Uploading Translation Work
We offer a translation service from English to Welsh or from Welsh into English, and a proofreading service for documents in Welsh. You can send us a text of any length, from a few words to a long document.
If you are using the service for the first time, please read the instructions below. Please feel free to contact us if you experience any problems when using the service or if you need further clarification on any point.
If you are looking for a translation of a title or short term then the Translation Unit's Glossary may be able to help.
In what format should the work be sent?
If possible, submit your work as a Word document. We can translate other Microsoft Office documents (e.g. PowerPoint, Excel), but they are not compatible with the translation memory software so will take more time, and we cannot send them back to you on the system. Do not submit work that includes ‘track changes’ or highlighted sections. If you wish to draw attention to a specific section of the document, please submit two files, one clean, and the other marking changes etc. for information. If you send a Word file including hyperlinks, logos or graphics the system may not be able to process the document and we may have to ask you to resubmit it without these. Please send the text for translation before you incorporate these extra features.
We do not translate PDF documents.
Using the Service
When you log in, you will asked to enter your personal details, details of the task and any further information.
You will be asked to create a name for your ‘project’, i.e. the work that you are sending for translation/proofreading. The project can include a single file or more than one file or a very short piece of text.
You will also be asked for a ‘desired’ return date. Try and give us sufficient time to process your work. If the date is too early, the administrator will change it. The default return date is a fortnight from the submission date so if you need the work sooner than this, remember to change the date.
There is also a space to add extra information about the project that is relevant to the translation process.
On the following page, you will be asked to choose between uploading a file/files or typing or pasting a short piece of text into a box. Please note that the box will only accept 250 characters (about fifty words). If the task is longer then it must be uploaded as a file.
Then click on 'Send to the Translation Unit'.
Your personal record page will appear showing the work you have sent to the Translation Unit in WHITE.
When the administrator has received your work and confirmed the return date the record will change to YELLOW.
Please bear in mind that the date may have to be changed because of the unit’s workload.
When the work is completed you will receive an email informing you of this, and asking you to log in to the website to download your work.
When you log in you will see that the record has changed to GREEN. As the number of your records grows the colour-coded system will be useful to track the progress of your work with the unit, especially if you are a regular customer. Click on the record to open it and you will see the original on the left and the translation on the right. Click on the translation to download it.
The original and the translation will be stored permanently on the server, under the name of the project and the log number. If you misplace the translation or the original, you need only log in to the website and look through your records to find it.
