I'm using XCode 6 beta 4.
I have experience with localization iOS app with xCode 5, but now I can't find a way to use localized strings in code.
When I put something like "alertMessage" = "Warning!" in Main.strings (English) and then try to use NSLocalizedString method to get my localized string, I just get same string, which I put as a parameter.
Where should I put "alertMessage" = "Warning!" and others localized strings so I could use them in code? There is no lproj folder and no Localizable.strings file.
There is a screenshot of my test project:
Updated
I found the solution. I should open in Finder lproj folder (which does not appear in Xcode) in project folder and have to manually create Localizable.strings file, and then drop him in Xcode project.
Related
I'm just starting to look at IOS Apps' localization in XCode 5 and I've tried to add an Italian Localization:
Xcode 5 automatically generates the Main.strings file with a single entry, for the only label I've put within the Main.storyboard file:
/* Class = "IBUILabel"; text = "Label"; ObjectID = "PeT-4z-NSf"; */
"PeT-4z-NSf.text" = "Etichetta";
If I later modify the Main.storyboard file adding a new button to the view, then how should I tell Xcode 5, if possible, to add missing localization strings to the Main.strings file? Should I add a new entry by hand by looking at the Object ID field in Interface Builder (it works, but I don't know if this is how it is meant to update storyboards' localization)? Can I run something like genstrings on the Main.storyboard file to extract all the labels' text and add the new ones to the localized Main.strings files?
Check out ReMafoX, it's a Mac app that perfectly solves your problem. It can be easily installed and integrated within your project, watch this video for a detailed walkthrough.
Alternatively, if you prefer an open-source CLI tool without a GUI, you can also use BartyCrouch.
Install BartyCrouch via Homebrew:
brew install bartycrouch
Alternatively, install it via Mint:
mint install Flinesoft/BartyCrouch
Incrementally update your Storyboards/XIBs Strings files:
$ bartycrouch update
This will do exactly what you were looking for.
In order to keep your Storyboards/XIBs Strings files updated over time I highly recommend adding a build script (instructions on how to add a build script here):
if which bartycrouch > /dev/null; then
bartycrouch update -x
bartycrouch lint -x
else
echo "warning: BartyCrouch not installed, download it from https://github.com/Flinesoft/BartyCrouch"
fi
In addition to incrementally updating your Storyboards/XIBs Strings files this will also make sure your Localizable.strings files stay updated with newly added keys in code using NSLocalizedString and show warnings for duplicate keys or empty values.
Make sure to checkout BartyCrouch on GitHub for additional information.
The file that Xcode does not update automatically (at least 5.x version didn't) is the app's Localizable Strings. You can build a fresh file from Main.storyboard as follows:
In the project Navigator (the leftmost pane) click on the Main.storyboard file. In the Utilities pane (the rightmost pane) click on Show the File inspector icon. It is the leftmost icon in blue in the image below:
.
On the right pane that will appear, one of the sections will be Localization:
Uncheck the English (Localizable Strings) row and in the window that will pop-up check the Delete localized resource files from disk and click the Remove button (you do not have to check delete, in which case Xcode will ask for a permission to override it when you build it next).
Then check English (Localizable Strings) again to build it from scratch.
Using Xcode 6 the following worked for me:
I changed the localization for a language from "Localizable Strings" to "Interface Builder ..." like suggested at the SO question posted by h.orim. However the setting did not change, it still was set to "Localizable Strings". The next step now is to do that again, so Xcode will find the Storyboard it just created and show a prompt asking if it should be used or replaced. Now click on "Use file" instead of "Replace", otherwise the same will happen again.
Now you should have a localized Storyboard in the desired language. After you now switch back to "Localizable Strings" you will have a file containing all current strings used in the storyboard with your previous translations still in place.
Another way is to do it manually by selecting on the storyboard the field to translate. Go to the "Identity Inspector" and copy the Object ID (something like HP8-op-SmX).
After that, open the storyboard langage file (Main.strings, most cases) and past the Object ID. Depending your needs, you just have to add .text or .placeholder.
