If there isn't any sort of guide, I'd be willing to write a first draft, if people think there's a need.
Things to be explained in it might include:
- The basic form of a translation file.
- One-line and multiline translation strings.
- Translation strings with [[variable]]s in them.
- |notes.
- When to use en_LJ; also, how to include multiple languages in a single translation file.
- How to set global translation strings, by which I mean non-page-specific strings (e.g., 'Sorry'). (How do you do this?)
- Are e-mails from LJ supposed to be translatable? If so, some information on that.
- Some general tips on intelligent translatability. (Two may be found here.)
Also, while I'm posting - http://cvs.livejournal.org/browse.cgi/livejournal/bin/upgrading/en.dat is b0rked because revision 1.91 has the string "<title>" in its description. In Opera, the b0rking is very minor (you simply don't see the "<title>"), but in IE, the b0rking is very severe (you don't see anything from that point onward on the page). Mozilla is in-between - you don't see the rest of that revision description, but you see all earlier revisions. Is this fixable at all?