Lesson: Introduction课程：介绍

Internationalization is the process of designing an application so that it can be adapted to various languages and regions without engineering changes. 国际化是设计应用程序的过程，使其能够适应各种语言和地区，而无需进行工程更改。Sometimes the term internationalization is abbreviated as i18n, because there are 18 letters between the first "i" and the last "n."有时国际化一词缩写为i18n，因为第一个“i”和最后一个“n”之间有18个字母

An internationalized program has the following characteristics:国际化课程具有以下特点：

• With the addition of localized data, the same executable can run worldwide.通过添加本地化数据，同一可执行文件可以在全球范围内运行。
• Textual elements, such as status messages and the GUI component labels, are not hardcoded in the program. Instead they are stored outside the source code and retrieved dynamically.文本元素，如状态消息和GUI组件标签，在程序中不是硬编码的。相反，它们存储在源代码之外并动态检索。
• Support for new languages does not require recompilation.对新语言的支持不需要重新编译。
• Culturally-dependent data, such as dates and currencies, appear in formats that conform to the end user's region and language.与文化相关的数据，如日期和货币，以符合最终用户所在地区和语言的格式显示。
• It can be localized quickly.它可以快速本地化。

Localization is the process of adapting software for a specific region or language by adding locale-specific components and translating text. The term localization is often abbreviated as l10n, because there are 10 letters between the "l" and the "n."本地化是通过添加特定于语言环境的组件和翻译文本，使软件适应特定地区或语言的过程。本地化一词通常缩写为l10n，因为“l”和“n”之间有10个字母

The primary task of localization is translating the user interface elements and documentation. Localization involves not only changing the language interaction, but also other relevant changes such as display of numbers, dates, currency, and so on. Other types of data, such as sounds and images, may require localization if they are culturally sensitive. 本地化的主要任务是翻译用户界面元素和文档。本地化不仅涉及更改语言交互，还涉及其他相关更改，如数字、日期、货币等的显示。其他类型的数据，如声音和图像，如果具有文化敏感性，可能需要本地化。The better internationalized an application is, the easier it is to localize it for a particular language and character encoding scheme.应用程序的国际化程度越高，就越容易针对特定的语言和字符编码方案进行本地化。

Internationalization may seem a bit daunting at first. Reading the following sections will help ease you into the subject.国际化起初可能看起来有点令人望而生畏。阅读以下部分将有助于你更好地理解这一主题。

A Quick Example快速示例

This section shows you how to internationalize a simple program, step by step.本节将逐步向您展示如何国际化一个简单的程序。

Checklist清单

So you've inherited a program that needs to be internationalized or you are planning to determine the requirements for a newly-developed software. You probably don't know where to start? Check out this checklist. 因此，您继承了一个需要国际化的程序，或者您正计划确定新开发软件的需求。你可能不知道从哪里开始？看看这个清单。It summarizes the necessary internationalization tasks and provides links to the relevant lessons in this chapter.它总结了必要的国际化任务，并提供了本章相关课程的链接。