"HP8-op-SmX.placeholder" = "My translated placeholder text";
"HP9-op-VvD.text" = "My translated text";
Save, clean & build. It's a little bit painful but can save a lot of time if you only need to translate few things.
You can use a script called UpdatStoryboardStrings for this!Get it here: https://github.com/AppliedIS/iOSL10n
Intructions for use: http://blog.appliedis.com/2013/05/22/localization-of-an-xcode-ios-app-part-2/
With Xcode 6+, ideally developers should not have to manually manage strings files. Use XLIFF export to automatically gather development language strings to send to translators, and then use XLIFF import to update the strings files with translations.
https://developer.apple.com/library/ios/documentation/MacOSX/Conceptual/BPInternational/LocalizingYourApp/LocalizingYourApp.html#//apple_ref/doc/uid/10000171i-CH5-SW9
Another option is to use ibtool --export-strings-file directly.
https://developer.apple.com/library/mac/documentation/Darwin/Reference/ManPages/man1/ibtool.1.html
There are two options:
Option 1
Xcode can "reload" the file by converting the file to either an [Interface Builder Cocoa Touch Storyboard] file type or a [Localizable Strings] file type.
Select your base storyboard file from the Project Navigator
Find the Localization section in the File Inspector
If your file is currently a [Localizable Strings], change it to [Interface Builder Cocoa Touch Storyboard] or vice-versa.
Xcode should have converted your storyboard to the current version, while preserving your old localization efforts. Here you can change the file back to the original file type if you would like.
Option 2
Use ibtool to extract the strings in your storyboard.
Open the Terminal application
Locate your Base.lproj directory
Use this line to extract the strings:
ibtool MainStoryboard.storyboard --generate-strings-file file_name.strings
After ibtool extracts the strings to file_name.strings, you can copy and paste it to your original .strings file
Tested with Xcode 11, you can simply deselect the language.
Do not delete the file on disk.
And then choose to use the existing file.
The old translations will be kept and the new keys will be added.
I am trying to find a step by step tutorial on how to localize an iphone App. I have english and I'm looking to add french. The documentation is available but it hardly comes close to giving you clear instructions on how to implement it from start to finish.
Below is the step by step walkthrough that I was looking for. It is found Here
Hope it helps all of you as it did m.
This is a guest post by Sean Berry, a developer of math apps for iPhone, iPad, and iPod Touch.
Me Gusta Localization!
Although the English-speaking App Store market is the largest, there are still plenty of other iPhone users in the world and you can greatly increase their user experience by supporting their native language.
The good news is Apple has made it very easy to make your apps work with multiple languages through some API calls and built-in Xcode support. The process of doing this is called localization, and that’s what I’ll be showing you how to do!
In this iPhone app tutorial, you will be localizing a sample app I prepared called iLikeIt which was inspired by the rage comics in Ray’s post about in-app purchases. The app is very simple – it displays some ideal sales data, and when you tap ‘You like?’ a face appears, scales up, and fades away.
But right now it’s English only – so vamos a traducir!
This iPhone app tutorial will be using Xcode 4.6.1, so if you haven’t upgraded already, why not use this as an excuse to do so?
Getting Started
The first step is to download the iLikeIt starter project that we’ll be localizing in this iPhone app tutorial.
Build and Run the app, and you should see the following appear after you tap ‘You like?’:
We have 3 things to localize here:
Text: sales data
UI Element: ‘You like?’ button
and finally the image (it has text!)
Separating text from code
Like most projects, this project has some hardcoded strings in the code. We need to pull all of these hardcoded strings into a separate file so we can localize them.
The way you do this in Xcode is create a “.strings” file to contain all of the strings your projects needs. Then you’ll replace the hardcoded strings with a function call to look up the appropriate string from the “.strings” file based on the current language.
Let’s try this out. Go to File\New\New File. Choose iOS\Resource\Strings File, and click Next, as shown in the screenshot below. Name the new file Localizable.strings, and click Save.
Note that Localizable.strings is the default filename iOS looks for when dealing with localized text. If you don’t use this, you’ll have to specify the name of our .strings file every time.
