Algún registro

[fglorca]

Lyrics from Máquina de vapor (a Mecano song):

Él le aprieta algunas tuercas
Ella da un beso de gas
El programa algún registro
Que la haga disfrutar
El trabajo se convierte en su máxima pasión
El hombre se ha enamorado de su propia creación

I’m having a little difficulty translating Lines 3 and 4 above.
My attempt:
Some record of a program
That allows him to enjoy it (la máquina).

Any help here appreciated.
Thank you.

[Tomisimo]

Lines 3 and 4 translated literally are "He programs a register that makes it (the machine) have a good time." To translate the meaning of "He programs a register" is another thing. It could mean many things, including "He adjusts a setting", "He inputs some data", "He sets a value", "He modifies an option", or "He makes an adjustment".

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

I think David's proposals are valid, and I don't know much about programming language, but I think we could also say something like: "he writes a code that makes her (the machine) enjoy herself/have pleasant feelings/feel happy..."

[fglorca]

Ah, I see now that there is an accent missing on the 'e' in "El" in Line 3, which changes the game completely. I had assumed this 'el' was a definite article, which is why I struggled. Strangely, the official song lyrics omit the accent here, and even though it's not compulsory for capital letters, Line 1 does include the accent. Thanks for your help, people.

[Rusty]

Actually, including the accent is compulsory for capital letters (the Academy has never stated otherwise; see rule 7 here).

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

I agree with Rusty; the accent in capital letters is compulsory.
In the past before computers, when there were only typewriters, the accent couldn't be placed on top of the capital letters (the typer bar stroke in the middle of it); that is why in typed documents there were no accents on capital letters. Also, some printing press criteria thought accented capital letters were ugly.

In any case, as you said, the person who published this did write the accent in the first "Él", so they should have done the same with the next.

[Tomisimo]

If we want the line to reflect programming, I might try:

"He writes some code."
"He programs a line."
"He codes a line."
"He writes a command."
"He inputs a code."

etc.

[pjt33]

Originally Posted by AngelicaDeAlquezar

I think David's proposals are valid, and I don't know much about programming language, but I think we could also say something like: "he writes a code that makes her (the machine) enjoy herself/have pleasant feelings/feel happy..."

When "code" is used of computer programs (whether source code, object code, bytecode, or machine code), in my professional opinion* it is an uncountable noun. I should note that plenty of people disagree with me; my subjective impression is that using "code" in this sense as a count noun is particularly correlated with speaking Indian English, but take that with a large caveat.

However, I think that computers are a red herring here. The song is about a steam engine, not an electronic android. The relevant meaning is almost certainly the DRAE's third one:

3. m. En el reloj u otra máquina, pieza que sirve para disponer o modificar su movimiento.

The corresponding translation from my Oxford Spanish-English dictionary is "regulator". The verb "programar" does feel a bit out of place given that "ajusta" scans the same as "programa", but applying Ockham's razor I think that assuming a dodgy choice of verb is less of a stretch than assuming that the steam engine of the title is intended to be a full-blown cyberpunk programmable computer.


* To be clear, my profession is computer programmer, not lexicographer.

[AngelicaDeAlquezar]

Originally Posted by pjt33

When "code" is used of computer programs (whether source code, object code, bytecode, or machine code), in my professional opinion* it is an uncountable noun.

Thank you, I didn't know that!

Originally Posted by pjt33

However, I think that computers are a red herring here. The song is about a steam engine, not an electronic android.

Well, I think it's worth noting that this was written in 1982, when computers, androids, space-ships, etc., were much more fantasy than science (even now, I dare to say), and also the fact that the song talks about a machine that is personified as a woman with whom the creator has fallen in love and who will respond to stimuli at his will. So I'm perfectly at ease with the idea of the machine being a steampunk programmable android if there is any need to justify the verse.