String Editor – Arma Reforger

Open String Editor

• In Resource Manager, select Editors → String Editor. In the newly open window select File → Open and in the newly open dialog navigate to the wanted *.st file.
• alternatively, search for the *.st file in Resource Manager's Resource Browser tab and open it by double-clicking it.

Translation Workflow

Status	Operation	Editable	If the string is correct	If the string is incorrect
DEVELOPMENT_PENDING	Fill Target_en_us as translation reference		Change the status to DEVELOPMENT_DONE	Fix it directly in the Target_en_us field
DEVELOPMENT_DONE	Feature development end, translation requirement confirmation		Change the status to PROOFREADING_PENDING	Set the status back to DEVELOPMENT_PENDING and edit the Target_en_us field
PROOFREADING_PENDING	Proofreaders acknowledgement		Change the status to PROOFREADING_DONE	Unlock the string, set the status back to DEVELOPMENT_PENDING and edit the Target_en_us_edited field
PROOFREADING_DONE	Proofreaders validation		Change the status to TRANSLATION_PENDING	Unlock the string, set the status back to DEVELOPMENT_PENDING and edit the Target_en_us_edited field
TRANSLATION_PENDING	Translators acknowledgement		Change the status to TRANSLATION_DONE	Unlock the string, set the status back to DEVELOPMENT_PENDING and edit the Target_en_us_edited field
TRANSLATION_DONE	Translators validation		Nothing	Unlock the string, set the status back to DEVELOPMENT_PENDING and edit the Target_en_us field

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This workflow used in a professional environment to synchronise all the actors of the translation process.

In the scope of a custom, one-man mod this is bound to change and be adapted.

Its behaviour is defined in the LocStatusPlugin and can be disabled, making the workflow optional and customisable to one's needs.

ID Convention

A translation id must follow a certain convention. Its name is constituted of specific parts in a specific order, and these parts are separated with a dash ( - ):

Name	Description
Game/Product	Game or Project prefix: AR for Arma Reforger, ENF for Enfusion
Game Project	Optional, subsequential game project code (e.g a DLC, etc)
Name	PascalCased string name - e.g MyNewWeapon, SplendidActionOnTruck Name prefixes/suffixes can exist through the usage of underscores ( _ ): MainMenu_Options MainMenu_Options_Video Iterators are part of the name section too, e.g AOSettings_1, AOSettings_2, AOSettings_3
Case	Optional, defines if the string MUST remain uppercase or lowercase. Can be one of: UC for UpperCase LC for LowerCase
Platform	Used to determine a string that is only present on a certain platform, as opposed to a string that is present on PC. Can be one of: XB for Microsoft XBox PS for Sony PlayStation SWC for Nintendo Switch

Naming Convention

• use meta naming; the id must not be a 1:1 of the original text
  • e.g: #AR-ExitConfirmation and not #AR-DoYouWantToQuit
• do not use any of:
  • trademarks (use a generic name)
  • profanities (for obvious reasons)
• write in English

Examples

• ENF-Settings
• AR-MainMenu
• AR-MainMenu_Options
• AR-OFP-MainMenu_Options_RefreshRate-UC-PS

Writing Convention

A translation text must follow some rules and advices to be valid:

The in-game text should always refer to a stringtable and never be written directly in UI/data.

Do not hardcode:

• text in UI
• text in data (config)
• text in code
• text in image (unless it is part of the lore)
• numeric format (e.g 1000 could be written 1,000 or 1 000 in another language)
• date format (2001-12-01, 01/12/2001, 12/01/2021 etc)
• percentage values (25%, 25 %, %25 etc)

Tips

To use arguments (formatted) text, use %1, %2, etc to include argument 1, 2, etc in the text. to display the percentage sign itself (%), use %%. Composed strings should be restricted to the bare minimum and used only when necessary for translation reasons.

Localised string

// formatted text example unlocalised string testName = "Peter"; PrintFormat("Hello %1, how are you?", testName); // displays "Hello Peter, how are you?" // #AR-Test is the translation container's id string testName = "Peter"; PrintFormat("#AR-Test", testName); // displays "Hello Peter, how are you?" as well

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If a string contains any %1 arguments, they must be documented in the Comment field!

Do not assemble multiple parts to make a sentence, as such construction might be invalid in another language:

Bad Example	Good Example	Explanation
Hold Space to Take weapon Hold %1 to %2 Space Take weapon Sleep	Hold Space to take weapon Hold %1 to take weapon Hold %1 to sleep Space	The translator does not always know that the value is to be used in a composition The translation itself might not have been thought for this usage in the first place
Remaining time: 30 seconds Remaining time: %1 %2 30 (game value) seconds	Remaining time: 30 seconds Remaining time: %1 second(s) Remaining time: %1 minute(s) 30 (game value)
Heavy Machinegun %1 %2 Heavy Machinegun	Heavy Machinegun Heavy Machinegun	Some languages place adjectives in a different order; such translation must then be done in one piece

Create a Stringtable File

Follow these steps to create a new *.st file:

1. In Resource browser select a folder where you want to create a new *.st file
2. Use right mouse button to open an option and here select GUI String table
3. Set the name of the file
4. Choose StringTable class and confirm
5. A new *.st was created - all there is to do now is to assign this *.st file to the project
6. In Workbench select Options
7. In newly open window select Game project
8. In the Configuration dropbox, select the desired platform (Headless, PC, Xbox, PS5, etc)
9. Navigate to Widget Manager Settings → String Tables → String Table Definition and here:
   • String Table Source - select the newly created file
   • Languages - press the "+" button to add all desired languages.

Add a New Localised String

1. Open String Editor
2. Write an Id (stringtable entry key) into the insert section
3. Press insert, the new container is created
4. Select the new container in the list of containers
5. In the Details section, add the original text in the Target_en_us field.
6. Fall all other necessary details like Comment, Max Length of the text, all matching labels and so on. Details about those items are in this section of tutorial.
7. Save changes by using File → Save (or Ctrl + S)
8. Go to Table → Build Runtime Table (or Ctrl + B). Only after the following confirmation is the text ready to be used in game.

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Recommended read: Detailed tutorial on creating localisation in mod can be found on Mod Localisation page.