Psymon has provided the answer I would have given you:

Google translate is, like any simple translation facility, competent for general meaning and a joke for anything else. Consider this line, from a famous libretto:

So mache fort, beim Arbeiten wird dir schon warm werden.

This is translated by Google translate as:

So on do, when you work you will be already warm.

We can both understand what's meant, but what would you think if you read that in a book, or saw it in a game? It would immediately break immersion. And what if you read or saw pages of that kind of thing? I can't speak for you, but I know I'd laugh and shut it down. The translation needs to be done right, or not done at all. And since the three of us *do* read German, there's no problem with translating it properly.

I've heard back from Lycanus, via TES Nexus. If I understand him correctly, he believes that there are no problems with using OA as it currently exists in an English version of Oblivion. And he was polite but adamant that he wants no translation made for general distribution. He even changed the TES Nexus long description of OA to announce this.

And yes, my initial letter to him was both clear, and polite. No misunderstandings possible, in other words. Just his wishes on the subject.

So at this point, I will be either working on a translation for myself, or working with others on one for our own amusemant. No public distribution. Sorry.

Just putting it out there (not really Request), there is a german mod called Adash-City of Magic that I think wants to be translated into English. If you guys have the time and interest then I think the mod would really benefit from more audience in the English community
http://www.adash-web.de/
http://www.moddb.com/mods/adash-city-of-magic

That looks like an interesting mod indeed. Some guys on the links you provided said there should be a german version out "soon". That was last August though... Have you tried and played it?

well that svcks, I was rather looking forward to playing that.

I don't understand why there is an issue with translating text to another language then releasing the mod with credit to the original maker. Do it for the best interests of the community.

Well at this point it is probably beating a dead horse, but I'm disappointed too.

If I were more involved though I would reply with a well thought out letter asking why this is his intention.
I get that perhaps he is not done or does not want to lose control or wants to hear about dedicated and continued support.
Maybe does not speak this language nor trust that it will be up to standards.

The books involved (not that I know how many there are) does he understand that facet?

Just some last minute thoughts.

If the original author does not wish to have his work translated and redistributed under any circumstances, it shouldn't be. End of discussion.

That said, the fact that he responded politely and that he's still active in his community makes me think it's possible he'll change his mind.

Maybe he doesn't understand that notes, books, dialogue, items and places stay in German?
If he changes his mind I think that the file (and for all mods in general) should be hosted at same Nexus link as original DV file.

Seems stupid to me. I've given permission to translate Viconia to any number of languages. Big deal! I'm not making money on it so what's the point?

:flamethrower:

I haven't really played it, as there are 6 parts to it. The first 3 parts are already out and I only tried the first part, but since I do not understand German I uninstalled it later on.

The mod has some really unique settings, so here are the links for the download (parts 1-3) and forum post.

http://www.lk-portal.de/filebase.php?fileid=4#googtrans/de/en
http://www.lk-portal.de/thread.php?threadid=347#googtrans/de/en

It's in German so I just used google translator

Hi guys! Although I am also dissapointed that this cannot be translated, I am also extremely excited. You see, I am currently learning german (not far at all) and my proffesor is constantly hounding on my to study more. So what better way to study than to be totally immersed in it in a video game? I am going to install both german mods mentioned on this site. He always says the best way to learn a language is to be totally immersed. It will help, anyway.

Thanks

now that we talk about translating... i have made a mod that lets the player sell stuff in an own shop. it's really nice but still beta. would someone like to translate this from german? e.g. for practicing?

look: http://www.ei-der-zeit.com/board/index.php?page=Thread&threadID=3820

I'm not sure what he thinks. His reaction was not only emphatic, however, he also changed his mod description to insist that nobody translate it. Perhaps he's afraid the translation won't be accurate, which is silly: we could send him a copy that he could supply to anybody he trusts to affirm this. But it's his choice.



It's also the kind of decision that encourages people to cross the line--because nobody stands to gain from such an attitude. We won't translate it; we respect his wishes. But someone else along the line in the future may not be so concerned, or so anxious to do the job right. Then Lycanus may have to live with a poor translation from people who don't care for his demands, as opposed to one group that wanted to get it perfect with his explicit approval.

I'm not sure if that would be considered cross-posting (or something), but I'm already well on the way of having finished something similar to Oblivion Alive.

Oblivion Comes Alive, which is recreation of Morrowind Comes Alive, adds 1200 NPCs of every in-game class in every NPC-inhabited location, may it be streets, shops, castles, temples, inns, etc.

While the NPCs do not have a specific schedule like Oblivion Alive (Other than eating when they're at taverns, or wandering), they work exactly like Morrowind Comes Alive. They have a random chance to dissapear on cell load and be replaced by a new NPC.

It's part of a bigger module, but OCA is almost done. It only needs the NPCs scripting finished.

http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?showtopic=1062090&hl=

I'm having a very hard time just understanding what the actual problem is in this situation.

Two lines quoted from the OA Nexus download page: "A Translation into the English Version is not necessary." "Oblivion Alive is PLAYABLE WITH THE ENGLISH VERSION."

The page was last updated today. Were either of the two lines added today? These statements seem to indicate the author isn't aware of any problems an English only speaker would have in playing the mod as now provided.

It all leaves me quite confused. Anyone think they have a clearer understanding of what's going on here? Could it simply be a misunderstanding based on a communication failure?

Apparently those lines were added after the refusal happened - as punctuation.

If people want to give feedback there is this interesting rating system on Nexus though where it might seem appropriate that if the mod really can't be played in English that this is given as feedback.

At TESNexus there is a post in the comments section that indicates the mod will translate most of the dialogue to the version it is being used with (i.e. English, Japanese etc.).

Has anyone actually downloaded and played with the mod with the English version to see what will happen?

J

I deleted some posts. Putting people down, whether you feel it's justified or not, has no place on this forum. Doing so will lead to warnings, have no doubt about that.

Upon reading the rest of this topic, I see no reason for it to stay open.
http://www.gamesas.com/bgsforums/index.php?s=&showtopic=1064795&view=findpost&p=15551999