• Created by Unknown User (don), last modified by Unknown User (logch_o) on 20-05-2008

If you look for internationalization it's common to use the abbreviation i18n. Internationalization is the topic of translation of messages. If you are interested in using different units, date formats, number notations that's called Localization L10n.

Things to look at:

  • Example .NET applications available with sources where localization is implemented nicely:
    • SharpDevelop - check user interface translated to many languages
    • Paint.NET
    • MonoDevelop, source code can be checked out using the following command line: svn co svn://anonsvn.mono-project.com/source/trunk/monodevelop monodevelop

Overview Examples


Example

Localization change

Method

Architecture

SharpDevelop

runtime

  • .NET ResourceManager

Paint.NET

restart

  • .NET ResourceManager

MonoDevelop

?

  • written in C/C++
  • getText instead of Resources.
    This allows MonoDevelop to take advantage of
    GNOME translators' familiarity with getText.

?

Spring.Net

runtime
[web, just 1 page to refresh]

  • Follows Globalization Architecture .NET
  • Automatic Localization Using Localizers ("Push" Localization)
  • Working with Localizers $this (form/usercontrol) or $resource_namespace
  • Applying Resources Manually ("Pull" Localization) like getMessage("labelName");

-

MonoRail

runtime
[web, just 1 page to refresh]

  • .NET ResourceManager

Singleton versus Static Class

  • In C#, Singleton class as the name implies creates only one instance of the class and its member, whereas, static class creates a new instance of the static members every time it is being accessed.
  • Adds a level of indirection. This allows the creation of more than one instance of the class at a later date without breaking client code.
  • Encapsulates data and methods into a separate namespace, the singleton class.
  • Allows sub-classing.
  • Provides access control to the single instance.
  • Thread safe.

Overview Methods


Method

Maintenance

Remarks

Resources (.NET)

Satellite assembly: editors -Zeta Resource Editor,Resource Builder

  • Resources (.NET) not only text, also images, files etc.
  • Resources (.NET) can also be used for redesign/culture (location/Size)
  • Resources (.NET) indexed on labels or control names

gettext

kbabel gettext editor

The main differences between the common .NET resources approach and the
GNU gettext approach are:

  • In the .NET resource approach, the keys are abstract textual shortcuts. In the GNU gettext approach, the keys are the English/ASCII version of the messages.
  • In the .NET resource approach, the translation files are called "Resource.locale.resx" and are UTF-8 encoded XML files. In the GNU gettext approach, the translation files are called "Resource.locale.po" and are in the encoding the translator has chosen. There are at least three GUI translating tools (Emacs PO mode, KDE KBabel, GNOME gtranslator).
  • In the .NET resource approach, the function ResourceManager.GetString returns an empty string or throws an InvalidOperationException when no translation is found. In the GNU gettext approach, the GetString function returns the (English) message key in that case.
  • In the .NET resource approach, there is no support for plural handling.In the GNU gettext approach, we have the GetPluralString function.
  • In the .NET resource approach, there is no support for context specific translations. In the GNU gettext approach, we have the GetParticularString function.
    To compile GNU gettext message catalogs into C# assemblies, the msgfmt/msgunfmt program can be used.
  • gettext generate a indexlist at runtime

DelftLanguage

text-files(lng)

  • dll
  • parsing all controls of forms
  • indexed on content

Suggestion


Architecture

Work method

  • Automatic Localization Using Localizers = property window Visual Studio [resource on class (Form/UserControl)s level]
  • Applying Resources Manually = resourceService.getString(indexname) for using the Lookup hierarchy.

Lookup hierarchy

  • Class (Form/UserControl) languagecode-country/regioncode
  • Class (Form/UserControl) languagecode
  • Application (Plugin) languagecode-country/regioncode
  • Application (Plugin) languagecode
  • DelftShell (DelftShell.Resource, a new project in DelftShell for all common translations like save, delete, remove etc.) languagecode-country/regioncode
  • DelftShell (DelftShell.Resource, a new project in DelftShell for all common translations like save, delete, remove etc.) languagecode

Maintenance


Conclusion

Since GNU specially offers an LPGL GNU.GetText.dll (get dll) to make a bridge between the .NET resources and gettext files we can use the .NET ResourceManager for managing localized/culture depended resources.
GNU.GetText.dll is derived from the .NET ResourceManger class and has a GettextResourceSet derived from the class ResourceSet.
The Gettext xgettext program extracts translatable strings from given input file(s) into a template (.pot) file.

