FAQ

Here are some answers to frequently-asked questions about Ackuna.

Don't see your question answered here? Just email us and let us know. We'll try to help as best we can!

What is Ackuna?

Ackuna is a platform to crowd source text between different translators. For a full overview of how Ackuna works and what it can do for you, visit the about page.
What is reputation?

Reputation is a gauge of how trusted someone is on Ackuna. The higher a translator's reputation, the more you trustworthy they are (and the more likely their translations are accurate). The number is affected by a number of factors, as detailed in the next question.
How do I gain reputation?
There are a number of ways to gain reputation:
1. Segment voted up: +5 to the project creator
2. Segment voted down: -2 to the project creator
3. Translation voted up: +10 to the translator
4. Translation voted down: -2 to the translator and -1 to the voter
5. Translation accepted: +15 to the translator and +2 to the project creator
What are badges?

Badges are a marks of distinction that are awarded to translators for completing various tasks on Ackuna. The more active a translator is on Ackuna, the more badges he earns and unlocks.
How do I unlock badges?

Badges can be unlocked by performing specific actions on Ackuna. You can earn the Translator badge, for instance, by submitting a translation for any project and having another translator confirm its accuracy by voting it up.

To see a full list of badges you can earn and how to earn them, visit the badges page.
How do I create a project?

To create a project, you need to be a registered user. Once you have an account, visit the create a project page by clicking the "Get a Translation" link at the top of the page and fill out the information on that form.

Choose your source language (the language your text is already in), target languages (what you want it translated into), and the text you want translated. If you would prefer to upload your project as a .xls or .strings file, click "Upload a file" and attach your file. (Please see the Supported Formats section below for more information on accepted file formats.) If you have special requirements, add them too.

Press the Preview button to view an outline of your project before it's created. If everything looks accurate, click Create Project. If you need to make changes, click Edit Project Details.

You can view all of the projects you've submitted by clicking on the "My Projects" link under your username in the header.

What file formats do you accept?

For your convenience, Ackuna accepts a number of text formats when creating a new project.

Depending on your needs, you can choose whichever of the following methods is easiest for you to work with.

.strings

You can create a simple, specially-formatted strings file, such as the following example. This system is most useful for translating websites, software, and other applications.

"VARIABLE_NAME" = "Hello";
"VARIABLE_NAME_2" = "\"World\"";
"VARIABLE_NAME_3" = "How are
you today";

Note: The first value between the quotation marks is treated as a variable and is not translated. The second value between the quotation marks is treated as the text to translate.

Download demo.strings example file

.xml

Android XML format.

A simple XML structure like the example below can easily be stripped down, translated, and rebuilt.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<resources>
	<string name="string_1">Hello</string>
	<string name="string_2">Goodbye</string>
	<string name="string_3">A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too.</string>
	<string name="string_4">Special characters %s permissible.</string>
</resources>

Download demo.xml example file

.rrc

Blackberry resource file format

LABEL_ONE#0="Hello";
LABEL_TWO#0="Goodbye";
LABEL_THREE#0="A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too.";
LABEL_FOUR#0="Special characters %s and \"markup\" permissible.";

Download demo.rrc example file

.properties

Java configuration file format.

#Comments will not be translated.
selfservice.global.buttons.label_1	= Hello
selfservice.global.buttons.label_2	= Goodbye
selfservice.global.buttons.label_3	= A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too.
selfservice.global.buttons.label_4	= Special characters %s and "other" markup permissible.

Download demo.properties example file

.yml

YAML (Ruby).

---
label_1: "Hello"
group_1:
	label_2: "Goodbye"
	label_3: "A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too."
label_4: "Special characters %s and markup permissible."

Download demo.yml example file

.resx

ASP.NET Resource File

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<root>
	<!-- Comments are not translated. -->
	<resheader name="label1">
		<value>Hello</value>
	</resheader>
	<resheader name="label_1">
		<value>Goodbye</value>
	</resheader>
	<resheader name="label_1">
		<value>A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too.</value>
	</resheader>
	<resheader name="label_1">
		<value>Special characters %s and \"other\" <b>markup</b> permissible.</value>
	</resheader>
</root>

Download demo.resx example file

.xls and .xlsx

Ackuna can accept specially-formatted spreadsheets in both .xls and .xlsx formats.

