Robbing Peter to pay Paul

The #localisation of #MediaWiki has its priorities. Top priority goes to the "most often used" messages. They are the messages people are most likely to see. Once these messages are done, it can be effectively argued that the 26 messages of Mobile Wikimedia are an easy win. Some say that the MediaWiki core messages are most relevant and only then extensions.

For a month or so, much of this well established logic will have to go out of the window. In a month, around the end of April or the beginning of May, it is the plan that all the good stuff brought to you by the Usability Initiative will be ready to go into production. It will provide the new functionality and include the new default skin, vector.

The advanced toolbar in the Nepali UI

At this moment only 14 languages are completely ready for this. They are completely ready for the new software. The 315 messages that need to be localised are all done. There are 49 languages with more then 90% of these messages completed.

When the new functionality goes live things will change. The messages that make up the "most used" messages will change when the messages are merged into the MediaWiki core. But even more important, things will change for our editors. Some will feel hurt when their old comfy interface is going the way of the dodo.

When you help us complete the localisation of the Usability Initiative messages you make it possible for your language to gain all this much improved functionality, you will make it as easy and as painless as possible for everyone.

This is the time to invest time and learn how MediaWiki becomes easier to edit and localise the usability messages that still need localising. This will make it easy for you and as easy on your community as we can make it.

We need you to help us prepare the end of the use of what is currently our comfortable monobook default skin.
Thanks,
      GerardM