This work is the English-language translation of a Japanese book aiming to give non-specialist readers in Japan a general idea of MT. The book consists of eight chapters. The first two deal with the history of MT up to and since the ALPAC report respectively. The third considers the suitability of various text-types for MT, and the evaluation output. Chapter 4,5 and 6 deal with the process of MT: problems of analysis, methods of analysis, and transfer and generation. A brief seventh chapter looks at software, dictionaries and pre- and post-editing. The final chapter discusses the future of MT.