Localization support

[malcalevak]

Hmm, if I’m understanding you correctly,, for an RTL language, the proper gallery progression would be like:

3 2 1
6 5 4
9 8 7

Is that correct? If so, I might need to talk to Christophe about that one, or take a lot of time fully understanding the script, and adapting it, but I think ultimately the former would be a better idea.

Let me know if I understood you correctly, though.

[nv1962]

No no no, what I mean is that the pages flip to the otherside. Think of a book: our back cover is their front, and vice versa. Of course, the order of pages (images) is exactly the same – they just need the buttons "next" and "previous" exchanged.

[malcalevak]

I’m not following you… if the next image is still to the right of the current image (ie 1 2 3) you’d want the nexttext image to be displayed on the right as well, wouldn’t you? You wouldn’t invert a cars blinkers just because the language is RTL.

Or maybe I’m just totally missing what you’re saying.

[nv1962]

No, I what mean is that the next image sits to the <b>left</b> of the previous one. The <b>order</b> (added: in which they’re shown successively) is naturally the same (i.e. 1, 2, 3, 4…) but if, say, it were a book, you’d turn the pages over to the <i>right</i> – not the left, as we do. So, that’s why the position of the navigation buttons is reversed: "Next" would be on the left, "Previous" on the right hand side of the picture. So, it’s a positioning issue of those buttons, not an ordering issue of the images themselves.

Think of reading a page starting at the top right, reading to the left, going down line by line. As you go to the next page, you flip it from the right to left.

So, to be clear: the <b>next</b> image sits to the <b>left</b> of the previous one. That’s why it’s just an exchange of the "next" and "previous" button – there’s no messing with the order of (presentation of) the pictures themselves.

[nv1962]

By the way: your example of images was correct, (assuming that there are 3 pictures per row) as you said, the visual order on the page of a book would be:

3 2 1
6 5 4
9 8 7
etc.

Keep in mind also that the images are aligned to the right, as a standard.

However, whether indeed images usually are in that RTL order is something that theme authors (and WP) have to deal with. I’m fairly certain that – due to the preponderance of "Western" (i.e., LTR order) software – readers of RTL languages are used to seeing images the other way around. Confusing it can be… Imagine Chinese (esp. in Mandarin) which <i>in principle</i> could be written and read bottom-up, right-to-left – i.e. <i>exactly</i> in reverse. But yes, in an ideal world, with a WP install and theme that displays all items and content correctly, the order would be as you say. Still, I can’t think of a reason why you should bother with that – the <i>presentation</i> order of images (which is the order in which they appear) is the same, regardless of how they’re shown on a page, i.e. in which direction the script ("written language") is.

After all, you pick out the images with Slimbox2 in the order that they’re appearing – you don’t dive into the DB or anything (right?). So again, it’s just an issue of placing the navigation buttons in the other order.

[malcalevak]

The issue comes up with when you’re on image 3, next would go to image 4 in an RTL language, but image 2 in an LTL, correct?

[nv1962]

Yes, that’s correct.

However, <b>if</b> the content is displayed correctly by the theme, the images are also in the "logical" order. Just like with text: the next word sits to the left of the previous one.

(I’m quite sure authors writing in RTL on WordPress installations have a lot of trouble finding themes that accommodate the direction of their language… I really think it’s a theme issue.)

Added: ohhhh… I think I understand now: in Slimbox2, you pick the "next" image in the next line of images as sitting one row down, on the left side of the row… Well, that’s a head scratcher to resolve then!

Added yet even later: I’m still doubtful it’s a problem for <b>you</b> to deal with. E.g. the key on the keyboard that moves the cursor forward goes RTL also…

Perhaps it’s most illustrative to do a WP test install in (say) Hebrew or Arabic and make a few test posts, see how images are shown in the standard theme (which I trust supports RTL – hope I’m not wrong!).

[malcalevak]

I had assumed (quite probably incorrectly) that html was html and that it didn’t care if you were using an RTL or an LTR language. So I figured it wouldn’t matter how the text was displayed, the images would always display LTR.

I guess a test wouldn’t hurt. Let’s find out.

[malcalevak]

Well, I installed the arabic mo and php with the RTL command, but I’m not entirely sure that’s enough since they appeared to provide an entire package, than again, maybe that was just to make it easier to use.

It certainly appears to be working correctly, and like you said…except…it’s more complicated than just swapping the next and previous images. I need to swap the next and previous detection areas, but if I’m right in how it does that, I think I can do that…I guess I’ll find out soon…

[nv1962]

I suspect the included package is to accommodate precisely the styling stuff. The fundamental question is whether indeed it’s "transparent" in that when you paste in some text (e.g. a few blurbs translated via the Google Translator tool – as long as it’s in the script) and of course pics / thumbnails that they flow RTL.

The corker is that left and right alignment is also reversed… I wonder how e.g. Gengo deals with that (that’s a multilingual package, to allow for content to be displayed selectable in multiple languages) but that’s far beyond our scope here.

Either way: if you manage to support RTL also, I’m fairly certain you’ll get a stream of new users as I doubt there’s much thought given to supporting RTL languages in general!

[malcalevak]

I think I’ve got it to the point where it would work, except that the next and prev images aren’t swapping correctly for some reason, even though the functionality changed…and in turn that application of the images should have as well…but I might be missing something… I’m close though.

Of course, even if I get it functioning, I’ll need an RTL language that uses it. Still only have the spanish translation, but I’m sure more will roll in, eventually.

[nv1962]

Well, I suppose at least the buttons could be made…

I’ll be a horrendous heretic here and post what Google suggests:

Previous:
السابق

Next:
التالي

Close:
إغلاق

If there’s someone who can confirm that… Oh, and for Hebrew, too:

Previous:
קוד×

[nv1962]

OK I think have an idea for that. I could generate the .mo and .po files for a variety of languages, and they’d be in English, <b>except</b> for the pointers to the image files and the keyboard keys. Then, it’s up to other localizers to translate the Admin page and all the rest of its settings. That way you have functional "placeholders" with images, just awaiting full translation. More importantly, the front-end of Slimbox2 that is shown to users of sites in those languages will be "correct".

[malcalevak]

That’s a good point. I’ve got the proper code figured out (though I need to add in a bit for an LTR element) that’ll only run if it’s not LTR.

Is there another set of standards for vertical languages? That would even require more work I’d think…

[nv1962]

To the best of my knowledge, multi-byte languages (i.e. using complex characters, of which some use vertical writing/reading lay-outs*) and that also are sufficiently current to worry about tend to be used as LTR in applications and on sites, so that’s one worry less.

*E.g. Japanese and especially Chinese (Mandarin and Modern) <i>can</i> displayed be in vertical fashion (in Mandarin, even in either direction!) but most often are represented LTR.

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