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| author | jpayne |
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| date | Tue, 18 Mar 2025 16:23:26 -0400 |
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--- /dev/null Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 +0000 +++ b/CSP2/CSP2_env/env-d9b9114564458d9d-741b3de822f2aaca6c6caa4325c4afce/share/doc/gettext/gettext_12.html Tue Mar 18 16:23:26 2025 -0400 @@ -0,0 +1,710 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/html401/loose.dtd"> +<html> +<!-- Created on February, 21 2024 by texi2html 1.78a --> +<!-- +Written by: Lionel Cons <Lionel.Cons@cern.ch> (original author) + Karl Berry <karl@freefriends.org> + Olaf Bachmann <obachman@mathematik.uni-kl.de> + and many others. +Maintained by: Many creative people. +Send bugs and suggestions to <texi2html-bug@nongnu.org> + +--> +<head> +<title>GNU gettext utilities: 12. The Translator's View</title> + +<meta name="description" content="GNU gettext utilities: 12. The Translator's View"> +<meta name="keywords" content="GNU gettext utilities: 12. The Translator's View"> +<meta name="resource-type" content="document"> +<meta name="distribution" content="global"> +<meta name="Generator" content="texi2html 1.78a"> +<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"> +<style type="text/css"> +<!-- +a.summary-letter {text-decoration: none} +pre.display {font-family: serif} +pre.format {font-family: serif} +pre.menu-comment {font-family: serif} +pre.menu-preformatted {font-family: serif} +pre.smalldisplay {font-family: serif; font-size: smaller} +pre.smallexample {font-size: smaller} +pre.smallformat {font-family: serif; font-size: smaller} +pre.smalllisp {font-size: smaller} +span.roman {font-family:serif; font-weight:normal;} +span.sansserif {font-family:sans-serif; font-weight:normal;} +ul.toc {list-style: none} +--> +</style> + + +</head> + +<body lang="en" bgcolor="#FFFFFF" text="#000000" link="#0000FF" vlink="#800080" alink="#FF0000"> + +<table cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" border="0"> +<tr><td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_11.html#SEC197" title="Beginning of this chapter or previous chapter"> << </a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_13.html#SEC230" title="Next chapter"> >> </a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_toc.html#SEC_Top" title="Cover (top) of document">Top</a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_toc.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents">Contents</a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_21.html#SEC389" title="Index">Index</a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_abt.html#SEC_About" title="About (help)"> ? </a>]</td> +</tr></table> + +<hr size="2"> +<a name="Translators"></a> +<a name="SEC217"></a> +<h1 class="chapter"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC210">12. The Translator's View</a> </h1> + + + + +<a name="Trans-Intro-0"></a> +<a name="SEC218"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC211">12.1 Introduction 0</a> </h2> + +<p><strong> NOTE: </strong> This documentation section is outdated and needs to be +revised. +</p> +<p>Free software is going international! The Translation Project is a way +to get maintainers, translators and users all together, so free software +will gradually become able to speak many native languages. +</p> +<p>The GNU <code>gettext</code> tool set contains <em>everything</em> maintainers +need for internationalizing their packages for messages. It also +contains quite useful tools for helping translators at localizing +messages to their native language, once a package has already been +internationalized. +</p> +<p>To achieve the Translation Project, we need many interested +people who like their own language and write it well, and who are also +able to synergize with other translators speaking the same language. +If you'd like to volunteer to <em>work</em> at translating messages, +please send mail to your translating team. +</p> +<p>Each team has its own mailing list, courtesy of Linux +International. You may reach your translating team at the address +‘<tt><var>ll</var>@li.org</tt>’, replacing <var>ll</var> by the two-letter ISO 639 +code for your language. Language codes are <em>not</em> the same as +country codes given in ISO 3166. The following translating teams +exist: +</p> +<blockquote><p>Chinese <code>zh</code>, Czech <code>cs</code>, Danish <code>da</code>, Dutch <code>nl</code>, +Esperanto <code>eo</code>, Finnish <code>fi</code>, French <code>fr</code>, Irish +<code>ga</code>, German <code>de</code>, Greek <code>el</code>, Italian <code>it</code>, +Japanese <code>ja</code>, Indonesian <code>in</code>, Norwegian <code>no</code>, Polish +<code>pl</code>, Portuguese <code>pt</code>, Russian <code>ru</code>, Spanish <code>es</code>, +Swedish <code>sv</code> and Turkish <code>tr</code>. +</p></blockquote> + +<p>For