I started to localize in French the “messages_fr.properties” file, which belongs to the “old” interface.
I’ve already translated 1700+ entries, and have another 1100 to go. I am wondering if there is some kind of “roadmap” to have that file replaced by others in the near future… To localize such an application is no small task. If it is likely to help other users somewhere on the Planet, it is certainly worth the effort. Otherwise, it may not be…
By the way, is there anyone using OpenMRS in French at the moment ? Perhaps I am just trying to re-invent the wheel ?
Thank you for your reply.
Are your module translations included into the “regular” downloads, or should we download them separately from some other location, then add them to the Reference Application ?
At the moment, it is not clear to me if the localization file "messages_fr.properties is likely to be phased out at some stage (as it belongs to the “legacy UI”) and replaced with other files – in which case it is probably not a good idea to invest a lot of efforts in a translation–, or if it is meant to be used for the foreseeable future (perhaps as part of the Advanced Administration interface.
The translations are bundled with their respective modules. I don’t see the messages_*.properties being phased out any time soon–we are using them both within the legacy UI and the new modules that support the reference application.
Also, I should have mentioned this earlier, but have you been using Transifex to do your localization? That is the tool we currently use to maintain our translations and auto-generate/update messages_*.properties files:
Apologies for the delay in answering your message, but the last few days have been rather busy at work and I was not able to come back to OpenMRS.
Thank you for confirming that the messages_*.properties are likely to still be used for the foreseeable future.
Not knowing about the use of Transifex, I built myself a small database to help with the translation on my laptop… A simple but flexible tool that allows me to browse efficiently through the list.
Then I imported the 2863 terms found in the messages.properties. I also crated a simple tool to export the result in a new messages_fr.properties.
I just joined the FR team on Transifex, but I would not upload anything before going through a more experienced translator. I spotted, for example, some significant differences between my translations and the excellent work that has been done, and I wouldn’t like to introduce significant differences.
