Since we're looking for people to translate X-Force into other languages and a few questions concerning that came up, here are the answers...
Basically there are four different areas in various stages of translation: the program, the forum, the wiki and gamesets.
You can choose the language of the program with config.exe, the configuration and update program of XForce.
This choice will decide which of the various *.dat files in the language directory the programs use to determine the labels for the different buttons and page titles.
The language files in the main language directory contain the labels for the game program, in the config subdirectory are the definitions for the config.exe
The edit subdirectory contains a new and incomplete language file for the gameset editor - someone in the forum has improved it, but I haven't got the improved editorfile yet so it isn't online. This results in an error if you open the editor with another language than german, but you could simply click that error away and continue to work, the editor defaults the missing strings to german.
The second part to translate are some texts in this forum. Especially the Information on the new 0.910 versions is only in german and I would really like it if someone places a summary of the threads in the area "Testversion"
http://www.xforce-online.de/forum/index.php?action=vtopic&forum=29
here.
There's no need to go into details since there are unfortunately no english gameset creators now (I don't hear anything from the last english project). But it is long overdue to place a summary of the new options for players...
The english wiki pages are extremely out of date - so much out of date that I think an translation should wait until they are reorganised. I'll post links to pages which can be translated here when I have the time to work on the structure. Until that time please ignore the english pages of the wiki.
And now the most important but also most complex part of translations - the gameset translations.
Please do not try to translate a gameset inside the editor. This is possible but it would create problems if the gameset creator expands it while you're translating - and there are easier ways to work on a gameset translation than clicking inside the editor windows.
The first step should be to ask the gameset creator for an uptodate language file. Such a file could be created with the editor by clicking on "Datei/Sprachen" or "File/Languages". In the following window you'll find the buttons to create a new language inside the gameset and export the language file for that.
Warning: You have to use certain steps on creating a new language inside a gameset or you might damage it. If the wanted language is not avaible, first export an existing language file and rename it to the new language.
Then reopen the gameset and create the new language in the language window. Without closing the window immediatly import the language file - this will give all items names identical to the original language.
Especially do not doubleclick a new language name before you imported the new file. Doubleclickig changes the display to the new language (faster for checking the translations) but corrupts the file if the namefields in the new language have not been imported...
The gameset language files have a slightly different format than the other *.dat-files. They contain textblocks for every item in the gameset. Each textblock contains a header with the ID of the Item (don't change), the name (which should be translated if neccessary) and one or two text areas with descriptions (also for translation).
In the time someone is translating the gameset creator most probably improves his gameset by adding more items (since none of the gamesets are complete at the moment). When the translation of the first file is complete the translator should ask again for a new languages file. After that he should compare the new one with his translated file and either copy&paste the translations into the new text file or copy the new item blocks from the new file into his translated file - depending on which is less work.
At some time however the gameset creator has to stop adding new items for his gameset and wait for a complete translation - he could probably work on the balance of the gameset, since the data numbers aren't part of the language files. When he gets the complete language file has to import into his gameset and save.
When the gameset creator adds items after a language file was imported, the new items will use the name placed in the name field of the language, but default to the description field of the first language if their own language dosn't contain a description. Because of this the gameset creator has to name the new item (otherwise he would have many items "unbenannt" in the language file), but he doesn't have to worry about translating the descriptions (those fields he could simply leave empty)
verfasst am: 05.02.2007, 21:24 · Edited by: DirkF
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