msgomerge

msgomerge

A command-line tool for merging two Uniforum style .po files together. The tool combines translations from an existing PO file (def.po) with up-to-date source references from a reference POT file (ref.pot), preserving comments and applying fuzzy matching where exact matches are not found.

Features

• Merges translations from an existing PO file with source references from a POT file
• Preserves comments from the existing PO file
• Supports fuzzy matching for improved translation reuse
• Customizable location tags for source references
• Option to disable fuzzy matching for strict merging
• Supports additional translation libraries (compendium files)
• Configurable output file and directory
• Language field customization in the header
• Option to update the existing PO file in-place

Installation

go install github.com/Tom5521/gotext-tools/cli/msgomerge@latest

Usage

Basic usage:

msgomerge [flags] def.po ref.pot

Command Line Options

• Input/Output Options:

  • --output-file, -o: Write output to specified file (default: "-" for standard output).
  • --directory, -D: Add DIRECTORY to list for input files search.
  • --update, -U: Update def.po in-place; do nothing if def.po is already up to date.

• Merging Options:

  • --compendium, -C: Additional library of message translations (can be specified multiple times).
  • --no-fuzzy-matching, -N: Disable fuzzy matching (only use exact matches).
  • --force-po: Always write an output file even if empty.

• Formatting Options:

  • --add-location, -n: Generate '#: filename:line' lines (default: "full"). Options: full, file, or never.
  • --no-location: Suppress '#: filename:line' lines (same as --add-location=never).
  • --no-wrap: Do not break long message lines into multiple lines.
  • --lang: Set 'Language' field in the header entry (default: "en").

• Help:

  • --help, -h: Display help information.

Examples

Basic merge with default options:

msgomerge translations.po messages.pot > merged.po

Merge and write directly to a file:

msgomerge -o merged.po translations.po messages.pot

Update the existing PO file in-place:

msgomerge -U translations.po messages.pot

Merge with strict matching (no fuzzy matching):

msgomerge -N -o merged.po translations.po messages.pot

Merge with additional translation libraries:

msgomerge -C common.po,extra.po -o merged.po translations.po messages.pot

Customize language and location tags:

msgomerge --lang=es --add-location=file -o merged.po translations.po messages.pot

How It Works

1. Input Files:

   • def.po: An existing PO file with translations. These translations will be carried over to the new file if they still match the source strings.
   • ref.pot: A reference POT file (or PO file) with up-to-date source references but potentially outdated translations.

2. Merging Process:

   • Translations and comments from def.po are preserved.
   • Extracted comments and file positions from def.po are discarded.
   • Source references (file positions) from ref.pot are preserved.
   • Translations or comments in ref.pot are discarded.
   • Fuzzy matching is used when exact matches are not found (unless disabled).

3. Output:

   • The resulting PO file contains:
     • Preserved translations from def.po where they match the source strings.
     • Up-to-date source references from ref.pot.
     • Fuzzy matches (if enabled) for strings that don't have exact matches.

Acknowledgments

• gettext - The GNU internationalization and localization system that inspired this tool.
• gotext - The Go internationalization library this tool is designed to work with.