Subject: Re: how should we localize locale names?
From: Sam TH (sam@uchicago.edu)
Date: Sat Mar 10 2001 - 16:14:22 CST
On Sat, Mar 10, 2001 at 10:01:06PM -0000, Tomas Frydrych wrote:
> > Yes, these are serious problems, and anyone who thinks they are easy
> > is deluding themselves. I don't know what we should do about this
> > problem. I'm just pointing out that localizing everything doesn't
> > work for all cases either. So, we either have to choose a non-optimal
> > solution, or come up with something else.
>
> Sam, could you be more specific, and explain to me which are the
> cases localisation does not work for? I doubt that there is ever
> going to be a langague we will be localising AW into, that does not
> have its own means to translate a name of another language which
> will appear in our language list into a form understandable and
> acceptable to its users. The choice here is not between two non-
> optimal solutions; the choice is between an optimal solution (to
> localise) that results in some, but not excessive, additional work for
> the translators, and a non-optimal solution, that saves the
> translators a little bit of work but will produce a very poor, and
> ultimately confusing interface for pretty much all AW users, save
> the ones with English interface. (If someone was suggesting that
> when we cannot display the the name of a language in that very
> same langauge correctly, we will default to Russian or Arabic,
> would the English speakers on the list consider it a good idea? So
> why is it OK for the Russian or Arabic user to have to put up with
> English on her menus?)
>
> I am sorry, but I do not see any problem here at all, all I see is lack
> of motivation to do the necessary translation work. As this is an
> issue that will impact the non-latin1 locales much worse than it will
> the latin1 locales, I am probably going to be outvoted on this, but I
> really plead with you all to consider the implications of the
> approach suggested by Paul and Tim for non-latin1 locales, and
> the message it will send to the people on the other side of the
> latin1 divide.
Ok, looking back through the discussion, I am uncertain on the
following point:
Are we asking people who don't speak the language that AbiWord is
using to select a language? Or are we asking people who are currently
using a localized version of AbiWord to select a *different* langauge
to type some text in?
If the former, then I agree with Paul and Tim, since when you have to
choose your language, having it presented in your language is
optimal. If the latter, I agree with Tomas, for all the reasons he
has given.
I'm confused. What do people think we are discussing?
sam th --- sam@uchicago.edu --- http://www.abisource.com/~sam/
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