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<H1><A NAME="SEC7" HREF="gettext_toc.html#TOC7">2 PO Files and PO Mode Basics</A></H1>
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The GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> toolset helps programmers and translators
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at producing, updating and using translation files, mainly those
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PO files which are textual, editable files. This chapter stresses
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the format of PO files, and contains a PO mode starter. PO mode
20
description is spread throughout this manual instead of being concentrated
21
in one place. Here we present only the basics of PO mode.
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<H2><A NAME="SEC8" HREF="gettext_toc.html#TOC8">2.1 Completing GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> Installation</A></H2>
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Once you have received, unpacked, configured and compiled the GNU
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<CODE>gettext</CODE> distribution, the <SAMP>`make install´</SAMP> command puts in
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place the programs <CODE>xgettext</CODE>, <CODE>msgfmt</CODE>, <CODE>gettext</CODE>, and
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<CODE>msgmerge</CODE>, as well as their available message catalogs. To
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top off a comfortable installation, you might also want to make the
37
PO mode available to your Emacs users.
43
During the installation of the PO mode, you might want to modify your
44
file <TT>`.emacs´</TT>, once and for all, so it contains a few lines looking
51
(cons '("\\.po\\'\\|\\.po\\." . po-mode) auto-mode-alist))
52
(autoload 'po-mode "po-mode" "Major mode for translators to edit PO files" t)
56
Later, whenever you edit some <TT>`.po´</TT>
57
file, or any file having the string <SAMP>`.po.´</SAMP> within its name,
58
Emacs loads <TT>`po-mode.elc´</TT> (or <TT>`po-mode.el´</TT>) as needed, and
59
automatically activates PO mode commands for the associated buffer.
60
The string <EM>PO</EM> appears in the mode line for any buffer for
61
which PO mode is active. Many PO files may be active at once in a
66
If you are using Emacs version 20 or newer, and have already installed
67
the appropriate international fonts on your system, you may also tell
68
Emacs how to determine automatically the coding system of every PO file.
69
This will often (but not always) cause the necessary fonts to be loaded
70
and used for displaying the translations on your Emacs screen. For this
71
to happen, add the lines:
76
(modify-coding-system-alist 'file "\\.po\\'\\|\\.po\\."
77
'po-find-file-coding-system)
78
(autoload 'po-find-file-coding-system "po-mode")
82
to your <TT>`.emacs´</TT> file. If, with this, you still see boxes instead
83
of international characters, try a different font set (via Shift Mouse
89
<H2><A NAME="SEC9" HREF="gettext_toc.html#TOC9">2.2 The Format of PO Files</A></H2>
96
A PO file is made up of many entries, each entry holding the relation
97
between an original untranslated string and its corresponding
98
translation. All entries in a given PO file usually pertain
99
to a single project, and all translations are expressed in a single
100
target language. One PO file <EM>entry</EM> has the following schematic
106
<VAR>white-space</VAR>
107
# <VAR>translator-comments</VAR>
108
#. <VAR>automatic-comments</VAR>
109
#: <VAR>reference</VAR>...
110
#, <VAR>flag</VAR>...
111
msgid <VAR>untranslated-string</VAR>
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msgstr <VAR>translated-string</VAR>
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The general structure of a PO file should be well understood by
117
the translator. When using PO mode, very little has to be known
118
about the format details, as PO mode takes care of them for her.
122
A simple entry can look like this:
128
msgid "Unknown system error"
129
msgstr "Error desconegut del sistema"
133
Entries begin with some optional white space. Usually, when generated
134
through GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> tools, there is exactly one blank line
135
between entries. Then comments follow, on lines all starting with the
136
character <CODE>#</CODE>. There are two kinds of comments: those which have
137
some white space immediately following the <CODE>#</CODE>, which comments are
138
created and maintained exclusively by the translator, and those which
139
have some non-white character just after the <CODE>#</CODE>, which comments
140
are created and maintained automatically by GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> tools.
141
All comments, of either kind, are optional.
147
After white space and comments, entries show two strings, namely
148
first the untranslated string as it appears in the original program
149
sources, and then, the translation of this string. The original
150
string is introduced by the keyword <CODE>msgid</CODE>, and the translation,
151
by <CODE>msgstr</CODE>. The two strings, untranslated and translated,
152
are quoted in various ways in the PO file, using <CODE>"</CODE>
153
delimiters and <CODE>\</CODE> escapes, but the translator does not really
154
have to pay attention to the precise quoting format, as PO mode fully
155
takes care of quoting for her.