example, you may reach the Chinese translating team by writing to +‘<tt>zh@li.org</tt>’. When you become a member of the translating team +for your own language, you may subscribe to its list. For example, +Swedish people can send a message to ‘<tt>sv-request@li.org</tt>’, +having this message body: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="example">subscribe +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Keep in mind that team members should be interested in <em>working</em> +at translations, or at solving translational difficulties, rather than +merely lurking around. If your team does not exist yet and you want to +start one, please write to ‘<tt>coordinator@translationproject.org</tt>’; +you will then reach the coordinator for all translator teams. +</p> +<p>A handful of GNU packages have already been adapted and provided +with message translations for several languages. Translation +teams have begun to organize, using these packages as a starting +point. But there are many more packages and many languages for +which we have no volunteer translators. If you would like to +volunteer to work at translating messages, please send mail to +‘<tt>coordinator@translationproject.org</tt>’ indicating what language(s) +you can work on. +</p> + +<a name="Trans-Intro-1"></a> +<a name="SEC219"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC212">12.2 Introduction 1</a> </h2> + +<p><strong> NOTE: </strong> This documentation section is outdated and needs to be +revised. +</p> +<p>This is now official, GNU is going international! Here is the +announcement submitted for the January 1995 GNU Bulletin: +</p> +<blockquote><p>A handful of GNU packages have already been adapted and provided +with message translations for several languages. Translation +teams have begun to organize, using these packages as a starting +point. But there are many more packages and many languages +for which we have no volunteer translators. If you'd like to +volunteer to work at translating messages, please send mail to +‘<samp>coordinator@translationproject.org</samp>’ indicating what language(s) +you can work on. +</p></blockquote> + +<p>This document should answer many questions for those who are curious about +the process or would like to contribute. Please at least skim over it, +hoping to cut down a little of the high volume of e-mail generated by this +collective effort towards internationalization of free software. +</p> +<p>Most free programming which is widely shared is done in English, and +currently, English is used as the main communicating language between +national communities collaborating to free software. This very document +is written in English. This will not change in the foreseeable future. +</p> +<p>However, there is a strong appetite from national communities for +having more software able to write using national language and habits, +and there is an on-going effort to modify free software in such a way +that it becomes able to do so. The experiments driven so far raised +an enthusiastic response from pretesters, so we believe that +internationalization of free software is dedicated to succeed. +</p> +<p>For suggestion clarifications, additions or corrections to this +document, please e-mail to ‘<tt>coordinator@translationproject.org</tt>’. +</p> + +<a name="Discussions"></a> +<a name="SEC220"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC213">12.3 Discussions</a> </h2> + +<p><strong> NOTE: </strong> This documentation section is outdated and needs to be +revised. +</p> +<p>Facing this internationalization effort, a few users expressed their +concerns. Some of these doubts are presented and discussed, here. +</p> +<ul> +<li> Smaller groups + +<p>Some languages are not spoken by a very large number of people, so people +speaking them sometimes consider that there may not be all that much +demand such versions of free software packages. Moreover, many people +being <em>into computers</em>, in some countries, generally seem to prefer +English versions of their software. +</p> +<p>On the other end, people might enjoy their own language a lot, and be +very motivated at providing to themselves the pleasure of having their +beloved free software speaking their mother tongue. They do themselves +a personal favor, and do not pay that much attention to the number of +people benefiting of their work. +</p> +</li><li> Misinterpretation + +<p>Other users are shy to push forward their own language, seeing in this +some kind of misplaced propaganda. Someone thought there must be some +users of the language over the networks pestering other people with it. +</p> +<p>But any spoken language is worth localization, because there are +people behind the language for whom the language is important and +dear to their hearts. +</p> +</li><li> Odd translations + +<p>The biggest problem is to find the right translations so that +everybody can understand the