Notes on the GNU Translation Project
************************************

   GNU is going international!  The GNU Translation Project is a way to
get maintainers, translators and users all together, so GNU will
gradually become able to speak many native languages.  A few packages
already provide native language translation for their messages.

   If you found this `NLS' file inside a GNU distribution, you may
assume that the distributed package does use GNU `gettext' internally,
itself available at your nearest GNU archive site.  But you do not need
to install GNU `gettext' prior to configuring, installing or using this
package with messages translated.

   Installers will find here some useful hints.  These notes also
explain how users should proceed for getting the programs to use the
available translations.  They tell how people wanting to contribute and
work at translations should contact the appropriate team.

INSTALL Matters
===============

   Some GNU packages are "localizable" when properly installed; the
programs they contain can be made to speak your own native language.
Most such packages use GNU `gettext'.  Other packages have their own
ways to internationalization, predating GNU `gettext'.

   By default, this package will be installed to allow translation of
messages.  It will automatically detect whether the system provides
usable `catgets' or `gettext' functions.  If neither is available, the
GNU `gettext' own library will be used.  However, installers may use
special options at configuration time for changing this behaviour.  The
commands:

     ./configure --with-gnu-gettext
     ./configure --disable-nls

will respectively bypass system `catgets' or `gettext' to use GNU
`gettext', or else, totally disable translation of messages.

   Internationalized packages have usually many `po/LL.po' files, where
LL gives an ISO 639 two-letter code identifying the language.  Unless
translations are disabled, all those available are installed together
with the package.  However, the environment variable `LINGUAS' may be
set, prior to configuration, to limit the installed set.  `LINGUAS'
should then contain a space separated list of two-letter codes, stating
which languages are allowed.

Using This Package
==================

   As a user, if your language has been installed for this package, you
only have to set the `LANG' environment variable to the appropriate ISO
639 `LL' two-letter code prior to using the programs in the package.
For example, let's suppose that you speak German.  At the shell prompt,
merely execute `setenv LANG de' (in `csh') or `export LANG; LANG=de'
(in `sh').  This can be done from your `.login' or `.profile' file,
once and for all.  Packages which are not internationalized will merely
ignore the setting of this variable.

Translating Teams
=================

   The GNU `gettext' tool set contains *everything* maintainers need
for internationalizing their packages for messages.  It also contains
quite useful tools for helping translators at localizing messages to
their native language, once a package has already been
internationalized.

   To achieve the GNU Translation Project, we need many interested
people who like their own language and write it well, and who are also
able to synergize with other translators speaking the same language.
If you'd like to volunteer to *work* at translating messages, please
send mail to your translating team.

   Each team has its own mailing list, courtesy of Linux International.
You may reach your translating team at the address `LL@li.org',
replacing LL by the two-letter ISO 639 code for your language.
Language codes are *not* the same as country codes given in ISO 3166.
The following translating teams exist, as of July 1995:

     Chinese `zh', Czech `cs', Danish `da', Dutch `nl', Esperanto `eo',
     Finnish `fi', French `fr', Irish `ga', German `de', Greek `el',
     Italian `it', Japanese `ja', Indonesian `in', Norwegian `no',
     Polish `pl', Portuguese `pt', Russian `ru', Spanish `es', Swedish
     `sv' and Turkish `tr'.

For example, you may reach the Chinese translating team by writing to
`zh@li.org'.  When you become a member of the translating team for your
own language, you may subscribe to its list.  For example, Swedish
people can send a message to `sv-request@li.org', having this message
body:

     subscribe

   Keep in mind that team members should be interested in *working* at
translations, or at solving translational difficulties, rather than
merely lurking around.  If your team does not exist yet and you want to
start one, please write to `gnu-translation@prep.ai.mit.edu'; you will
then reach the GNU coordinator for all translator teams.

Available Packages
==================

   Languages are not equally supported in all GNU packages.  The
following matrix shows the current state of GNU internationalization,
as of July 1995.  Listed are: internationalized packages, and languages
for which work is in progress, or about to start.

          See note    cs de es fi fr it ja nl pt sv
                \   .-------------------------------.
     chess      (1) |    *                       *  |
     clisp      (2) |    *        *                 |
     diffutils  (3) |    .        -                 |
     fileutils      |    -                          |
     flex       (4) |    .        -                 |
     m4             |    +        +  +  -        +  |
     gettext        |    *        *                 |
     ptx            |    +        +              +  |
     recode         |    +  .     +        +  +     |
     sharutils      |    +        +        +  +  +  |
     shellutils     |    -                          |
     tar            |    *     .  *     .     *  *  |
     wdiff          | +  +        +  +              |
                    `-------------------------------'
                      cs de es fi fr it ja nl pt sv

   The interpretation legend and notes are:

`.'
     Some discussions occured, showing interest in having a translation,
     or an invitation has been made for this package to be localized to
     this language.

`-'
     The effort of localizing this package has been undertaken by
     someone, or by a translating team, and work is, or should be in
     progress.

`+'
     A PO file for this package and this language is completed and is
     currently available in a pretest release, or is all ready for
     inclusion in the next release of this package.

`*'
     The localization of this package to this particular language is
     fully completed, and now distributed through an official release.

(1)
     This package is translated to specific languages by methods
     predating GNU `gettext'.  Translations are all kept on disk files,
     and sources contain numbers where one normally expects strings.

(2)
     This package is translated to specific languages by methods
     predating GNU `gettext'.  Translations are kept in the sources and
     memory, rather than installed in external message catalogs.

(3)
     This package is planned to switch to GNU `gettext'.  For the time
     being, it uses temporary means for internationalization.

(4)
     This package has its translatable strings marked, but does not use
     GNU `gettext'.  A convenience patch may be available separately.

   If July 1995 seems to be old, you may fetch a more recent copy of
this `NLS' file on most GNU archive sites.

