Vega Strike Forums

1. I can translate it to the Polish language

2. Someone is selling vega strike on polish auction site

http://allegro.pl/show_item.php?item=46431557

is it legal ?

Hmm... I think reselling software is legal under the GPL, as long as the source code is also provided or offered.

Yeah, there was a thread about that not to long ago. Hellcatv seems to approve.

I like the Vegastrike banner he made, at any rate...

hehehe
poor suckers who buy it tho--unless they don't have fast network connections--
there's no way Cafe Press charges reasonable shipping to other countries...so might as well move production local

besides--it's not like the VS project would make loads of cash from a niche market across the pond

Sooo... how is this one coming? I am asking because I am a translator myself, and would not mind helping out.


Either way, there are many technical issues before a start, as with all beginnings. I hope someone can answer those, to help any and all translators.

The in-game text looks like it needs to wait for a more mature handling by the game engine. Sorry to be blunt, but there is no way to be sure what can and what can not be translated in many files. A bit too much of a hassle at the moment to go and ask about every second file. One never knows which tags (or tag parts) should be left alone, so no CAT tools can help here. Oh, and there is the time amount needed to test if no damage has been done. Yeah, I'm just too lazy to do it — might as well admit it.

I have read in other discussions that the Wiki could be translated. So far, there is only the Polish(-ish) user interface present, so I guess many things can/need be done. The question is, how exactly does one add pages with the same content, but for a different language? I doubt exchanging the English text directly would do any good (except, perhaps, ending my life rather quickly ).

Is there a useful copy of the manual that can be downloaded somewhere? Sure, I managed to pick up the text from the PDF (meaning: I can start translating parts of it), but it lost most of the formatting, so someone else would have to recreate it after translation. Plus, any pictures and tables are gone. Basically not fun to watch, and it makes parts of the text difficult to translate.

What I did find easily accessible is the Readme, because it comes with the one-package download. Would it make sense to start working on it?

Modo wrote:I have read in other discussions that the Wiki could be translated. So far, there is only the Polish(-ish) user interface present, so I guess many things can/need be done. The question is, how exactly does one add pages with the same content, but for a different language? I doubt exchanging the English text directly would do any good (except, perhaps, ending my life rather quickly ).

Adding pages is not a problem (depending on storage size), its keeping everything in sync. The wiki is a continual work in progress at the moment, and changes to one page would need to be done to all other mirrored pages (being native English speaker, translating English to another language page for edits I do, or adding to English page edits done in other language pages).

Maybe when we have areas that are essentially complete (the wiki manual is 95% done - just touching up the edges) we could do this.

Modo wrote:Is there a useful copy of the manual that can be downloaded somewhere? Sure, I managed to pick up the text from the PDF (meaning: I can start translating parts of it), but it lost most of the formatting, so someone else would have to recreate it after translation. Plus, any pictures and tables are gone. Basically not fun to watch, and it makes parts of the text difficult to translate.

What I did find easily accessible is the Readme, because it comes with the one-package download. Would it make sense to start working on it?

What do you mean by 'useful'. I have a copy of the .pdf in .doc format for editing in Word, and this is uploaded. This page has a link to the source version.

Please note information in there is becoming outdated (wiki manual is the latest information) and will be reviewed later. We/you could also convert to a readme.txt type file too, stripping out pics and unnecessary formatting.

Silverain wrote: Adding pages is not a problem (depending on storage size), its keeping everything in sync.

I understand what you mean. I was asking about a button that I obviously missed. It seems there was no "Add Page" there for me. Never worked with the Wiki format before...

Silverain wrote: Maybe when we have areas that are essentially complete (the wiki manual is 95% done - just touching up the edges) we could do this.

Are the opening pages not something rather static? I was thinking about translating a few of those, to clear out the entrance, so to speak. Having only a few to start with would mean easier updates, helping translators keep up with the English version. Other parts could be translated later, as they get closer to being complete.

Silverain wrote: What do you mean by 'useful'. I have a copy of the .pdf in .doc format for editing in Word, and this is uploaded. This page has a link to the source version.

Thanks, I missed that one.

Silverain wrote: Please note information in there is becoming outdated (wiki manual is the latest information) and will be reviewed later. We/you could also convert to a readme.txt type file too, stripping out pics and unnecessary formatting.

No need to if not required for a good reason. Why would I want to deprive fellow countrymen of that nice introduction pic?

understand what you mean. I was asking about a button that I obviously missed. It seems there was no "Add Page" there for me. Never worked with the Wiki format before...

I suggest reading the reference materials on wikipedia (what the wiki is). They give some good tips on how to use the wiki, including creating pages (a matter of editing your page title in the necessary format on one page, then clicking on that red link to actually create the page.

The opening pages are fairly static, but still being revised in small ways at the momment. You could probably get away with mirror them as you suggest though. ace123 or pontiac, would doing this be a problem size and storage wise?

Okay, did a first Polish version of the main page, and put in in the Sandbox. It has links to the English versions of other pages, to have less red text.

http://vegastrike.sourceforge.net/wiki/Sandbox

Now the question is, should the links be kept alive at all costs (linking to English versions wherever a Polish one is not available yet), or should they all be turned empty, waiting for people to add them? I think the second approach would be better, because it would make it much easier to keep track of what has been added and what needs work.

Comments?

Komentarze?

I would suggest having a link to both side by side, removing the English link when the Polish version is completely translated. This was, it will be easier for people to contribute by placing the links in easily accessible locations.

smbarbour wrote:I would suggest having a link to both side by side, removing the English link when the Polish version is completely translated. This was, it will be easier for people to contribute by placing the links in easily accessible locations.

Easier might not be the exact outcome. You would need to get back to a translated page each time you complete and add a new one. Also, you would need to add links to pages, instead of simply translating text. Granted it seems like a small thing to do, but it is error-prone, and time-consuming.

What it would provide, though, is an easy transition for the readers, for they could go to the English pages each time they find a translation is missing. So, while a bit slower, I think you have a point there.

It might be a bit easier if one would add the "empty" link only when planning to actually translate a page. Otherwise the whole layout would go to hell, and the clutter would actually make it difficult to find things. Not to mention, duplicating each link when starting a new page would be quite a hassle (lots of work not translating).

So how about this solution: Each time a translator starts work on a new page, he or she edits the previous one, adding one new link. Then, once done, the link to the English version is removed permanently. Good enough?

That is a good idea. The works in progress should have a link to both, works not started should only have english, and works completed should only have the other language (Polish in this case, but same is true for others). The real issue is that once the translation is finished, someone will need to keep track of changes to the English version (assuming that the English version is the most current) to make the appropriate changes to the translations. I'm only fluent in English, so I know I won't be the one to make updates, but good luck to whoever will be doing this.

Now the most important thing to decide. Which page should be used to link to the translated version? This might seem simple when only one language is considered (You can almost put it anywhere on the main page in that case.), but when (not "if") more translations are added, I think a systematic approach is needed.

Best would be some automatic system. Basically, if you could define a format for adding a translation to a page (say by adding a special language suffix to its name), wiki could automatically show a button linking to the translation, if one exists. It could also check the user's language preferences to try and find the correct translation right away. I do not know if something like that is available, so I will assume for now that it is not the case.

The simpler approach would be to create a separate "Translations" (or something - I suck at giving names) page. This should be accessible from the main page of every language, and made well visible for new users. It would be similar to the "FAQs" link, being there on the main page instead of every single FAQ. This way people could see if a translation is available.

All that rumbling seems to me like overkill for just one language. OTOH, why not make it right the first time, and provide a basis for others?