messages. Translations are usually a +little odd. Some people get used to English, to the extent they may +find translations into their own language “rather pushy, obnoxious +and sometimes even hilarious.” As a French speaking man, I have +the experience of those instruction manuals for goods, so poorly +translated in French in Korea or Taiwan… +</p> +<p>The fact is that we sometimes have to create a kind of national +computer culture, and this is not easy without the collaboration of +many people liking their mother tongue. This is why translations are +better achieved by people knowing and loving their own language, and +ready to work together at improving the results they obtain. +</p> +</li><li> Dependencies over the GPL or LGPL + +<p>Some people wonder if using GNU <code>gettext</code> necessarily brings their +package under the protective wing of the GNU General Public License or +the GNU Lesser General Public License, when they do not want to make +their program free, or want other kinds of freedom. The simplest +answer is “normally not”. +</p> +<p>The <code>gettext-runtime</code> part of GNU <code>gettext</code>, i.e. the +contents of <code>libintl</code>, is covered by the GNU Lesser General Public +License. The <code>gettext-tools</code> part of GNU <code>gettext</code>, i.e. the +rest of the GNU <code>gettext</code> package, is covered by the GNU General +Public License. +</p> +<p>The mere marking of localizable strings in a package, or conditional +inclusion of a few lines for initialization, is not really including +GPL'ed or LGPL'ed code. However, since the localization routines in +<code>libintl</code> are under the LGPL, the LGPL needs to be considered. +It gives the right to distribute the complete unmodified source of +<code>libintl</code> even with non-free programs. It also gives the right +to use <code>libintl</code> as a shared library, even for non-free programs. +But it gives the right to use <code>libintl</code> as a static library or +to incorporate <code>libintl</code> into another library only to free +software. +</p> +</li></ul> + + +<a name="Organization"></a> +<a name="SEC221"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC214">12.4 Organization</a> </h2> + +<p><strong> NOTE: </strong> This documentation section is outdated and needs to be +revised. +</p> +<p>On a larger scale, the true solution would be to organize some kind of +fairly precise set up in which volunteers could participate. I gave +some thought to this idea lately, and realize there will be some +touchy points. I thought of writing to Richard Stallman to launch +such a project, but feel it might be good to shake out the ideas +between ourselves first. Most probably that Linux International has +some experience in the field already, or would like to orchestrate +the volunteer work, maybe. Food for thought, in any case! +</p> +<p>I guess we have to setup something early, somehow, that will help +many possible contributors of the same language to interlock and avoid +work duplication, and further be put in contact for solving together +problems particular to their tongue (in most languages, there are many +difficulties peculiar to translating technical English). My Swedish +contributor acknowledged these difficulties, and I'm well aware of +them for French. +</p> +<p>This is surely not a technical issue, but we should manage so the +effort of locale contributors be maximally useful, despite the national +team layer interface between contributors and maintainers. +</p> +<p>The Translation Project needs some setup for coordinating language +coordinators. Localizing evolving programs will surely +become a permanent and continuous activity in the free software community, +once well started. +The setup should be minimally completed and tested before GNU +<code>gettext</code> becomes an official reality. The e-mail address +‘<tt>coordinator@translationproject.org</tt>’ has been set up for receiving +offers from volunteers and general e-mail on these topics. This address +reaches the Translation Project coordinator. +</p> + + +<a name="Central-Coordination"></a> +<a name="SEC222"></a> +<h3 class="subsection"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC215">12.4.1 Central Coordination</a> </h3> + +<p>I also think GNU will need sooner than it thinks, that someone set up +a way to organize and coordinate these groups. Some kind of group +of groups. My opinion is that it would be good that GNU delegates +this task to a small group of collaborating volunteers, shortly. +Perhaps in ‘<tt>gnu.announce</tt>’ a list of this national committee's +can be published. +</p> +<p>My role as coordinator would simply be to refer to Ulrich any German +speaking volunteer interested to localization of free software packages, and +maybe helping national groups to initially organize, while maintaining +national registries for until national groups are ready to take over. +In fact, the coordinator should ease volunteers to get in contact with +one another for creating national teams, which should then select +one coordinator per language, or country (regionalized language). +If well done, the coordination should be useful without being an +overwhelming task, the time to put delegations in place. +</p> + +<a name="National-Teams"></a> +<a name="SEC223"></a> +<h3 class="subsection"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC216">12.4.2 National Teams</a> </h3> + +<p>I suggest we look for volunteer coordinators/editors for individual +languages. These people will scan contributions of translation files +for various programs, for their own languages, and will ensure high +and uniform standards of diction. +</p> +<p>From my current experience with other people in these days, those who +provide localizations are very enthusiastic about the process, and are +more interested in the localization process than in the program they +localize, and want to do many programs, not just one. This seems +to confirm that having a coordinator/editor for each language is a +good idea. +</p> +<p>We need to choose someone who is good at writing clear and concise +prose in the language in question. That is hard—we can't check +it ourselves. So we need to ask a few people to judge each others' +writing and select the one who is best. +</p> +<p>I announce my prerelease to a few dozen people, and you would not +believe all the discussions it generated already. I shudder to think +what will happen when this will be launched, for true, officially, +world wide. Who am I to arbitrate between two Czekolsovak users +contradicting each other, for example? +</p> +<p>I assume that your German is not much better than my French so that +I would not be able to judge about these formulations. What I would +suggest is that for each language there is a group for people who +maintain the PO files and judge about changes. I suspect there will +be cultural differences between how such groups of people will behave. +Some will have relaxed ways, reach consensus easily, and have anyone +of the group relate to the maintainers, while others will fight to +death, organize heavy administrations up to national standards, and +use strict channels. +</p> +<p>The German team is putting out a good example. Right now, they are +maybe half a dozen people revising translations of each other and +discussing the linguistic issues. I do not even have all the names. +Ulrich Drepper is taking care of coordinating the German team. +He subscribed to all my pretest lists, so I do not even have to warn +him specifically of incoming releases. +</p> +<p>I'm sure, that is a good idea to get teams for each language working +on translations. That will make the translations better and more +consistent. +</p> + + +<a name="Sub_002dCultures"></a> +<a name="SEC224"></a> +<h4 class="subsubsection"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC217">12.4.2.1 Sub-Cultures</a> </h4> + +<p>Taking French for example, there are a few sub-cultures around computers +which developed diverging vocabularies. Picking volunteers here and +there without addressing this problem in an organized way, soon in the +project, might produce a distasteful mix of internationalized programs, +and possibly trigger endless quarrels among those who really care. +</p> +<p>Keeping some kind of unity in the way French localization of +internationalized programs is achieved is a difficult (and delicate) job. +Knowing the latin character of French people (:-), if we take this +the wrong way, we could end up nowhere, or spoil a lot of energies. +Maybe we should begin to address this problem seriously <em>before</em> +GNU <code>gettext</code> become officially published. And I suspect that this +means soon! +</p> + +<a name="Organizational-Ideas"></a> +<a name="SEC225"></a> +<h4 class="subsubsection"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC218">12.4.2.2 Organizational Ideas</a> </h4> + +<p>I expect the next big changes after the official release. Please note +that I use the German translation of the short GPL message. We need +to set a few good examples before the localization goes out for true +in the free software community. Here are a few points to discuss: +</p> +<ul> +<li> +Each group should have one FTP server (at least one master). + +</li><li> +The files on the server should reflect the latest version (of +course!) and it should also contain a RCS directory with the +corresponding archives (I don't have this now). + +</li><li> +There should also be a ChangeLog file (this is more useful than the +RCS archive but can be generated automatically from the later by +Emacs). + +</li><li> +A <em>core group</em> should judge about questionable changes (for now +this group consists solely by me but I ask some others occasionally; +this also seems to work). + +</li></ul> + + +<a name="Mailing-Lists"></a> +<a