[freeciv-i18n] Re: Freeciv po files

[Davide Pagnin <nightmare@xxxxxxxxxx>]

        Hi all!

On Wed, 2002-08-21 at 20:04, Egbert Hinzen wrote:
> On 21 Aug 2002, Davide Pagnin wrote:
...
> > I using this instead completely wrong (in german?)
> >
> > #: server/unittools.c:1902
> > #, c-format
> > msgid "Game: %s lost to an attack by %s's %s%s."
> > msgstr "Spiel: %s beim Angriff von %ss %s%s verloren."
> 
> Yes, it is.

Ok, but as Sawada of the Japanese Translation team has pointed out with
the "," example, if actual english phrase isn't easily and correctly
translated, we can think of a different one so that po files can
accomplish easily to match the -c check.

> 
> As far as I remember the last %s can be an 's' or empty.
> The German plural isn't an 's'. So it would be wrong to use it.

I see. 

> > (I say this because some lines after the relevant one, there is this
> > translation:
> >
> > #: server/unittools.c:1931
> > #, c-format
> > msgid "Game: You lost %d unit to an attack from %s's %s%s."
> > msgid_plural "Game: You lost %d units to an attack from %s's %s%s."
> > msgstr[0] "Spiel: %d Einheiten bei einem Angriff von %ss %s%s verloren."
> >
> > (which is wrong because it has only 1 plurar but has the %s%s
> > verloren...)
> 
> 
> ... and because of the last %s.
> 
> Thanks for the hint, I corrected it to:
> 
> #: server/unittools.c:1931
> #, c-format
> msgid "Game: You lost %d unit to an attack from %s's %s%s."
> msgid_plural "Game: You lost %d units to an attack from %s's %s%s."
> msgstr[0] "Spiel: 1 Einheit bei einem Angriff von %ss %s verloren."
> msgstr[1] "Spiel: %d Einheiten bei einem Angriff von %ss %s verloren."
> 
> 
> > even if german singular and plural forms are equal in this case, the
> > correct .po file should be:
> >
> > #: server/unittools.c:1931
> > #, c-format
> > msgid "Game: You lost %d unit to an attack from %s's %s%s."
> > msgid_plural "Game: You lost %d units to an attack from %s's %s%s."
> > msgstr[0] "Spiel: %d Einheiten bei einem Angriff von %ss %s%s verloren."
> > msgstr[1] "Spiel: %d Einheiten bei einem Angriff von %ss %s%s verloren."
> 
> 
> This is wrong:
> As you can see above it's not so easy.

I see, but this imply that I'm right! not wrong. 
One of the two is true:
1. The strings are equal, thus you need the unique form both for
singular and plural
2. The strings are not equal, thus at the moment the de.po file is wrong
because it misses such required strings.

I think that "tertium not datur" in this case...

> 
> 
> > What other translators/maintainers think?
> 
> But in this (and at least 2 other cases) the problem can be solved
> easyly by  changing the sources: The English plural 's' shouldn't be used
> any longer. Instead plural forms should be used.

I agree with you, It is the english form that has to be changed, but
this isn't related to the correction of the po files and the addiction
of the -c parameter, that is a good implied check IMHO.

And, I'm sure that an agreement it is possible to be found on every
dubious issue.

        Ciao, Davide