Spreading Extensions by localization

Talk about add-ons and extension development.
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jooliaan
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Spreading Extensions by localization

Post by jooliaan »

Mozilla Foundation is making a lot of efforces to spread Firefox (Thunderbird and all its other softwares) around the world trying to contact how much new users as possible in order to make their internet life easier and safer.
This includes of course the localization works done for the applications and for the websites (Mozilla Europe for instance).
Due to the above mentioned reasons I feel disappointed seeing how many useful and appreciated extensions aren't yet using the locale approach when developped.
I could say a lot of extension names which are still only in english and that are not localizable because all the label entity are put directly inside the code.

So I would make a call to all those extensions authors that are not yet using the locale approach in their masterpieces to change their mind and to do a really small effort writing the extensions in a localizable way.
I'm sure that following this my suggestion their extensions will certainly increase the number of download, will be used even more than what's today and most important they will allow all the not english spoken people to better enjoy Firefox, Thunderbird, Sunbird, Seamonkey and all thye others mozilla.org applications by having an UI completely in their native language.

Many thanks in advance for the attention.

Ciao :)
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goofyFr
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Post by goofyFr »

I am currently translating extensions () and I strongly support the previous poster's suggestions.
I have been suggesting very often to authors it was interesting to build locale folders from the very first release on. From time to time, I build the locale myself and send it, and authors are usually pleased to discover what they sometimes did not even think about...
There are also many extensions with locales that still have english-only strings nested in javascript files, which is quite uneasy to localize.
In case it can help, I wrote some mini-tutorials :
http://goofy37.perso.cegetel.net/locali ... ex_en.html
http://goofy37.perso.cegetel.net/minituto/index.html
http://goofy37.perso.cegetel.net/tutolocdescEn.html

We translators are really devoted to spreading the good news of the interesting extensions, so please just think "international", and not only "anglo-saxon" !
Thank you
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em_te
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Post by em_te »

goofyFr wrote:http://goofy37.perso.cegetel.net/tutolocdescEn.html

For your second link, also see:
http://kb.mozillazine.org/Localize_exte ... scriptions
Last edited by em_te on July 16th, 2005, 11:29 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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goofyFr
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Post by goofyFr »



(you mean the 3rd one, I suppose)

THANKS !
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Luana
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Post by Luana »

Hello everybody,
I find seriously disappointing to see that, whilst MoFo is pushing hard to get its applications localized in many and different languages (and even asking to get their softwares translated even in new languages) , the same target hasn't yet take in account by many extension authors.

I even find tremendously unfair that this thread hasn't yet "sticked" meaning that it will disappear in few days at the tenth page of this forum... :|

The images shown all the extension I've localized up to now, and at least 50% of them didn't contain the locale.
This means that each time one of these"without locale" extension has a new release I have to translate them again (and again, and again...)

Image
Image

Sometime I had to contact the authors and ask them to create a localizable extension, but not ever I had a positive response.

Of course I can understand that not everybody knows about how to develop an extension by using the locale approach and as I already did in the past I'm always fully available to help every author that is interested to improve his/her acknowledgement about this matter (I've and I want to thank goofyFr for that, and for our precious collaboration :)).

So, there will be people knowing english and having time to spend into the translation that will localize the extension giving in this way the possibility to others to enjoy the extensions in the preferred language. This must be the "work" of a localizer, the author instead must be the one able to program and to manage an addon by using the locale approach and NOT viceversa!

As last thing I would kindly ask to a mod/admin to make this thread as sticky, because I think that this is an important issue to take care about.
Many thanks in advance.
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BenBasson
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Post by BenBasson »

Speaking as an extension author, something that would really help would be a central place that we can go to let localisers know about updates. For example, I've just finished my Image Toolbar 0.6b release, and it's now at a stage where localisation work can take place, but I don't know where to alert localisers to that fact.
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CPU
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Post by CPU »

i for one have a hard time gettting some people to localize my extension, i either have to look for them or wait for them to come to me, like cusser said, it would be great if there was a place like that
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Post by Hendikins »

Stickying this - because I know how hard it is to get translation work done for PluginDoc, and I'm assuming extension authors don't get it any easier.
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goofyFr
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Post by goofyFr »

cusser wrote:Speaking as an extension author, something that would really help would be a central place that we can go to let localisers know about updates.


