Remote simultaneous interpreting on WebSwitcher
In these times of Covid, I bring you another programme thatgreatly facilitates our clients’ work when holding conferences, webinars, virtual meetings, etc. Just like Zoom, which we already discussed in the blog "Interpreting on Zoom", WebSwitcher allows you to create and attend virtual meetings and conferences and to follow these events in various languages, thanks to its interface for remote simultaneous oral translation (or remote simultaneous interpreting).
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1. Options for remote simultaneous interpreting on WebSwitcher
The first thing you should know is that WebSwitcher does not operate on a monthly or annual subscription. If you decide to use this platform for your remote conferences, keep in mind that you can only choose the following plans:
- half-a-day plan;
- whole day plan, or
- the partner plan (recommended for translation agencies offering remote simultaneous interpreting services.
What is the difference between the plans that I have highlighted about this platform?
The first plan, as its name implies, only gives you access to a room for a maximum of 5 hours. The second plan, (yes, you guessed it) for a maximum of 10 hours.
The interesting part comes with the last plan. This option offers you unlimited hours and tokens, making it ideal for those who hold conferences frequently.
But before hiring anything, let's see how WebSwitcher works.
2. How does WebSwitcher work?
In reality, it is a platform with an integrated remote interpreting system that is quite easy to use and with a very descriptive interface.
To access a conference (considering that your translation and interpreting agency has managed everything else for you), all you need to do is to go to the WebSwitcher website and click on the "Quick Access" button and voilà, you're in.
What if I want to follow the conference in another language? What do I do?
3. What is remote simultaneous interpreting like with WebSwitcher?
In a conference that includes remote simultaneous interpreting (or remote simultaneous oral translation) there will always be at least three types of attendees:
- one or more speakers or organisers;
- one or more participants;
- one or more interpreters.
Why is it important to know all this? Because each type will connect to the conference in a different way.
In this blog, I will only explain how participants and organisers or speakers can access.
Participants can access the conference very, very easily once you have clicked on "Quick Access":
1. A screen will appear where you must enter the token you have received from the translation and interpreting agency that managed the event or from the event organiser (this token will start with the letter "V" for "Viewer").
2. If the token entered is correct, you will proceed to the next screen where you must enter your name and indicate the language in which you want to listen to the conference. Click on "Join" and that's all.
If you want to access as a speaker or organiser of the event that will be interpreted, it is quite similar:
1. This step will be the same as for the participants, except that your token will start with "P" instead of "V".
2. On the next screen, you will be asked for more than just your name and the language in which you want to follow the conference. You must also indicate which camera and microphone you want the programme to use and whether you want to enter the conference with the camera and microphone on or off. Click on "Join" and you’re in.
As you have seen, accessing the conference is very easy, but what should you do if you are not sure about the quality of your connection?
4. Technical specifications of WebSwitcher
Like many other programmes that allow remote interpreting, it is also possible to test the quality of your connection before accessing or starting an online conference on WebSwitcher. Remember that this is a fundamental aspect to achieve a successful remote interpreting service.
To check the connection quality, there is an option that says "Test My Network" in the box that appears when accessing a meeting:
By clicking on this option, the programme will run a test to check the quality of your connection.
This process usually takes a minute and if your connection is stable, "Fair connection" will appear in the box. Now you can be sure that you have a good enough connection.
5. In which languages is WebSwitcher available?
Nothing in the world is perfect, and of course, neither is WebSwitcher. Why do I mention this? Because, in my opinion, the platform presents a major disadvantage. Being a Canadian company, the interface is only in English and French.
What does that imply? It implies that, despite English being the lingua franca, many people do not master it because they do not need it in their daily lives and, therefore, may find using the programme difficult.
Seeing how it is a company that offers the possibility to create and attend multilingual events, I believe it would have been great to provide users with a multilingual platform as well.
6. When to choose WebSwitcher?
WebSwitcher is the ideal option for anyone who does not usually organise conferences or courses that last for weeks. Unlike other platforms, WebSwitcher offers you the possibility to book a room only for half a day or for a whole day, whereas on other platforms a monthly subscription must be paid.
Besides this great advantage, I would like to highlight that, unlike Zoom, WebSwitcher is a small company located in Canada. Considering that the platform’s servers are located in Canada, that could mean possible connection problems in Europe, for example.
For this reason, WebSwitcher may be a good choice when the event participants, including interpreters, connect from North America or, at least, some of them.
7. Conclusion
In recent months, we have been researching many of the new programmes that have appeared on the market for holding remote events.
With so many options to choose from, I have to say that it is quite difficult to find exactly what you need. Each programme has its strengths and weaknesses, but if you are looking for a programme to hold remote multilingual events, that is, events that offer remote simultaneous interpreting, this is, along with Zoom, one of the best programmes I have seen so far.
Who knows, maybe in the future programmes with simultaneous interpreting interfaces will have more competition. But for now, not only are they the most developed programmes, they are also very easy to use.
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