Ubuntu Wiki

   1 [15:02] <ClassBot> Logs for this session will be available at http://irclogs.ubuntu.com/2011/05/03/%23ubuntu-classroom.html following the conclusion of the session.
   2 [15:03] <dpm> hello everyone!
   3 [15:04] <dpm> Welcome to the first session on the second day of Ubuntu Open Week
   4 [15:04] <dpm> let's wait for a couple of minutes for people to come in...
   5 [15:05] <dpm> we're going to talk about something very exciting today: Ubuntu translations
   6 [15:05] <dpm> I've reserved some time at the end of the session for questions,
   7 [15:06] <dpm> but if you've got any question during the session, please feel free to ask
   8 [15:06] <dpm> just prepend it with QUESTION: and post it on the #ubuntu-classroom-chat channel
   9 [15:07] <dpm> so let's start with presentations first ;)
  10 [15:07] <dpm> My name is David Planella, and I work as the Ubuntu Translations Coordinator at Canonical, in the Community team
  11 [15:07] <dpm> there I have the pleasure to work with Ubuntu legends such as Jorge Castro, Daniel Holbach, Ahmed Kamal and least but not last our fearless leader, Jono Bacon.
  12 [15:08] <dpm> and also very importantly, I get to work with the not less legendary Ubuntu translation teams
  13 [15:09] <dpm> So be very welcome to this session on Ubuntu Translations, where we'll see
  14 [15:09] <dpm> how Ubuntu can be translated into almost any language,
  15 [15:09] <dpm> the work of our awesome translation teams,
  16 [15:09] <dpm> how Launchpad can be used to translate Ubuntu in a distributed manner,
  17 [15:10] <dpm> and how to get started translating Ubuntu
  18 [15:10] <dpm> You can also follow this presentation through the slides at:
  19 [15:10] <dpm> http://people.ubuntu.com/~dpm/Presentations/UOW-Ubuntu-Translations.pdf
  20 [15:10] <dpm> So, without further ado...
  21 [15:10] <dpm> Benvinguts, Willkommen, Bienvenidos, ようこそ, Welcome, 환영합니다, Bem-vindo, Ongietorri, স্বাগতম, Welkom, Mirë se erdhët, Bienllegáu, እንኳን ደህና መጡ, Вітаем, مرحبا, Dobro došli, Donedigezh vat, Добре дошли, 歡迎, Dobrodošli, 欢迎, Velkommen, Welkom, Bonvenon, Tere tulemast, Tervetuloa, Bienvenue, Wolkom, Benvido, Καλώς ήρθατε, ברוכים הבאים, Üdvözöljük, Velkomin, Selamat Datang, Benvenuti, ಸುಸ್ವಾಗತ, Witôj, Қош келдіңіз, Esiet sveicināti, Sveiki, Selamat Datang, स्वागतम्, Velkomen, Benvenguda, Witamy, Bun venit, Добро пожаловать, Добродошли, Vitajte, Välkommen, நல்வரவு, ยินดีต้อนรับ, Hoşgeldiniz, Ласкаво просимо, خوش آمدید, Chào mừng, مەرھابا !!!
  22 [15:10] <dpm> (if I've forgotten to welcome in your language, do write a big "welcome" in #ubuntu-classroom chat, and I'll include it here too :)
  23 [15:12] <dpm> Ubuntu has a very diverse community, and one of the aspects this diversity is directly reflected is in the number of languages it is translated into, and the communities built around them.
  24 [15:13] <dpm> "Every computer user should be able to use their software in the language of their choice" lies at the very core of the Ubuntu philosophy
  25 [15:14] <dpm> http://www.ubuntu.com/community/ubuntustory/philosophy
  26 [15:14] <dpm> which is why we encourage the creation of translation communities and provide them resources to ease the process of translation into their own language
  27 [15:14] <dpm> so that anyone, without requiring advanced technical skills, can start contributing from day one.
  28 [15:15] <dpm> So let's try to answer some basic questions...
  29 [15:16] <dpm> oh, I meant I was going to answer some questions, but we've got one already from the audience :)
  30 [15:16] <ClassBot> bullgard4 asked: Into how many languages is Ubuntu translated?