159
The <CODE>msgid</CODE> strings, as well as automatic comments, are produced
160
and managed by other GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> tools, and PO mode does not
161
provide means for the translator to alter these. The most she can
162
do is merely deleting them, and only by deleting the whole entry.
163
On the other hand, the <CODE>msgstr</CODE> string, as well as translator
164
comments, are really meant for the translator, and PO mode gives her
165
the full control she needs.
169
The comment lines beginning with <CODE>#,</CODE> are special because they are
170
not completely ignored by the programs as comments generally are. The
171
comma separated list of <VAR>flag</VAR>s is used by the <CODE>msgfmt</CODE>
172
program to give the user some better diagnostic messages. Currently
173
there are two forms of flags defined:
178
<DT><CODE>fuzzy</CODE>
181
This flag can be generated by the <CODE>msgmerge</CODE> program or it can be
182
inserted by the translator herself. It shows that the <CODE>msgstr</CODE>
183
string might not be a correct translation (anymore). Only the translator
184
can judge if the translation requires further modification, or is
185
acceptable as is. Once satisfied with the translation, she then removes
186
this <CODE>fuzzy</CODE> attribute. The <CODE>msgmerge</CODE> program inserts this
187
when it combined the <CODE>msgid</CODE> and <CODE>msgstr</CODE> entries after fuzzy
188
search only. See section <A HREF="gettext_6.html#SEC51">6.3 Fuzzy Entries</A>.
190
<DT><CODE>c-format</CODE>
193
<DT><CODE>no-c-format</CODE>
196
These flags should not be added by a human. Instead only the
197
<CODE>xgettext</CODE> program adds them. In an automated PO file processing
198
system as proposed here the user changes would be thrown away again as
199
soon as the <CODE>xgettext</CODE> program generates a new template file.
201
The <CODE>c-format</CODE> flag tells that the untranslated string and the
202
translation are supposed to be C format strings. The <CODE>no-c-format</CODE>
203
flag tells that they are not C format strings, even though the untranslated
204
string happens to look like a C format string (with <SAMP>`%´</SAMP> directives).
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In case the <CODE>c-format</CODE> flag is given for a string the <CODE>msgfmt</CODE>
207
does some more tests to check to validity of the translation.
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See section <A HREF="gettext_8.html#SEC135">8.1 Invoking the <CODE>msgfmt</CODE> Program</A>, section <A HREF="gettext_3.html#SEC18">3.5 Special Comments preceding Keywords</A> and section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC224">13.3.1 C Format Strings</A>.
210
<DT><CODE>objc-format</CODE>
213
<DT><CODE>no-objc-format</CODE>
216
Likewise for Objective C, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC225">13.3.2 Objective C Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>sh-format</CODE>
221
<DT><CODE>no-sh-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Shell, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC226">13.3.3 Shell Format Strings</A>.
226
<DT><CODE>python-format</CODE>
229
<DT><CODE>no-python-format</CODE>
232
Likewise for Python, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC227">13.3.4 Python Format Strings</A>.
234
<DT><CODE>lisp-format</CODE>
237
<DT><CODE>no-lisp-format</CODE>
240
Likewise for Lisp, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC228">13.3.5 Lisp Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>elisp-format</CODE>
245
<DT><CODE>no-elisp-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Emacs Lisp, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC229">13.3.6 Emacs Lisp Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>librep-format</CODE>
253
<DT><CODE>no-librep-format</CODE>
256
Likewise for librep, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC230">13.3.7 librep Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>smalltalk-format</CODE>
261
<DT><CODE>no-smalltalk-format</CODE>
264
Likewise for Smalltalk, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC231">13.3.8 Smalltalk Format Strings</A>.
266
<DT><CODE>java-format</CODE>
269
<DT><CODE>no-java-format</CODE>
272
Likewise for Java, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC232">13.3.9 Java Format Strings</A>.
