(I should have done that one long ago. Sorry.)

This is a quick post to give you an idea of how we work, what we expect from you, and what you can expect from us.

What you must do when you first join:

- Answer the poll, if you didn't do so already.

- Join and watch lj_francais. (Joining and watching are different, as this FAQ explains.)

- Read the memories of lj_francais. (Note: some entries there may contradict one another. If that happens, the more recent entry wins, but feel free to point it out in the community - if you don't, I'll never get a chance to fix it.)

What you should do when you first join: (as in, you'll miss some things if you don't, but it's not required, just strongly encouraged)

- Join and watch lj_translate. That's where general discussions and announcements regarding all translations go, and I won't always relay them or link to them.

Working language for the community:

- We don't have one. Use French, use English, use both in a single entry or comment. We try not to favor any dialects either. I use France French and US English, but that's because they're the ones I know. Feel free to use the ones you're comfortable with. If you don't understand an idiom, or are unsure, ask. Conversely, be prepared to answer questions about yours.

Finding something to do:

- I may on occasion assign tasks to people or point to things that are getting neglected, but mostly, I expect you to grab something and start working on it, then post about it when you're done or need it reviewed.

Workflow:

- Someone selects a FAQ or a set of UI strings that needs translating or updating (http://community.livejournal.com/lj_translate/106039.html) and posts a draft translation for discussion (http://community.livejournal.com/lj_translate/158394.html)

- Reviewers suggest changes (also using http://community.livejournal.com/lj_translate/158394.html)

- If it looks good, either souze or I (pauamma) will approve it.

Translating:

- Please try not to use any dialectal forms in your translations (and that includes dialectal forms used in France). The goal is to have translations that look good in all dialects or variants. If that can't be done for a specific translation, I'll go for something that's understandable in all dialects, even if it looks awkward in some.)

- Try to quote UI translations accurately, if you're translating something that quotes from the UI. (if you think the UI is mistranslated and want to change it to match your translation, ask.)

- Post to this community with the URL of your draft.

- Keep an eye on the reviews for your translation, so you can answer questions or review suggested changes.

Reviewing or commenting on translations:

- Please make sure you're reviewing the latest draft of a given translation.

- If you make changes that go beyond fixing typos and grammar, explain why (it can be just a word or a few, such as "mistranslation" or "misquote (of part of UI or other FAQ)")

- Comment on the original post with the URL of your revised draft.

- Occasionally, I may make changes that seem arbitrary, or appear to come out of nowhere. When I do, it's usually because I think, from my work in support, that a FAQ was mistranslated, or will work better for the user questions it's supposed to help with if translated in a certain way. If you're not sure why, and especially if you disagree, ask.

- If your own experience outside of LJ translation prompts you to make seemingly arbitrary changes for similar reasons (eg, punctuation styling - Hi there, souze!), feel free to step in.

What you can expect from me and from LiveJournal:

- If When your translations are consistently good enough that they don't need more changes than fixing typos, you get the permission to approve translations (yours or others'). You should still let others see them though, because we all make typos and silly mistakes. Also, that lets you fix typos that slip through on the spot.

- If it turns out that you're very good at a certain task or set of tasks related to translations, to the point that everyone else defers to you on this, you get to make your own title for it. The more absurd, funny, or punny, the better, but try to keep it clean and vaguely related to the tasks it refers to.

- If you make a significant contribution (loosely defined) to the French translation, you get added to the list of acknowledged LiveJournal contributors.

- With acknowledgement of your contributions, you may also get goodies from LiveJournal. I'll stay vague, both to keep you guessing (I'm evil that way) and because I don't make the rules - LiveJournal employees do - and I can't promise that any specific goodies will still be offered when the time comes.

Other useful stuff:

- Some translators join #lj_translate on IRC (irc.livejournal.org port 6667). (If you don't have an IRC client, you can use this web IRC gateway.) This channel is both for discussions related to translations and for hanging out with other translators, so it's close to a workplace break room or cafeteria, but it works well when you need to ask a quick or urgent question, or poke someone for any reason.