What is this

• new file [util/create_pot] (crawl-ref/source/util/create_pot.sh) to generate gettext message catalog templates
• massaging many strings into more translation-friendly ones
  • mpr() combined with ternary operator building are mostly split
  • Get rid of many %s that were used to build message content by substituting in verbs etc. - not all languages follow English grammar rules
  • Occasionally rewrite some pieces of code for easier string extraction
• finally toss gettext into the mix and translate all the things (if only)
  • Right now, mpr and mprf are translated unconditionally, but some strings are exempt from extraction.
  • Additionally, these are run through gettext as well: _output_expiring_message _annotate_form_based _decrement_a_duration prompt_invent_item[s] notify_fail yesno yes_or_no [lua/vaults: crawl.mpr crawl.yesno crawl.yesnoquit message_at_spot]
• exclusion file for strings to not be extracted: [exclude.pot] (crawl-ref/source/dat/po/exclude.pot)
• ngettext support (plural-aware translations) right now only exists for the newly-introduced mprf_plural but should be expanded on.

How to test?

To test the pseudo-localization that is [shipped with this repo] (crawl-ref/source/dat/po/):

• Export LC_ALL=en_US.UTF-8 unless already set (if you do not have that locale installed, generate it with locale-gen)
• Run ./crawl from source/ dir

Else, if you want to see manual translations in-game, in dat/po/:

• Generate a translation: man msginit
• Pseudo-localize it: podebug --rewrite unicode <file.po>
• Compile the translation: man msgfmt (should be output to [source/dat/lang/<lang>/LC_MESSAGES/messages.mo] (crawl-ref/source/dat/lang/))

To test template generation yourself, run ./util/create_pot.sh in source/ dir.

List of TODO items

Exclude from extraction

• All mprf to MSGCH_ERROR and MSGCH_DIAGNOSTICS (automatically, not via exclude.pot)
• dlua errors
• Vault messages:
  • ancient_champ errors
  • twisted.des dpeg_entry_water_fire veto message
  • trove debug messages
• Make sure character notes and dumps in general never end up translated

Keywords and string extraction

• snprintf (Really %s%s%s? and friends also belong to String building)
• cprintf (several gui and message writes)
• fprintf (mostly stash.cc)
• msgwin_get_line: only valid use in notes.cc and then one in zotdef, rest wiz-
• extract both strings from _decrement_a_duration, not just one
• mpr_en and mprf_en for forcibly untranslated and unextracted messages (should allow getting rid of most remaining layout-building strings)
• Webtiles
• Individual issues:
  • directn get_square_desc
  • religion _sacrifice_message

String building

• Mutation-data: "Your thick and shaggy fur keeps you warm (AC %1$+d, %2$s)." instead of hardcoding (AC +3, rC+) (%s part debatable, numbers not)
• Lua in general (troves, sprints, ...)
  • string replacements, needed before going to mpr! mprf interface? [Check with wesnoth, widelands]
  • automagic, autofight
  • pan.des who lives here
• held_status
• mpr_comma_separated_list
• Individual strings:
  • You fall through a shaft%s!

Questions to be discussed

• What to do with titles, or the main HUD in general?
• godabil: "You can now" -> "You can" change (messaging)

The zotdef_danger_msg keyword was added to create_pot for sake of completeness. I thoroughly hate zotdef and crawl would be vastly better off with it not existing. Because of this, zotdef.cc is excluded from string extraction. When and if somebody believes that adding zotdef_danger_msg and all zotdef messages to the translation burden is a great idea, go ahead and remove it from the exclusion list. I won't.