In the winter of 2003, a survey was done on FOSS localization efforts in several Asian countries. Progress in localization varies considerably from place to place. Governmental sponsorship of the project appears to be the single most important factor in achieving rapid success in localization. Without exception, the developers surveyed cited "Freedom to Develop" as their primary reason for choosing to localize FOSS instead of using proprietary software.

2003年冬，有人对几个亚洲国家自由／开源软件本地化的工作进行了一项调查。各国本地化的进程有很大差异。政府对本地化项目的支持似乎是本地化取得快速成功的最关键因素。接受调查的开发者们无一例外地选择了“开发的自由”作为他们选择本地化自由／开源软件而不是使用私有软件的首要理由。

The CJK Initiative

=CJK 项目=

China, Japan and Korea are officially cooperating in FOSS localization. The well-funded and extensively promoted "CJK" programmes encouraging use of localized FOSS are at par with that of the wealthiest nations.

With educational and technological infrastructure and a large pool of skilled technology and language specialists, these three countries have the potential to dominate East Asian FOSS development in the next decade.

中国、日本和韩国在自由／开源软件的本地化上进行了官方合作。资金充足、推广全面的“CJK”项目谷里使用本地化的自由／开源软件，其力度可以与最富裕国家的类似项目媲美。

这三个国家拥有的教育和技术基础设施和大量熟练的技术和语言专家，使它们有潜力在今后十年中的东亚自由／开源软件开发中占主导地位。

As donors and advisors, all three countries have a track record of supporting FOSS initiatives worldwide. Others should emulate the technical and organizational competence of the CJK FOSS and localization initiative, which is being led by the the Chinese Software Industry Association (CSIA), Japanese IT Services Industry Association (JISA), and the Federation of Korean Information Industries (KFII).

This primer is too short to fully detail the impressive work of the CJK initiative. However, a number of references to CJK as well as contact information for the key leaders of the movement are provided.

作为出资者和监督者的三个国家都有支持世界各地自由／开源软件项目的记录。由中国软件行业协会（Chinese Software Industry Association, CSIA）、日本信息技术服务产业协会（Japanese IT Services Industry Association, JISA）和韩国信息业联盟（Federation of Korean Information Industries, KFII）领导的 CJK 自由／开源软件和本地化项目具有的技术实力和组织优势值得其他国家效仿。

本书没有足够的篇幅详细叙述 CJK 项目的突出成果，但提供了关于 CJK 的参考资料以及项目关键人物的联系信息。(3)

Indian Languages

=印度语言=

There are already multiple localized Indic language versions of GNU/Linux, Mozilla and OpenOffice.org available online. The depth of technical experience of Indian programmers in localization should enable them to provide assistance to other Asian countries in their localization efforts.

India has world-class IT infrastructure and skills. It also has a multiplicity of languages. Currently, the Indian Ministry of Information Technology is localizing to Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Sanskrit.

网络上已经有多种本地化的印地语 GNU/Linux，Mozilla 和 OpenOffice.org 版本。印度程序员丰富的本地化经验将使他们能够为其他亚洲国家的本地化工作提供帮助。

印度拥有世界级的信息技术基础设施和技术力量。同时印度也是一个多语言的国家。目前，印度信息产业部正在进行印地语、马拉地语、坎纳德语、Malayalam、泰米尔语、泰卢固语和梵语的本地化工作。

At least two independent groups as well as the Ministry of Information Technology are currently localizing to Tamil.

An initiative to localize GNU/Linux to around 10 Indian languages, called Indix, is being spearheaded by the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), a scientific society of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology, Mumbai. There is also a Hindi GNU/Linux and a Bangla version in progress.

除了信息产业部以外，还有两个独立的团体在进行泰米尔语的本地化。

一项将 GNU/Linux 本地化为10种印度语言版本的称为 Indix 的项目，正在由通信和信息技术部位于孟买的一个名为先进计算开发中心（Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, CDAC）的科学团体牵头开发。一个印地语和一个 Bangla 语的版本也在开发之中。

English is widely used in India. Therefore, the underlying programming languages are easily understood, making the work much easier. For English language FOSS development, South Asia can realistically compete with Europe and the United States today.

