Re: Re: Writing Costs Worldwide

["Jon Leer" <jleer -at- comcast -dot- net>]

"Susan W. Gallagher" <sgallagher5 -at- cox -dot- net> wrote in message
news:225372 -at- techwr-l -dot-  -dot-  -dot- 
>
> This is a thread I don't like getting tangled in. That
> said, 60 Minutes did a piece on offshoring last Sunday.
> Here's a link to the story:
> http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/12/23/60minutes/main590004.shtml
>
> And, although the piece centered on tech support call
> centers rather than tech writers, here's the definition of
> peanuts:
>
> "On any given day in New Delhi and Bombay and Bangalore, the call goes out
for new call center recruits as more and more American companies come
calling. The call center employees earn $3,000 to $5,000 a year, in a nation
where the per capita income is less than $500. The perks include free
private transport to and from work plus the sheer heaven of an
air-conditioned workplace."

Now that we have ballpark numbers (salary differential), what is the
difference between a manual written in the US and the same manual written in
Bombay?

You may not like it, but even if rework is necessary, it will probably still
be cheaper than writing in the US. However, the time to market may be a
factor.

Note, anybody who has done translation elsewhere (outside of US) has a hard
time going back to translation houses in the US. The cost differences are so
great that the quality issues become secondary. It all comes down to labor,
and the importance of the product (in this case manuals, which by nature are
typically add-ons).

Jon