name="SEC226"></a> +<h3 class="subsection"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC219">12.4.3 Mailing Lists</a> </h3> + +<p>If we get any inquiries about GNU <code>gettext</code>, send them on to: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="example">‘<tt>coordinator@translationproject.org</tt>’ +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>The ‘<tt>*-pretest</tt>’ lists are quite useful to me, maybe the idea could +be generalized to many GNU, and non-GNU packages. But each maintainer +his/her way! +</p> +<p>François, we have a mechanism in place here at +‘<tt>gnu.ai.mit.edu</tt>’ to track teams, support mailing lists for +them and log members. We have a slight preference that you use it. +If this is OK with you, I can get you clued in. +</p> +<p>Things are changing! A few years ago, when Daniel Fekete and I +asked for a mailing list for GNU localization, nested at the FSF, we +were politely invited to organize it anywhere else, and so did we. +For communicating with my pretesters, I later made a handful of +mailing lists located at iro.umontreal.ca and administrated by +<code>majordomo</code>. These lists have been <em>very</em> dependable +so far… +</p> +<p>I suspect that the German team will organize itself a mailing list +located in Germany, and so forth for other countries. But before they +organize for true, it could surely be useful to offer mailing lists +located at the FSF to each national team. So yes, please explain me +how I should proceed to create and handle them. +</p> +<p>We should create temporary mailing lists, one per country, to help +people organize. Temporary, because once regrouped and structured, it +would be fair the volunteers from country bring back <em>their</em> list +in there and manage it as they want. My feeling is that, in the long +run, each team should run its own list, from within their country. +There also should be some central list to which all teams could +subscribe as they see fit, as long as each team is represented in it. +</p> + +<a name="Information-Flow"></a> +<a name="SEC227"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC220">12.5 Information Flow</a> </h2> + +<p><strong> NOTE: </strong> This documentation section is outdated and needs to be +revised. +</p> +<p>There will surely be some discussion about this messages after the +packages are finally released. If people now send you some proposals +for better messages, how do you proceed? Jim, please note that +right now, as I put forward nearly a dozen of localizable programs, I +receive both the translations and the coordination concerns about them. +</p> +<p>If I put one of my things to pretest, Ulrich receives the announcement +and passes it on to the German team, who make last minute revisions. +Then he submits the translation files to me <em>as the maintainer</em>. +For free packages I do not maintain, I would not even hear about it. +This scheme could be made to work for the whole Translation Project, +I think. For security reasons, maybe Ulrich (national coordinators, +in fact) should update central registry kept at the Translation Project +(Jim, me, or Len's recruits) once in a while. +</p> +<p>In December/January, I was aggressively ready to internationalize +all of GNU, giving myself the duty of one small GNU package per week +or so, taking many weeks or months for bigger packages. But it does +not work this way. I first did all the things I'm responsible for. +I've nothing against some missionary work on other maintainers, but +I'm also losing a lot of energy over it—same debates over again. +</p> +<p>And when the first localized packages are released we'll get a lot of +responses about ugly translations :-). Surely, and we need to have +beforehand a fairly good idea about how to handle the information +flow between the national teams and the package maintainers. +</p> +<p>Please start saving somewhere a quick history of each PO file. I know +for sure that the file format will change, allowing for comments. +It would be nice that each file has a kind of log, and references for +those who want to submit comments or gripes, or otherwise contribute. +I sent a proposal for a fast and flexible format, but it is not +receiving acceptance yet by the GNU deciders. I'll tell you when I +have more information about this. +</p> + +<a name="Translating-plural-forms"></a> +<a name="SEC228"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC221">12.6 Translating plural forms</a> </h2> + +<p>Suppose you are translating a PO file, and it contains an entry like this: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">#, c-format +msgid "One file removed" +msgid_plural "%d files removed" +msgstr[0] "" +msgstr[1] "" +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>What does this mean? How do you fill it in? +</p> +<p>Such an entry denotes a message with plural forms, that is, a message where +the text depends on a cardinal