印度广泛地使用英语。因此，他们更容易理解编程语言，也使本地化工作更容易进行。对于基于英语的自由／开源软件开发，今天的南亚与欧美国家可以同场较量。

Thai

=泰国语=

Localization of FOSS in the Thai language was started in 1993 by Thai students in Japan in an effort to use Thai in Unix environments. Later, a similar movement commenced in Thailand. These two movements merged and Linux TLE and the Thai Linux Working Group were launched in 1999. However, the movement was limited to a small community until mid-2001 when the Thai version of OpenOffice.org, dubbed Pladao and sponsored by Sun Microsystems (Thailand), was announced to the public. Documentation is being carried out by private publishers who, in exchange, will retain the copyright on their work for later sale to the public in the form of books and manuals.

1993年由留日泰国学生进行的在 Unix 环境下使用泰国语的尝试，标志着将自由/开源软件本地化为泰国语版本的工作开始。不久，类似的活动在泰国开展起来。这两个项目后来合并到一起，并在1999年启动了 Linux TLE 和泰国 Linux 工作组项目。但是，运动始终都处于小群体的水平，直到2001年中由升阳微系统（泰国）公司支持的被称为 Pladao 的 OpenOffice.org 泰国语版本向公众发布。文档工作任务由私人发行商承担，作为交换，他们可以保留他们工作的版权并在今后以书籍和手册的形式向公众出售这些文档。

Only 10 individuals are actively involved in the project at this time, with development resources provided by a combination of private companies and government.

目前计划的活跃成员只有10名，开发的资源则由私人公司和政府共同提供。

Thai developers are using GNU Compiler and Tools for modifying GNU/Linux, Mozilla’s “Bugzilla” for defect tracking, and CVS for version and source control. In addition, OpenOffice.org, a productivity suite, is being localized for Thai users.

泰国的开发者们使用 GNU 编译器和工具修改 GNU/Linux，用 Mozilla 的“Bugzilla”跟踪错误，并用 CVS 进行版本和代码控制。此外，OpenOffice.org 这种办公套件，已经为泰国用户进行了本地化。

The primary difficulties the Thais are experiencing include lack of feedback from users, lack of documentation, and conflicts with other Thai localization projects because of a lack of coordination and standards.

泰国开发者面临的主要问题是缺乏来自用户的反馈，缺乏文档，以及由于缺乏协调和标准而与其他泰国本地化工程产生的冲突。

The Thais intend to roll out the software for both the private sector and public institutions, but are still in the planning stage at this time. The team has not yet seen a high-profile effort to promote the use of FOSS in Thailand. This may change in the near future, depending on government and private funding. In comparison to the CJK efforts, Thailand has fewer developers, less money, and less outside interest due to the size of its market. Other Thai localization projects are discussed on pages 7-10.

泰国准备为私有企业和公共部门同时提供本地化的软件，但目前工作仍然处于筹备阶段。在泰国还没有高级别的部门进行工作推广自由/开源软件的使用。这种情况可能在不久的将来有所改观，取决于政府和私人的资助。与 CJK 项目相比，泰国的开发者较少，资金较少，而且外界由于其市场的规模也缺乏兴趣。其他的泰国语本地化工程在案例研究部分有详细讨论。

Vietnamnese

=越南语=

FOSS localization to the Vietnamese language began in 1998, primarily as an individual effort by an enthusiast. Today, there are between 20-50 people working on the project. They are volunteers, providing their resources and time for free, and all are using FOSS tools for the work. But even with the number of individuals currently involved, there are not enough people to perform all of the necessary work.

