This robot thinks you’re a jerk.
I copied and pasted some text from a WIP novel into Google Translate to see how the text-to-speech would sound.
It sounded exactly as expected in English: a robotic female voice, with some robot pronunciation quirks. Midway through the reading, I accidentally switched to another language (causing Google to use a different language’s robot-voice to read the English text). Then, I heard an approximation of English being spoken in a foreign accent.
Maybe I’m just sleep-deprived and bored, but I thought it was pretty funny.
Give it a try. Go to Google Translate, select French on the left side, type “you are a jerk” and click on the speaker button to hear a female Parisian robot insult you in English (or just click this, the text input box, and the speaker button). See if you don’t at least laugh in your head.
Ah, what a tremendous waste of time.
A.D. Martin 
You got me to do it. Well played, well played…
Isn’t Google translate great for fiction writing? But I usually do extra searches just to make sure it’s not steering me wrong.
LikeLiked by 1 person
So, was it just a little bit funny?
LikeLike
More than a little. 🙂
LikeLike
wünsch eine schöne Zeit 😉
LikeLiked by 1 person
I know you like telling people to have a wonderful week/day/time quite often, but thanks. 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
omg this is the coolest thing ever, it’s the little things…
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you enjoyed it. And, yeah, it definitely is the little things—
LikeLiked by 1 person
This sounds kind of fun. I may try it.
LikeLike
Do it, Callaghan. Do it.
LikeLike
Peer pressure, it’s not just for the young.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Okay, that last line got to me. Still smiling.
LikeLike
Haha. Just saying it like it is.
LikeLike
I think you just made my day lol
LikeLike
You’re welcome. Halfhearted laughter for everyone.
LikeLike
Hahahaha, that was funny. I feel so immature now. 😉
LikeLike
Gotta be immature once in a while.
LikeLiked by 1 person
I love your sense of humor. I’m going to try this. Thanks for visiting and following my blog. I hope you enjoyed your visit and will come back often. I have followed you also, and look forward to getting better acquainted over the coming months and years. 🙂 Marsha
LikeLike
Danke.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Bitte? 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nicht.
LikeLike
Google translate translates Apfelstrudel to Apple Wobble Pie. I’ve actually seen this on a english menu in Berlin, the same menu also had “Female Chicken chest immersed for a while in some pepper sauce”
LikeLiked by 2 people
Bhuel Imeartha, Sir, Imeartha Bhuel! Reminds me of how much fun the Internet was when I first started surfing and tripping over silly but fun stuff.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Your tremendous waste of time is my new precious resource, thanks! =D
You see, I’ve got two kids here, ages 13 and 10, who have lived their entire lives free of school. They never EVER ever see things that get them laughing and learning at the same time as wastes of time! They’re going to love this, and probably play games with it, insult one another with it, maybe share it with their friends via Skype and text chat –
There’s a long winter coming, and things like this definitely add some spice to the being indoors a lot blahs.
Not only that, but I’ll be able to put it on that silly little report the state requires me to write, as though something this cool could be easily translated into “explored foreign languages, and ho English sounds when spoken by native speakers of various other languages’ (hey, that’s not too bad, actually…think Google will hire me?!).
I’m going to delay my own gratification, and wait to play with this until the kids are available to play with me. It’s going to be SO MUCH FUN to see their reactions….
Might even get a video of that!
I’m thinking this post and the comments may also have inspired a post of my own….stay tuned!
Et merci!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad you find it useful.
Of course, the Google Translate voices reading the English words have thicker (and more robotic) accents than real people. For example, Google’s German voice pronounces “jerk” as “yerk,” but a real German person these days would know to pronounce the “j” as English people would.
LikeLike
Hello friend,
Thank you for stopping by my site today. I hope you found something interesting to read. Your site is hilarious. Have a great day.
🙂 M
LikeLike
I am glad you are following my blog since I got a “head laugh” out of this. Thank you for following.
LikeLike
I love how the internet has endless ways to find ammusment, I should be working on a course but I have to try this one first!
LikeLike
We tested some audio recognition software back in the mid-nineties when it was a bit basic and I remember one wet afternoon sitting with my husband for a couple of hours driving the poor thing into combusting by using different accents – hilarious… However, thank goodness for Google Translate today – it enhances my Spanish to the point where I insult a lot less people…
LikeLike
Pingback: Second-Serving Sunday: Betwixt and Between Edition | shanjeniah
I have Google translate on my phone and the family tablet we all have hours of fun translating rude words lol and the latest thing is sending emails in the most obscure language they can think off
LikeLiked by 1 person
Haha. Good times.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: 1st Anniversary Post: Top Posts and the State of the Novel | A.D. Martin