The format for the strings file is:
"KEY" = "CONTENT";
So for our ‘Yesterday you sold %# apps’ and ‘You like?’ text add in:
"Yesterday you sold %# apps" = "Yesterday you sold %# apps";
"You like?" = "You like?";
Now switch to ViewController.m, and find the viewDidLoad method. Right now it sets the text as:
self.numAppsLabel.text = [NSString stringWithFormat:#"Yesterday you sold %# apps", #(1000000)];
[self.likeButton setTitle:#"You like?" forState:UIControlStateNormal];
We want it to instead read from our .strings file. To do that, change the current line to use a macro called NSLocalizedString as shown below:
self.numAppsLabel.text = [NSString stringWithFormat:NSLocalizedString(#"Yesterday you sold %# apps", nil), #(1000000)];
[self.likeButton setTitle:NSLocalizedString(#"You like?", nil) forState:UIControlStateNormal];
If you’re curious what the NSLocalizedString macro does, control-click on NSLocalizedString and choose Jump to Definition. You’ll find that it’s defined as follows:
#define NSLocalizedString(key, comment) \
[[NSBundle mainBundle] localizedStringForKey:(key) value:#"" table:nil]
So basically, it’s using the localizedStringForKey method to look up the string for the given key, in the current language. It passes nil for the table name, so it uses the default strings filename (Localizable.strings). For full details, check out Apple’s NSBundle Class Reference.
One other thing to note. The macro takes a comment as a parameter, but seems to do nothing with it! This is because instead of manually typing in each key/value pair into Localizable.strings like we’ve been doing, you can use a tool that comes with the iPhone SDK called genstrings to do this automatically (which can be quite convenient for large projects).
If you use this method, you can put a comment for each string that will appear next to the default strings as an aid for the translator. For example, you could add a comment indicating the context where the string is used.
Enough background info – let’s try it out! Build and run your project, and it should say the same text on the main screen just as before. But where’s the Spanish? Now that we’re set up it’s a cinch.
Adding a Spanish Localization
To add support for another language, click on the blue iLikeIt project folder on the left pane, select the Project in the next pane (NOT the Target), and under the Info tab you’ll see a section for Localizations. Click the + and choose Spanish (es).
You’ll see another screen asking you which files you want to localize, keep them all selected and click Finish. It’s ok that you don’t see Localizable.strings yet! We’ll get to it soon.
At this point, Xcode has set up some directories containing a separate version of InfoPlist.strings and MainStoryboard.storyboard for each language you selected, behind the scenes. To see this for yourself, open your project folder in Finder, and you’ll see the following:
See en.lproj and es.lproj? They contain our language-specific versions of files.
‘en’ is the localization code for English, and ‘es’ is the localization code for Spanish. If you’re curious, here’s the full list of language codes.
When iOS wants to get the English version of a file, it will look in en.lproj, but when it wants the Spanish version of a file it will look in es.lproj.
It’s that simple! Put your resources in the appropriate folder and iOS will do the rest.
But wait, what about Localizable.strings? To let Xcode know you want it localized, select it on the left pane, and open the File Inspector in the right pane. There you will see a button labeled Localize, click it, choose English (because it’s currently in English), and finally click Localize.
Now on that right File Inspector panel it shows which languages this file belongs to, add it to the Spanish localization by checking that box to the left of Spanish.
Go back to the left panel and click on the arrow next to Localizable.strings so it shows the sub-elements. You’ll see now we’re working with two versions of this file:
To change the text for Spanish, select Localizable.strings (Spanish) and change the text to read:
"Yesterday you sold %# apps" = "Ayer le vendió %# aplicaciones";
"You like?" = "~Es bueno?~";
Your app is worldly now! Let’s make sure it worked…
To make your simulator show Spanish, go into Settings.app and choose General -> International -> Language -> Espanol.
Delete the app and select Project\Clean to get a fresh build and install. When you build and run you should see:
Locale versus Language
Let’s make that number look better by adding some formatting. Replace this code:
self.numAppsLabel.text = [NSString stringWithFormat:NSLocalizedString(#"Yesterday you sold %# apps", nil), #(1000000)];
With this:
NSNumberFormatter *numberFormatter = [[NSNumberFormatter alloc] init];
[numberFormatter setNumberStyle:NSNumberFormatterDecimalStyle];
NSString *numberString = [numberFormatter stringFromNumber:#(1000000)];
self.numAppsLabel.text = [NSString stringWithFormat:NSLocalizedString(#"Yesterday you sold %# apps", nil), numberString];
Build and Run and the number will be a lot easier to read.