自由/开源软件的越南语本地化开始于1998年，最初是爱好者的个人行为。今天，有20-50人为这项计划工作。他们都是志愿者，无偿贡献他们的资源和时间，而且都在工作中使用自由/开源软件工具。但现在参与到计划中的人仍然不足以进行全部必要的工作。

Vietnamese localizations of GNU/Linux, Gnome, KDE, XFCE, Fluxbox, OpenOffice.org, Mozilla, XMMS, GnuCash, Gaim and Knoppix are in progress.

目前进行中的工作包括 GNU/Linux、Gnome、KDE、XFCE、Fluxbox、OpenOffice.org、Mozilla、XMMS、GnuCash、Gaim 和 Knoppix 的越南语本地化。

Plans for introducing the software to the Vietnamese people include the publication of books, formation of user groups in major cities, and provision of the software to private and public institutions. Already, there has been some effort to promote the use of FOSS in secondary schools, universities and government offices. Recently the government adopted a FOSS policy.

将这些软件介绍给越南人民的计划包括出版书籍，在大城市组建用户组，以及向私人和公共单位提供软件。目前在中学、大学和政府推广使用自由/开源软件的工作已经展开。最近越南政府颁布了与自由/开源软件有关的政策。

Malay

=马来语=

The Malaysian Institute of Microelectronic Systems (MIMOS) has launched a Web site to document projects in FOSS within Asia with links to key resources. MIMOS’s goal is to localize key applications into the national language, Bahasa Melayu. MIMOS has already developed a local language GNU/Linux GUI and open source applications for the government. Two other localization projects are GNOME, led by Hasbullah Bin Pit, and OpenOffice.org, spearheaded by MIMOS.

马来西亚微电子系统研究院（Malaysian Institute of Microelectronic Systems, MIMOS）启动了一个网站，用于记录亚洲的自由/开源软件项目，并有重要资源的链接。MIMOS 的目标是把重要的应用程序本地化为国家通用语言 Bahasa Melayu。MIMOS 已经开发了一个 GNU/Linux 的本地语言 GUI 以及政府用的开源应用程序。此外还有 Hasbullah Bin Pit 领导的 GNOME 本地化计划和 MIMOS 牵头的 OpenOffice.org 本地化计划。

Khmer

=谷美尔语=

The Khmer Software Initiative has an ambitious though under-funded plan to localize FOSS for Khmer speakers in Cambodia and elsewhere. In addition to a localized version of the GNU/Linux user interface and some applications, they intend to create a development library, complete documentation both online and in print, and specialized training materials for developers and end users. It is not known how many individuals are working on the project currently.

谷美尔软件项目有一项虽然资金不足但目标远大的计划，为柬埔寨和其他地方的古美尔语使用者本地化自由/开源软件。除了本地化版本的 GNU/Linux 用户界面和一些应用程序外，他们还打算建立一个开发图书馆，完善网络和印刷版本的文档，以及为开发者和最终用户专门编写的培训材料。目前不清楚有多少人在为这项计划工作。

As elsewhere, the Khmer team envisions providing the software to both private and government users. A publicity campaign is planned and the developers expect significant support from the international development community to complete much of the work.

像其他国家一样，谷美尔人的开发队伍也预备同时向私人和政府用户提供软件。他们正在计划一次宣传攻势，开发者们也希望得到国际开发社区的帮助以完成大量的工作。

The quality of the planning for Khmer, a crucial first step, is very high. As with other developing countries, funding and personnel to complete the work are the main hurdles. For more information on this area, please read Khmer Case Studies on pages 12-15.

作为关键的第一步，谷美尔本地化项目的规划工作质量很高。像其他发展中国家一样，用于工作的资金和人力不足是主要的障碍。关于这一地区的更多信息请参阅后面的谷美尔案例研究。

---

3 See www.linuxinsider.com/story/32421.html, www.economist.com/business/displayStory.cfm?story_id=2054746, encyclopedia.thefreedictionary.com/CJK, www.chinadaily.com.cn/english/doc/2004-05/11/content_329529.htm and www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue8_10/jesiek/.