Re: xgettext: one comment for multiple translations

[Karl Eichwalder]

address@hidden (Bruno Haible) writes:

Thanks for your answer.

> Thanks for the suggestion. But your proposal has the drawback that the
> simple introduction of whitespace would change the POT file:
>
>     /* comment */
>     func(_("str1"), _("str2"));
>
> vs.
>
>     /* comment */
>     func(_("str1"),
>          _("str2"));

Yes, but that's a problem in theory only (IMO).  When the function
already spreads about more than one line, you can spend one more line
for a comment.  One for short messages (inherently ambiguous!) I'd
appreciate the implementation of the proposed feature:

    /* GUI button text */
    func(_("Save"), _("Abort"));

I know it's possible the embed such info in the message itself:

    func( sgettext("GUIbutton|Save"), sgettext("GUIbutton|Abort"));

and provide a sgettext function that throws away the prefix part
"GUIbutton|" (cf. the gettext manual).  Unfortunately, hackers don't
seem to like this approach and it's suitable for short texts only.
Thus the KDE guys invent their own gettext function
(cf. gettext/Admin/plans in the CVS tree).

> The workaround/solution for you is obviously to repeat the comment:
>
>     /* comment */
>     func(_("str1"),
>          /* comment */
>          _("str2"));

Hackers already cursing on me because all the i18n stuff leads to ugly
cluttered code ;)  Maybe one should write:

    /* comment on the function -- ignored by xgettext */
    func(
         /* comment -- seen by xgettext*/
         _("str1"),
         /* comment -- likewise */
         _("str2"));

-- 
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