Create An International English Localization

• Mar 28, 2019 - 10:30

A recent discussion (https://musescore.org/en/node/286818) brought up the need for an International English localization and the potential benefit of using this version as source for localization strings vs. EN-US.

Benefits:

  1. More consistent and commonly accepted terms for translation source.
  2. Likely more familiar terminology for users that wish to use an English version of software, but are non-native speakers.

Comments

  1. Follow the General Midi definition of Instrument names
  2. Follow the MusicXML definition and ID of instrument name and category, genre, etc.
  3. That will permit each country to choose it's own translation preferences and avoid confusion of instrument names.

all MuseScore strings are all (supposed to be) international (aka US) English, a British English translation is available.
This is for core MuseScore, Instruments and Tours.
This does not cover the internal naming of instruments in Soundfonts, and cannot.

I really think this proposal is a waste of time and resources. Few people have a problem understanding either British or American English. Further localization is just not necessary. In about 3 years of dealing with users on this site I never ran into anyone who used an English term that was not common in either of these countries (except Jojo's use of automagically)

Unless someone says, I'm from xxx country and it would help to have my version of English included, there is no reason to do this. There are already enough languages that are barely being maintained, all we need is another flavor of English that no one will maintain.

In reply to by mike320

Many people have difficulties understanding British English, think bar and hemidemisemiquaver...
Much less so with American English.

But yes, my "automagically" is jargon ;-)
And yes, I 100% agree that there is no need for yet another English, International/US and British is enough.
I also haven't yet found any reason for Swiss German or Austrian German and those are different by quite a bit, apparently not in musical terms though.

In reply to by Jojo-Schmitz

There is an absolute need for two English versions because of your examples among many others. But I don't know of anywhere in the world people can't select one of the two languages and be quite comfortable with the version they are working in.

Also the Spanish speakers get along with one version and there are quite a few differences between the languages of Spain and the Americas as much as there is a difference between England and the US. The difference is, as you said about German, the musical terms seem to be mostly consistent. I have been observed some discussions about why certain terms are translated the way they are.

In reply to by Jojo-Schmitz

JoJo... I guess you didn't catch my Swiss German joke then?

DE-CH - Keinekuhglocke :)

If there is only US vs. British English, then British should be the international source version. It is the difference in American terminology that is confusing international users, and international terminology that is confusing Americans. :-)

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