Where can I find the Preparations Page?

Go to https://admin.churchtranslation.org/preparation

When to use Preparations?

You might be wondering: “Should I use live dictation or the Preparations tool?”

If you have a written transcript or detailed notes of your sermon and you have a volunteer available to send the snippets for translation, using the Preparations Page might be for you.

• Why use it? While our live speech-to-text is very advanced, it can occasionally make mistakes with specific names, theological terms, or soft speaking. By using prepared text, you bypass the "listening" phase entirely. The software translates exactly what you wrote.

• The Trade-off: It does require a little more effort. A staff member or volunteer will need to follow along with the sermon and double-click each snippet to send it to the audience at the right moment.

Summary: Use Preparations when you want the most professional, error-free translation possible and have a volunteer available to "click along" with the Pastor.

Getting started with the Preparations

Setting the Date and Event Details

Before you start adding text, you need to tell the system which service you are preparing for.

• Select Event Date: At the top of the page, choose the date of your upcoming service. This keeps your notes organized and ensures they appear on the correct day on your translations page.

• Add Your Livestream URL: If you are broadcasting via YouTube or Vimeo, paste the link to the livestream here.

  • In the Admin App: This link will appear at the top right of your screen for easy access.

  • In the Mobile App: Your visitors will be able to watch the stream directly on the "Live Stream" page while they read the translations.

Don’t forget to click save after adding your Livestream URL.

Create snippets One-by-One

You can enter every snippet into the input box on the bottom and click Send. You can prepare a single sentence or multiple sentences into a single snippet.

1 - Type your text into the input box.

2 - Click Send or use keyboard combination Shift + Enter.
3 - The snippet will appear in your list above.

The “Split Sentences” tool (Fastest)

If you have a full sermon transcript or long set of notes, this is the most efficient method.

1 - Paste your entire document into the text block.
2 - Select the “Split Sentences” option

3 - The software will automatically create a separate entry for every sentences (see the rules below).

The Split Sentences Rules

The "Split Sentences" tool is designed to take a large block of text and automatically turn it into a list of manageable snippets. This makes it easy for a volunteer to click through the sermon line-by-line.

To get the best results, here are the rules the software follows:

1. The "Big Three" Punctuation Marks

The software looks for the end of a thought. A new snippet is created every time it sees:

• A Period (.)

• A Question Mark (?)

• An Exclamation Point (!)

Example:

Input: "Who is Jesus? He is our Savior. Follow Him!"

Result:

1. Who is Jesus?

2. He is our Savior.

3. Follow Him!

Be careful with with periods for following scenarios:

periods (after dates or bible verses, ordered list) will force a new sentence

Input: In 2025, Hanukkah will be celebrated from 14. to 22. December.

Result:

1. 2025 wird Chanukka 14. bis 22.

2. Dezember.

Use instead: In 2025, Hanukkah will be celebrated from 14 to 22 December.

Input: John 1,1:. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Result:

1. John 1,1:.

2. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Use instead: John 1,1: In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Input: The heart shape upon which our candles burn symbolizes two things: 1. Jesus belongs to our whole life and 2. We want to let ourselves be ignited by His love.

Result:

1. The heart shape upon which our candles burn symbolizes two things: 1.

2. Jesus belongs to our whole life and 2.

3. We want to let ourselves be ignited by His love.

Use instead: The heart shape upon which our candles burn symbolizes two things: 1) Jesus belongs to our whole life and 2) We want to let ourselves be ignited by His love.

Input: Dr. Smith went to the U.S.A. yesterday. He met Mr. Jones.

Result:

1. Dr.

2. Smith went to the U.S.A. yesterday.

3. He met Mr.

4. Jones.

Use no dot after Abbreviation: Dr Smith went to the U.S.A. yesterday. He met Mr Jones.

2. The "New Line" Rule (Line Breaks)

Every time you press the Enter key to start a new line or paragraph, the software creates a new snippet, even if there is no punctuation.

Example:

Input:

Welcome to Church

Today is a great day

Result:

1. Welcome to Church

2. Today is a great day

3. Commas or (Semi) colon Do Not Split

The software will not split a sentence at a comma (,), semicolon (;), or colon (:). These are treated as part of a single thought. If your sentence is very long with many commas, it will remain one large block.

Example:

Input: "When we walk together, we grow together; and we serve together."

Result:

1. "When we walk together, we grow together; and we serve together." (One single entry)

4. Handling Bible References

Because the software looks for periods, be careful with abbreviated Bible books (like Phil. or 1 Cor.). The software might see the period and split the reference.

Pro-Tip: For the best experience, write out the full book name or ensure the reference is on the same line as the verse.

Example:

Input: "John 3:16. For God so loved the world..."

Result:

1. John 3:16.

2. For God so loved the world...

Updated Input: “John 3,16: For God so loved the world…”

Result:

1. John 3,16: For God so loved the world…

5. Handling Quotation Marks (")

If you group multiple sentences within quotation marks, the system treats them as one single snippet. This is specifically designed to make handling Bible verses easier.
You can also combine multiple quoted sections in a single sentence/thought).

Example:

Input: “The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures.“

The Result:

1. “The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures.”

Input: And back to Romans chapter 8, it was “His own Son,” “His own Son,” and He “delivered Him over”—“delivered Him over,” language of execution.

Result:

2. And back to Romans chapter 8, it was “His own Son,” “His own Son,” and He “delivered Him over”—“delivered Him over,” language of execution.

Summary Table for Quick Reference

Managing your Snippets

Once your list is created, you have full control over how it looks and the order in which it appears.

First select Event Date you want to update your snippets for in the Event Details section on top right.
Then click Edit on the top right corner of the Translation Queue.

Now you can edit, reorder, delete a single snippet or delete all snippets.

• Edit: Click into the input box and update the text

  

• Deleting:

  • To delete a single snippet, click the trash icon next to the text.

    

  • To delete all snippets for a specific date, click Delete all in top right corner

    

• Reordering: Plans change! You can easily change the order of your snippets. Simply click and drag them into the correct sequence so they match the flow of your service.

  

To make the edit, single delete or reordering final, you need to click the Save button in the top right corner. If you click Cancel, all your changes will be reverted (except for Delete all).

Only Delete all is a final action after you click Confirm in the confirmation popup.

Where does this text go?

After you finish preparing on this page, all your snippets will automatically appear on the Translations Page in the "Prepared Text" section on the day of your service.

When you are ready to show a translation to your audience, simply double-click the snippet from that list.

Please note, the preparation snippets will only appear on the day you selected in Event Details