Forum: CAT Tools Technical Help
Topic: Setting up translation strings for a website translation
Poster: Endre Both
Post title: Golden rule No 2
While I'm at it, let's mention golden rule #2 (which admittedly is a special case of rule 1, no incomplete utterances):
Never concatenate incomplete utterances to variables or other strings to create a complete utterance. So if you need this (sorry for the uninspiring example):
"Today's temperature is x °F"
Don't be tempted to just use "Today's temperature is " + Format(temp, customtempunit)
Use a variable like this:
"Today's temperature is {0}"
This will allow the translator to place the value wherever target grammer mandates it should be in the sentence, and they may even add the missing period at the end.
If you heed these two rules, providing adequate context for every string will be the only remaining problem you'll need to solve for your translators. Unfortunately it's also the biggest problem that no amout of good design will get out of your way. You'll either need screenshots, or comments for each string, or both...
Endre
Topic: Setting up translation strings for a website translation
Poster: Endre Both
Post title: Golden rule No 2
While I'm at it, let's mention golden rule #2 (which admittedly is a special case of rule 1, no incomplete utterances):
Never concatenate incomplete utterances to variables or other strings to create a complete utterance. So if you need this (sorry for the uninspiring example):
"Today's temperature is x °F"
Don't be tempted to just use "Today's temperature is " + Format(temp, customtempunit)
Use a variable like this:
"Today's temperature is {0}"
This will allow the translator to place the value wherever target grammer mandates it should be in the sentence, and they may even add the missing period at the end.
If you heed these two rules, providing adequate context for every string will be the only remaining problem you'll need to solve for your translators. Unfortunately it's also the biggest problem that no amout of good design will get out of your way. You'll either need screenshots, or comments for each string, or both...
Endre
