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Core Concepts
We thought it would be helpful to define some of the terms we use in Parlabase here. Our hope is that this makes the rest of the learning material clear and easy to understand.
Host and Guests
Let's start with the Host. This is the church or organisation that holds a Parlabase account and is using it to provide the translation to guests. They are capturing the audio in Parlabase for streaming the transcription and translation.
A Guest is someone who is using Parlabase to receive the live translation from the host. They do not need to sign up for an account or download an app to their device. They use the web browser on their smartphone or laptop to join the session via a QR code, a link or a unique code.
Sessions
A Session is your event or church service that you want to translate. You can create multiple sessions, for example "Morning Service" and "Evening Service", and each will have a unique code that guests use to join. The host controls the translation within a session which includes starting, pausing and stopping.
Your plan sets how many sessions can be live at the same time and how long each one can stay live, and a live session can end if your translation minutes run out.
Transcription
Transcription is the process of turning spoken English into text. Guests can choose to use Parlabase to view just the transcription. This can be helpful for neurodivergent or hard of hearing individuals.
Translation
Translation is the process of converting the transcribed text into the language the guest has chosen. We support translating into 145 languages.
Translation Minutes
Translation minutes are what Parlabase uses to measure usage for billing purposes. They count the time a session is live, from pressing "Go live" until it ends, leaving out any time it is paused. Quiet moments count too, because the session is still live, and the number of languages it is being translated into makes no difference. A session whose guests only read the transcription uses them in the same way.
For example, if your morning service or conference talk was live for 100 minutes and guests had chosen 3 different languages for translation, this would be 100 translation minutes.
When a session ends, the translation minutes it used are rounded up to the next 10 seconds. Nothing else is rounded.
Language Minutes
We don't measure using language minutes, but some translation services do, so it can help to know the difference when you compare them. Language minutes are translation minutes multiplied by the number of languages a session is being translated into.
The same 100-minute session, with guests reading 3 different languages, would be 300 language minutes but only 100 translation minutes.
Pausing
Pausing stops a session using translation minutes, while it stays open for your guests. You can pause a session yourself, and it can pause itself; one that has paused itself because nobody is listening can then end itself.
- The host presses "Pause", for example during a song, a break or a long silence, and "Resume" when they are ready to carry on. How to pause and resume
- The session pauses itself when nobody is listening, and carries on as soon as someone joins. This is on unless you turn it off. Auto Pause Translation
- The session also pauses itself if translation stops working for every language your guests are reading and nobody is reading English, or if transcription stops for the host's audio. It carries on by itself once that is working again. Why a session pauses itself
- A session that has paused itself because nobody is listening can also end itself if nobody joins, so it doesn't stay open with nobody there. This is off unless you turn it on, and it needs the automatic pause to be on. Auto End Session
A paused session is still open, so it still counts towards your plan's maximum session length and its live session limit.
Included and Extra Minutes
Your translation minutes come in two kinds. They are shared across your organisation. A session draws on the two added together, and the warnings as they run low count them together too.
Included minutes come with a monthly plan. They renew at the start of each billing period, once that period's payment has gone through, and any left at the end of a period don't roll over. They are always used first.
Extra minutes are bought in packs, as a one-off purchase at any time, and don't expire. They are used once your included minutes have run out. They stay on your account when you change plan, and if your monthly plan ends they carry on with you to Pay as you go, while the plan's included minutes end with it.
Under "Usage" in the app you can see each kind, "Included with your plan" on a monthly plan and "Extra minutes", and the "Total available". Packs are bought under "Billing", either by you or for you by automatic top-up.
Pay as You Go
A new account normally starts on Pay as you go. It has no monthly fee, and comes with 180 welcome minutes when you first sign up. Like extra minutes, they don't expire.
After that, every translation minute is an extra minute from a pack you buy as you need it. Pay as you go has its own packs, which cost more per minute than a monthly plan's included minutes, so if you use Parlabase regularly a monthly plan can work out cheaper.