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How do you internationalize strings built up from multiple string fragments?

by cbd1984 11y ago

endgame 11y ago
Link for those who need more context: http://yosefk.com/c++fqa/web-vs-c++.html#misfeature-4 http://yosefk.com/c++fqa/web-vs-c++.html#misfeature-4
simoncion 11y ago
The same way you'd do it in printf? Stringize data and insert it in the middle of static text? (Pardon my inelegant code, I've been away from C++ and doing Erlang for quite a while now.) void printStuff(ostream Os, string WarningPart, string SizePart, string EndPart, int Size) { //The English version might look like: //"Warning: Size too big (200). Get smaller." Os << WarningPart << SizePart << Size << EndPart << endl; }; I expect that if I thought about the problem for a few minutes (and was unable to find any C++ i18n libraries) I would come up with something much nicer and easier to use than this thing I spent ten seconds working on. :)
- prodigal_erik 11y ago
  POSIX printf allows a translator to write a conversion spec like "%1$d" that says which arg to print. This lets you do stuff like put currency before or after the amount depending on what's idiomatic for the locale, without recompiling (if you lookup your format strings at runtime).
  - simoncion 11y ago
    Sure, but that's l10n, which is a different -but related- thing. :) printf format strings are well thought-out. I was demonstrating that the same ideas can easily be used with io*stream.
    - simoncion 11y ago
      For the downvoters: Here's a lib that accomplishes this task that's had a fair bit more than 10 seconds of thought put into it: [0]. Examples [1][2]. :) [0] http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/index.html http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/in... [1] http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/hello_8cpp-example.html http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/he... [2] http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/messages_formatting.html http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/me...
- cbd1984 11y ago
  That solution is good, but it assumes you can break the message up into those parts for every language and use the same iostream sequence for every language. With printf, we have gettext. I don't really see how there's any analogy for gettext in iosream-world.
  - simoncion 11y ago
    > With printf, we have gettext. I don't really see how there's any analogy for gettext in iosream-world. Funny thing. Boost more-or-less uses gettext, too! https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10774941 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10774941
cbd1984 11y ago
Am I being downvoted for asking an honest question?
- simoncion 11y ago
  It's better to engage with the folks who have provided responses to your questions than to complain about downvotes.

How do you internationalize strings built up from multiple string fragments?

by cbd1984 11y ago

How do you internationalize strings built up from multiple string fragments?

Link for those who need more context: http://yosefk.com/c++fqa/web-vs-c++.html#misfeature-4 http://yosefk.com/c++fqa/web-vs-c++.html#misfeature-4

simoncion 11y ago

The same way you'd do it in printf? Stringize data and insert it in the middle of static text? (Pardon my inelegant code, I've been away from C++ and doing Erlang for quite a while now.) void printStuff(ostream Os, string WarningPart, string SizePart, string EndPart, int Size) { //The English version might look like: //"Warning: Size too big (200). Get smaller." Os << WarningPart << SizePart << Size << EndPart << endl; }; I expect that if I thought about the problem for a few minutes (and was unable to find any C++ i18n libraries) I would come up with something much nicer and easier to use than this thing I spent ten seconds working on. :)

prodigal_erik 11y ago
POSIX printf allows a translator to write a conversion spec like "%1$d" that says which arg to print. This lets you do stuff like put currency before or after the amount depending on what's idiomatic for the locale, without recompiling (if you lookup your format strings at runtime).
- simoncion 11y ago
  Sure, but that's l10n, which is a different -but related- thing. :) printf format strings are well thought-out. I was demonstrating that the same ideas can easily be used with io*stream.
  - simoncion 11y ago
    For the downvoters: Here's a lib that accomplishes this task that's had a fair bit more than 10 seconds of thought put into it: [0]. Examples [1][2]. :) [0] http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/index.html http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/in... [1] http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/hello_8cpp-example.html http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/he... [2] http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/messages_formatting.html http://www.boost.org/doc/libs/1_60_0/libs/locale/doc/html/me...
cbd1984 11y ago
That solution is good, but it assumes you can break the message up into those parts for every language and use the same iostream sequence for every language. With printf, we have gettext. I don't really see how there's any analogy for gettext in iosream-world.
- simoncion 11y ago
  > With printf, we have gettext. I don't really see how there's any analogy for gettext in iosream-world. Funny thing. Boost more-or-less uses gettext, too! https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10774941 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=10774941

cbd1984 11y ago

Am I being downvoted for asking an honest question?

simoncion 11y ago
It's better to engage with the folks who have provided responses to your questions than to complain about downvotes.