274
<DT><CODE>csharp-format</CODE>
277
<DT><CODE>no-csharp-format</CODE>
280
Likewise for C#, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC233">13.3.10 C# Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>awk-format</CODE>
285
<DT><CODE>no-awk-format</CODE>
288
Likewise for awk, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC234">13.3.11 awk Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>object-pascal-format</CODE>
293
<DT><CODE>no-object-pascal-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Object Pascal, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC235">13.3.12 Object Pascal Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>ycp-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-ycp-format</CODE>
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Likewise for YCP, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC236">13.3.13 YCP Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>tcl-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-tcl-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Tcl, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC237">13.3.14 Tcl Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>perl-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-perl-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Perl, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC238">13.3.15 Perl Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>perl-brace-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-perl-brace-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Perl brace, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC238">13.3.15 Perl Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>php-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-php-format</CODE>
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Likewise for PHP, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC239">13.3.16 PHP Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>gcc-internal-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-gcc-internal-format</CODE>
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Likewise for the GCC sources, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC240">13.3.17 GCC internal Format Strings</A>.
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<DT><CODE>qt-format</CODE>
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<DT><CODE>no-qt-format</CODE>
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Likewise for Qt, see section <A HREF="gettext_13.html#SEC241">13.3.18 Qt Format Strings</A>.
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A different kind of entries is used for translations which involve
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<VAR>white-space</VAR>
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# <VAR>translator-comments</VAR>
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#. <VAR>automatic-comments</VAR>
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#: <VAR>reference</VAR>...
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#, <VAR>flag</VAR>...
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msgid <VAR>untranslated-string-singular</VAR>
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msgid_plural <VAR>untranslated-string-plural</VAR>
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msgstr[0] <VAR>translated-string-case-0</VAR>
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msgstr[N] <VAR>translated-string-case-n</VAR>
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Such an entry can look like this:
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#: src/msgcmp.c:338 src/po-lex.c:699
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msgid "found %d fatal error"
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msgid_plural "found %d fatal errors"
387
msgstr[0] "s'ha trobat %d error fatal"
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msgstr[1] "s'han trobat %d errors fatals"
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It happens that some lines, usually whitespace or comments, follow the
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very last entry of a PO file. Such lines are not part of any entry,
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and PO mode is unable to take action on those lines. By using the
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PO mode function <KBD>M-x po-normalize</KBD>, the translator may get
397
rid of those spurious lines. See section <A HREF="gettext_2.html#SEC12">2.5 Normalizing Strings in Entries</A>.
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The remainder of this section may be safely skipped by those using
402
PO mode, yet it may be interesting for everybody to have a better
403
idea of the precise format of a PO file. On the other hand, those
404
not having Emacs handy should carefully continue reading on.
408
Each of <VAR>untranslated-string</VAR> and <VAR>translated-string</VAR> respects
409
the C syntax for a character string, including the surrounding quotes
410
and embedded backslashed escape sequences. When the time comes
411
to write multi-line strings, one should not use escaped newlines.
412
Instead, a closing quote should follow the last character on the
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line to be continued, and an opening quote should resume the string
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at the beginning of the following PO file line. For example:
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"Here is an example of how one might continue a very long string\n"
421
"for the common case the string represents multi-line output.\n"
425
In this example, the empty string is used on the first line, to
426
allow better alignment of the <CODE>H</CODE> from the word <SAMP>`Here´</SAMP>
427
over the <CODE>f</CODE> from the word <SAMP>`for´</SAMP>. In this example, the
428
<CODE>msgid</CODE> keyword is followed by three strings, which are meant
429
to be concatenated. Concatenating the empty string does not change
430
the resulting overall string, but it is a way for us to comply with
431
the necessity of <CODE>msgid</CODE> to be followed by a string on the same
432
line, while keeping the multi-line presentation left-justified, as
433
we find this to be a cleaner disposition. The empty string could have
434
been omitted, but only if the string starting with <SAMP>`Here´</SAMP> was
435
promoted on the first line, right after <CODE>msgid</CODE>.<A NAME="DOCF2" HREF="gettext_foot.html#FOOT2">(2)</A> It was not really necessary
436
either to switch between the two last quoted strings immediately after
437
the newline <SAMP>`\n´</SAMP>, the switch could have occurred after <EM>any</EM>
438
other character, we just did it this way because it is neater.
443
One should carefully distinguish between end of lines marked as
444
<SAMP>`\n´</SAMP> <EM>inside</EM> quotes, which are part of the represented
445
string, and end of lines in the PO file itself, outside string quotes,
446
which have no incidence on the represented string.
451
Outside strings, white lines and comments may be used freely.
