Re: Fixing bug #330868 in a smart way

["Isak Savo" <isak savo gmail com>]

2006/6/19, James Henstridge <james jamesh id au>:
> On 19/06/06, Paolo Maggi <paolo maggi polito it> wrote:
> > Hi,
> >         I was giving a look to bug #330868 (Adding "License" button and dialog
> > to About dialog). It seems to me we are duplicating the same long
> > strings (mostly the GPL license) in most applications marking them for
> > translation in order to add a "License" button to the about dialog.
>
> If you intend to present localised license text, please provide a way
> to turn it off (and probably turn it off by default ...).
>
> Translations can introduce ambiguities or change the meaning of a
> text, which is not acceptable in the case of a legal document.  My
> agreement to license my code under the GPL does not imply my agreement
> to license it under a random translation of the GPL, so it shouldn't
> be presented as such to the user.

This is also what the FSF states on their license page[1]. That page
also contains links to already translated versions of the three GNU
licenses. They are unofficial though, in the sense that it is the
English version that what counts in court.

Isak

[1] http://www.gnu.org/licenses/licenses.html#UnofficialTranslations