Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!mcsun!unido!ztivax!kap121
From: kap121@ztivax.UUCP (Thomas Oeser)
Newsgroups: comp.windows.x
Subject: Language dependent application defaults
Keywords: Nationalization, Application Defaults
Message-ID: <898@ztivax.UUCP>
Date: 14 Feb 90 16:22:28 GMT
Organization: Siemens AG in Munich, W-Germany
Lines: 46

Hi there,

looking at the documentation of X11R4 I found some surprising lines talking
about application defaults depending on the current setting of $LANG.

I want to start (again ?) a discussion about Language dependent application
defaults. Here some reasons, why I believe we should avoid (or event don't
offer) this functionality:

	1) For the case that only button labels or other text strings differ,
	   this should be done within the program using catgets() and
	   explicitely setting the appropriate resource of the corresponding
	   widget;

	2) Other language dependent stuff (e.g., number of entries, other
	   values, etc.) can also be set in message files using catgets() and
	   e.g. sscanf();

	3) more ?

The general issue should be to minimze the number of (language dependent) files
that are necessary to run an application (simplifies maintenance of resulting
products!).

	NOTE - In the case of catgets() it is already possible to run 
	without any additional files, when the fallback strings in catgets()
	are properly set.

We should try to create X applications (using Athena, Motif or other widget
sets) that are able to startup even when no application defaults are provided.

Thomas Oeser


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ARPA:		kap121@ztivax.siemens.com
UUCP:		kap121@ztivax.uucp (may work only in Europe...)
Postal mail:	Siemens AG, DI AP 313, Otto-Hahn-Ring 6, P.O. Box 830951,
		D-8000 Munich 83, West Germany
Phone:		+ 49 (89) 636-47537
FAX:		+ 49 (89) 636-41477

Disclaimer:
The opinions expressed are my own, and should not be attributed to anyone else
living or dead.
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