452
Comments start at the beginning of a line with <SAMP>`#´</SAMP> and extend
453
until the end of the PO file line. Comments written by translators
454
should have the initial <SAMP>`#´</SAMP> immediately followed by some white
455
space. If the <SAMP>`#´</SAMP> is not immediately followed by white space,
456
this comment is most likely generated and managed by specialized GNU
457
tools, and might disappear or be replaced unexpectedly when the PO
458
file is given to <CODE>msgmerge</CODE>.
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<H2><A NAME="SEC10" HREF="gettext_toc.html#TOC10">2.3 Main PO mode Commands</A></H2>
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After setting up Emacs with something similar to the lines in
469
section <A HREF="gettext_2.html#SEC8">2.1 Completing GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> Installation</A>, PO mode is activated for a window when Emacs finds a
470
PO file in that window. This puts the window read-only and establishes a
471
po-mode-map, which is a genuine Emacs mode, in a way that is not derived
472
from text mode in any way. Functions found on <CODE>po-mode-hook</CODE>,
473
if any, will be executed.
477
When PO mode is active in a window, the letters <SAMP>`PO´</SAMP> appear
478
in the mode line for that window. The mode line also displays how
479
many entries of each kind are held in the PO file. For example,
480
the string <SAMP>`132t+3f+10u+2o´</SAMP> would tell the translator that the
481
PO mode contains 132 translated entries (see section <A HREF="gettext_6.html#SEC50">6.2 Translated Entries</A>,
482
3 fuzzy entries (see section <A HREF="gettext_6.html#SEC51">6.3 Fuzzy Entries</A>), 10 untranslated entries
483
(see section <A HREF="gettext_6.html#SEC52">6.4 Untranslated Entries</A>) and 2 obsolete entries (see section <A HREF="gettext_6.html#SEC53">6.5 Obsolete Entries</A>). Zero-coefficients items are not shown. So, in this example, if
484
the fuzzy entries were unfuzzied, the untranslated entries were translated
485
and the obsolete entries were deleted, the mode line would merely display
486
<SAMP>`145t´</SAMP> for the counters.
490
The main PO commands are those which do not fit into the other categories of
491
subsequent sections. These allow for quitting PO mode or for managing windows
500
Undo last modification to the PO file (<CODE>po-undo</CODE>).
505
Quit processing and save the PO file (<CODE>po-quit</CODE>).
510
Quit processing, possibly after confirmation (<CODE>po-confirm-and-quit</CODE>).
515
Temporary leave the PO file window (<CODE>po-other-window</CODE>).
523
Show help about PO mode (<CODE>po-help</CODE>).
528
Give some PO file statistics (<CODE>po-statistics</CODE>).
532
<A NAME="IDX100"></A>
533
Batch validate the format of the whole PO file (<CODE>po-validate</CODE>).
538
<A NAME="IDX101"></A>
539
<A NAME="IDX102"></A>
540
The command <KBD>_</KBD> (<CODE>po-undo</CODE>) interfaces to the Emacs
541
<EM>undo</EM> facility. See section `Undoing Changes' in <CITE>The Emacs Editor</CITE>. Each time <KBD>U</KBD> is typed, modifications which the translator
542
did to the PO file are undone a little more. For the purpose of
543
undoing, each PO mode command is atomic. This is especially true for
544
the <KBD><KBD>RET</KBD></KBD> command: the whole edition made by using a single
545
use of this command is undone at once, even if the edition itself
546
implied several actions. However, while in the editing window, one
547
can undo the edition work quite parsimoniously.
551
<A NAME="IDX103"></A>
552
<A NAME="IDX104"></A>
553
<A NAME="IDX105"></A>
554
<A NAME="IDX106"></A>
555
The commands <KBD>Q</KBD> (<CODE>po-quit</CODE>) and <KBD>q</KBD>
556
(<CODE>po-confirm-and-quit</CODE>) are used when the translator is done with the
557
PO file. The former is a bit less verbose than the latter. If the file
558
has been modified, it is saved to disk first. In both cases, and prior to
559
all this, the commands check if any untranslated messages remain in the
560
PO file and, if so, the translator is asked if she really wants to leave
561
off working with this PO file. This is the preferred way of getting rid
562
of an Emacs PO file buffer. Merely killing it through the usual command
563
<KBD>C-x k</KBD> (<CODE>kill-buffer</CODE>) is not the tidiest way to proceed.
567
<A NAME="IDX107"></A>
568
<A NAME="IDX108"></A>
569
The command <KBD>0</KBD> (<CODE>po-other-window</CODE>) is another, softer way,
570
to leave PO mode, temporarily. It just moves the cursor to some other
571
Emacs window, and pops one if necessary. For example, if the translator
572
just got PO mode to show some source context in some other, she might
573
discover some apparent bug in the program source that needs correction.
