i18n issues

nilsvanzuijlen · Sun Mar 03, 2019 2:05 pm

Hello,

I recently found out a really good documentation about how internationalization should be implemented. Here it is unfortunately, it is only available in French.

I'll here describe the issues I found in the i18n choices made for QLC+5. They may also be true for QLC+4.

A language name must always be in the langage it describes, not the shown one.
For example, you should display "English, Français, Nederlands, 日本の" and not "英語, フランス語, オランダ語, 日本の" if the selected language is Japanese, or "English, French, Dutch, Japanese" if the selected language is English.
You mustn't use a flag to represent a language.
A flag represents a nation, a region, a state, not a language. There is a website only on that subject : http://www.flagsarenotlanguages.com/blo ... -language/

You should use the language's name only.
If it is planned to release for India, Arabic countries and others, you should be aware that there are more than one numeral system. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindu%E2% ... comparison for more details.

Nils VAN ZUIJLEN

mcallegari · Mon Mar 04, 2019 8:14 am

A language name must always be in the langage it describes, not the shown one

This might make sense

You mustn't use a flag to represent a language

And this is one of those ethic bullshit that is intoxicating the open source world (see: linux kernel code of conduct and similar crap)
To be honest I don't care about people feeling hurt because there isn't the exact flag of their country in a software. Are they using it to be productive or to find a meaning to their life?

At this pace, the next request will be "women feel better if the software background is pink"

nilsvanzuijlen · Mon Mar 04, 2019 2:46 pm

I'll answer with questions.

How do you differentiate Taiwan and China's languages? They are not the same, but the flag is the same.
Which flag should you use to represent English ? The England flag because it's the origin of the language ? The United Kingdom's one ? The Great Britain's One ? Or the USA's one because most people speak it there ?
Which flag do you use for Portuguese ? Brazil is actually the country with the most Portuguese speaking people. And Brazilians may not know the Portugal's flag.
Oh, I was forgetting French. Which flag would you choose between Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroun, Canada, Madagascar, French Polynesia, France and many others ? (See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francophonie)

Flags represent countries, nations, regions, cities, groups, but not language.

PS: See also http://responsivenews.co.uk/post/123104 ... web-design.

mcallegari · Mon Mar 04, 2019 3:17 pm

How do you differentiate Taiwan and China's languages? They are not the same, but the flag is the same.

Same as Catalan and Spanish.
Taiwan can be represented with a different flag from China.

Which flag should you use to represent English ? The England flag because it's the origin of the language ? The United Kingdom's one ? The Great Britain's One ? Or the USA's one because most people speak it there ?

The one I already use which can be found in numerous websites.

Which flag do you use for Portuguese ? Brazil is actually the country with the most Portuguese speaking people. And Brazilians may not know the Portugal's flag.

This one.

Oh, I was forgetting French. Which flag would you choose between Algeria, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroun, Canada, Madagascar, French Polynesia, France and many others ?

The French flag, since all the others were colonies. I guess someone who lives in Algeria knows where his language came from.