[Patch] Fix #903: Add shortcuts for note names languages.

Fix #903: Add shortcuts for note names languages.

This commit adds a new file, lang-init.ly, that
introduces new shortcut commands for notenames
language selection: instead of using \include "italiano.ly",
just use \langItaliano, and so on.

Standalone shortcuts have been defined for all available
languages.  A different syntax has been considered, such as

  \lang "italiano"

However, since the only way to pass arguments is currently
through a music-functions, and since you can't have toplevel
LilyPond definitions inside a music function, this would
require to modify either the parser (a rather heavy change)
either the italiano.ly&co files, which would break compatibility
with existing code.  The way I chose was the lightest, safest
and the most straightforward.

Full compatibility with the old syntax is preserved.  Once people
get used to the new syntax, we may consider a slightly different
implementation (or not).

[Valentin Villenave, 2010-10-20 17:56:07]

Greetings everybody,

this user-friendly modification has been discussed for a while but nothing
concrete had been done so far.  Therefore I took the liberty of proposing a very
simple patch, since this modification is something I really really need (well,
not me, but rather the French music schools, students etc. whom I introduce to
LilyPond every other day).

Please review this patch on http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042 and the issue
on http://code.google.com/p/lilypond/issues/detail?id=903 -- the discussion has
somehow gone South on this page, but I hope that my patch is basic enough to
make things simpler and more straigthforward :-)

Cheers,
Valentin

[Carl, 2010-10-21 02:53:44]

I like this idea as a way to get the functionality you want in the short term. 
But I don't like it for the long term.  I think the long-term syntax needs to be

\language "foobar"

so that we don't have a separate keyword for each language.  As you point out,
that will require a parser change.

In the short term, why not take care of things with your french students by
having this include file be part of the LilyPond distribution, and creating a
special lilypond command, e.g. LilyPond, that expands to 

lilypond -dinclude-settings="lang-init.ly" %@

so that they will have the \langFoo shortcut you want to have available?

Thanks,

Carl

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/declarations-init.ly
File ly/declarations-init.ly (right):

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/declarations-init.ly#newcode33
ly/declarations-init.ly:33: \include "lang-init.ly"
File name should be language-init.ly

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/declarations-init.ly#newcode34
ly/declarations-init.ly:34: \langNederlands
Command should be \languageNederlands

But I think it would be better to leave this file as it is, since I don't think
that the \languageNederlands is an appropriate long-term solution.  So I don't
want to get it hard-coded in declarations-init.ly

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/lang-init.ly
File ly/lang-init.ly (right):

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/lang-init.ly#newcode4
ly/lang-init.ly:4: %%%%                          Jan Nieuwenhuizen
<janneke@gnu.org>
Copyright should be changed to 2010 Valentin Villenave.

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/lang-init.ly#newcode19
ly/lang-init.ly:19: \version "2.12.0"
Version should be changed.

http://codereview.appspot.com/2606042/diff/1/ly/lang-init.ly#newcode25
ly/lang-init.ly:25: % The \langFoobar shortcut maintains compatibility with the
old
change to languageFoobar

[Valentin Villenave, 2010-10-23 20:54:31]

On Thu, Oct 21, 2010 at 4:53 AM,  <Carl.D.Sorensen@gmail.com> wrote:

Hi Carl,

> I like this idea as a way to get the functionality you want in the short
> term.  But I don't like it for the long term.  I think the long-term
> syntax needs to be
>
> \language "foobar"
>
> so that we don't have a separate keyword for each language.  As you
> point out, that will require a parser change.

WRONG!!!!

(breathe, breathe)

So I thought, but here's a way to do it anyway: see attached patch.

It's so friggin' ridiculously simple that I didn't even bothered
uploading it to codereview.

...

Actually, I think I'm in love with it.

Now, here's what I want you guys to do: put your fingers on your
keyboard, more precisely on the following keys: L, G, T, and M. Then
press these four keys, and hit "Send".

Pretty please?

