translation of rhyming poetry (and also that there are already many translations of it).

The Wolf and the Lamb The reasoning of the strongest is always the best, a principle we shall soon demonstrate. A Lamb was quenching his thirst in the current of pure waters. There was a hungry Wolf seeking adventure and his hunger drew him to these parts. "Who dares to disturb my drinking?" the animal said, seething with rage. "You will pay for your temerity." "Sir," answered the Lamb, "please, do not be angry. Rather, please consider that I am drinking in the current, more than twenty steps from you, and consequently, there is no way I could disturb your drinking." "You're disturbing it," answered the cruel beast, "and I know that you cursed me last year." "How could I have done that if I had not yet been born?," answered the Lamb. "I am still nursing from my mother." "If it wasn't you, then it was your brother." "I have none." "Well, then, it was one your group, for you have no mercy for me: you, your shepherds, and your dogs. Someone told me -- I must have vengeance." There, deep in the forest, the Wolf takes him away and then eats him, all without any other sort of trial.

Le loup et l'agneau La raison du plus fort est toujours la meilleure: Nous l'allons montrer tout à l'heure. Un Agneau se désaltérait Dans le courant d'une onde pure. Un loup survient à jeun, qui cherchait aventure, Et que la faim en ces lieux attirait. «Qui te rend si hardi de troubler mon breuvage? Dit cet animal plein de rage: Tu seras châtié de ta témérité. --Sire, répond l'agneau, que Votre Majesté Ne se mette pas en colère; Mais plutôt qu'elle considère Que je me vas désaltérant Dans le courant, Plus de vingt pas au-dessous d'Elle; Et que par conséquent, en aucune façon Je ne puis troubler sa boisson. --Tu la troubles, reprit cette bête cruelle; Et je sais que de moi tu médis l'an passé. --Comment l'aurais-je fait si je n'étais pas né? Reprit l'agneau; je tette encor ma mère --Si ce n'est toi, c'est donc ton frère. --Je n'en ai point.--C'est donc l'un des tiens; Car vous ne m'épargnez guère, Vous, vos bergers et vos chiens. On me l'a dit: il faut que je me venge.» Là-dessus, au fond des forêts Le loup l'emporte et puis le mange, Sans autre forme de procès.