[Python-ideas] i18n and Python tracebacks

[Bruce Leban]

I think it's important as Antoine notes to preserve the ability for code to
read and interpret the error messages. If changes are being made here (after
the moratorium presumably) it would be nice if the changes made it easier to
parse errors by explicitly delimiting the error message text rather than
requiring ad hoc parsing. Of course I'm saying "would be nice" rather than
offering a compelling argument here. My thought is that *if* changes are
being made here anyway then it's worth considering.

--- Bruce
http://www.vroospeak.com
http://jarlsberg.appspot.com



On Sat, May 15, 2010 at 9:23 AM, Terry Reedy <tjreedy at udel.edu> wrote:

> On 5/15/2010 10:02 AM, Andre Roberge wrote:
>
>> I think it would be a good idea if Python tracebacks could be translated
>> into languages other than English - and it would set a good example.
>>
>
> If you change the proposal to having a translated version 'in addition to'
> rather than 'instead of' the English version, I would be in favor of it as
> an option. Then non-English speakers would gradually learn a bit of English
> from each error, and people like me could also get a boost on learning the
> math/comp vocabulary of another language, such as Spanish.
>
> Since a decent translation will not necessarily have substitution fields in
> the same order, this proposal requires that they be indicated and filled by
> name rather than position. This is easy with the new 3.x string formatting
> system, but I have no idea how it is done presently.
>
> Use of unicode as the string type in 3.x, including for identifiers, makes
> internationalization (whew, no wonder people abbreviate that as i8n) of
> Python, to whatever level, easier than with 2.x. But I think further steps
> will require more initiative from the various other-language communities. In
> other words, more is needed than 'I think it would be a good idea...'. I
> also think it would be good if they cooperated to not re-invent the wheel
> (differently) for each language and form something like an Intermation
> Python Working Group (assuming there is not such now). Current core
> developers, of necessity, are comfortable enough with the current situation
> and mostly have other itches to scratch.
>
> Terry Jan Reedy
>
>
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