Last Warning: Use of Translator on Word of the Day and Picture of the Day
This is the last warning for those who are still using the translator and "copy and paste" their answer on the thread to gain votes.
And I am not talking about newbies here who might not know any better
but about high profile members who seem to think we, that is those who correct, are idiots. 
Both threads were started by Issabela who kindly agreed to do it every day.
This was the first thread, as you can see it looks nothing like the sophisticated threads we have now
In those days I was the only one doing some corrections on those threads but could not keep up with it, it was too much work.
then the Picture of the Day started....even I sometimes posted one, I remember this one, it was my first
On this forum it has never been allowed to use the translator on the learning section. It is outrageous that people promise and promise again...and the very next day there we go again, the translator, who will notice anyway?
After all it was going to be corrected anyway....I mean...I have no words for this kind of rudeness! Do you know how much time it takes to correct threads? Sentences are often checked twice, by several natives...I am correcting my own threads and I am very happy and you should be ever so grateful to have a kind person who offers corrections on a daily basis without ever losing her patience. To throw a machine sentence at her and say, hey, go correct this, after all, I am not really that interested in learning, I just want the points...that is ..I can't find words, I said that beforeThis is what Cogumela had to say about this, I have her permission to post her words:
.... porque mucha más gente utiliza el traductor. La verdad, me daría muchísima pena que se parasen esos dos posts, son buenos posts y llaman a mucha gente. Pero es el colmo cómo se lo toma alguna gente. Gekko tenía mucha razón en eso de que a veces parece que sólo postean para ganar reputación fácil.
37 Answers
All your opinions and encouragement about this issue are deeply appreciated.
I think that several important points have been fixed here: 
These posts are exercises, and as such, their aim is to learn.
These is no wish that these posts are suspended.
Everyone (whatever your level be) is invited to give a try.
The solution we have reached is quite simple and may not be fair for all of you. From now on I'll pass over those posts that are too time consuming or don't imply any effort. Please don't take offence if your sentence is not corrected, it can be due to several reasons, roughly speaking:
Posts not exceeding 3 words
Paragraphs exceeding 4 lines
Blatant machine translations and posts I can't understand after three or four or five readings
Posts from people who post more than once, or don't do it in both languages (If they are newbies, they will be informed)
Those which mainly consist on lyrics or idioms translated into nonsense or copied directly from books or other sources without any effort (yes, this is also quite evident)
I have no time!
Don't be afraid that your sentences might be confused with a machine translation. By default, sincerity will be understood. Of course one can be fooled once or twice, but trust me, sooner or later the real intention of a poster appears like crystal clear. There is no room, nor reasonable purpose, for cheating.
Any doubt or comment is very welcome !!!
I just did an experiment with my post on today's Word of the Day thread. My sentence was: "I don't think this is healthy, but it is delicious!" I put it into the translator (just now), and the result was, "no creo que esto es saludable, pero es delicioso!"
My OWN translation, from this morning, was, "No creo que esta es saludable, ¡pero es muy deliciosa!" I put it together myself with my own knowledge of creer, the word of the day, the word torta, and other words that I use regularly in my Spanish practice.
My post could easily look like it was copied and pasted! What's a girl to do in this situation? I'm almost paranoid to post now, in fear that my sentence will match the translator's, even though I write them myself. The sentences I come up with a very, very simple to begin with.
I don't think I'm one of the "suspects" here, but I'm just noting that I now feel like I should check the translator and make sure my sentence doesn't match, even if I've created it on my own.
Just my two cents. I love participating in those threads, but now there's a fear of looking like a big cheat when I've done my own work to put a sentence together.
My experience over the last couple of years is that Heidita and her group of volunteers have always done what they thought best to help anybody who wanted to learn Spanish or English. Her methods have kept this site functioning well with few problems. In this post, she has laid out the rules going forward as they apply to the translator. Done! Let's move on and learn some more Spanish!(and English)!
I have also wondered about members interested in easy rep, be it on the forum or in the Phrasebook.
This is such a great learning site that it would be a shame to see it get cluttered with machine generated or plagiarized entries.
On the other hand, don't be afraid to post. A simple check for basics such as gender, number, and correctly conjugated forms would probably eliminate the need for many of the corrections.
It is true that correcting and editing takes a long time. Hats off to those who diligently read all the threads... It's a bit like having their eyeballs going in two different directions at times.
Are we gonna need a new tab at this site? "Translator Anonymous."
I can see the future skype chats...
Bill: Hi, My name is Bill, and I use the translator for Picture of the Day.
Some guy in the TA Group: Hi, Bill! Everyone here is a translator user. You're never not going to be a translator user. You're gonna need lots of support, and the fight never ends. And don't fall for that old line, "I'm just gonna use the translator for this one sentence." That's how it always starts...
Somebody even argued what it mattered to correct a machine translation and a sentence done by the member himself. big surpriseAfter all it was going to be corrected anyway....I mean...I have no words for this kind of rudeness! Do you know how much time it takes to correct threads?
I agree with Heidi's point. The person who does the correcting has invested her time and effort because she is trying to help people learn from their honest mistakes. If the mistakes are not honestly made, what is the point?
Let's try to keep Cogumela with us...she is the only regular corrector still on board, and she is happy to do so, I consider her one of the most helpful members and one of the friendliest, too on this site. We should all be happy to have her around. I certainly am.
Yes, please. Let's do. Like Heidita said let's not lose any more valuable members of our community.
