It seems to me that Moodle terms are usually directed towards educational usage - either for kids or academic usage.
As we use it for business uses, we do change the terms using the language editing interface.
However, I was thinking that it would be a step towards Moodle business uses if there business-oriented language packs would be included. Thus, "Teachers" would be "Instructors", "Students" - "Employees" or "Participants".
What is your opinion of this? Would it be viable to open such a language pack? Who should I suggest this to?
Amir Elion,
Moodles design is in such a way that it is used everywhere for educational purposes it dosent really matter whether its for kids or employees , when they enter moodle they have entered an educational system where the only possible roles for them are student , teacher or an guest,
I also think that it gives them an class room like feel.
If you think you need to give it a complete official feel for users , Moodle also has an option where you can use it to create custom roles with custom tags to it.
I really appreciate the initiative but please do justify the reason for people to work on the new feature(Business class language packs) that you are suggesting.
And if you also have already created such a language pack please upload so others can use if they need it and comment on it.
Moodles design is in such a way that it is used everywhere for educational purposes it dosent really matter whether its for kids or employees , when they enter moodle they have entered an educational system where the only possible roles for them are student , teacher or an guest,
I also think that it gives them an class room like feel.
If you think you need to give it a complete official feel for users , Moodle also has an option where you can use it to create custom roles with custom tags to it.
I really appreciate the initiative but please do justify the reason for people to work on the new feature(Business class language packs) that you are suggesting.
And if you also have already created such a language pack please upload so others can use if they need it and comment on it.
Dear Ravishankar,
I agree that Moodle is a learning environment that can and is being used in various educational and business setting.
However, as a training professional, I am aware of the differences between adult learning and children learning, and the different roles expected from adult in the learning process, and from the ones that serve the role of instructors or facilitators.
Furthermore, I do not only refer to adult vs. children learning. I also refer to differences between academic and business learning environments. Students in universities are called "Students" because their major interest in that context is learning. However, in a business setting, learning is not an activity on its own, it is one important activity related to the empolyee's goals, skills, etc.
As I see Moodle gaining more strength and possibilites in the business world, I thought it might be a good step towards getting Moodle to be more relevant for commercial as well as non-profit organizations. Language is indeed just an "external" characteristic of an application such as Moodle, but still appearance and language do matter and do establish perceptions of such an application. I do think that to include Business-Oriented language packs, would make more organizations willing to consider Moodle as a platform to support business training - either for employees or clients/partners.
Obviously, not just external features such as language (and more professional themes for that matter), need to be considered but also more features that support business oriented needs. These can include a more robust integration of online and instructor-led learning (blended learning). Face-to-Face module does provide some of these but I would like to see it and other business relevant modules grow and become more established, and integrated into core. Other examples can include a stronger personal learning plan, stronger report system, and other. It seems some will be addressed by Moodle 2.0.
As I am not a programmer, I cannot help with the plug-ins and features. As for the language - I will look at what I have done so far and see if I can take out our specific-company translations and upload it for review if it makes any sense to others.
Other opinions on the matter will be welcome...
I agree that Moodle is a learning environment that can and is being used in various educational and business setting.
However, as a training professional, I am aware of the differences between adult learning and children learning, and the different roles expected from adult in the learning process, and from the ones that serve the role of instructors or facilitators.
Furthermore, I do not only refer to adult vs. children learning. I also refer to differences between academic and business learning environments. Students in universities are called "Students" because their major interest in that context is learning. However, in a business setting, learning is not an activity on its own, it is one important activity related to the empolyee's goals, skills, etc.
As I see Moodle gaining more strength and possibilites in the business world, I thought it might be a good step towards getting Moodle to be more relevant for commercial as well as non-profit organizations. Language is indeed just an "external" characteristic of an application such as Moodle, but still appearance and language do matter and do establish perceptions of such an application. I do think that to include Business-Oriented language packs, would make more organizations willing to consider Moodle as a platform to support business training - either for employees or clients/partners.
Obviously, not just external features such as language (and more professional themes for that matter), need to be considered but also more features that support business oriented needs. These can include a more robust integration of online and instructor-led learning (blended learning). Face-to-Face module does provide some of these but I would like to see it and other business relevant modules grow and become more established, and integrated into core. Other examples can include a stronger personal learning plan, stronger report system, and other. It seems some will be addressed by Moodle 2.0.
As I am not a programmer, I cannot help with the plug-ins and features. As for the language - I will look at what I have done so far and see if I can take out our specific-company translations and upload it for review if it makes any sense to others.
Other opinions on the matter will be welcome...
Hi Amir. Have you made this point on the Moodle for Business Users forum?
I have now, thanks. http://moodle.org/mod/forum/discuss.php?d=129858
This sounds like a good idea to me - at least it is worth giving it a go.
I would wonder whether it is possible to reach consensus on all the words, but even so, as pack that translates most of the strings that need changing would still be a good starting point for other business users.
And I wonder how international business English is. Would we need an en_bus_utf8 and an en_us_bus_utf8 (or whatever we decide to call these).
Anyway, my suggestion would be to have the discussion you started in the Moodle for Business Users forum, and actually start making the language pack. Once we see whether the idea actually works out in practice, we can worry about adding it to the officially supported languages list.
I would wonder whether it is possible to reach consensus on all the words, but even so, as pack that translates most of the strings that need changing would still be a good starting point for other business users.
And I wonder how international business English is. Would we need an en_bus_utf8 and an en_us_bus_utf8 (or whatever we decide to call these).
Anyway, my suggestion would be to have the discussion you started in the Moodle for Business Users forum, and actually start making the language pack. Once we see whether the idea actually works out in practice, we can worry about adding it to the officially supported languages list.
Thanks for your points Tim.
