Any translation work done seriously will raise many linguistic difficulties, for which decisions have to be made, and the choices further documented. These documents may be saved within the PO file in form of translator comments, which the translator is free to create, delete, or modify at will. These comments may be useful to herself when she returns to this PO file after a while. Memory forgets!
These commands are somewhat similar to those modifying translations, so the general indications given for these apply here. See section Modifying Translations.
Those commands parallel PO mode commands for modifying the translation strings, and behave much the same way as them, except that they handle this part of PO file comments meant for translator usage, rather than the translation strings. So, the descriptions given below are slightly succinct, because the full details have already been given. See section Modifying Translations.
The command M-RET (po-edit-comment) opens a new Emacs
window containing a copy of the translator comments the current
PO file entry. If there is no such comments, PO mode
understands that the translator wants to add a comment to the entry,
and she is presented an empty screen. Comment marks (#) and
the space following them are automatically removed before edition,
and reinstated after. For translator comments pertaining to obsolete
entries, the uncommenting and recommenting operations are done twice.
The command # also has the same effect as M-RET, and might
be easier to type. Once in the editing window, the keys C-c
C-c allow the translator to tell she is finished with editing
the comment.
The command M-k (po-kill-comment) get rid of all
translator comments, while saving those comments on the kill ring.
The command M-w (po-kill-ring-save-comment) takes
a copy of the translator comments on the kill ring, but leaves
them undisturbed in the current entry. The command M-y
(po-yank-comment) completely replaces the translator comments
by a string taken at the front of the kill ring. When this command
is immediately repeated, the comments just inserted are withdrawn,
and replaced by other strings taken along the kill ring.
On the kill ring, all strings have the same nature. There is no distinction between translation strings and translator comments strings. So, for example, let's presume the translator has just finished editing a translation, and wants to create a new translator comments for documenting why the previous translation was not good, just to remember what was the problem. Foreseeing that she will do that in her documentation, the translator will want to quote the previous translation in her translator comments. For doing so, she may initialize the translator comments with the previous translation, still at the head of the kill ring. Because editing already pushed the previous translation on the kill ring, she just has to type M-w prior to #, and the previous translation will be right there, all ready for being introduced by some explanatory text.
On the other hand, presume there are some translator comments already
and that the translator wants to add to those comments, instead
of wholly replacing them. Then, she should edit the comment right
away with #. Once inside the editing window, she can use the
regular GNU Emacs commands C-y (yank) and M-y
(yank-pop) for getting the previous translation where she likes.
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