But here’s the thing, in Spain they don’t format their numbers like that. They write “1.000.000″ instead of “1,000,000″, but if you change the iOS simulator’s language to Espanol, you’ll still see commas used to separate the zeroes. The reason being is that number formatting is based on the region/locale, not the language. To see how someone in Spain will see that number, go into Settings -> General -> International and change Region Format to Spanish -> Spain.
When you open up the app again this is what you should see:
We got that functionality for free, just for using Apple’s NSNumberFormatter class! It pays to do things Apple’s way, don’t fight it.
Images
Since we have text in our image we need to localize it. Having some English in an otherwise Spanish app would look amateur.
Select ilike.png and add a localization for Spanish (you’re an old pro at this now!) (if you forgot, select it on the left panel, and in the File Inspector panel on the right, click the Localize button. Then after allowing Xcode to place the default copy into en.lproj, check the Spanish box on the right panel.)
Check out the project folder. ilike.png has been added to the English folder (en.lproj) and then copied to the Spanish folder (es.lproj). To make a different image show up for the Spanish version, we simply overwrite the image in the Spanish folder.
I’ve also included it in the starting project, saved as megusta.png.
Rename it to ilike.png and move it into the Spanish folder (es.lproj), overwriting the copied English version.
Clean and rebuild and you should be done! Switch your simulator to Espanol to see…
Congrats! That’s the bulk of localization.
I've already localized my Xcode Project once, but i don't know how to add more languages. I can't find the "+" button.
I have my .xib and .strings in English and Portuguese.
Here's what i see:
You have to add the localizations to your project:
Then you can simply select the localizations for each file separately.
I have a "Resources/en.lproj/Localized.strings" file, with some key/value pairs in the format:
"key"="value";
I select this file and in File Inspector in the Utilities Pane I choose to add a new localization (es) pressing the '+' button in the Localization tab.
This action should create a new file "Resources/es.lproj/Localized.strings", but instead the original "Resources/en.lproj/Localized.strings" now displays a small triangle at the left ( as if it were a folder ) and holds inside two files Localized.strings (English) and Localized.strings (Spanish). No es.lproj directory created.
I have never read of this behavior even in references to this using XCode4.
What I'm missing?
Updated info:
I have checked the app bundle installed in my iPhone Simulator and the folders are created there, with the corresponding files.
I don't know if this is the default way but is confusing to me since reading the documentation this is not what I understand.
Your could try this : Quit XCode, relaunch your project. Remove all localizations from your project properties (keeping the files when asked), add them back, remove es localization on your file, then add it back.
I don't remember where I heard about it, (I think I was searching up on how selectors worked and it ended up not being exactly the same as a callback function) and I can't confirm it. But more importantly than that, is there a way I could get a list of the function names from another application?
See class-dump.
You can sometimes see a list of the method names in an application. Find the .ipa file for the app (possibly in the Music->iTunes->Mobile Applications directory on a Mac). Make a copy of one of the ipa files and change it from .ipa to .zip. Unzip the file and in the Payload folder, there's a file with the same name as the app. Right click on it and "Show Package Contents". In there, you'll find another file with the same name as the app (with no extension). This is the executable file for the app. If you open it in a text editor like BBEdit, you'll sometimes be able to see some method names, as well as a list of the frameworks the app is built against. You can find the path name where things were kept too, often with the developer's name.
For example, looking into the Japanese dicitonary Daijirin, I can see these methods:
-[HMWebSupport openMONOKAKIDOSupportWithSafariForView:style:]
-[HistoryViewController viewWillAppear:]
I can also see that one of the developers was called Norihito, and he was using SVN: /Users/norihito/Developer/SVN/Mobile/DAIJIRIN/Other
Other applications (like Weightbot) don't show as much information. I don't know the reason it shows up some times and doesn't other times.