I have a window application (Win32 API) in visual C++. I have to add multilingual feature to this application. I have several bitmap images in my application and some text in dialog boxes which are to be interchanged. What I am looking for is code snippet or URLs which can help me out in achieving the above task.
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Hi pgnatyuk,
Can you be more descriptive in how to start globalization. I am using win32 API(with out MFC). My application has several bit map images and dialog boxes. I am attaching images of my application and dialog box with this comment.
Regards,
indianbill007
Dialog box Image
Application Image
Hi pgnatyuk,
I am able to change the text of dialog boxes and message boxes when there is a click on the flag buttons. Know I have to only change the bitmap images of the application in accordance to the language specified. I know that I have to create different .rc files for each language but, how can I load these different .rc files ?
Regards,
indianbill007
Looks great!
Firstly, all these texts on the screen should be in variables. Better in an array or in a container.
Can you implement a class that will have a method LPCWSTR GetString(DWORD nID)?
Do you understand me?
For example, you will have all texts from your app loadeded into this container. In any place of your application, whenever you will need a text, you will call this function.
For example, I'd propose you to have a global object CStringManager g_Strings and when you need a text you say g_Strings.GetString(IDC_MA
I use not a numerical ID but a literal, like GetString(L"MAIN_SCREEN_CA
In my case in the container I have pairs of strings - the first string is the resource name as a string, the second string is the localized resource to be shown.
But you can use the numbers.
The next task will be to load the strings to your container.
It is not something difficult and it will take a day to implement.
Hi pgnatyuk,
I think I was not able to explain my problem in previous comment. I have created a class for changing text dynamically that is working fine I have just taken TCHAR variables and set the text according to language set. The problem which I am facing is that I have to change images like the start, stop buttons etc. Which I thick can be done by having different resource files but I don't know how to load these different resource files.
Regards,
indianbill007
From my expirience I can say that it is bad to have different images for different languages.
I can say what I do in this case. I have all images in a skin folder. When I load an image, firstly, I'm looking for the file in the language subfolder under the skin folder. For example, in Skin\German. If the image file is not found there, I take it from the default place.
So when the user change the language, I have to spend time on the image reloading - it means a blink on the screen, actually I re-create all visual controls. If you know that you need to reload only few images, you don't need to re-create all controls, but just reload few of them and invalidate them.
Does it help?
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by: pgnatyukPosted on 2009-11-05 at 07:53:35ID: 25750772
You know that you can change the text in your windows dynamically? SetWindowText, for example.
So the text you use can be just in an external file in any format you wish. I prefer this way - just keep different languages in different Unicode files: English.ini, Spanis.ini, etc.
Microsoft proposes an own way:
http://support.microsoft.c
How To Create Localized Resource DLLs for MFC Application: http://support.microsoft.c
How to: Localize an Application: http://msdn.microsoft.com/