wxrks translates Apple iWork files (.pages, .key and .numbers) and delivers them back in the same format. This article explains what happens to an iWork file from upload to delivery: how it's read, how the translation is written back, what renders the preview, and which document features survive the round trip.
Who is this for? Project Managers and Account Admins who create projects with iWork files. Clients who submit these files, and Vendors who translate them in the Editor, will find the preview and right-to-left sections useful.
How wxrks reads and writes iWork files
Question | Answer |
Does wxrks convert iWork files before translating? | No. wxrks reads |
Where does the processing run? | On wxrks's own servers. No third-party conversion service is involved. |
How is the translation written back? | The same filter writes the target text into a copy of your original file. You receive a |
What renders the preview in the Editor? | A LibreOffice-based preview service, also on wxrks's servers. It's used only for the preview. The delivered file never goes through it. |
ℹ️ Note: Because the translation is written into a copy of your original file, the delivered file keeps the structure of the original and opens in Pages, Keynote and Numbers. The file parsing options below control what is extracted for translation. See How to configure file parsing options for your project's files.
What's extracted for translation
By default, the filter extracts body text, text boxes, shapes, table cell text, table captions (Pages), chart text, image descriptions, Numbers sheet names, Keynote speaker notes and Keynote master slide text. Comments and table names are not extracted unless you turn them on. These file parsing options control what is extracted and how the file is written:
Option | Keynote | Pages | Numbers | Default |
Extract Speaker Notes | ✓ | — | — | On |
Extract Master Slide Text (the placeholder text on master slides) | ✓ | — | — | On |
Extract Sheet Names | — | — | ✓ | On |
Extract Table Cell Text | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | On |
Extract Table Names | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Off |
Extract Chart Text (titles, series names, category labels, axis titles) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | On |
Extract Image Descriptions (alternative text) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | On |
Extract Comments | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Off |
Extract Character Style Tags | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | On |
Preserve Inline Codes (non-breaking spaces, line separators, placeholders) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | On |
Apply Target Writing Direction | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | On |
Preview Images (the thumbnail stored in the file) | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | Replace with translated preview |
ℹ️ Note: With Preview Images on its default, wxrks draws a thumbnail of the translated first page when it exports the file, which makes the export slightly slower. A delivered file can still come back without a thumbnail, and it opens normally in Pages, Keynote and Numbers. In Keynote, the slide thumbnails in the navigator can keep showing the source language until you edit and save the file.
ℹ️ Note: Text that a formula computes (for example "Within budget" returned by an IF) is not extracted, and neither is text written inside a formula. It stays in the source language in the delivered file, as in Excel files. Typing the same text into a plain cell makes it translatable.
The preview
Pages and Keynote files preview as pages, like a PDF.
Numbers files preview as a spreadsheet, with one tab per sheet, like an Excel file.
⚠️ Warning: The preview is an approximation drawn by LibreOffice, not by Apple's apps. Currency-formatted number cells in a Numbers file can show only the currency code (for example USD) in the preview, while the delivered file keeps the full value. Check the delivered file in Numbers, Pages or Keynote before sign-off.
Supported versions and file formats
wxrks does not set a minimum or maximum iWork version. What matters is the file format and how the files are uploaded:
File | Supported? | What to do |
Current Pages, Keynote and Numbers files, saved as a single file | Supported | Upload the |
Older files in the iWork '09 format | Supported, as a legacy option | Upload the file as it is. If the file isn't read correctly, open it in a current version of Pages, Keynote or Numbers, save it again, and upload the new file. |
A | Supported | Upload the zip. wxrks extracts it and creates one task for each file. The translated files are delivered in a folder named like the zip. |
Password-protected files | Not supported | Remove the password in Pages, Keynote or Numbers, save the file, and upload it again. wxrks does not create a work unit for a password-protected file (it shows "Work unit not created"), and the project can stay in Draft until you remove that file from it. |
Round-trip results by app
The results below come from translating sample files into a left-to-right language (Portuguese) and a right-to-left language (Arabic), and checking the delivered files in the wxrks Editor and in Pages, Keynote and Numbers. Delivered files open normally in the Apple apps. Preserved means the feature comes back as in the original; Altered means it comes back but part of it is changed or left untranslated; Not applicable means the app doesn't have the feature. Where a result depends on an option, the table says which one; the results assume the default file parsing options, with Extract Comments and Extract Table Names turned on.
