[ecjhdnc2025]

I've built a fairly sophisticated web-based translation tool for an agency's client who demanded it.

I built it to their spec, for their CMS. They didn't use it, because the scheme they wanted turned out to be too much bother, and they couldn't find translation agencies who would bother with it.

The reality is that if you want to make it easy to keep translations up-to-date, you actually have to support all the (confusing, frustrating) translation infrastructure built around .PO files. Because then you have the support of translation agencies, tooling, even Crowdin etc.

Trying to short-circuit this with clever minimal bespoke JSON and ChatGPT is probably a mistake: this is a job where you will ultimately want actual people with actual multilingual ability working for you, and if you don't use the normal tooling you'll find it difficult to attract contributors even with open source.

[cyanydeez]

Unless of course, you can ant to become the Uber of undercutting businesses for decades to capture the market then steadily raise your prices as you drive people out of work.

[samuelstros]

> translation infrastructure built around .PO files

not only .po files :D XML, i18next json, localizable strings (iOS), ... the list goes on.