number. The general form of the message, +in English, is the <code>msgid_plural</code> line. The <code>msgid</code> line is the +English singular form, that is, the form for when the number is equal to 1. +More details about plural forms are explained in <a href="gettext_11.html#SEC207">Additional functions for plural forms</a>. +</p> +<p>The first thing you need to look at is the <code>Plural-Forms</code> line in the +header entry of the PO file. It contains the number of plural forms and a +formula. If the PO file does not yet have such a line, you have to add it. +It only depends on the language into which you are translating. You can +get this info by using the <code>msginit</code> command (see <a href="gettext_6.html#SEC45">Creating a New PO File</a>) – +it contains a database of known plural formulas – or by asking other +members of your translation team. +</p> +<p>Suppose the line looks as follows: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">"Plural-Forms: nplurals=3; plural=n%10==1 && n%100!=11 ? 0 : n%10>=2 && n" +"%10<=4 && (n%100<10 || n%100>=20) ? 1 : 2;\n" +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>It's logically one line; recall that the PO file formatting is allowed to +break long lines so that each physical line fits in 80 monospaced columns. +</p> +<p>The value of <code>nplurals</code> here tells you that there are three plural +forms. The first thing you need to do is to ensure that the entry contains +an <code>msgstr</code> line for each of the forms: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">#, c-format +msgid "One file removed" +msgid_plural "%d files removed" +msgstr[0] "" +msgstr[1] "" +msgstr[2] "" +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Then translate the <code>msgid_plural</code> line and fill it in into each +<code>msgstr</code> line: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">#, c-format +msgid "One file removed" +msgid_plural "%d files removed" +msgstr[0] "%d slika uklonjenih" +msgstr[1] "%d slika uklonjenih" +msgstr[2] "%d slika uklonjenih" +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Now you can refine the translation so that it matches the plural form. +According to the formula above, <code>msgstr[0]</code> is used when the number +ends in 1 but does not end in 11; <code>msgstr[1]</code> is used when the number +ends in 2, 3, 4, but not in 12, 13, 14; and <code>msgstr[2]</code> is used in +all other cases. With this knowledge, you can refine the translations: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">#, c-format +msgid "One file removed" +msgid_plural "%d files removed" +msgstr[0] "%d slika je uklonjena" +msgstr[1] "%d datoteke uklonjenih" +msgstr[2] "%d slika uklonjenih" +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>You noticed that in the English singular form (<code>msgid</code>) the number +placeholder could be omitted and replaced by the numeral word “one”. +Can you do this in your translation as well? +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">msgstr[0] "jednom datotekom je uklonjen" +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Well, it depends on whether <code>msgstr[0]</code> applies only to the number 1, +or to other numbers as well. If, according to the plural formula, +<code>msgstr[0]</code> applies only to <code>n == 1</code>, then you can use the +specialized translation without the number placeholder. In our case, +however, <code>msgstr[0]</code> also applies to the numbers 21, 31, 41, etc., +and therefore you cannot omit the placeholder. +</p> + +<a name="Prioritizing-messages"></a> +<a name="SEC229"></a> +<h2 class="section"> <a href="gettext_toc.html#TOC222">12.7 Prioritizing messages: How to determine which messages to translate first</a> </h2> + +<p>A translator sometimes has only a limited amount of time per week to +spend on a package, and some packages have quite large message catalogs +(over 1000 messages). Therefore she wishes to translate the messages +first that are the most visible to the user, or that occur most frequently. +This section describes how to determine these "most urgent" messages. +It also applies to determine the "next most urgent" messages after the +message catalog has already been partially translated. +</p> +<p>In a first step, she uses the programs like a user would do. While she +does this, the GNU <code>gettext</code> library logs into a file the not yet +translated messages for which a translation was requested from the program. +</p> +<p>In a second step, she uses the PO mode to translate precisely this set +of messages. +</p> +<a name="IDX1089"></a> +<p>Here are more details. The GNU <code>libintl</code> library (but not the +corresponding functions in GNU <code>libc</code>) supports an environment variable +<code>GETTEXT_LOG_UNTRANSLATED</code>. The GNU <code>libintl</code> library will +log into this file the messages for which <code>gettext()</code> and related +functions couldn't find the translation. If the file doesn't exist, it +will be created as needed. On systems with GNU <code>libc</code> a shared library +‘<samp>preloadable_libintl.so</samp>’ is provided that can be used with the ELF +‘<samp>LD_PRELOAD</samp>’ mechanism. +</p> +<p>So, in the first step, the translator uses these commands on systems with +GNU <code>libc</code>: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ LD_PRELOAD=/usr/local/lib/preloadable_libintl.so +$ export LD_PRELOAD +$ GETTEXT_LOG_UNTRANSLATED=$HOME/gettextlogused +$ export GETTEXT_LOG_UNTRANSLATED +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>and these commands on other systems: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ GETTEXT_LOG_UNTRANSLATED=$HOME/gettextlogused +$ export GETTEXT_LOG_UNTRANSLATED +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Then she uses and peruses the programs. (It is a good and recommended +practice to use the programs for which you provide translations: it +gives you the needed context.) When done, she removes the environment +variables: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ unset LD_PRELOAD +$ unset GETTEXT_LOG_UNTRANSLATED +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>The second step starts with removing duplicates: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ msguniq $HOME/gettextlogused > missing.po +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>The result is a PO file, but needs some preprocessing before a PO file editor +can be used with it. First, it is a multi-domain PO file, containing +messages from many translation domains. Second, it lacks all translator +comments and source references. Here is how to get a list of the affected +translation domains: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ sed -n -e 's,^domain "\(.*\)"$,\1,p' < missing.po | sort | uniq +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Then the translator can handle the domains one by one. For simplicity, +let's use environment variables to denote the language, domain and source +package. +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ lang=nl # your language +$ domain=coreutils # the name of the domain to be handled +$ package=/usr/src/gnu/coreutils-4.5.4 # the package where it comes from +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>She takes the latest copy of ‘<tt>$lang.po</tt>’ from the Translation Project, +or from the package (in most cases, ‘<tt>$package/po/$lang.po</tt>’), or +creates a fresh one if she's the first translator (see <a href="gettext_6.html#SEC45">Creating a New PO File</a>). +She then uses the following commands to mark the not urgent messages as +"obsolete". (This doesn't mean that these messages - translated and +untranslated ones - will go away. It simply means that the PO file editor +will ignore them in the following editing session.) +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ msggrep --domain=$domain missing.po | grep -v '^domain' \ + > $domain-missing.po +$ msgattrib --set-obsolete --ignore-file $domain-missing.po $domain.$lang.po \ + > $domain.$lang-urgent.po +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>The she translates ‘<tt>$domain.$lang-urgent.po</tt>’ by use of a PO file editor +(see section <a href="gettext_8.html#SEC63">Editing PO Files</a>). +(FIXME: I don't know whether <code>KBabel</code> and <code>gtranslator</code> also +preserve obsolete messages, as they should.) +Finally she restores the not urgent messages (with their earlier +translations, for those which were already translated) through this command: +</p> +<table><tr><td> </td><td><pre class="smallexample">$ msgmerge --no-fuzzy-matching $domain.$lang-urgent.po $package/po/$domain.pot \ + > $domain.$lang.po +</pre></td></tr></table> + +<p>Then she can submit ‘<tt>$domain.$lang.po</tt>’ and proceed to the next domain. +</p> + +<table cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" border="0"> +<tr><td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="#SEC217" title="Beginning of this chapter or previous chapter"> << </a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_13.html#SEC230" title="Next chapter"> >> </a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left"> </td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_toc.html#SEC_Top" title="Cover (top) of document">Top</a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_toc.html#SEC_Contents" title="Table of contents">Contents</a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_21.html#SEC389" title="Index">Index</a>]</td> +<td valign="middle" align="left">[<a href="gettext_abt.html#SEC_About" title="About (help)"> ? </a>]</td> +</tr></table> +<p> + <font size="-1"> + This document was generated by <em>Bruno Haible</em> on <em>February, 21 2024</em> using <a href="https://www.nongnu.org/texi2html/"><em>texi2html 1.78a</em></a>. + </font> + <br> + +</p> +</body> +</html>