FUEL: An initiative in language standardization via collaboration

[Subir Pradhanang]

Hi all,

First of all, sorry for cross-posting. This is worth mentioning here, so
posting the link as well as the whole article here. Someone could take lead
in it here for Nepali language.

> http://www.linux.com/feature/149038

FUEL: An initiative in language standardization via collaboration
By Rajesh Ranjan <http://kramashah.blogspot.com/> on October 06, 2008
(9:00:00 PM)

FUEL <https://fedorahosted.org/fuel> (Frequently Used Entries for
Localization) aims to solve the problem of inconsistency and lack of
standardization in computer software translation in a new and unique way.
Initiated by Red Hat, the project is trying to give a better experience to
end users of a localized desktop by resolving the issues of standardization
and inconsistency.

It's hard for a naive user to digest five different replacements for a
simple word on a computer menu like File or Save. Getting used to
inconsistent terminology can be a major hindrance in path of the popularity
of localized desktop. Therefore, FUEL's aim is to come up with the most
appropriate and acceptable translations by collaborating with active
communities and localizers who are having standardization problems in
translation. The project tries to give native language desktops a consistent
look and make the localized desktop more usable for native language
speakers.

There are lot of problems in the localization process. When translating any
text, often we can translate one word in many ways. Misinterpretation,
ambiguity, and lack of context can create critical problems for users. For
example, in Hindi, the word "copy" can be translated in 45 different ways.
It's a similar story for words like save, print, and tools. And different
localizers use different words according to their preferences.

In previous standardization efforts, people generally worked on their own,
with no collaborative input. Those efforts lacked the participation of
active localizers and desktop users. For example, some government
organizations and institutions of India have labored to create computer
glossaries with several thousand entries and made them available to the
public -- but no one used them! Because of complexity, lack of clarity, and
nonuniformity, few people supported those efforts.

By contrast, FUEL is not a simple glossary project. Its process can be
divided in four broad phases called the FUEL
journey<https://fedorahosted.org/fuel/wiki/FuelJourney>.
A project starts with a list of all major desktop-related entries that
appear on menus and sub-menus on a desktop, its panel, browser, office
suite, editor, email client, instant messenger, and terminal. Currently
there are 578 list entries in the POT
file<http://svn.fedorahosted.org/svn/fuel/fuel_pot/fuel_en_US.pot>.
Initially, if any language localizers want to work on the issues of
standardization by following FUEL, their community needs to concentrate on
these 578 entries. Getting these entries ready for translation by attaining
consensus among localizers and experts can help standardize desktop
translation quickly. This approach improves usability more than others that
take on different applications one at a time.

FUEL is an attempt to standardize terms for the whole desktop instead of
concentrating on different applications separately. At present, FUEL
incorporates representative entries from the GNOME desktop, OpenOffice.org,
Firefox browser, Evolution email client, and Pidgin instant messenger, so
that it can have at least all the entries that a normal user uses very
frequently. Later, on demand from communities, FUEL can incorporate more
applications in its list from different projects.

Final evaluation of translation of a FUEL entries list is not a task
performed by one or two people; rather, all active localizers of a language
community sit down with language and technical experts to discuss and agree
on one final list. They also agree that after the release of the list, all
localizers will use only the terms on the list for their English
counterparts, which ensures the success of implementation phase.

The release of an evaluated FUEL list is not the end of the process. A
language community won't get the actual benefit of FUEL without
implementation of the translated menus, so FUEL incorporates an
implementation step to make the process complete. It is the responsibility
of translators to implement the released FUEL list.

FUEL provides a set of steps that any content-generating team involved in
creating localized content can undertake to ensure consistently high quality
of their translations. The process involves a version control system, a
ticketing system, and a mailing list. Each FUEL list is provided in
different formats (PO, ODS, and PDF) for the ease of the general public.
FUEL's language coordinators send information to mailing lists of the
language about any development related to FUEL for that language. By joining
and talking on the
fuel-discuss<https://fedorahosted.org/mailman/listinfo/fuel-discuss>mailing
list, anybody can comment back to the project members. On a yearly
basis each project adds new entries to the main FUEL list. In this way,
development of terminology is tracked like software development.

Every process in FUEL is open from beginning to end. If anybody wants to
start working on any language, he must inform the whole community through
the mailing list. Evaluation of FUEL entries is also done via the mailing
list. After the evaluation process, again, the evaluated FUEL language list
is released on the mailing list of the community and the fuel-discuss list.
Anyone can file a bug against any entries by creating a new ticket from
project page. If the community agrees on any modification in current list,
they can change it. Thus the whole development process for terminology is
similar to any open source software development process.
Hindi - a success story

Hindi <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hindi>, one of the most spoken languages
of the world, is an encouraging example for the FUEL project. With hundreds
of dialects, Hindi is one of the most difficult languages for
standardization. Although CSTT of India <http://www.cstt.nic.in/> has made
one glossary for Hindi language for standardizing computer terminology, it
has not been widely accepted among software translators and localizers.
Sarai <http://www.sarai.net/> and IndLinux <http://www.indlinux.org/> have
been organizing translation review workshops since 2003, and the experience
of these workshops helped a lot during the final evaluation of FUEL Hindi.
In this year's translation workshop, after discussion, the Hindi community
agreed on the need to work on standardization. In July, all active
localizers, along with language and technical experts, sat together for two
days to discuss and finalize Hindi terms for the 578 FUEL entries. Finally,
on July 13, FUEL Hindi was released as a community-approved set of
guidelines.

The Hindi FUEL <https://fedorahosted.org/fuel/wiki/fuel-hindi> release is
now in its implementation stage, and the community of Hindi language has
started working on implementation. The community has completed
implementation of FUEL for Firefox and now started working for GNOME. The
implementation process involves changes in the existing translations,
replacing some entries with others from the FUEL list. The implementation
phase is lengthy and labor-intensive. All major projects are already
available with Hindi localizations, so it will take at least another release
of involved projects to implement FUEL recommendations for Hindi language.

In the weeks since the successful release of FUEL Hindi, four more languages
have actively started working within FUEL.
Words are the only wealth

The FUEL project page starts with the following quotation of the great Bhakt
poet Tukaram <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tukaram>:
"Words are the only jewels I possess, Words are the only clothes I wear,
Words are the only food that sustains my life, Words are the only wealth I
distribute among people."

The importance of words is ultimate for the FUEL project.

If any language community wants to work on FUEL, it should start by sending
information about using FUEL for their language to their community mailing
lists and the FUEL mailing list. The FUEL process is open for all
enthusiasts who want to join the evaluation process; collaboration and
cooperation of whole community is a must for the entire process.

Achieving the end of standardization is not an easy task, as it requires a
lot of change and rework in existing translation, so there is a possibility
of slower growth of FUEL fully implemented languages, but the process
ensures that, when a localized version is released after implementation, it
will come with greater reliability and perfection due to the collaborative
and open process. In short, FUEL is a collaborative, open, and transparent
way to achieve standardization.

*Rajesh Ranjan is Language Maintainer for Hindi at Red Hat. He has worked
with several localization projects, including Fedora, GNOME, OpenOffice.org,
Mozilla, and FUEL. In addition to Hindi, he is working on localization of
the Maithili language. Before joining Red Hat, he worked with The Indian
Express Group and Literate World, Inc.*

Cheers,
Subir**
**