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I wanted to show an error message in several languages but if I do not add the main languages (like English [US], Spanish [Spain], German [Germany]) it throws the error.
https://renenyffenegger.ch/notes/Windows/development/Internationalization/language
I tested it with adding the language code directly as parameter and also with the MAKELANGID makro.
Is it because the other languages are not supported (like Spanish [Chile], German [Luxembourg)?
(I am setting the language by SetThreadUILanguage and it always automatically takes the for example German neutral string table for all german "languages". I thought I could do the same with the error messages: I set any german language and would get the german error message by FormatMessage.)
PS: I also installed the corresponding language packages. Unfortunately, it does not work with the sub lang id.
DWORD errorCode = GetLastError();
LANGID langId = GetThreadUILanguage();
LPWSTR errorMsg = nullptr;
FormatMessage(FORMAT_MESSAGE_ALLOCATE_BUFFER | FORMAT_MESSAGE_FROM_SYSTEM, nullptr, errorCode, 1031, (LPWSTR)&errorMsg, 0, nullptr); // Get error message.
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What value is FormatMessage returning, and assuming it returns 0, what value does GetLastError report?
I just start the method without creating an error and it's showing me the error code 18.
What happens for you if you use LANG_USER_DEFAULT as the parameter?
I set the "main" language like Spanish [Spain], it shows the error message in spanish.
If is set the language to Spanish [Chile], it shows the error message in english, because i set it:
My actual goal is to display toast notification with the error in the appropriate language.
This method gets the Windows Display language (GetWindowsDisplayLanguage) from the registry and sets it for the application otherwise it shows any other language.
/// <summary> /// Sets the language for application's string table selection.
/// The fallback language first and then the language from the Windows display language.
/// </summary>
void SetApplicationLanguage()
{
// Sets the english string table (English [Neutral]) as fallback by overwriting the internal retrieved reg key value (Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop\PreferredUILanguages).
SetProcessPreferredUILanguages(MUI_LANGUAGE_NAME, L"en-US", nullptr);
// Transfer the Windows display language as language for the app.
auto languageCode = Registry::GetWindowsDisplayLanguageFromRegistry();
if (!languageCode.empty())
{
// Convert language code to id.
LCID lcid = LocaleNameToLCID(languageCode.c_str(), 0);
if (lcid != 0)
{
SetThreadUILanguage(static_cast<LANGID>(lcid));
}
}
}
Or I would have to be told by FormatMessage which language it outputs to me. I would like to support over 20 languages and would have to translate the title, but that wouldn't be possible for the error messages.
Always pass FORMAT_MESSAGE_IGNORE_INSERTS in the call.
So the solution, if you want to support at least some languages would be to simply use English, if formatmessage throws an error.
But you have to translate at least one title, you need that to know where it comes from. This is about the user having a direction. But since I don't know without checking which language is supported by the MUI file, should I stick with English?
Or do I have a conceptual problem/error?
OK, that error code is ERROR_MUI_FILE_NOT_FOUND "The resource loader failed to find MUI file." which isn't mentioned in the FormatMessage documentation.
If you pass 0 for the language ID for FormatMessage, does it succeed, and if so, is the string language what you hoped for, or not?
This is what I had initially and it works for German Germany, English US and Spanish Spain. For their languages from other countries, English is of course always used, since the MUI doesn't have the sentences and I have defined the default language as English.
Of course I could say: OK, I'll look for 8 "main languages" and check whether the MUI works and translate the title, otherwise just completely English?
(That's how I understood it now. I load a language pack and the data may be in MUI files, but the sentences aren't there?!!)
OK, thank you. I've done a lot of testing and research and I think it's best to create your own error message + the error code. If the mui is present, the message is added from FormatMessage. At least it seems to me that it's best if you want to have a number of languages. There are probably cases where the user can't figure it out and neither can the admin because he can't get any further without the error code because FormatMessage is in a foreign language.