Re: feature request: expose message validation in libgettextpo

[Bruno Haible]

James Henstridge wrote:
> The libgettextpo library provides a po_message_check_format() function
> for performing format string checking on a po_message_t.  However this
> is not the only message validity check that the gettext tools perform.
>
> The msgfmt program performs some other checks, such as consistent use of
> newlines at the beginning and end of strings.
>
> A po_message_validate() function that performed all these checks would
> be useful to programs that use libgettextpo to generate or edit PO
> files.  As it is now, such applications either need to reimplement the
> checks or omit them and risk producing broken PO files (and
> reimplementing the checks is not ideal -- if gettext gets new checks,
> the application needs to be updated too).

The other checks are implementable in a few lines of code, whereas the
po_message_check_format() function is quite complex. As far as I know,
the applications for which libgettextpo is made - namely PO file editors -
also perform other checks - spell checking and such - that msgfmt doesn't
do. The current API is therefore more inviting for the addition of other
checks.

Bruno