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en español | in italiano
How to create a language pack

This page contains information how to create a language pack for vanBasco's Karaoke Player.

Please note that the following languages are currently being worked on: Maltese and Turkish. (However: people do not always find the time to actually finish a language pack they have started. So if you are interested in one of the aforementioned languages, please watch this space.)

There are two parts to a language pack: the user-interface, and the help file. The user-interface is stored inside a DLL, whereas the help file is a standard CHM file. For instance, in the case of the English language pack, these files are called vmidi_en.dll and vmidi_en.chm, respectively. Both files may be found in the installation folder of vanBasco's Karaoke Player.

To translate the help file, you need a HTML editor and Microsoft HTML Help Workshop, which is available for free from Microsoft's website.

You can download the source code of the English help file here: help-en.zip. What you need to do is translate all the HTML pages and the index and then re-assemble the CHM file using MS Help Workshop.

Translating the user-interface is a little more complicated: you have to modify a DLL. If you are familiar with software design and if you happen to have access to a compiler suite, e.g. some version of Microsoft Visual Studio, then you can modify DLLs using the built-in resource editor of your compiler suite. If not, you can download a resource-editor called Resource Hacker which allows you to read and write DLLs. Resource Hacker is freeware, available from
http://www.users.on.net/johnson/resourcehacker/.

What you have to do is load vmidi_en.dll (the original English user-interface) into Resource Hacker or whatever resource editor you prefer and then translate all the dialogs, images, and strings.

There are some pre-defined combo-box strings which most Resource Editors will not let you modify. You have to translate theses strings separately and email them to us together with the translated DLL and CHM file, and we will then finalize the DLL. The strings in question may be downloaded here: combo.txt.

One more thing: as a basis for your translation, please use only the English language pack, which is supplied with the default download of vanBasco's Karaoke Player. English is the 'reference' language. Also, please be aware that translating the complete player (help file and user-interface) will take about 8-10 hours.

Now that you have an overview of the work involved, it would be very nice if you could let us know in case you actually do want to go ahead and produce a language pack for your native language and we will add this information to this page. (So that nobody else also starts working on the same language simultaneously, to avoid duplicating effort.)

The email address for all correspondence relating to language packs for vanBasco's Karaoke Player is: