Manage Languages
Submitted Mark, Sep 25 2009 11:59 AM | Last updated May 25 2010 03:57 AM
IP.Board ships in US English, but can be translated into almost any other language, or even support multiple languages. You can also use this functionality to change the phrases used on the board, or the EMails sent out.
This guide is going to take you through some of the frequently asked questions surrounding this functionality.
Importing a language pack
Some members of our community have created complete translations of IP.Board in other languages. You can download the language packs they have created and import them to instantly have that translation available on your community.
You can download language packs from here.
Once you have downloaded the language pack, it should contain a file ending in ".xml.gz". Go into your Admin CP, select the "Look & Feel" tab, then select "Manage Languages" from the menu on the left.
This page will contain an area where you can upload that file, simply select the file from your computer and press "Import" - the language pack will imported and that language will then be available on your community.
Translating IP.Board
You may find that a language pack isn't available for the language you want, or you might just want to change some of the phrasing of the text in the English language pack.
To do this, go into your Admin CP, select the "Look & Feel" tab, then select "Manage Languages" from the menu on the left.
On this page you will see a list of all of the languages you have installed on your community. If you are creating a completely new language, you should select "Copy language pack..." from the options menu for the English language pack - this will create a new language for you to edit.
Translating in the Admin CP
To begin translating your language, simply click on the language in the list, you will see a screen which looks like this:
You can see tabs along the top, which represent the applications you have installed. Under each tab, you will see different "word packs", which contain text.
When you select a pack you will see a page like this:
You will see the default (i.e. English) value in the yellow box, you should enter your translation in the white box, and then press "Go" to save the word pack.
Translating Externally
If you are creating a whole new language pack, you will probably find the idea of going through and translating via the Admin CP quite daunting. IP.Board includes a special tool which will place all of the language strings into text files, which you can then edit manually.
First, you need to create a folder in your IP.Board directory (where the IP.Board source files are) called "translate" and CHMOD 0777, if you are not sure how to do this, your hosting provider will be able to provide assistance.
Then, on the "Manage Languages" page, select "Translate Externally..." from the from the options menu for the language pack you wish to translate.
You will see a screen like this:
Now, if you go into the "translate" directory you just created, you will see a list of files. Each file represents a word pack.
If you open any of these files, you will see all of the phrases within it:
Simply go through the file and translate the text (you only need to translate the phrase to the right of the arrow on each line, you must leave the key on the left blank).
Once you are done, you will need to import your changes. To do this, go back to the Admin CP and select the files you want to import (you can also use the "Select Modified" or "Select All" buttons at the top), then press the "Import Selected Files" button at the bottom.
Once you have imported all of the changes, press the "Finish And Remove" button, then select "Recache All" from the options menu of the language you were just editing.
Exporting a Language Pack
If you have made a complete translation, you can export the language pack by selecting "Export Language Pack" from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen.
Once you click this, the language pack will automatically download to your computer.
You can use this language pack to import into other IP.Board installations as described earlier, or upload to our resources area to share with other IP.Board users.
Advanced Language Settings
Locale
Each language has associated with it a "locale" - this is special identifier that tells the server how to display certain information.
For example, in the US, large numbers are separated with commas (for example, 1000000 is often written as 1,000,000) - however in most of Europe, a period is used instead (1.000.000). The locale tells the server which to use.
The locales available will depend on what is installed on your server. You should contact your host for a list of locales available. If you run your own server, you can run the command "locale -a" on a Unix server for a list.
You can change the locale for a language by selecting "Edit..." from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen.
The default English pack shipped with IP.Board uses the "en_US" locale (US English).
Right-To-Left
Some languages (for example, Arabic) display from right-to-left, instead of left-to-right.
IP.Board includes support for right-to-left languages. Simply toggle the "Display right to left?" setting the settings for the language, which you can access by selecting "Edit..." from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen.
Character Sets
IP.Board 3 by default uses the UTF-8 character set, which will be sufficient for most communities.
If you know you need to change your character set, you can do this by going to Admin CP --> System --> System Settings --> Server Environment and changing the "Document Character Set" setting.
Changing languages
Setting the default language
If you have more than one language installed, you can set the default language by going to the settings for the language you wish to make default (which you can access by selecting "Edit..." from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen) and toggling the "Default Language?" setting.
The default language is what users who have no specified another language choice will use.
Changing your language choice
Users can change their language choice by using the drop-down menu in the lower-left corner of any page. You do not have to be logged in to do this.
You can change a user's language choice by editing their account in the Admin CP. On the edit member screen, under the "Profile" tab, you will notice a "Language Choice" setting, which you can edit.
The user however, can still change their language back by using the dropdown.
This guide is going to take you through some of the frequently asked questions surrounding this functionality.
Importing a language pack
Some members of our community have created complete translations of IP.Board in other languages. You can download the language packs they have created and import them to instantly have that translation available on your community.
You can download language packs from here.
Once you have downloaded the language pack, it should contain a file ending in ".xml.gz". Go into your Admin CP, select the "Look & Feel" tab, then select "Manage Languages" from the menu on the left.
This page will contain an area where you can upload that file, simply select the file from your computer and press "Import" - the language pack will imported and that language will then be available on your community.