Keynote
Feature | Result |
Character and paragraph styles | Preserved — paragraph styles are kept. Bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, highlight, subscript, superscript, colors and fonts on part of a paragraph sit on the matching translated words. |
Lists | Preserved — items are translated, and list styles and indent levels are unchanged. |
Tables | Preserved — cell text is translated, and so are table names when Extract Table Names is on. In Arabic, the column order mirrors to right-to-left. |
Charts | Preserved — chart titles, series names and category labels are translated (Extract Chart Text). |
Text boxes and shapes | Preserved — text in shapes and free text boxes is translated, and the geometry is unchanged. |
Master slides and layouts | Preserved — all masters and their layouts are kept, and the placeholder text on the masters is translated (Extract Master Slide Text), so footers and other master text show in the target language on the slides. |
Speaker notes | Preserved — notes on every slide are translated, and get right-to-left direction in Arabic. Extracted by default through Extract Speaker Notes. |
Comments | Preserved — comment text is translated when Extract Comments is on. It is off by default. |
Footnotes | Not applicable — Keynote has no native footnotes. Superscript markers in text follow the translated words. |
Hyperlinks | Preserved — links cover the translated link text and keep their URLs. |
Image descriptions | Altered — the descriptions of images on slides are translated (Extract Image Descriptions). The descriptions of images that belong to the theme's master slides can stay in the source language. |
Fonts | Preserved — fonts are unchanged, and fonts applied to part of a paragraph follow the translated words. |
Builds and transitions | Preserved — build effects, delivery order and slide transitions are unchanged. |
Text overflow after expansion | Preserved — all text is translated and the box sizes are unchanged. Longer translations can still need a visual check. |
Pages
Feature | Result |
Character and paragraph styles | Preserved — paragraph styles (Title, headings, body) are kept, and bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, highlight, subscript, superscript, small caps and larger sizes sit on the matching translated words, in Arabic and in Portuguese. |
Lists | Preserved — list items are translated, and the list structure and paragraph styles are kept. |
Tables | Preserved — cell text and table captions are translated, and so are table names when Extract Table Names is on. The table stays where it was. |
Charts | Altered — chart titles, series names, category labels and the value-axis title are translated, and the chart stays anchored in place. The category-axis title can stay in the source language. |
Text boxes and shapes | Preserved — text in every text box and shape is translated, and shapes, sizes and positions are unchanged. |
Headers, footers and sections | Preserved — header and footer text is translated, and the page layout and sections are unchanged. |
Master slides and layouts | Not applicable |
Speaker notes | Not applicable |
Comments | Preserved — comment text is translated when Extract Comments is on. It is off by default. |
Footnotes | Preserved — the reference marks sit on the right characters, and the translated footnotes show at the bottom of the page. |
Hyperlinks | Preserved — links cover the translated link text and keep their URLs. |
Image descriptions | Preserved — image descriptions and captions are translated (Extract Image Descriptions). |
Fonts | Preserved — font assignments are unchanged, including missing fonts. |
Builds and transitions | Not applicable |
Table formulas | Altered — formulas and values are kept and the table name is translated, but text inside a formula (for example the "Over budget" in an |
Text overflow after expansion | Preserved — all text in fixed-size containers is translated, and the container sizes are unchanged. Longer translations can still need a visual check. |
ℹ️ Note: Runs of empty lines and other segments with nothing to translate are locked and confirmed automatically, so they don't need any work in the Editor. See How routing and locking work in wxrks for every way a segment gets locked.
Numbers
Feature | Result |
Character and paragraph styles | Preserved — cell styles (bold, italic, colour, fill, size, alignment, indent) and number formats are kept. In Numbers, styles apply to the whole cell. |
Lists in cells | Preserved — multi-line list text is translated with its bullets, numbers and line breaks. |
Tables | Preserved — cells, merged cells, header rows and captions are translated, and so are table names when Extract Table Names is on. Number formats are kept, and Arabic tables stay fully on the sheet. |
Charts | Preserved — chart titles, legends and category labels are translated (Extract Chart Text). |
Sheet names | Preserved — sheet names are translated (Extract Sheet Names), and formulas that refer to other sheets keep calculating. |
Text boxes and shapes | Preserved — text in text boxes and shapes is translated in place. |
Comments | Preserved — comment text is translated when Extract Comments is on. It is off by default. |
Footnotes | Preserved — the superscript characters (¹ ² ³) and the notes table are translated and kept. |
Hyperlinks | Preserved — cells with web or mailto links keep their URLs. Cells whose text is only a URL or a phone number are left untranslated. |
Image descriptions | Preserved — image descriptions are translated (Extract Image Descriptions). |
Fonts | Preserved — fonts are unchanged, including missing fonts. |
Numbers formulas | Altered — formulas, including references to other sheets, are kept and still calculate correctly in Numbers (for example a SUM or AVERAGE that refers to another sheet). Text that a formula computes, or that is written inside a formula, is not translated; see the note under the file parsing options. |
Builds and transitions | Not applicable |
Text overflow after expansion | Preserved — text is translated, and column widths, row heights and wrap settings are unchanged. Longer translations can need wider columns, so check the column widths after delivery. |
Right-to-left target languages
When the target language uses a right-to-left script (Arabic, Hebrew, Persian/Farsi or Urdu):
Delivered file: with Apply Target Writing Direction on (the default), wxrks sets each translated paragraph's writing direction to right-to-left, in Pages, Keynote and Numbers. Pages, Keynote and Numbers show the Arabic text right-aligned and right-to-left, and numbers and Latin words inside Arabic sentences display correctly. Portuguese and other left-to-right languages stay left-to-right.
Tables: Keynote tables mirror their column order in Arabic. Numbers tables keep their column order, so the table stays on the sheet, and the Arabic text in the cells reads right to left.
Preview: LibreOffice ignores the iWork writing direction, so the preview also mirrors paragraph alignment to make right-to-left text read correctly. The Numbers preview shows the translated sheet right to left, with the translated sheet tab names. The preview can therefore look more "right-aligned" than the delivered file.
💡 Tip: For right-to-left deliveries, open the delivered file in Pages, Keynote or Numbers and check alignment and mixed Latin/Arabic lines (for example, numbers and acronyms such as "USD") before sign-off. In Keynote, also check where the final period sits in Arabic sentences.