Because Ackuna needs spreadsheets to be in a specific structure in order to properly parse the text, we have created a detailed spreadsheet help page to assist users in creating a properly-formatted spreadsheet file.

.po

Portable Object (GNU gettext file).

# Comments are not translated.
msgid "Hello"
msgstr ""

msgid "Goodbye"
msgstr ""

msgid "A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too."
msgstr ""

msgid "Special characters %s and \"other\" markup permissible."
msgstr ""

Download demo.po example file

.xlf

XLIFF XML Localization Interchange File Format

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<xliff version="1.2" xmlns="urn:oasis:names:tc:xliff:document:1.2" xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema-instance" xsi:schemaLocation="urn:oasis:names:tc:xliff:document:1.2 xliff-core-1.2-transitional.xsd">
	<file datatype="html" original="demo.ssi" source-language="en" target-language="es">
		<body>
			<trans-unit id="label_1" approved="no">
				<source>Hello</source>
				<target></target>
			</trans-unit>
			<trans-unit id="label_2" approved="no">
				<source>Goodbye</source>
				<target></target>
			</trans-unit>
			<trans-unit id="label_3" approved="no">
				<source>A full sentence with punctuation is okay, too.</source>
				<target></target>
			</trans-unit>
			<trans-unit id="label_4" approved="no">
				<source>Some "special" &lt;b&gt;characters&lt;/b&gt; are permitted.</source>
				<target></target>
			</trans-unit>
		</body>
	</file>
</xliff>

Download demo.xlf example file

How do I accept a translation (and know it's correct)?

Marking translations as correct locks the translated text in so that when you download the completed project, you can guarantee that all of the text in the completed translation is what you wanted. If you don't mark a translation as correct for a segment of your project, we will assume that the currently highest-ranked translation is correct and use it.

You can only mark translations correct for projects you submitted.

You can mark a translation as correct by clicking the "Mark this translation as the accepted translation" link beneath the text. This action cannot be undone. If you don't believe the text is accurate, do nothing; uou can wait for a better translation to be submitted.

Because you most likely don't know the language you're seeking a translation in, it can be difficult to determine if a translation is accurate or not before accepting it as correct. Use a translator's reputation and badges as an indicator of their credibility, and take into account the comments and feedback left on each translation by other translators. Use these factors and your best judgment before accepting the translation of your text.
How do I download my completed translation?

Once you've created a new project, you can view it (along with all of your past projects) by clicking your username in the header and selecting "My Projects" from the drop-down menu.

From your projects page, you can click the Download button next to any project to view the completed project.

From the completed-project overview page you can view the completed translation for each language you selected. If you created a project by uploading a .xls or .strings file, you can click the Download the file button beneath each translation to get the text back in whichever format you submitted it.

You will not be able to view a completed translation until every segment in your project has at least one translation submitted.
How do I submit a translation?

If you want to add a translation for another user's text, go to the project overview, find the segment you want to translate, and click the button for whichever language you want to translate. (Languages that already have an accepted translation for any given segment will have a symbol next to them.)

On the segment page, view the other translations. If another translator has submitted an accurate translation, simply vote it up. Your work is done! If another translator has submitted an almost-accurate translation, add a comment and tell him how he can improve his answer. If no accurate translations have been submitted, scroll to the bottom of the page and find the "Submit a Translation" section (you must be logged in). Enter your translation and click the Translate button.
How do I add a comment?

If a translator has added an almost-accurate translation and you'd like to give him feedback, or if you need a clarification on a project's requirements, you can add a comment to project segments and translations.

In the appropriate section, click "Add a comment" and fill out the drop-down form to post your comment.
Can I receive notifications when new projects are added?

If you want to receive an email alert every time a new project is added that you can help translate, the first thing you need to do is select which languages you know.

Go to the account settings page and scroll to the bottom. Scroll through the list of checkboxes and select each language you speak fluently.

Next, beneath the language options, there is a checkbox labeled "Receive email notifications about new projects." Check this box and press the Edit my account button to save your changes.

Now, whenver a project is created that matches at least two of the languages you speak, you will receive a notice by email inviting you to help translate it.
How can I stop receiving new project emails?

If you no longer wish to receive new project email alerts, go to the account settings page and scroll to the bottom. Find the checkbox labeled "Receive email notifications about new projects" and uncheck it. Press the Edit my account button to save your changes.

You should now no longer receive alerts when new projects are added that match your language settings.