Translating IP.Board
You may find that a language pack isn't available for the language you want, or you might just want to change some of the phrasing of the text in the English language pack.
To do this, go into your Admin CP, select the "Look & Feel" tab, then select "Manage Languages" from the menu on the left.
On this page you will see a list of all of the languages you have installed on your community. If you are creating a completely new language, you should select "Copy language pack..." from the options menu for the English language pack - this will create a new language for you to edit.
Translating in the Admin CP
To begin translating your language, simply click on the language in the list, you will see a screen which looks like this:
You can see tabs along the top, which represent the applications you have installed. Under each tab, you will see different "word packs", which contain text.
When you select a pack you will see a page like this:
You will see the default (i.e. English) value in the yellow box, you should enter your translation in the white box, and then press "Go" to save the word pack.
If you are just wanting to edit one phrase (for example, if you wanted to change the "Sign Out" link to say "Log out", you can search for the phrase in the search box, and edit it directly from the results page.
Translating Externally
If you are creating a whole new language pack, you will probably find the idea of going through and translating via the Admin CP quite daunting. IP.Board includes a special tool which will place all of the language strings into text files, which you can then edit manually.
First, you need to create a folder in your IP.Board directory (where the IP.Board source files are) called "translate" and CHMOD 0777, if you are not sure how to do this, your hosting provider will be able to provide assistance.
Then, on the "Manage Languages" page, select "Translate Externally..." from the from the options menu for the language pack you wish to translate.
You will see a screen like this:
Now, if you go into the "translate" directory you just created, you will see a list of files. Each file represents a word pack.
If you open any of these files, you will see all of the phrases within it:
Simply go through the file and translate the text (you only need to translate the phrase to the right of the arrow on each line, you must leave the key on the left blank).
When editting files in the translate directory - you must ensure that your editor is set to UTF-8, regardless of what character set you are using on your community.
Once you are done, you will need to import your changes. To do this, go back to the Admin CP and select the files you want to import (you can also use the "Select Modified" or "Select All" buttons at the top), then press the "Import Selected Files" button at the bottom.
Once you have imported all of the changes, press the "Finish And Remove" button, then select "Recache All" from the options menu of the language you were just editing.
After editing the files in the "translate" directory, you must import them into the Admin CP in order for them to be saved. Once you press "Finish And Remove", the "translate" directory will be deleted, along with any unimproved changes.
You must ensure that you do press the "Finish And Remove" button once you are done importing to destroy the "translate" directory. You will not be able to externally translate any other language until you do.
If you accidentally navigate away from the page before pressing "Finish And Remove", you should see a box on the "Manage Languages" page titled "External File Translation" which will take you back to import page.
If you accidentally navigate away from the page before pressing "Finish And Remove", you should see a box on the "Manage Languages" page titled "External File Translation" which will take you back to import page.
You must press the "Recache All" button from the options menu for the skin on the "Manage Languages" page after recaching. The changes you make will not take effect until you do.
Exporting a Language Pack
If you have made a complete translation, you can export the language pack by selecting "Export Language Pack" from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen.
Once you click this, the language pack will automatically download to your computer.
You can use this language pack to import into other IP.Board installations as described earlier, or upload to our resources area to share with other IP.Board users.
Advanced Language Settings
Locale
Each language has associated with it a "locale" - this is special identifier that tells the server how to display certain information.
For example, in the US, large numbers are separated with commas (for example, 1000000 is often written as 1,000,000) - however in most of Europe, a period is used instead (1.000.000). The locale tells the server which to use.
The locales available will depend on what is installed on your server. You should contact your host for a list of locales available. If you run your own server, you can run the command "locale -a" on a Unix server for a list.
You can change the locale for a language by selecting "Edit..." from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen.
The default English pack shipped with IP.Board uses the "en_US" locale (US English).
Right-To-Left
Some languages (for example, Arabic) display from right-to-left, instead of left-to-right.
IP.Board includes support for right-to-left languages. Simply toggle the "Display right to left?" setting the settings for the language, which you can access by selecting "Edit..." from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen.
Character Sets
IP.Board 3 by default uses the UTF-8 character set, which will be sufficient for most communities.
If you know you need to change your character set, you can do this by going to Admin CP --> System --> System Settings --> Server Environment and changing the "Document Character Set" setting.
If you change your character set, you may find that some characters (particularly accented, or non-English characters) no longer display correctly. We strongly recommend that you leave this setting as UTF-8. If you think you may need to change it but are unsure, please contact technical support who will be happy to advise you.
Changing languages
Setting the default language
If you have more than one language installed, you can set the default language by going to the settings for the language you wish to make default (which you can access by selecting "Edit..." from the options menu for that language on the "Manage Languages" screen) and toggling the "Default Language?" setting.
The default language is what users who have no specified another language choice will use.
Changing your language choice
Users can change their language choice by using the drop-down menu in the lower-left corner of any page. You do not have to be logged in to do this.
You can change a user's language choice by editing their account in the Admin CP. On the edit member screen, under the "Profile" tab, you will notice a "Language Choice" setting, which you can edit.
The user however, can still change their language back by using the dropdown.
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