Dutch translations for PACKAGE package.

Copyright (C) 2008 THE PACKAGE'S COPYRIGHT HOLDER

This file is distributed under the same license as the PACKAGE package.

koste_a <EMAIL@ADDRESS>, 2008.
msgid ""
msgstr ""
"Project-Id-Version: PACKAGE VERSION\n"
"Report-Msgid-Bugs-To: \n"
"POT-Creation-Date: 2008-04-25 09:48+0200\n"
"PO-Revision-Date: 2008-04-25 10:00+0100\n"
"Last-Translator: alex <alex@del.ta.res.nl>\n"
"Language-Team: Dutch\n"
"MIME-Version: 1.0\n"
"Content-Type: text/plain; charset=CP1252\n"
"Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit\n"
"Plural-Forms: nplurals=2; plural=(n != 1);\n"

#: hello.cs:37
msgid "Hello, world!"
msgstr "Hallo, wereld!"

#: hello.cs:44
#, csharp-format

msgid "This program is running as process number

Unknown macro: {0}

."


msgstr "Dit programma draait onder processnummer

Unknown macro: {0}

."

#: Form1.cs:21
msgid "Dynamic Text by Mono-gettext"
msgstr "Dynamische text door Mono-gettext (is niet waar)"

#: Form1.cs:22
msgid "lblResources From gettext.resource"
msgstr "lblResource krijgt zijn tekst van gettext"

With PoEdit it's easy to generate culture depended po files and to compile them to .mo files.
Still it's a bit obscure to use gettext in a .NET environment.
In the tests new GettextResourceManager(<domain>) never caused errors by a wrong domain or read the mo files with a correct domain.
(based on setting the Thread.CurrentThread.CurrentUICulture/CurrentCulture)
A point of interest is the convertion of resources.dll into .mo files and back.
The Gettext programs msgfmt and msgunfmt should include these options but I got some errors: 'pnet' should be installed. Compiling 'pnet' resulted in an error 'treecc' should be installed.
'treecc' could not be compiled. Well, still some obstacles has to be removed. ([sources{_}|http://dotgnu.org/pnet-packages.html#mswindows]_)

Points of interest


  • Resources and WPF: msd2 (still based on Satellite Resource.dll's]
  • No labels

4 Comments

  1. Unknown User (don)

    One more resource editor (available in src): Resourcer from Lutz Roeder

  2. Unknown User (don)

    I was thinking about how we can use resources on-the-fly, it may be handy to have some automatic localization string replacements when we send messages using log4net:

        public class DelftShell : IApplication, IGui, IDisposable
    {
        private static readonly ILog log = LogManager.GetLogger(typeof (DelftShell));
        
        ...

        log.Info("Message 1");

    ... after googling a bit here is the some idea even more advanced (smile):

    log.warn("Hello, world");

You might have an external resource that would have an entry like:

<message match="Hello, world">
       <translation xml:lang="fr">Bonjour de monde</translation>
</message>

If you had a message with a parameterized section:

if (log.isWarnEnabled()) {
     log.warn("Elapsed time " + elapsed.toString() + " ms");
}

Then your resource might contain

<message match="Elapsed time (.*) ms">
       <translation xml:lang="fr">Temps coul \1 ms</translation>
</message>

    In this way all log4net messages can be translated nicely.

  3. Fedor Baart

    This is an example of how you edit gettext generated po files

  4. Fedor Baart

    I found that the gettext implementation on .Net extends the resource manager. From the translation po files you can generate .net resources in .resource form or in .dll form. http://www.gnu.org/software/gettext/manual/html_node/C_0023.html

    This seems like a promising approach.

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