574
This command allows the translator to change sex, become a programmer,
575
and have the cursor right into the window containing the program she
576
(or rather <EM>he</EM>) wants to modify. By later getting the cursor back
577
in the PO file window, or by asking Emacs to edit this file once again,
578
PO mode is then recovered.
582
<A NAME="IDX109"></A>
583
<A NAME="IDX110"></A>
584
<A NAME="IDX111"></A>
585
The command <KBD>h</KBD> (<CODE>po-help</CODE>) displays a summary of all available PO
586
mode commands. The translator should then type any character to resume
587
normal PO mode operations. The command <KBD>?</KBD> has the same effect
592
<A NAME="IDX112"></A>
593
<A NAME="IDX113"></A>
594
The command <KBD>=</KBD> (<CODE>po-statistics</CODE>) computes the total number of
595
entries in the PO file, the ordinal of the current entry (counted from
596
1), the number of untranslated entries, the number of obsolete entries,
597
and displays all these numbers.
601
<A NAME="IDX114"></A>
602
<A NAME="IDX115"></A>
603
The command <KBD>V</KBD> (<CODE>po-validate</CODE>) launches <CODE>msgfmt</CODE> in
605
mode over the current PO file. This command first offers to save the
606
current PO file on disk. The <CODE>msgfmt</CODE> tool, from GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE>,
607
has the purpose of creating a MO file out of a PO file, and PO mode uses
608
the features of this program for checking the overall format of a PO file,
609
as well as all individual entries.
613
<A NAME="IDX116"></A>
614
The program <CODE>msgfmt</CODE> runs asynchronously with Emacs, so the
615
translator regains control immediately while her PO file is being studied.
616
Error output is collected in the Emacs <SAMP>`*compilation*´</SAMP> buffer,
617
displayed in another window. The regular Emacs command <KBD>C-x`</KBD>
618
(<CODE>next-error</CODE>), as well as other usual compile commands, allow the
619
translator to reposition quickly to the offending parts of the PO file.
620
Once the cursor is on the line in error, the translator may decide on
621
any PO mode action which would help correcting the error.
626
<H2><A NAME="SEC11" HREF="gettext_toc.html#TOC11">2.4 Entry Positioning</A></H2>
629
<A NAME="IDX117"></A>
630
The cursor in a PO file window is almost always part of
631
an entry. The only exceptions are the special case when the cursor
632
is after the last entry in the file, or when the PO file is
633
empty. The entry where the cursor is found to be is said to be the
634
current entry. Many PO mode commands operate on the current entry,
635
so moving the cursor does more than allowing the translator to browse
636
the PO file, this also selects on which entry commands operate.
640
<A NAME="IDX118"></A>
641
Some PO mode commands alter the position of the cursor in a specialized
642
way. A few of those special purpose positioning are described here,
643
the others are described in following sections (for a complete list try
651
<A NAME="IDX119"></A>
652
Redisplay the current entry (<CODE>po-current-entry</CODE>).
656
<A NAME="IDX120"></A>
657
Select the entry after the current one (<CODE>po-next-entry</CODE>).
661
<A NAME="IDX121"></A>
662
Select the entry before the current one (<CODE>po-previous-entry</CODE>).
666
<A NAME="IDX122"></A>
667
Select the first entry in the PO file (<CODE>po-first-entry</CODE>).
671
<A NAME="IDX123"></A>
672
Select the last entry in the PO file (<CODE>po-last-entry</CODE>).
676
<A NAME="IDX124"></A>
677
Record the location of the current entry for later use
678
(<CODE>po-push-location</CODE>).
682
<A NAME="IDX125"></A>
683
Return to a previously saved entry location (<CODE>po-pop-location</CODE>).
687
<A NAME="IDX126"></A>
688
Exchange the current entry location with the previously saved one
689
(<CODE>po-exchange-location</CODE>).
694
<A NAME="IDX127"></A>
695
<A NAME="IDX128"></A>
696
Any Emacs command able to reposition the cursor may be used
697
to select the current entry in PO mode, including commands which
698
move by characters, lines, paragraphs, screens or pages, and search
699
commands. However, there is a kind of standard way to display the
700
current entry in PO mode, which usual Emacs commands moving
701
the cursor do not especially try to enforce. The command <KBD>.</KBD>
702
(<CODE>po-current-entry</CODE>) has the sole purpose of redisplaying the
703
current entry properly, after the current entry has been changed by
704
means external to PO mode, or the Emacs screen otherwise altered.