  31 [15:17] <dpm> Ubuntu is fully translated into 43 languages. However, there are many, many more in which the translation can be considered good. Here you can see the detailed statistics:
  32 [15:17] <dpm> http://people.canonical.com/~dpm/stats/ubuntu-11.04-translation-stats.html
  33 [15:18] <dpm> so hopefully this session will help you guys make that list grow ;)
  34 [15:18] <dpm> anyway, back to talking about basic questions:
  35 [15:18] <dpm> ======================
  36 [15:18] <dpm> Who translates Ubuntu?
  37 [15:18] <dpm> ======================
  38 [15:18] <dpm> That's an easy one: Ubuntu Translators.
  39 [15:19] <dpm> They are volunteers who organise themselves in translation teams, appointed to be responsible for the translation of a given language.
  40 [15:19] <dpm> And they just rock
  41 [15:19] <dpm> You can see the full list of Ubuntu translation teams here:
  42 [15:19] <dpm> https://translations.launchpad.net/+groups/ubuntu-translators
  43 [15:20] <dpm> We've currently got about 150, of about 220 registered languages for Ubuntu in Launchpad, our online translation tool
  44 [15:20] <dpm> So if there isn't an Ubuntu translation team for your language, now is the chance to create one :)
  45 [15:20] <dpm> But more on that later
  46 [15:20] <dpm> Also very important to mention is the work of upstream translators, whose effort Ubuntu benefits greatly from.
  47 [15:21] <dpm> Ubuntu includes the best-of-breed Open Source software of the many independent projects available, which is what we call upstream.
  48 [15:21] <dpm> Translations are no exception, and if these upstream projects are translated outside of Ubuntu, we import and use the awesome work of upstream translators
  49 [15:22] <dpm> Let's see some numbers about our amazing translations community:
  50 [15:22] <dpm> nearly 18.000 translators who've submitted at least one translation,
  51 [15:22] <dpm> coming from more than 240 countries.
  52 [15:22] <dpm> A default Ubuntu installation contains about 160.000 translatable messages,
  53 [15:23] <dpm> which can go up to 475.000 when adding applications not installed by default such as GIMP, Inkscape, etc.
  54 [15:23] <dpm> And here's an overview of how well translated Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal) is in each language:
  55 [15:23] <dpm>   http://people.canonical.com/~dpm/stats/ubuntu-11.04-translation-stats.html
  56 [15:24] <dpm> same link as before
  57 [15:24] <dpm> So you see that there's a lot of work to do, and _you_ can help in making Ubuntu better supported in your language.
  58 [15:24] <dpm> Let's see how...
  59 [15:24] <dpm> =========================
  60 [15:24] <dpm> How is Ubuntu translated?
  61 [15:24] <dpm> =========================
  62 [15:24] <dpm> We use our very own translations tool: Launchpad Translations
  63 [15:25] <dpm> Launchpad Translations allows you to easily translate projects online
  64 [15:25] <dpm> and seamlessly build and organise translation communities around them.
  65 [15:25] <dpm> It also allows translating Operating Systems, Ubuntu being the most evident example.
  66 [15:25] <dpm> You can start translating Ubuntu here:
  67 [15:25] <dpm>     https://translations.launchpad.net/ubuntu
  68 [15:26] <dpm> There you'll see a list of translatable applications and documentation, ordered by priority and ready to translate
  69 [15:26] <dpm> Take some time to look at the list, I'm sure this will bring questions later on :-)
  70 [15:27] <dpm> Alternatively, you can go directly to translatable applications in Launchpad from your desktop.
  71 [15:27] <dpm> If you've been following the slides, you'll see how to do it on slide #6
  72 [15:27] <dpm> If you open an application and go to Help > Translate this application...,
  73 [15:28] <dpm> your browser will be started and it will take you to the Launchpad Translations page for that application.
  74 [15:28] <dpm> Which is pretty neat
  75 [15:28] <dpm> You can try this: open Gedit, go to "Help > Translate this application..." and see it for yourself.
  76 [15:28] <dpm> On the browser window that opens you can start submitting translation suggestions from day one.
