[1.3] New PHP URL rewrite system: localization

I guess language packs could always come with an extension that replaces the rewrite rules if needed. Localization could break older links if changed by, say, a language pack update though.

Well, URL are part of a software/website. If one localizes the website, one would also localizes the URL. It seems quite logical to me... I know I would, and in fact I will.

As for breaking links of course, that's the responsibility of the localization team to get it right the first time (post beta and RC). But I don't see why a locale should change in that area, unless it also changes in English.

Ok; just thinking out loud here:

- first scenario: a PunBB install has only one (non English) language installed. In that case it's simple, PunBB knows it has to use the German (for example) lang pack, and it uses the German rewrite scheme.

- second scenario: a PunBB install has multiple languages. Either use the English (aka international) rewrite scheme (simpler to code, I think) or allow the admin to select which rewrite scheme he wants to use (slightly more complex, but better for example is someone has an Italian & German forum... English would have no meaning there).

In any case, there would be only one scheme running (allowing multiple scheme would lead to huge complex system to avoid content redundancy), but that's ok I think. True multiple languages forum are, on top of that, quite rare from my experience.

Hence the localization word I was using, instead of translation.

A lot of language are understandable when romanized into URL's ASCII (Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, German, Wallon, probably Polish, and a lot more I don't know), of course that's what need to be done.

Extension writers would have to internationalize their plugin anyway, wouldn't they? Or more exactly, they either would (and in that case, if they can account for specific lang string, I think they can account for specific localized clean URL string... they are all strings after all) or wouldn't in the first place (and in that case, it doesn't really matter).

I understand this is a little more work, and you want to get 1.3 out of your system right now, but as a forum user and/or a forum owner, how would you feel if the punbb.org URL where in Euskara, or Chinese? See what I mean?

Beside, even if it's not a PunBB core capability, I believe a lot of non English forum owner will edit their rewrite file to localize them (it doesn't require any PHP skill), and some lang pack author would provide them anyway. So if that would break extension because it was not planned from the start, well, they will break for some people anyway

We've discussed this and here's what I think we'll do. The localization of URL's is still a very rare phenomenon and we're not so sure it's something people would want. Instead, we'll provide a simple extension that loads any set of localized rules (if available).

So much & even all need the Location url rewrite!
Why you don't do it in core,and just txp do.
I'm chinese using forum.

Extension also offer much more flexibility, and less overhead for for core dev team, less support.

I disagree with Rickard on the need and importance of such a feature (and a few other, such as multigroup), however having a semi-official extenstion doing it is quite ok if there's a good tool to deploy, manage, and update extenstion on PunBB (I don't want to have to do it by hand on several multiple install, like TXP, it's a time eater). I'm pretty sure such a tool won't be here at 1.3, so it give us something to bother them about for 1.3.1

I'm not sure what you're trying to say