708
It is yet to be decided if PO mode helps the translator, or otherwise
709
irritates her, by forcing a rigid window disposition while she
710
is doing her work. We originally had quite precise ideas about
711
how windows should behave, but on the other hand, anyone used to
712
Emacs is often happy to keep full control. Maybe a fixed window
713
disposition might be offered as a PO mode option that the translator
714
might activate or deactivate at will, so it could be offered on an
715
experimental basis. If nobody feels a real need for using it, or
716
a compulsion for writing it, we should drop this whole idea.
717
The incentive for doing it should come from translators rather than
718
programmers, as opinions from an experienced translator are surely
719
more worth to me than opinions from programmers <EM>thinking</EM> about
720
how <EM>others</EM> should do translation.
724
<A NAME="IDX129"></A>
725
<A NAME="IDX130"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX131"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX132"></A>
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The commands <KBD>n</KBD> (<CODE>po-next-entry</CODE>) and <KBD>p</KBD>
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(<CODE>po-previous-entry</CODE>) move the cursor the entry following,
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or preceding, the current one. If <KBD>n</KBD> is given while the
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cursor is on the last entry of the PO file, or if <KBD>p</KBD>
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is given while the cursor is on the first entry, no move is done.
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<A NAME="IDX133"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX134"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX135"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX136"></A>
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The commands <KBD><</KBD> (<CODE>po-first-entry</CODE>) and <KBD>></KBD>
741
(<CODE>po-last-entry</CODE>) move the cursor to the first entry, or last
742
entry, of the PO file. When the cursor is located past the last
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entry in a PO file, most PO mode commands will return an error saying
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<SAMP>`After last entry´</SAMP>. Moreover, the commands <KBD><</KBD> and <KBD>></KBD>
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have the special property of being able to work even when the cursor
746
is not into some PO file entry, and one may use them for nicely
747
correcting this situation. But even these commands will fail on a
748
truly empty PO file. There are development plans for the PO mode for it
749
to interactively fill an empty PO file from sources. See section <A HREF="gettext_3.html#SEC17">3.4 Marking Translatable Strings</A>.
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The translator may decide, before working at the translation of
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a particular entry, that she needs to browse the remainder of the
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PO file, maybe for finding the terminology or phraseology used
756
in related entries. She can of course use the standard Emacs idioms
757
for saving the current cursor location in some register, and use that
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register for getting back, or else, use the location ring.
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<A NAME="IDX137"></A>
763
<A NAME="IDX138"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX139"></A>
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<A NAME="IDX140"></A>
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PO mode offers another approach, by which cursor locations may be saved
767
onto a special stack. The command <KBD>m</KBD> (<CODE>po-push-location</CODE>)
768
merely adds the location of current entry to the stack, pushing
769
the already saved locations under the new one. The command
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<KBD>r</KBD> (<CODE>po-pop-location</CODE>) consumes the top stack element and
771
repositions the cursor to the entry associated with that top element.
772
This position is then lost, for the next <KBD>r</KBD> will move the cursor
773
to the previously saved location, and so on until no locations remain
778
If the translator wants the position to be kept on the location stack,
779
maybe for taking a look at the entry associated with the top
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element, then go elsewhere with the intent of getting back later, she
781
ought to use <KBD>m</KBD> immediately after <KBD>r</KBD>.
785
<A NAME="IDX141"></A>
786
<A NAME="IDX142"></A>
787
The command <KBD>x</KBD> (<CODE>po-exchange-location</CODE>) simultaneously
788
repositions the cursor to the entry associated with the top element of
789
the stack of saved locations, and replaces that top element with the
790
location of the current entry before the move. Consequently, repeating
791
the <KBD>x</KBD> command toggles alternatively between two entries.
792
For achieving this, the translator will position the cursor on the
793
first entry, use <KBD>m</KBD>, then position to the second entry, and
794
merely use <KBD>x</KBD> for making the switch.