I would just say that perhaps before criticizing the work done by these wonderful people who generously and consistently provide corrections for our learning endeavors one should try first to walk a mile in their shoes.
Now I cannot actually claim to have ever walked a mile in either Heidita's or Cogu's shoes being that I have never myself attempted to offer daily corrections to either of the most popularly followed threads on the forum (as both of them have), but I can say that I have at least tried the shoes on and found them to be extremely close fitting. In my own experience, I have previously been asked to co-moderate a couple of threads (which boiled down to providing corrections for incorrectly formed sentences), and let me tell you that the job is tedious enough without having to try to make sense of some of the senseless rubbish that the automatic translators are wont to spew out and without having to do it on a daily basis.
Bottom line, I think that the request is simple enough: Make an earnest effort, and don't copy and paste translations. Simple enough.
Just my two cents.
I have not used the translator for the word or picture of the day since the first thread from a few days ago. I am concerned that my sentences may sound like they come from a translator since I am a beginner. I use a dictionary and a word processor. I use the word processor to keep a log of my submissions and I apply the corrections to that log on file for my own benefit.
I was the first "dog to howl" at the other thread. I didn't know I should not use the translator. I thought it was just another tool. But I have found I have fewer corrections and better sentences when I do not use the translator. I am also able to better construct sentences in conversation. I discovered this last night.
Heidita's thread was a blessing to get me off the translator. I appreciate that. It has helped my learning process.
I'm proud of being the only person who has never used a translator to answer those questions
The discussion of this issue seems to have gone on for a while now with many people having their say. Looking at this tread it, things have degenerated into misunderstanding, hurt feelings, and a few sharp words. Heidi, you've stated what you're doing to do about users cutting and pasting machine translations in the word of the day and picture of the day challenges. Let's just leave it at that and move on.
Heidi, I share with you and others that same sense of frustration and outrage you feel over the practice of those who use the translator machine here at Spanish Dict to write (ie cut and paste) their captions.
I would like you to know I fully support you in this matter since it is completely disrespectful to Cogumela, and others who kindly volunteer to give up much of their valuable time to correct posts which must be a very time consuming labour of love, only to be presented with a cut and paste machine translation where the student has obviously made no effort to learn from writing the caption/post..
I am just taking this opportunity to sincerely thank you Heidi, Cogumela, Billstor, Gekko, Carlos and others who have freely and generoously spent alot of time frequently correcting people's posts/captions here at Spanish Dict.
I would like you to know how much we appreciate you and value your hard work and committment here to SpanishDict. Words alone cannot really convey the depth of our our feelings of gratitutude and appreciation so from my heart and am sure from others a Big Thank You!!!! 
Please note: I am writing this purely to express my appreciation for others here at SpanishDict ...neither asking for, nor caring whether I should receive, any votes for this post
Non-productive? This is an educational site. If you correcting other people's mistakes is such a bore and a bother, then do not do it. - StormcrowofR
Wow, storm, now let me tell you...if we, meaning the correctors , thought this way, nobody would be corrected.
And Luz was right, it is often tedious and boring, it IS, even though we make the corrections freely and nobody obliges us. This forum is fortunately full of nice people who don't mind helping...but it is often boring to tell people over and over again the same thing. ...
Look at my Pepa threads....I feel happy that so many people appreciate them, but there is no doubt, that to correct the same text over and over and over...that is tedious.
I think it is not so very clear to many, how much time it takes and how much effort to do this "job".
Actually, it is very clear that lots of people just get tired of it. Billsport left us too, like so many other natives, he was the main corrector on the Word of the Day thread, and yes, it does take a lot of effort it is time consuming and it is very "non-productive" if after all the work, we notice that people are just copying and pasting answers from the machine. Very unproductive indeed For both learners and correctors.
Let's try to keep Cogumela with us...she is the only regular corrector still on board, and she is happy to do so, I consider her one of the most helpful members and one of the friendliest, too on this site. We should all be happy to have her around. I certainly am
I participated in the picture of the day for about a month or so. I really enjoyed making someone laugh if I came up with a good caption and they would leave a positive comment. The translator didn't come up with the caption, I did. I used the translator to help me get the caption from English to Spanish. Many of my captions weren't that good but I do think I came up with a couple of good ones. I had no interest in getting points doing this or causing anyone any pain. Like I said , I just wanted someone to enjoy the caption that I had thought up.
I admit, I used to check the translator, to see whether my sentence was correct or not. But I have never copied and pasted it. And from now on, I won't do that.
When I first asked Laura to correct the post, she readily accepted. That was very kind of her. Without the help of natives, it is hard to find out the mistakes. People should respect that. Nobody is paying her for that and it is not her job. She is just giving a helping hand. How many people here could do that daily?
Believe me, it is not easy to post the questions regularly. I took many breaks. People are ready to help here and we should appreciate that.
This is really a good post Heidi.
I was the first "dog to howl" at the other thread. I didn't know I should not use the translator. I thought it was just another tool.
Actually, Dogwood, I appreciated this a lot, you were one of the few to come forward and say: YES, I used the translator. That is very much appreciated, trust me, one must be man or woman enough in life to own up and face the music
But I have found I have fewer corrections and better sentences when I do not use the translator. I am also able to better construct sentences in conversation. I discovered this last night.
Thank you, I hoped some people would see that
Heidita's thread was a blessing to get me off the translator. I appreciate that. It has helped my learning process.
Thanks again, this is what we both hope for, Cogumela and I, as this is our aim, she at correcting and my idea of making students think for themselves.
