This project is for users who don't want to change their desktop ‘colors’, and select a ‘visualization’ ‘plugin’.

How do I contribute

Two options, depending on your free time:

• Testing and reporting: use a recent version of GNOME (current stable or unstable), run it using British English as an interface language and find an error in the translation. File an issue in the en_GB issue tracker, simply mention which version of GNOME you're using, the application, and in which dialogue the problem is. You can even attach a screenshot.

• Translating: Check which modules from the desktop release require work on the status page, translate (using en_GB.pl, see below) and/or verify proposed translations. The turn-around is usually short enough that you wouldn't have to worry about somebody else doing the translation before you do. You can also try to fix the opened issues although there usually none opened.

en_GB.pl

Only one, and a good one: en_GB.pl written by Abigail Brady. This tool takes an untranslated .po file as input, and spits out the fully translated file. This file, of course, needs to be double-checked. The tool will also ask you whether to translate some bits that might not have to be, and it will need to be extended in some circumstances. File a bug in case you needed to do any manual changes. You really shouldn't have to.

The policy

Whatever is in the Cambridge or Oxford English dictionary (OED). Note: The OED has a bias in towards -ize spellings.

However, here's some better detailed explanations (from kde.me.uk). Remember that most of these are, and should be, respected and handled by our tool (the one above, not the one below).

Watch out for:

• double l's being single l's
• 'ou' being 'o'
• 're' being 'er'
• lack of 'ue' on end of words
• over use of ize which should be ise anyway
• using a regularised preterite of irregular verbs (e.g. lit vs lighted)
• turning nouns into verbs (e.g. "trash the file")

Some examples:

• braces->curly brackets (unless trouser braces)

• backward->backwards

• canceled->cancelled

• center->centre (but not if in HTML)

• check->tick (when used in the sense of 'check this option')

• color->colour

• dialog->dialogue (see discussion about this item)

• fall->autumn

• favorite->favourite (or preferably use the label bookmark like everyone else)

• forward->forwards (when used as an adverb, but back/forward not changed)

• globaly->globally

• gray->grey

• license->licence (when used as a noun - ie. a licence, to license)

• ize->ise

• ization->isation

• modeler->modeller

• parenthesis->brackets

• toward->towards

• utilize->use

• todo->to-do (should be fixed in the source files, though)

• co-ordinate->coordinate (e.g. "X coordinate"; not "x co-ordinate" or "X-coordinate". Should also be fixed in the source files.)

Trash should be translated to Wastebasket when referring to the desktop/file manager. Other situations can use either 'Wastebasket' or 'Deleted Items' as seems most appropriate. Beware of Trash being used as a verb which should be translated as 'Move to Wastebasket'.

Words not to Translate

• program (American spelling is accepted to mean "computer program" but not for "television programme")
• disk (computer hard disk, other flat circular objects are disc)
• font (not fount)
• synthesize

Punctuation Differences

• The Oxford Comma - standard US English usage is to put a comma before the and in lists of items, e.g. red, white, and blue; standard British English usage, however, is to leave it out, e.g: red, white and blue. More subtly "etc." (et cetera, i.e. and so on) should have a comma before it in US English; it shouldn't in British English but it is considered bad style to use abbreviations or latin terms so if you ever see etc. you should encourage the authors to try to rephrase things in a simpler and clearer way.

• Placing full stops inside brackets at the end of sentences - in US English the full stop is usually placed inside the brackets; in British English it is usually left outside. User interface strings probably should not be using brackets at all (and this is an excuse to show that if brackets are used inside a sentence the full stop goes at the end of the sentence). (If the whole sentence is inside brackets the full stop goes inside.)

• Within complicated sentences that use posession, British English will tend to use a preposition (e.g. "the menu of the window") rather than the genitive (e.g. "the window's menu"). Avoiding the genitive also reduces the risk of getting confused by punctuation and the American English could also be encouraged to use this sentence construction.

The contacts

• The gnome-i18n mailing list usually has most of the translators on, and should be able to guide you in helping with your translation questions should you have any problems.

• You can receive all the en_GB related issues by clicking the bell on the en_GB translation team's repository

• A complete list of open bugs is available on GitLab itself

• The GNOME Translation Project has links to a lot of tools, and guides.