Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-24081824-20160718235446

The ECWiki has a problem. A very important problem that cannot be denied or ignored any longer. The translations we use to fill in our character and event articles are absolutely unacceptable and so is the quality control of this messy place.

Let me elaborate.

Largely in charge of translations and just about everything else on the Wiki is Mr. Servant of Evillious. As an admin, his job is very simple. But as someone who has taken it upon himself to completely police this Wiki, things get a bit more complicated. We're all aware of the "information mines"  that he performs on the Wiki. While these are helpful only in that they provide a very general idea in a shorter amount of time, the fact is that they are not translations. Likewise, Servant himself is not a translator. Not even close.

And so, the problem lies in taking these "translations" and using them to describe events in full detail, often using certain quotes verbatim. However, this entire issue is not the fault of one person alone. I've noticed some members of this Wiki seem to have this horrible idea that translations are a community matter, some even going as far as to say they'd like an inaccurate translation over an accurate one on the basis that it "sounds pretty". So regarding this matter I would just like to say, if you do not favor the idea of constant translation issues popping up all of the time, I advise you to stop fooling yourself into thinking that more opinions must mean a more accurate translation. Additionally, the "lesser quality translations are better than nothing" mindset is exactly the kind of thing that allows these mistakes to occur.

Having said that, I'd like to turn the attention back to you, Servant.

I think it's time you start taking the accuracy of translations a bit more seriously. Let it be known that you, as well, acknowledge the information mines as being inadequate replacements to a decent translation. And yet you take no issue with quoting them or having others do so in the Wiki's articles. This shows only utter apathy regarding the quality of the Wiki on which you assume so much control, and for the series itself. When a person comes to Wiki with the ability to read the majority of the novel with minimal help and attempts to correct translation errors, they are met with disagreements from people who favor the "sound" of a more inaccurate translation and you, who considers the opinions of those with no knowledge of the foreign language.

The fact is that translations are not something for the majority to decide. And until you can lessen your dependence on sources that anyone could use, it is not something for you to decide either.

As a Wiki, our job is to dictate how the series' information is to be presented and organized, not to decide, as a community, the content of the series itself. This long-standing tradition needs to be broken. Please understand.

As a final suggestion, I'd like to bring up the External Link sections on the articles linking fan translation blogs. Our best move would be to completely get rid of the links to Wiegenlied and Cloture at LEAST, seeing as absolutely nothing can save those translations now. They're not even worth a disclaimer.

With that, I leave this thread open to anyone who'd like to contribute -- agree, disagree, add something, etc. That will be all. 