Errors and ambiguity in translatable strings
@askhl
Submitted by Ask Hjorth Larsen Link to original bug (#572655)
Description
Please describe the problem: Glade3 contains a large number of translatable strings which make little sense without context, most notably strings like "Pixbuf Expander Closed column", "Stock Size column". The meaning of these strings should be clarified by adding translator comments, see http://live.gnome.org/TranslationProject/DevGuidelines/Use%20comments .
(If for some reason I should know what these strings mean, by all means educate me, but there is no info in the translatable documentation. As a translator I have no objection to reading manuals, but wouldn't quite know where to look)
Here is a (unfortunately rather long) list of ambiguous strings plus strings with typos in them (as found by translating glade3).
Strings like:
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:477 msgid "Tree Store"
and
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:141 msgid "Enter a list of column types for this data store"
What exactly is this 'store'? Could you explain with a translator comment?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:312 msgid "Pixbuf Expander Closed column"
So this is a column related to the Pixbuf Expander being in the 'Closed' state. Could you have a comment somewhere explaining what these columns are about?
Also the "Pulse column", the "Rise column", "Scale column" and so on.
What is the nature of these columns?
Consider for example the msgid "Visible" and later the msgid "Visible column". The 'correct' interpretation of this would generally be 'a column which is visible', but from the context I infer that it might not be that simple.
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:416 msgid "Stock Detail column"
I have no idea what that string means.
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:418 msgid "Stock Size column"
What's a stock size? You don't have to explain all this if it's just GTK lingo, but if it is, could you provide a link to some documentation?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:419 #| msgid "Stock Button" msgid "Stock column"
I believe that everything having to do with the word "Stock" is a sort of built-in entity (some confirmation of this speculative theory would be greatly appreciated). So is this a column which has to do with built-in entities, or is the column itself built-in?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:421 #| msgid "Strikethrough Color" msgid "Strikethrough column"
So is this an action or a particular style of column or something entirely different?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:399 msgid "Size Group"
"Size group"? This could mean anything. Context please.
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:454 msgid "" "The stock icon displayed on the item (chose an item from gtk+ stock or from " "an icon factory)"
Don't you mean "choose"?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:474 msgid "Tree Model Filter"
and
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:475 msgid "Tree Model Sort"
So is this the sort mode used by the tree model? It might be that one can sort the elements of the tree alphabetically, or due to a numerical value or something. In that case what about "Sort mode of tree model", and a translator comment saying it is a description, not an action?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:477 msgid "Tree Store"
What's a store? Should we translate it like shop? In general, these metaphors need to be explained. (or you could refer to some gtk docs)
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:483 #| msgid "Underline Color" msgid "Underline column"
Is this an action? Like 'Put a line under the column'? Or is it the "Underline"-column (whatever that is)?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:485 #| msgid "Palette _Appearance" msgid "Use Action Appearance"
What is the appearance of an action, and how would you 'use' it?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/glade-label-editor.c:357 #, c-format, fuzzy msgid "Setting %s to set desired width in charachters"
and
#: ../plugins/gtk+/glade-label-editor.c:388 #, c-format msgid "Setting %s to set maximum width in charachters"
Typo in characHters
#: ../gladeui/glade-editor-property.c:2709 #, c-format msgid "Choose parentless %s(s) in this project"
and
#, c-format msgid "Choose %s(s) in this project"
What sort of thing is %s? Is the (s) something about possibly having multiple ones? There is a special way to handle plurals in gettext,
http://www.gnu.org/software/gettext/manual/gettext.html#Plural-forms
#: ../gladeui/glade-inspector.c:465
#| msgid "User Widget"
msgid "< search widgets >
"
The action of searching among widgets, or something pertaining to widgets that perform searches?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:178 #| msgid "Font Button" msgid "Forth Mouse Button"
Typo: foUrth
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:328 msgid "Primary Icon Sensitive"
... so is this a description of a kind of boolean/checkmark?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:340 #| msgid "Insert Column" msgid "Pulse column"
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:365 #| msgid "Insert Column" msgid "Rise column"
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:369 #| msgid "Scale Button" msgid "Scale column"
More mysterious columns. (also, the last one can be interpreted as "scaling a column" as in resizing it, which I assume should not be the case)
#: ../plugins/gtk+/glade-store-editor.c:197 msgid "" "Define columns for your liststore, giving them meaningful names will help " "you to retrieve them when setting cell renderer attributes (press the Delete " "key to remove the selected column)"
I'm not sure what a liststore is.
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:186 msgid "Has Entry column"
I have no idea.
msgid "" "Enter a filename or a relative or full path for this source of '%s' (Glade " "will only ever load them inthe runtime from your project directory)."
Typo: inthe
#: ../plugins/gtk+/glade-gtk.c:10739 ../plugins/gtk+/glade-gtk.c:10819 #| msgid "Spline" msgid "Spin"
Is this an action? Like imperative form? Or short for spinbutton?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/glade-gtk.c:8003 #| msgid "This does not apply with stock items" msgid "This property does not apply when Angle is set."
I can find no reference to "angle" in the po file. How do I find the correct translation?
#: ../plugins/gtk+/gtk+.xml.in.h:15 #| msgid "Accelerator Key" msgid "Accelerator Renderer"
I thought accelerators were keys. They have renderers?
Steps to reproduce:
Actual results:
Expected results:
Does this happen every time?
Other information: