Locale Data Markup Language Version 1.0 Released

Ram Viswanadha writes "The Free Standards Group Open Internationalization Initiative (OpenI18N) announced the release of the locale data markup language specification (LDML), Version 1.0."

YES !!

[Hougaard]

We do need yet another XML based format ! :-)

When do we get MARK UP???

[ka9dgx]

We've been lied to for years... since when can we mark up someone else's Hyper Text? How does this help me mark up someone elses XML?

Where's annotation?

Why do we put up with a crappy hierarchical database eXpansion and Mangling Language?

--Mike--

Half of the work

[Matthias Wiesmann]

I think this is a good initiative, having a single scheme to describe locales can only push for better localisation. One place where this could be very usefull is for web sites. If you could simply upload your locale to web site to get a personalised display it would really be a nice.

One thing that I'm not convinced of is that those locale merge two things: how data is displayed (number, data and currency display), but also how certain words a translated, yes, no, name of days etc... I would prefer to keep both things separated. I tend to use applications with an english localisation, but with number and dates in my locale (swiss french).

I suppose I could design my own locale, but I think translation should be handled in the application's localisation part. If not, you will get mixed results. I have seen to many dialog boxes asking

Do you want to save?
[Oui] [Niet] [Abbrechen]

I find the idea of Europanto [contagions.com] funny, but I would prefer avoid it in user-interfaces.

This said, I fear the core problem is not so much the lack of standard, but the fact that application often have text and date behaviour hard-coded, or hard-linked to the localisation (like Apple's mail.app)

By the way, am I the only person that finds it ironic to see the following code in the header of the specification [openi18n.org]?

<meta name="GENERATOR" content="Microsoft FrontPage 4.0">
<meta name="ProgId" content="FrontPage.Editor.Document">

Re:Half of the work

[PhilipMatarese]

Hard coding strings is a big problem when it comes to localizing. If I write an app with a strings file containing every word to be displayed:
First, it make maintenance easier. The client sees the demo, and says "we don't call it a username, we call it a login!" or something like that. You just change any strings with username in them to have login in them instead.
Second, you can easily update the language for an International version of the app. Or you can have a directory with several language file

Re:Half of the work

[superyooser]

Maybe we could use this to replace 's' with 'z' in localisation, while reading Slashdot in the US.

I don't know if I'd prefer that. Taking note of how people spell words gives me a clue about their identity. When I see words like "localisation" and "whilst," it at least it tells me I'm getting a view from a non-American. A commenter in a recent Slashdot journal of one of my friends exclaimed "Mazel Tov!" (Hebrew for "Congratulations"), so I can reasonably assume that he is probably Jewish. If everything wa

WTF!?

[7-Vodka]

Can you please post a short description of what the article is about so you don't leave a bunch of us clueless?

it doesn't take much, just one line explaining what this language is would do.

Deadlock Detection finally works?!

[NumbThumb]

I think the most interresting change ist this:

These previously unimplemented JVMDI functions have been implemented:

jvmdiError GetOwnedMonitorInfo(jthread thread, JVMDI_owned_monitor_info *infoPtr)

jvmdiError GetCurrentContendedMonitor(jthread thread, jobject *monitorPtr)

Does this mean monitor information is now reported correctly in profiler-dumps and via JPDA? That would be soooo great -- i'm waitng for that for 2 years now. Finding deadlocks using a trial-and-error aproach ist just a pain... Ec

Re:Deadlock Detection finally works?!

[NumbThumb]

Moderation request: Please mod this off topick. This was supposed to show up at the "Java 1.4.2 releaseds" discussion. Sorry for that. Tabbed Browsing has it's dangers;-)

(ARRRG! damn the 2 minute rule)