Jody Byrne (academic)

Dr Jody Byrne is an Irish translation scholar and translator. He is a leading scholar in the field of scientific and technical translation and is the author of Technical Translation: Usability Strategies for Translating Technical Documents (Springer, 2006). He previously taught German translation at Dublin City University and is now a Lecturer in Translation Studies & Localisation at the University of Sheffield. While at Dublin City University he became interested in scientific and technical translation and he subsequently went on to conduct doctoral research involving human cognition and the usability of translated software user guides.
He has published on a range of topics including technical translation, professional translation, technical communication and translation pedagogy.
Since graduating in 1997 with a BA in German and Spanish translation he has worked continuously as a professional translator combining it with work as a technical writer, researcher and lecturer. In his current role at the University of Sheffield, he teaches subjects such as specialised translation, localisation, translation technology, translation theory, subtitling and research methodology.
Externally he is a member of the editorial board of the Journal of Specialised Translation and Current Trends in Translation Teaching and Learning .

Publications (incomplete)

  • 2008 Learning Technology in the Translation Classroom. Proceedings of the XVIII FIT World Congress 2008
  • 2007 Caveat Translator: Understanding the Legal Consequences of Errors in Professional Translation. Journal of Specialised Translation, 2007 (7) pp.2-24
  • 2006 Technical Translation: Usability Strategies for Translating Technical Documentation. Dordrecht, Netherlands: Springer
  • 2005 Evaluating The Effect of Iconic Linkage on the Usability of Software User Guides. The Journal of Technical Writing & Communication. 35:2, pp.155-178
  • 2004 Does Usability Have to be so Complicated? The Communicator. The Institute of Scientific & Technical Communicators. Winter 2004, pp.20-21
  • 2003 Freelance Translation: Teaching Students to Create Their Own Jobs. Daniel Gouadec & Daniel Toudic (eds) Traduction, Terminologie, Rédaction. Paris: La Maison du Dictionnaire, pp. 161-174
  • 2001 The Book of Zope: How to Build and Deliver Web Applications. Translated from German original ZOPE (Beehive, 2001) and published by No Starch Inc., San Francisco.
  • 1999 International English: Making A Case for Efficient and Clear Communication. ATA Chronicle, Vol. XXVIII, No. 10: American Translators' Association, pp.37-42

    Memberships

  • Professional Member of the Irish Translators' & Interpreters Association
  • Fellow of the Institute of Scientific and Technical Communicators
  • Video interview given to Journal of Specialised Translation

  • Jody Byrne's website