  77 [15:28] <dpm> This will take you to the translation page in your preferred language
  78 [15:29] <dpm> which you can then click on and you'll see the list of translatable applications
  79 [15:29] <dpm> your language in Launchpad
  80 [15:29] <dpm> *for your language in Launchpad
  81 [15:30] <dpm> using the standard translations terminology, these are called 'translation templates', or just 'templates'
  82 [15:30] <dpm> and are the translatable units translators work with
  83 [15:30] <dpm> I'd really recommend you to try to using Launchpad for online translation
  84 [15:30] <dpm> it is really easy and flexible
  85 [15:31] <dpm> and it allows saving your work, even before it is reviewed, facilitating the QA work
  86 [15:31] <dpm> that said, if you prefer translating offline, Launchpad Translations is flexible enough to let you download PO files (text files used for translations)
  87 [15:31] <dpm> to be used in offline translation tools
  88 [15:31] <dpm> but that's material for another presentation
  89 [15:31] <dpm> Let's move on...
  90 [15:32] <dpm> =====================
  91 [15:32] <dpm> How can I contribute?
  92 [15:32] <dpm> =====================
  93 [15:33] <dpm> As in any Open Source project, communication is key for collaboration.
  94 [15:33] <dpm> and translations are no different
  95 [15:33] <dpm> While everyone can submit translation suggestions in Launchpad,
  96 [15:34] <dpm> (well, everyone with a Launchpad account)
  97 [15:34] <dpm> We do not only want to provide the best translated OS, but also the best quality of translations.
  98 [15:34] <dpm> So we also encourage translation teams to communicate through any means appropriate
  99 [15:34] <dpm> most teams use a mailing list
 100 [15:34] <dpm> but others also forums, IRC, etc.
 101 [15:35] <dpm> and most of them have also got a wiki page in the Ubuntu namespace
 102 [15:35] <dpm> where they coordinate their work
 103 [15:35] <dpm> just as an example:
 104 [15:35] <dpm> https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuCatalanTranslators
 105 [15:36] <dpm> With all that I mean that while the first step in contributing is to submit translation suggestions,
 106 [15:36] <dpm> at https://translations.launchpad.net/ubuntu/
 107 [15:37] <dpm> the next step in contributing to Ubuntu Translations is to get in touch with the translation team for your language,
 108 [15:37] <dpm> and tell them you'd like to contribute.
 109 [15:38] <dpm> It's easy: you can just find them on
 110 [15:38] <dpm>     https://translations.launchpad.net/+groups/ubuntu-translators
 111 [15:38] <dpm> On that page, you can just click on the links under the "Team/Supervisor" column and they will take you to the Launchpad page for the team
 112 [15:39] <dpm> You see that finding the language is quite simple, it's on the column on the left
 113 [15:39] <dpm> and most translation teams are named
 114 [15:39] <dpm> "Ubuntu <language> translators"
 115 [15:39] <dpm> where <language> is the name of the language they translate into
 116 [15:39] <dpm> on their Launchpad page you'll find all the info you'll need to get in touch with them
 117 [15:40] <dpm> As an example:
 118 [15:40] <dpm> https://launchpad.net/~ubuntu-l10n-it
 119 [15:40] <dpm> If there isn't a team for your language yet, you should definitely start one
 120 [15:40] <dpm> You can do it by following these simple steps:
 121 [15:40] <dpm>     https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Translations/KnowledgeBase/StartingTeam
 122 [15:40] <dpm> it is a one-off step, which shouldn't take long
 123 [15:41] <dpm> and after the new team has been appointed, you can start translating in Launchpad straight away
 124 [15:41] <dpm> If that step gets too technical for you, do not worry
 125 [15:41] <dpm> You can always get in touch with the global translations community and ask for help or advice, which is always a good idea
 126 [15:41] <dpm> Also if you want to start any discussion on Ubuntu Translations
 127 [15:41] <dpm> In true Ubuntu spirit, everyone is welcome there, and you'll get to know lots of interesting people from all over the globe :)
 128 [15:41] <dpm> Here's how to get in touch with the global translations community:
 129 [15:42] <dpm>     https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Translations/Contact
 130 [15:42] <dpm> And while you have a look at that, we'll enter the last part of this session
 131 [15:42] <dpm> ===
 132 [15:42] <dpm> Q&A
 133 [15:42] <dpm> ===
 134 [15:43] <dpm> So I hope that that gave you a taste of how translation works in Ubuntu and how you can join our awesome translators.
