A generic i18n and l10n strategy for FLOW3 and TYPO3v5
Proposed by: Karsten Dambekalns
Mentor: TBD
Student working on it: -
Overview
TYPO3v5 will need strong support for localization and internationalization. Since it is based on FLOW3 this means the framework needs to provide excellent support for those problem areas.
Issues
- How can localization be as easy as possible for PHP developers?
- In what way Fluid templates can (and need to) be handled when it comes to i18n and l10n?
- What about plural forms and other problems in "exotic" languages?
- How can translators access the data to be translated for import and export? What translation software needs to be supported?
- What existing standards for data interchange and storage exist and could be used?
Goals / Deliverables
Overall goal is a working robust and extensible system for the FLOW3 framework to handle i18n and l10n issues:
- Answers to overall questions as to what needs to be supported
- An easy way to use the system in PHP code and Fluid templates
- Solutions for plural forms and positional parameters in translations
- ... and answers to the ton of questions that will arise during work :)
Note: there already is a FLOW3 package called "Locale" which packages the CLDR data which should be used as a base for language and locale handling.
Details
The CLDR project provides data for "such common software tasks as:
- formatting of dates, times, and time zones,
- formatting numbers and currency values
- sorting text
- choosing languages or countries by name"
But the data alone is not enough, as it must be usable for PHP developers and template designers very easily - so that the thought of "oh, let's just hardcode this here and come back later" doesn't even occur!
While a lot of frameworks and systems provide support for i18n and l10n problems, most do not go the full way and ignore the more complex problems.
Required Skills or Background
While you need not be a PHP wizard, you should have a strong interest in language handling using computers. This includes charset issues, date and time handling, linguistic pitfalls, ... Most important probably is patience and drive, as well as good communication skills.
Comments
This is a great way of making the world a better place - simply look at how many websites even today have problems of using "special" characters in your account data, blog comments, ...