Cheers,
Valentin

[c_sorensen, 2010-10-23 22:15:21]

On 10/23/10 2:54 PM, "Valentin Villenave" <v.villenave@gmail.com> wrote:

> On Thu, Oct 21, 2010 at 4:53 AM,  <Carl.D.Sorensen@gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Hi Carl,
> 
>> I like this idea as a way to get the functionality you want in the short
>> term.  But I don't like it for the long term.  I think the long-term
>> syntax needs to be
>> 
>> \language "foobar"
>> 
>> so that we don't have a separate keyword for each language.  As you
>> point out, that will require a parser change.
> 
> WRONG!!!!
> 
> (breathe, breathe)
> 
> So I thought, but here's a way to do it anyway: see attached patch.
> 
> It's so friggin' ridiculously simple that I didn't even bothered
> uploading it to codereview.
> 
> ...
> 
> Actually, I think I'm in love with it.
> 
> Now, here's what I want you guys to do: put your fingers on your
> keyboard, more precisely on the following keys: L, G, T, and M. Then
> press these four keys, and hit "Send".


L.....G.......T......M

Nice approach, Valentin!  Now I have no reasonable opposition to this patch!

Thanks,

Carl

[t.daniels_treda.co.uk, 2010-10-23 22:27:16]

Valentin Villenave wrote Saturday, October 23, 2010 9:54 PM

> On Thu, Oct 21, 2010 at 4:53 AM,  <Carl.D.Sorensen@gmail.com> 
> wrote:

>> I like this idea as a way to get the functionality you want in 
>> the short
>> term. But I don't like it for the long term. I think the 
>> long-term
>> syntax needs to be
>>
>> \language "foobar"
>
> So I thought, but here's a way to do it anyway: see attached 
> patch.

Well, I tried it under Windows Vista and it seems to work fine, at 
least
on a simple test with english.ly.  I can't vouch for the purity of 
the coding
though, and of course we'll need some doc changes, reg test, and
a convert-ly change.

It doesn't work for arabic.ly, as you say, nor for bagpipe.ly, but 
as
neither of those are languages (arabic.ly is for Arabic music rather
than the Arabic language)  I don't think that's a problem.  All 
genuine
language files should be OK.

As a way of introducing the improved syntax this LGTM.

Trevor

[Valentin Villenave, 2010-10-23 22:35:53]

On Sun, Oct 24, 2010 at 12:15 AM, Carl Sorensen <c_sorensen@byu.edu> wrote:
> L.....G.......T......M
>
> Nice approach, Valentin!  Now I have no reasonable opposition to this patch!

Well, you've just made my day :-)

On Sun, Oct 24, 2010 at 12:27 AM, Trevor Daniels <t.daniels@treda.co.uk> wrote:
> Well, I tried it under Windows Vista and it seems to work fine, at least
> on a simple test with english.ly.  I can't vouch for the purity of the
> coding
> though, and of course we'll need some doc changes, reg test, and
> a convert-ly change.

I'm documenting it just now. I'm not sure we want to convert-ly this
yet, though. (Read: I'm not sure what amount of decibels Graham will
produce if I do that. :)

> It doesn't work for arabic.ly, as you say, nor for bagpipe.ly, but as
> neither of those are languages (arabic.ly is for Arabic music rather
> than the Arabic language)  I don't think that's a problem.  All genuine
> language files should be OK.

This *is* somewhat of a problem. Assuming you're right and it isn't a
"language" file per se, then perhaps we should consider removing
"arabic" from the list in NR1.1.1.3, and just add a sentence that
links to NR2.10.1?

... Anyway, for now I'll slightly modify the \language command to exit
gracefully with an informative error message if it encounters a
non-supported .ly file. That should do it.

> As a way of introducing the improved syntax this LGTM.

Cheers, mate!

OK, now back to the doc work.

Valentin.

[c_sorensen, 2010-10-23 22:40:05]

On 10/23/10 4:35 PM, "Valentin Villenave" <v.villenave@gmail.com> wrote:

> On Sun, Oct 24, 2010 at 12:15 AM, Carl Sorensen <c_sorensen@byu.edu> wrote:
>> L.....G.......T......M
>> 
>> Nice approach, Valentin!  Now I have no reasonable opposition to this patch!
> 
> Well, you've just made my day :-)
> 
> On Sun, Oct 24, 2010 at 12:27 AM, Trevor Daniels <t.daniels@treda.co.uk>
> wrote:
>> Well, I tried it under Windows Vista and it seems to work fine, at least
>> on a simple test with english.ly.  I can't vouch for the purity of the
>> coding
>> though, and of course we'll need some doc changes, reg test, and
>> a convert-ly change.
> 
> I'm documenting it just now. I'm not sure we want to convert-ly this
> yet, though. (Read: I'm not sure what amount of decibels Graham will
> produce if I do that. :)

I don't think we need a convert-ly rule yet, because we aren't eliminating
the old syntax yet.  Right now this is an *additional* way of selecting
languages, I think.

Thanks,

Carl