Shoutbox

quote:

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Originally posted by NapalmLos
Whenever ampersands, the &'s, appear in the original text-file, it should also be included in the translation.

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The program can't just place &s automatically in the translated text because of the following reasons:
Where would it put the &s? At the same letter than the english ones? That doesn't work, because the translated text may not contain the english letter with the &, or that letter may not the the most adequate for placing the &. Also, there are keys in the english translation where the & is missing or conflicts with another key.

quote:

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Originally posted by NapalmLos
And therefore I think an 'ampersand alert' feature would improve the program, by making sure that translators do not forget to do them.

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Texts that require an & are usually shot texts, so at the same time you're translating them, you should notice the & in the english translation and inmediately add it to your translation. IMO, a message box and/or a sound if the & is missing would be quite annoying. (at the end, the translator may decide to not add the &, it's up to him/her)

quote:

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Originally posted by NapalmLos
I've recently seen a language-file, where a translator put the percentage-symbol, the %, instead of the ampersand

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and how could the program distinguish if the translator wanted to put the % or made a mistake and s/he meant & ?

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Originally posted by ZrednaZ
I agree that a simple ampersand alert would be useful

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maybe there could be an option that will check for missing &, but not in real time while your translating

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Originally posted by ZrednaZ
altough I must point out that an ampersand collision alert would be 0wnage in thet respect.
(yes, I do realize that this would implicate the need for frequent updates of the software, and require the software to understand Plus!' menu systems and not just its language files)

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& collition would be a great improvment, but i see several disadvantadges:
The program sould be upgraded very (too much) frequently.
It should be upgraded before Patchou sends us the beta to translate, so first he should send me the beta, I upgrade the program and then we all translate... too complex.
And there are keys that are used in sereval menus, so they & may cause a collition in different menus (or windows)... and that is quite complex to implement.