It would be nice ! (though centralizing is not always an efficient solution... the www is powerful because it is not centralized ain't it ?).
Why not create a sub-section here in this very forum, called "Localizing extensions" ?
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jooliaan
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Post by jooliaan »

Cusser wrote:I've just finished my Image Toolbar 0.6b release, and it's now at a stage where localisation work can take place, but I don't know where to alert localisers to that fact.


CPU wrote:i either have to look for them or wait for them to come to me, like cusser said, it would be great if there was a place like that


I'm the official italian translator for Sage and MinimizeToTray. Both authors of these extensions use a mailing list to stay in touch with their l10n team. It is very easy to get one for free. AFAIK mozdev offers a personal mailing list to each project hosted there.

Ciao and thank you for your interest! :)
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BenBasson
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Post by BenBasson »

Don't get me wrong, I'd use a mailing list, but because there's nowhere central, I have to wait to be contacted by interested translators.

My proposal is that someone in the localisation community starts up a forum (like the one in the screenshots above) where authors can submit their extensions and localisers can reply and attach their files to that thread. As-is, there isn't a lot of author-localiser communication, and I mean this both ways. It's not a good situation.
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jooliaan
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Post by jooliaan »

Cusser wrote:Don't get me wrong, I'd use a mailing list, but because there's nowhere central, I have to wait to be contacted by interested translators.

My proposal is that someone in the localisation community starts up a forum (like the one in the screenshots above) where authors can submit their extensions and localisers can reply and attach their files to that thread. As-is, there isn't a lot of author-localiser communication, and I mean this both ways. It's not a good situation.

Ok, I get the point! ;)
We at eXtenZilla.it could open an appropriate sub-forum dedicated to translation. I even think that we can make this forum hidden and available for authors and translators only.
Now the answer is: Do you think that this sub forum should be used for the italian translation only or it should be dedicated to all the translators not depending for their nationality?
Or more: Do you think that this kind of l10n forum for extensions should start with an its own name and domain not related to eXtenZilla.it? In this second case I could buy a dedicated web hosting and try to get this new project live. Of course I'll need the help of authors and translators to mantain and administrate it. If you'll choose for the second option I think also that we will need an "official" help by mozilla.org and/or MozillaZine announcing this new project in order to contact as many authors and translators as possible.

Let me know.

Ciao :)
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BenBasson
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Post by BenBasson »

jooliaan wrote:Do you think that this sub forum should be used for the italian translation only or it should be dedicated to all the translators not depending for their nationality?

All languages would be the best.

jooliaan wrote:Do you think that this kind of l10n forum for extensions should start with an its own name and domain not related to eXtenZilla.it? In this second case I could buy a dedicated web hosting and try to get this new project live.

Wow, if you'd be willing to do that, it'd be fantastic.

jooliaan wrote:If you'll choose for the second option I think also that we will need an "official" help by mozilla.org and/or MozillaZine announcing this new project in order to contact as many authors and translators as possible.

I'm sure MozillaZine would help promote this... a sticky here, a knowledgebase article, something on DevMo and maybe a story on the front page would go a long way.
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jooliaan
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Post by jooliaan »

Ok :D

I've just got a phone discussion with one of the other owners of eXtenZilla.it and he also is thinking that the second way (a dedicate web hosting) be the better choice ;)

About to buy it I really do not have problem, so now the most important point is (IMHO) to make some plan regarding how this project should be called and how to manage it.

To be honest in fact, I've to say that I do not know almost anything about web development or programming so what I'm sure that will be the first thing I need is somebody taking care of those (relavant) points in order to go this project live.
You know... I'm just a chemist, I can manage molecules and atoms but I find terribly confusing even a single href :oops: :lol:
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flod
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Post by flod »

It's really good to see that something is moving on the l10n side :D

I think it would not be a big problem to start an international forum where:
  • authors can find help to localize their extensions
  • localizers can discuss about translation's style or doubts

In any case, I will give my support to a similar project.

By now, if you need an italian locale try to contact us on our forum or writing a mail to info[at]extenzilla[dot]it

jooliaan wrote:I've just got a phone discussion with one of the other owners of eXtenZilla.it

I'm the one :wink:
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