Last modified: 2008-09-21 22:36:25 UTC
In the recent changes list in the Ripuarian WP, we have a line saying at which date/time the list starts: Zëijsh de nöüje Ännderonge fum 11:49, 31. Määz 2006 aff that happens to be incorrect with the time preceeding the date but would be fine otherwise. Since the date/time format is user-selectable, a functionality is needed that allows us to choose between different sentences, depending on the date format, e.g. something like: {{DATEFMT|1,2,3,4|Zëijsh de nöüje Ännderonge fum $1 Uur aff |5,6,7,8|Zëijsh de nöüje Ännderonge fun $1 un do_noh}} or more comfortable: {{DATEFMT|1,2,3,4=Zëijsh de nöüje Ännderonge fum $DATE aff $TIME Uur |5,6,7,8=Zëijsh de nöüje Ännderonge fun $TIME Uur om $DATE un do_noh}} or less comfortable via parser function: {{#switch:{{USERDATEFORMAT}} |1=... ... |9=...}} I assume the latter would be fairly easy to be implemented but requires the use of parser functions in the MediaWiki name space, creating an additional dependecy for the languages that must use it, effectively banning them from being used on wikis that don't have the parser functions extension installed. If I am right, the numbering would have to be dependant on the current language installation which is certainly a drawback. That is imho unflexible since you cannot leave messages untranslated when they use this feature, and adding to oraltering the choice of date/time formats would have an impact on all those messages. On the other hand one can say, there are likely not many messages requiring the feature, and once an installation has been set up, changes are unlikely. Nevertheless, a better way to identify date/time formats might be worth contemplating.
Did the splitting of time and date to different variables solve this problem?
Yes, I think it does, and it is a lot easier than switching text based on date/time format selections. Users still can generally select unusual, strange or foreign date / time *formats*, but that is up to them to cope with, when they appear inside senteces. We do not need to insert grammatical stuff depending on the surrounding sentence *inside* a formatted date, or time - only between them. I think, there are few messages left, where date and time need to be separated. I'll report, when I spot one. If we can make it a general rule that, inside sentences, date and time should be in separate variables, I suggest to dismiss this bug as "fixed elsewhere".
