5.0: JavaScript language packs are here ๐ŸŽ‰

News from theย JSJS JavaScript, a web scripting language typically executed in the browser. Often used for advanced user interfaces and behaviors. package inclusion focus: JavaScriptJavaScript JavaScript or JS is an object-oriented computer programming language commonly used to create interactive effects within web browsers. WordPress makes extensive use of JS for a better user experience. While PHP is executed on the server, JS executes within a userโ€™s browser. https://www.javascript.com/. language packs are here! Thanks to AWESOME work by @herregroen, @ocean90, @swissspidy, @nerrad, @atimmer and @schlessera we can now translate strings in JavaScript files and distribute them via https://translate.wordpress.org. This functionality will soon be expanded to also work for plugins and themes. This is a major milestone for JavaScript development in WordPress and completes the JavaScript package inclusion focus.

How does it work?

In short, to make it work, you need to

  • use the @wordpress/i18nย package for making strings in your JavaScript translatable.
  • let WordPress know that a script has translations by calling wp_set_script_translations( 'my-handle', 'my-domain' )ย after you register a script.

Read more about it in the JS i18n devnote.

Can I have a look at the tickets involved?

Sure thing! Hereโ€™s an overview of all the work weโ€™ve done in the last few weeks to get to this point:

  1. WP-CLIWP-CLI WP-CLI is the Command Line Interface for WordPress, used to do administrative and development tasks in a programmatic way. The project page is http://wp-cli.org/ https://make.wordpress.org/cli/: Make sure wp i18n CLI command includes JavaScript translations when generating Potfiles. Relevant PRs: https://github.com/wp-cli/i18n-command/pulls?q=is%3Apr+is%3Aclosed+author%3Aherregroen
  2. MetaMeta Meta is a term that refers to the inside workings of a group. For us, this is the team that works on internal WordPress sites like WordCamp Central and Make WordPress.: generate translations on translate.wordpress.org for core, themes and plugins. Ticket: https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/3748
  3. Meta: generate and serve JS language packs from translate.wordpress.org for core, themes and plugins. Ticket: https://meta.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/3876
  4. CoreCore Core is the set of software required to run WordPress. The Core Development Team builds WordPress.: Logic to load JS translations. Ticket: https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/45103
  5. Core: API to register JS translations for a script. https://core.trac.wordpress.org/ticket/45161

Whatโ€™s next?

With JS language packs we have concluded the package inclusion focus. In the remaining time we will keep focus on two things:

  • Keep the packages up-to-date until 5.0 ships.
  • @herregroen will shift focus towards generating the core JS code documentation on Devhub (https://developer.wordpress.org) and making it searchable. Since this pretty much only involves meta, this is not a release blocker. But with the heaps of JavaScript that 5.0 adds to WordPress, it would be nice to have its documentation searchable and discoverable through Devhub. At the same time it would also make WordPressโ€™ legacy JavaScript (of which a lot was documented in the last years in the JS documentation initiative) more accessible to the broader community. Work on this had already started as part of the JS docs initiative.

#5-0, #dev-notes, #i18n