Editing Template:Msg/doc

Alternative to using {{<nowiki/>int:}} for translations (which requires admin rights to edit messages).

==Usage==
Messages should go in a subpage of [[Template:Msg]]:
 Template:Msg/''message name''/''language code''
For example:
<pre>{{msg|example}}</pre>
gives: {{msg|example}}

The message above should appear in {{#language:{{INTERFACELANGUAGE}}}}, which is your current interface language setting. The following links can be used to change your language temporarily:
* [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=en}} English], located at {{tl|msg/example/en}}
* [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=es}} Spanish], located at {{tl|msg/example/es}}
* [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=da}} Danish], located at {{tl|msg/example/da}} (this will fall back to English unless [[Mediawiki:Language-code/da]] exists)
Note that this template relies ''heavily'' on [[Mediawiki:Language-code]] - if this is not defined for a certain language, all messages for that language will fall back to English.
@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-'''Messages''' are part of a system which uses ''templates'' to store translations. This is a middle ground between using &lt;translate>, which is difficult to use with template markup, and using {{<nowiki/>int:}} for translations, which requires admin rights to edit messages.
+Alternative to using {{<nowiki/>int:}} for translations (which requires admin rights to edit messages).
-==Creating a new message==
+==Usage==
-First, keep in mind that messages are meant to be used for markup-heavy pages, like templates.
+Messages should go in a subpage of [[Template:Msg]]:
-* If you want to translate a content page, use the Translate tool on that page &mdash; it's easier to use, update translations with, and is designed specifically for content.
+  Template:Msg/''message name''/''language code''
-* If you want to edit '''system messages''', such as the "edit" tabs above a page or the text on [[Special:RecentChanges]], you will need to edit [[wikipedia:mw:Help:System message|system messages]], which require admin rights.
+For example:
-===Naming conventions===
-* If the message you are creating is for a single template, create it in the following location:
-  Template:{{tc|#f0f|'''Template name'''}}/msg/''message name''
-* If the message you are creating is likely to be used in many templates, you have multiple choices:
-** If it is used in a single template most often, and in other templates occasionally (such as auxiliary templates), place it under the template that uses it most (see above)
-** If it is used by a wide range of templates that all have a common role (e.g. creature-related templates), use a descriptive template name (this does not have to exist &mdash; messages can be placed at <code>Template:Creature/msg/messagename</code> without Template:creature existing, for example).
-** If it is a generic message which isn't necessarily part of a given template, but will be used ''in templates'', place it at:
- Template:Msg/''message name''
-===Enabling translation===
-'''Before you save''' (ideally), you will need to wrap the contents in the message in &lt;translate> tags and mark the page for translation, just like a normal page. (This makes pages appear at the standard language subpages, which can be easily transcluded from the {{<nowiki/>msg}} template).
-== Details ==
-This template relies ''heavily'' on [[Mediawiki:Language-code]] - if this is not defined for a certain language, all messages for that language will fall back to English.
-These messages should appear in {{#language:{{INTERFACELANGUAGE}}}}, which is your current interface language setting. The following links can be used to change your language ''temporarily'':
-[{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=en}} English] {{dot}} [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=es}} Spanish] {{dot}} [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=fr}} French] {{dot}} [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=de}} German] {{dot}} [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=da}} Danish]
-For reference, the following languages are defined. If you attempt to use a language not defined here, ''all'' messages will fall back to English, even if translations exist for them in the appropriate /msg subpage. If you need to enable a language not listed here, post on the talk page.
-{{Special:PrefixIndex/Mediawiki:language-code}}
-==Examples==
 <pre>{{msg|example}}</pre>
 gives: {{msg|example}}
-<pre>{{msg|t=av|old}}</pre>
+The message above should appear in {{#language:{{INTERFACELANGUAGE}}}}, which is your current interface language setting. The following links can be used to change your language temporarily:
-gives: {{msg|t=av|old}}
+* [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=en}} English], located at {{tl|msg/example/en}}
+* [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=es}} Spanish], located at {{tl|msg/example/es}}
-=== Generic examples ===
+* [{{fullurl:Template:Msg|uselang=da}} Danish], located at {{tl|msg/example/da}} (this will fall back to English unless [[Mediawiki:Language-code/da]] exists)
-These pages should not exist, but take note of the path names:
+Note that this template relies ''heavily'' on [[Mediawiki:Language-code]] - if this is not defined for a certain language, all messages for that language will fall back to English.
-<pre>{{msg|message that does not exist}}</pre>
-gives: <code>{{msg|message that does not exist}}</code>
-<pre>{{msg|t=template|message}}</pre>
-gives: <code>{{msg|t=template|message}}</code>