To begin with, I do not think we need to seperate US from International English.
As I noted, the main initial purpose here is to demonstrate to potential business users that Moodle can be relevant for their uses and enviroment. Given Moodle's ability to change phrases can be used for accomodation, and only later perhaps do a move towards US vs. Intl. language.
I don't mind starting a draft version.
Can I do it on a en_local and then share with the community, or should I start a new language pack? If the later, then as I have never started a new language pack, can anyone direct me to instructions on doing so?
To begin with, I do not think we need to seperate US from International English.
As I noted, the main initial purpose here is to demonstrate to potential business users that Moodle can be relevant for their uses and enviroment. Given Moodle's ability to change phrases can be used for accomodation, and only later perhaps do a move towards US vs. Intl. language.
I don't mind starting a draft version.
Can I do it on a en_local and then share with the community, or should I start a new language pack? If the later, then as I have never started a new language pack, can anyone direct me to instructions on doing so?
Dear Amri Elion,
Start with what you have, can you upload the language pack that you have (dosen matter whether its an modified version of en_local)? so that others who have inputs can contribute to it and finally when it is done and ready to launch as a new language pack
Start with what you have, can you upload the language pack that you have (dosen matter whether its an modified version of en_local)? so that others who have inputs can contribute to it and finally when it is done and ready to launch as a new language pack
I started it on my server as a new language pack. Will work on it a bit and upload for others to review.
I think starting it as a complete new language pack is a bit much, since there is not that much to change. You can use an existing one that you use as parent language and only save the changed strings. That will save you the effort of keeping up all new additions to the language pack.
Read all about it on
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Translation
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Local_language
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Language_packs
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Language_editing
before you decide which approach you are going to use.
Read all about it on
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Translation
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Local_language
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Language_packs
http://docs.moodle.org/en/Language_editing
before you decide which approach you are going to use.
Of course I will use English as parent language.
However, if I understand correctly, local language is for alterations on the specific installation of moodle, so a new "language pack" is the correct choice here, with only chosen changes on the parent en_utf8.
So I will be changing some terms on the English original.
I will also post some of my translation dillemas and decisions here for people's opinions.
However, if I understand correctly, local language is for alterations on the specific installation of moodle, so a new "language pack" is the correct choice here, with only chosen changes on the parent en_utf8.
So I will be changing some terms on the English original.
I will also post some of my translation dillemas and decisions here for people's opinions.
A local language language pack, and a new language pack with a parent both involve exactly the same set of files - to change one to the other, you just need to rename the folder that contains them, and add the bit that sets the parent language.
So, while you are actually working out which strings to change, you don't have to worry which you are doing.
So, while you are actually working out which strings to change, you don't have to worry which you are doing.
I have started work on this.
I have decided on these changes of terms so far:
I will post more decisions and dillemas as I come across them.
If anyone sees/recalls a term that should be adapted from educational settings to business ones, please make a note here.
I have decided on these changes of terms so far:
- Teacher >> Instructor
- Other options were Trainer, Facilitator, Coach, Mentor, Lecturer. I think Instrcuctor is the most common and most general in a business setting.
- Student >> Participant
- I had to choose between Employee, Client, Trainee. Again I went for the term I thought would be most generally used.
- Course Creator >> Content Editor
I will post more decisions and dillemas as I come across them.
If anyone sees/recalls a term that should be adapted from educational settings to business ones, please make a note here.
I think discussing particular choices of word would be better in the Moodle for Business users area. You are more likely to have a suitable audience there.
Attached is my result.
I translated several terms across all the lang files, mostly for student >> participant, teacher >> instructor and a few more.
I also worked on a couple of 3rd party modules which I think are very useful for business settings - face-to-face and questionnaire.
Comments welcome.
I translated several terms across all the lang files, mostly for student >> participant, teacher >> instructor and a few more.
I also worked on a couple of 3rd party modules which I think are very useful for business settings - face-to-face and questionnaire.
Comments welcome.
What about having an easier option to change the titles for each specific installation? Then you wouldn't have to worry about what language was most appropriate, and yet users could easily customize the language of "courses, students, teachers, etc."
An easily seen link titled "Title Options" linking to an easy interface that had the general language specified with boxes to enter the changed language in one place (and would therefore change the use in every instance) would be FAB.
Unless I'm missing something, the only options available now are to search and hunt out each instance of words you want to change and pray you got them all ... and catch the ones you didn't as they appear, leading to an all new time-intensive hunt and find mission. Or you can change the words in the language files themselves, but then won't you lose the functionality of that word in general usage?
Guess I'm just wishing that much of the customization isn't very user friendly for the non-coder.
An easily seen link titled "Title Options" linking to an easy interface that had the general language specified with boxes to enter the changed language in one place (and would therefore change the use in every instance) would be FAB.
Unless I'm missing something, the only options available now are to search and hunt out each instance of words you want to change and pray you got them all ... and catch the ones you didn't as they appear, leading to an all new time-intensive hunt and find mission. Or you can change the words in the language files themselves, but then won't you lose the functionality of that word in general usage?
Guess I'm just wishing that much of the customization isn't very user friendly for the non-coder.
Hi G.
there is just an other problem in some non english languages. Articles and forms of the word can change in different sentences. Example:
der Kurs - the course
die Lehrveranstaltung - the lecture
das Seminar - the seminar
das Training the training
If you only change the term, it works for english but not in German. So its not possible to change the term 'course' by a placeholder.
ralf
there is just an other problem in some non english languages. Articles and forms of the word can change in different sentences. Example:
der Kurs - the course
die Lehrveranstaltung - the lecture
das Seminar - the seminar
das Training the training
If you only change the term, it works for english but not in German. So its not possible to change the term 'course' by a placeholder.
ralf