 135 [15:43] <dpm> Now feel free to ask any questions about anything related to translations.
 136 [15:43] <dpm> Bring them on! ;-)
 137 [15:43] <ClassBot> brousch asked: Is a presentation about offline translations and .po files scheduled? If so, when will it be?
 138 [15:44] <dpm> I don't have any planned right now, but it might be a good idea. However, I'd very much recommend to translate online to get your translations accepted straight away without having to wait
 139 [15:44] <dpm> That said, if you've got any questions about offline translation
 140 [15:45] <dpm> I'll be happy to answer them here :)
 141 [15:47] <ClassBot> brousch asked: How do you recruit translators?
 142 [15:47] <dpm> that's actually a very good question
 143 [15:47] <dpm> it really depends on the translation team and how it works
 144 [15:48] <dpm> but there are a few best practice tips that can be helpful for recruiting new contributors for your language:
 145 [15:48] <dpm> * create a dedicated translation team in your loco
 146 [15:48] <dpm> * set up a mailing list or another channel for communication
 147 [15:49] <dpm> * set up translation goals for the team
 148 [15:49] <dpm> * keep the communication flowing
 149 [15:49] <dpm> * organize translation events: a good idea is to organize translation jams during the Ubuntu Global Jam
 150 [15:50] <dpm> they are extremely helpful to meet new people and mentor them on how to start translating Ubuntu
 151 [15:51] <dpm> * promote your translation effort: encourage people to participate by blogging and communicating about it
 152 [15:51] <dpm> * Organize regular IRC translation jams or meetings with your team
 153 [15:51] <dpm> These are just a few that come to mind, which can be helpful in keeping a healthy translation team
 154 [15:52] <ClassBot> kkitano asked: Are the majority of ubuntu translators translating into their native languages, or is there also a mix of translators who are not native speakers but are fluent in another language or who have studied it?
 155 [15:52] <ClassBot> There are 10 minutes remaining in the current session.
 156 [15:53] <dpm> Most of the Ubuntu translators I know are native speakers, but I also know of cases of non-native speakers that are part of a translation team. In the latter case, though, they need to be very fluent in the language
 157 [15:53] <ClassBot> uuser2233 asked: Is there any particular reason as to why there is one language package for all software preinstalled on ubuntu and not seperate ones like for the rest?
 158 [15:54] <dpm> in fact, there are at least 3 language packs for each language (base, kde and gnome), but let me answer the question without entering into much detail:
 159 [15:55] <dpm> having separate language packs from the main applications
 160 [15:55] <dpm> allow us to do something unique amongst Linux distros: deliver regular updates of translations that can be kept separate of applications
 161 [15:56] <dpm> This makes it much easier to provide frequent translation updates without having to reupload a big number of packages, with all the overhead that this would involve
 162 [15:56] <ClassBot> jibel asked: What's the process if, as a user, I find an error with a translation for my language.
 163 [15:56] <dpm> excellent question :)
 164 [15:57] <dpm> You can do either of these:
 165 [15:57] <ClassBot> There are 5 minutes remaining in the current session.
 166 [15:57] <dpm> a) Directly contact the translation team for the language and give them a heads up so that they can fix it.
 167 [15:57] <dpm> (You can find the contact data for all teams at https://translations.launchpad.net/+groups/ubuntu-translators, as mentioned earlier)
 168 [15:57] <dpm> or
 169 [15:58] <dpm> b) You can file a bug against the ubuntu-translations project,
 170 [15:58] <dpm> https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu-translations/+filebug/
 171 [15:58] <dpm> There we'll assign it to the right translation team,
 172 [15:59] <dpm> who'll be notified about it and be able to fix it in Launchpad
 173 === koolhead11 is now known as koolhead11|afk
 174 [15:59] <dpm> Members of the bugsquad can easily assign the bug to the corresponding ubuntu-l10n-<language> team too
 175 [16:00] <dpm> Ok, so no more time left
 176 [16:00] <dpm> thanks a lot for your participation
 177 [16:00] <dpm> your excellent questions, and see you on the next Ubuntu Open Week!
 178 [16:01] <dpm> I'll now leave you in the expert hands of xdatap and Having Fun With Ubuntu Testing.