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<H2><A NAME="SEC12" HREF="gettext_toc.html#TOC12">2.5 Normalizing Strings in Entries</A></H2>
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<A NAME="IDX143"></A>
805
There are many different ways for encoding a particular string into a
806
PO file entry, because there are so many different ways to split and
807
quote multi-line strings, and even, to represent special characters
808
by backslashed escaped sequences. Some features of PO mode rely on
809
the ability for PO mode to scan an already existing PO file for a
810
particular string encoded into the <CODE>msgid</CODE> field of some entry.
811
Even if PO mode has internally all the built-in machinery for
812
implementing this recognition easily, doing it fast is technically
813
difficult. To facilitate a solution to this efficiency problem,
814
we decided on a canonical representation for strings.
818
A conventional representation of strings in a PO file is currently
819
under discussion, and PO mode experiments with a canonical representation.
820
Having both <CODE>xgettext</CODE> and PO mode converging towards a uniform
821
way of representing equivalent strings would be useful, as the internal
822
normalization needed by PO mode could be automatically satisfied
823
when using <CODE>xgettext</CODE> from GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE>. An explicit
824
PO mode normalization should then be only necessary for PO files
825
imported from elsewhere, or for when the convention itself evolves.
829
So, for achieving normalization of at least the strings of a given
830
PO file needing a canonical representation, the following PO mode
831
command is available:
835
<A NAME="IDX144"></A>
838
<DT><KBD>M-x po-normalize</KBD>
840
<A NAME="IDX145"></A>
841
Tidy the whole PO file by making entries more uniform.
846
The special command <KBD>M-x po-normalize</KBD>, which has no associated
847
keys, revises all entries, ensuring that strings of both original
848
and translated entries use uniform internal quoting in the PO file.
849
It also removes any crumb after the last entry. This command may be
850
useful for PO files freshly imported from elsewhere, or if we ever
851
improve on the canonical quoting format we use. This canonical format
852
is not only meant for getting cleaner PO files, but also for greatly
853
speeding up <CODE>msgid</CODE> string lookup for some other PO mode commands.
857
<KBD>M-x po-normalize</KBD> presently makes three passes over the entries.
858
The first implements heuristics for converting PO files for GNU
859
<CODE>gettext</CODE> 0.6 and earlier, in which <CODE>msgid</CODE> and <CODE>msgstr</CODE>
860
fields were using K&R style C string syntax for multi-line strings.
861
These heuristics may fail for comments not related to obsolete
862
entries and ending with a backslash; they also depend on subsequent
863
passes for finalizing the proper commenting of continued lines for
864
obsolete entries. This first pass might disappear once all oldish PO
865
files would have been adjusted. The second and third pass normalize
866
all <CODE>msgid</CODE> and <CODE>msgstr</CODE> strings respectively. They also
867
clean out those trailing backslashes used by XView's <CODE>msgfmt</CODE>
872
<A NAME="IDX146"></A>
873
Having such an explicit normalizing command allows for importing PO
874
files from other sources, but also eases the evolution of the current
875
convention, evolution driven mostly by aesthetic concerns, as of now.
876
It is easy to make suggested adjustments at a later time, as the
877
normalizing command and eventually, other GNU <CODE>gettext</CODE> tools
878
should greatly automate conformance. A description of the canonical
879
string format is given below, for the particular benefit of those not
880
having Emacs handy, and who would nevertheless want to handcraft
881
their PO files in nice ways.
885
<A NAME="IDX147"></A>
886
Right now, in PO mode, strings are single line or multi-line. A string
887
goes multi-line if and only if it has <EM>embedded</EM> newlines, that
888
is, if it matches <SAMP>`[^\n]\n+[^\n]´</SAMP>. So, we would have:
893
msgstr "\n\nHello, world!\n\n\n"
897
but, replacing the space by a newline, this becomes:
912
We are deliberately using a caricatural example, here, to make the
913
point clearer. Usually, multi-lines are not that bad looking.
914
It is probable that we will implement the following suggestion.
915
We might lump together all initial newlines into the empty string,
916
and also all newlines introducing empty lines (that is, for <VAR>n</VAR>
917
> 1, the <VAR>n</VAR>-1'th last newlines would go together on a separate
918
string), so making the previous example appear:
930
There are a few yet undecided little points about string normalization,
931
to be documented in this manual, once these questions settle.
935
Go to the <A HREF="gettext_1.html">first</A>, <A HREF="gettext_1.html">previous</A>, <A HREF="gettext_3.html">next</A>, <A HREF="gettext_22.html">last</A> section, <A HREF="gettext_toc.html">table of contents</A>.
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