Re: @dircategory (Re: Translating Emacs manuals is of strategic importance)

[Gavin Smith <gavinsmith0123@gmail.com>]

On Sat, Jan 06, 2024 at 12:25:55PM +0000, Jean-Christophe Helary wrote:
> I forgot. If I understand texinfo properly, if the manual name is 
> translated (and if the manual is translated) it is enough that the node 
> name is the same as in the target manual, so either both untranslated, 
> or both translated. So here, the node name only being left in English 
> is not so relevant. What matters most is whether the manual name is 
> translated or not. Am I correct?

You could be translating node names in cross-references to other
manauls that aren't translated yet!  Then how would you know what
exactly the node name should be exactly?

In the case of mutually referrent manuals (a common case), this situation
is impossible to avoid, unless you take on the project of translating
every single referenced manual, and every manual those manuals reference,
and so on, as well as maintaining all of these translations indefinitely.
That is not going to happen.

> Sure, but the situation where that would happen is indeed when there 
> are too few translated manuals to create a “monolingual ecosystem” 
> where manuals all link to each other.
> 
> Supposedly, the user has installed the manual independently and knows 
> that there will be limitations. Just like all web sites have default 404 
> pages and some have redirection, the error does not have to read like 
> a punishment.
> 
> And that can be a first solution before something more elaborate is 
> implemented. But indeed, that depends on how the TexInfo project wants 
> to solve the issue.

What is the issue exactly?  I don't think it has been clearly stated.

> Regarding the translation process, it seems like there are 2 steps here.
> 
> - The first is the translator who is conscious of the external nodes 
>   limitations and keeps all the external nodes in English.
> 
> - The second is preparing the ground to link to her translation by 
>   modifying external nodes in manuals that direct to it.
> 
> Little by little, the discrepancy will disappear and the translated 
> manuals are all properly linked to each other.

More likely that they link to other nodes with their English names, and
then never change them.  You are assuming a consistency of purpose and
action across socially disparate actors that is very unlikely to exist.