App Localization

[artpoli]

Please add support for translation in order to have Strongbox available in different languages.

[mmcguill]

Yes, definitely. Just waiting on the UI to settle over the next few weeks, it's a bit of a moving target right now but this is planned. Thanks

[artpoli]

Hi! I see there is a file Localizable.strings available. I'd like to start translating it. What do you think? Which localization platform are you considering to use?

[mmcguill]

Hi! I’m using GitLocalize, well it’s currently under test with Russian! But it looks usable! What language did you want to work on?

[artpoli]

I'd like to translate into Ukrainian! Could you please add it for the test too?

[Slummi]

@mmcguill By the way, where can I find the German localization files (iOS) on GitHub? Haven’t found them yet.

[mmcguill]

Hi @Slummi - you can find them in the Babel project here: https://github.com/strongbox-password-safe/babel

Please let me know if you want to work on the German project, I'll add you to GitLocalize.

@a-polivanchuk - I'll add you shortly to the Ukrainian localization - We just need to make sure everything goes well for Russian and write a guide as it's a bit involved, and a lot of work!

[mmcguill]

If anyone else is out there and wants to contribute translations for their language please get in touch and I'll try to set you up :)

[Slummi]

Hi @mmcguill Yes, I‘d like to work on the German localization, but I haven‘t worked with GitLocalize before. So I have to look how it works. Are there separate localizations for the different platforms (MacOS, iOS and now iPadOS) or is it one project? I‘m currently using iOS only, so iOS would be the only OS where I‘m able to have a look into the app to check any contexts, if this is necessary.

[mmcguill]

Hi @Slummi - Only the iOS app is localized, so that's all you'd have to look at. I've added you as a moderator for German now. Have a look around, it's a fairly straightforward system:

https://gitlocalize.com/repo/3101

I'm working on putting together a guide/FAQ at the moment, but feel free to submit Pull Requests for anything you think is best

[Slummi]

Hi @mmcguill - Had a quick look on the GitLocalize project. Can you tell me, why there are some strange translations (see red boxes in the screenshot). Is there something wrong with the assignment between GitLocalize and the related string files in the repository? Looks like the object identifiers...

[mmcguill]

Yes, GitLocalize isn't brilliant, and it seems isn't optimised for XCode...

You can ignore these, and I'll mention them in the guide.

[Slummi]

Ok, so these are no real strings to translate and I must only translate strings where the translation is empty or English or there‘s a better translation for an existing one. Right?

[mmcguill]

For the moment, that's the conclusion yes... Still working it out, but in general what you say sounds right.

[artpoli]

Hello! Just submitted first PRs via GitLocalize.

I'm curious, have you considered any other options for localization, for instance, Crowdin? It has GitHub integration with auto submitting new translations, branches support, translation memory and it's fully compatible with iOS l10n files.

[mmcguill]

Hi @a-polivanchuk, thanks!

Yes, it was one of the first I looked at, unfortunately it's quite expensive it seems. The project has around 6000 strings, which would mean $150-$300 a month.

I don't think Gitlocalize is great, but it's not so bad. The initial translation process is painful but after that it's pretty straightforward to update or add a couple of strings.

Could you drop me a mail at support@strongboxsafe.com to discuss the process?

[mmcguill]

I've updated the README in Babel with some hints, tips, and advice we've gained from the Russian translation if you'd like to take a look.

[artpoli]

@Slummi I've already created German locale on Crowdin and imported existing translations. Please join your locale by using this invitation link (Only for de locale): https://crowdin.com/project/strongbox-password-safe/invite?d=c695v4r4o466f56343i5m4s4a3m4q4e3

We together with @mmcguill decided to set up the localization process on Crowdin and see how it works. It would be good if you continue your work there and give your feedback :)

Thanks!

[mmcguill]

NB: @Slummi - things still work with GitLocalize also, but it seems like CrowdIn is a better interface entirely. So feel free to choose the way you prefer to contribute. I'll message our Russian translator separately to let him know he can also switch

[Slummi]

OK, I signed up for Crowdin and will test it.

[Slummi]

Ok, I translated "Upgrade.strings" with Crowdin for testing. But I can't find any option to upload the changes or make a pull request. Is it not necessary to make a PR with Crowdin?

[artpoli]

It’s not necessary to do anything but translating and approving :) Everything will be pulled and pushed automatically.

[Slummi]

Ok and what happens next after approving the changes? Can‘t see any PRs or updates to the repository.

[artpoli]

@Slummi The new commits will be pushed automatically during each sync, which is now set to 24 hours. The new PR will be created automatically too.

[artpoli]

BTW, Crowdin has a mobile version which works perfectly on mobile browsers. So it's possible to translate even on the go.

[mmcguill]

Thanks @a-polivanchuk - I think we're good to close this off now. We've got the process for Localization all setup in CrowdIn. Cheers everyone.

[Slummi]

Even if this one has already been closed out, just a short note.

It seems that some strings are still missing on Crowdin, and that some strings have been translated, but they stay in English in the app.

The statistics in the database management for example are in English again, but they have already been translated a long time ago.

And the strings on the webpage of the "Transfer over LAN" feature are completly missing on Crowdin.

[artpoli]

I've searched the strings from your screenshot on Crowdin and there were no results. The TM doesn't contain those strings too. So it looks like they have never been on Crowdin. I guess we need to search for those original strings on GitHub files and check the changesets to figure out the issue...

[mmcguill]

ok, thanks guys, I'll look into this today and get back to you

[mmcguill]

So, the strings from the above are going to be a little awkward because it's html/javascript rather than objective-C and so they need to be injected into the html dynamically.

I can make the long description string available in the next release for localization easily because it's already injected and I don't need to do much work

[Slummi]

Ok, sounds good. And do you have an explanation why the strings for the statistics stay in English even though they are translated into German?

[mmcguill]

I do, and it's good or bad news depending on how you look at it. It appears to be down to a bug in XCode 11.1, so another Apple bug... It seems like there is some serious Quality Control problems in Apple with their software in general at the moment, sad to say. Details here:

https://developer.apple.com/documentation/xcode_release_notes/xcode_11_1_release_notes/#3386781 https://stackoverflow.com/questions/57905965/xcode-11-ios-13-localization-issue

So, the good news is it's not my fault and will be fixed hopefully in 11.2... I'm not sure when that releases though.

I think the only thing we can do is wait for that release, rebuild and re-assess then. :(

[Slummi]

Yes, Apple has a major software quality problem I think. iOS 13 is complete garbage if you ask me. It has so many bugs... So let's wait and hope that it will become better. In the meanwhile I found additional strings, which are not translated in the app. :(

[xatage]

Yes, Apple's latest iOS and macOS are a real disaster if you look at all the bugs and troubles the users are faced with. I was just yesterday contacting Mark about this issue. It was really a lot of effort to figure out what was the cause of missing translation at some places in the App. Now we can only hope, Apple brings out the Xcode update quickly to fix this translation issue.