- Joomla has adopted english language as collaborative language: Main sites, JED descriptions listings and code.
But English its not the universal language or the only language of the world!
Is this forums are written and maintained in Urdu ? or some kind of GPL language ?
the 99% of this forums and 100% of the interface is in English.
English is the most used language on this planet, and it IS universal language. With English I can maintain contacts with my mates translator from Ghana, Bangladesh, India, China, Korea, Spain. If Asians can use English as universal language, all others should use English as universal and only one fully maintained up to date, all others translations of English language may be optional, depending on the will and free time of the translators.
- INI files should be a reference but not a rule. Some extensions also create their files to other systems non-joomla, and had to find a common ground!
If the INI files are not the rule, then such extensions can't be called native, what about Brampton's Remository is it external/bridged application or what ?
For me is fully Joomla dependent application, but not native in any ways.
- An extension with language files its a extra feature for that extension. Extensions should have it, but we will not benefit if we point the extension for the lack of translation.
Huh what about the meaning of Joomla! (what was the translation of that word) ? If the extension not have language files, no matter legacy (php) or native (ini), it can't be used by people which still learn the universal language English. Some people rejects to learn it, some still don't know from where to start. Such Joomla! users will rate this extension as the worst.
The first priority can't be the language issues but features and security. And remember that a german module could be a popular module in German!
Huh, security before the understanding ? If the German module have to be popular only in German, what this module did in Extensions.Joomla.ORG which is supposed to be International or English, bcz not use at least Interface translations. And how u will explain the progress last two months of the not native component jDownloads ? Arno at least try to maintain it's English language files up to date, why not and others ?
Modules listed like some information modules which are for Germans and have to be used on German sites, don't have place on International sites, u may build extensions.joomla.de to keep it in German language only and full with extensions created by Germans for Germans, and supposed to be used in German, no it's not Nazi decision, but why I should loose time which modules which not work with our Bulgarian services... German Banks are different then ours, payment ways with this banks are different too, TV guides are different, everything is different, no matter that we are part of the big thingy EU.
# As for now its the local communities and extensions devs that put that files online. I'm sure we need more visibility for those local communities, and there are talks and work in progress here too. Time!
If u know Russian, u can get pirated components from some Russian (un)official support sites. Also extensions.joomla.org at this point is a only NOT up to date catalog of some extensions which may work or may not on the visitor installations. AutoEXP 1.3a for example, it's just listed, but is not native even for 1.0.15....
A note: Don't be hard to non english authors, coders, webmasters. Give them the time, the help and try to level with them.
I've give them a lot of time, JAM author is a non-English speaker, willing to change maintenance of it's components language files in the proposed way. Attachments author is a English speaker, and rejects to read whatever I'm saying.
So... u have to add one more icon near each application (Joomla Community Friendly) and (Aggressive)
I am a non english people, one of those who had to use Joomla with english backend (and tell clients... that's the only language, sorry) because everybody had postpone the admin language issue for the 1.5 (code features was the priority).
I can't get this, Joomla 1.5 is fully translatable, you can simply build your back end language in Elvish
Some users find the hard way the "other side of the story" of non English people living at a English centred web world. Please be gentle to that few works not created by English speakers!
I hate to repeat myself, but India, state Gujarati is 55M people (we Bulgarians are 6-7M), Indians know it and use it to communicate with us, Germans old europe nation, they use it no matter how hard is, but since is the only way to get each other, they used it. China, Japan and Korea, no matter how much times bigger then us, they use it too. So since even you use English to get your answers readable, English is the only one Universal language.
- Guidlines are ok. You may start a draft so it could become a proposal. But think on a constructive approach, not a legal approach.
Guidelines (better to be Rules)
1. If the component, module, plugin is a Joomla dependent application, and is written for 1.5 of Joomla, have to use INI files for maintains language files
2. (with respect to all other nations) Since we use the universal language English, are 3rd party dependent extensions have to be provided with up to date language files. .PHP for 1.0 if you plan to maintain application for unmaintained core, and .INI for 1.5
3. To add in the end or in the top the new changes to the language files, not to insert/edit/remove within the completed language file. There are two examples for Native and Legacy components.
www.sigsiu.net - SOBI 2, they add the changes of the top on the language files (so excuses like it's not possible are stupid)
www.phoca.cz (non-English developer, with perfectly maintained English language files), Ian Pavelka adds the new languages changes to the end of each language file for each component (so again, such excuses that's no possibility to do that is a lame)
4. To do NOT touch translations, for editing bcz of the char set difference, I may open Japanese language on Vista with Notepad Plus, which is saved in UTF-8 without Byte of Mark, but XP/98 users can't or u will repeat Soeren mistake with all translations for JoomlaExplorer.
5. To maintain good communications at least with the translators, if you're 3rd party joomla dependent extensions don't have popularity, bcz of lack languages, better put in with state Abandonware, and look around for something else to do, instead to loose time with building non-supported (internationally) applications.
Who can add more ?
For me points 2 and 3 are most important, that's why I've start this thread.
Regarding point 5, simply can reject the maintenance of the component as already did it for Attachments, let me see your suggestions for Rules
LoCAlicer wrote:
For us, translators the .ini format is much more convenient, because both professional and open source Computer Aided Translation (CAT) tools support it, no manual translation required, because adding the translated strings to a translation memory later can be reused speeding up the future localizations, this way a translator can gain some time what he/she can spend for another translation
True, that's why too, should be a Rule.