Thanks to its extensive use of templates, images, and message
catalogs, CUPS can be easily translated (or customized!) to suit
your needs. This help file will guide you through the CUPS
localization files so you can get the most out of it.
Start by downloading the CUPS source code from www.cups.org. After you extract the files
from the source archive, you will want to copy the following
files and directories:
desktop/cups.desktop - the GNOME/KDE
desktop file pointing to the CUPS web interface
doc/index.html - the web interface home
page
locale/cups.pot - the message catalog
templates/*.tmpl - the web interface
template files
With the exception of the message catalogs and desktop file,
localization files are placed in subdirectories under the
doc and templates using the locale name.
Locale names are either ll or ll_CC, where
"ll" is the 2-letter language code and "CC" is the 2-letter
country code. CUPS does not currently use or support the newer
ll-region syntax for locale names.
All non-image files must be encoded using the UTF-8 character
set.
To submit a translation for inclusion in CUPS, translate the
desktop file, all of the template files, the index.html.in
file, and the message catalog. Place these files in the correct
subdirectories in the CUPS source code archive and run the following
command to create an archive with your files:
tar cvf ll_CC.tar.gz desktop/cups.desktop doc/ll_CC \
locale/cups_ll_CC.po templates/ll_CC
Replace "ll_CC" with the locale name for your translation.
Once you have created the archive, go to the CUPS Bugs
& Features page and submit a bug report, attaching the
translation to the report.
The desktop/cups.desktop file provides a link to
the CUPS web interface from desktop environments such as
GNOME and KDE. To translate this file, add two lines to the
bottom with the Name and Comment keys:
Name[ll_CC]=Translation of "Manage Printing"
Comment[ll_CC]=Translation of "CUPS Web Interface"
The index.html file is a complete HTML file that is
displayed when the user visits "http://localhost:631/". Edit the
existing doc/index.html and save it in the
doc/ll_CC subdirectory so that the makefile can
install it. Run "make install" in the doc subdirectory
to test the new home page.
CUPS message catalogs are GNU gettext ".po" text files that
provide a list of localized message strings for the CUPS
software. Message catalogs are named cups_ll.po or
cups_ll_CC.po, where "ll" is the standard 2-letter
abbreviation for the language and "CC" is the standard 2-letter
abbreviation for the country.
When translating a new message catalog, copy the
cups.pot message catalog file in the locale
subdirectory of the CUPS source code. For example, to start
translating the message catalog to Canadian French, you would
type the following commands:
cd locale
cp cups.pot cups_fr_CA.po
Alternatively, you can copy the existing cups_fr.po
message catalog and then make any necessary changes.
Once you have make your copy of the file, edit it using your
favorite text editor or translation program to translate the text
to the desired language.
Then validate your translation using the locale/checkpo utility:
cd locale
./checkpo cups_ll_CC.po
After fixing any errors in your translation, add your locale to the LANGUAGES
variable in the Makedefs file and run the "make
install" command in the locale subdirectory to test
the translation.
The CUPS scheduler provides a web interface that can be used
to do many common printing and administration tasks. The built-in
web server supports localization of web pages through the use of
subdirectories for each locale, e.g. "fr" for French, "de" for
German, "fr_ca" for French in Canada, and so forth.
Template files are HTML files with special formatting
characters in them that allow substition of variables and arrays.
The CUPS CGI programs (admin.cgi,
classes.cgi, help.cgi,
jobs.cgi, and printers.cgi) use these
template file to provide dynamic content for the web interface.
Template files are installed in the
/usr/share/cups/templates directory by default. Table
2 lists the various template files and their purpose.
Translated versions of the template files should be saved in
the templates/ll_CC subdirectory. For example,
Canadian French template files should be saved in the
templates/fr_CA subdirectory. After you have
translated all of the templates, add the locale to the
LANGUAGES variable in the
Makedefs file and run "make install" in the
templates subdirectory to test the translation.
Table 2: Web Interface Template Files
Filename
Purpose
add-class.tmpl
This is the initial form that is shown to add a new
printer class.
add-printer.tmpl
This is the initial form that is shown to add a new
printer.
add-rss-subscription.tmpl
This is the form that is shown to add a new RSS subscription.
admin.tmpl
This is the main administration page.
choose-device.tmpl
This is the form that shows the list of available
devices.
choose-make.tmpl
This is the form that shows the list of available
manufacturers.
choose-model.tmpl
This is the form that shows the list of available
printer models/drivers.
choose-serial.tmpl
This is the form that allows the user to choose
a serial port and any options.
choose-uri.tmpl
This is the form that allows the user to enter
a device URI for network printers.
class-added.tmpl
This template shows the "class added" message.
class-confirm.tmpl
This is the template used to confirm the
deletion of a class.
class-deleted.tmpl
This template shows the "class deleted" message.
class-jobs-header.tmpl
This template shows the "jobs" header for jobs in a
class.
class-modified.tmpl
This template shows the "class modified" message.
classes.tmpl
This template shows one or more printer classes.
classes-header.tmpl
This template shows the "showing N of M classes" header in
the class list.
edit-config.tmpl
This is the cupsd.conf editor page.
error.tmpl
This template displays a generic error message.
error-op.tmpl
This is the "unknown operation" error page.
header.tmpl
This template is used as the standard header on all dynamic
content.
help-header.tmpl
This is the top part of the help page.
help-printable.tmpl
This is the standard page header for the printable
version of help files.
job-cancel.tmpl
This template shows "job canceled".
job-hold.tmpl
This template shows "job held".
job-move.tmpl
This template shows the move-job form.
job-moved.tmpl
This template shows "job moved".
job-release.tmpl
This template shows "job released".
job-restart.tmpl
This template shows "job reprinted".
jobs.tmpl
This template is used to list the print jobs on a server,
class, or printer.
jobs-header.tmpl
This template shows the "showing N or M jobs" header in the
jobs list.
list-available-printers.tmpl
This template shows a list of new printers that have been found.
maintenance.tmpl
This template shows "maintenance commands sent".
modify-class.tmpl
This template is used as the first form when modifying a
class.
modify-printer.tmpl
This template is used as the first form when modifying a
printer.
norestart.tmpl
This template shows "server not restarted because no
changes were made to the configuration".
option-boolean.tmpl
This template is used to select a boolean PPD option.
option-conflict.tmpl
This template shows the conflicting options.
option-header.tmpl
This template is used to start a PPD option group.
option-pickmany.tmpl
This template is used to select a multi-valued PPD option.
option-pickone.tmpl
This template is used to select a single-valued PPD option.
option-trailer.tmpl
This template is used to end a PPD option group.
pager.tmpl
This template shows the previous/next pager bar.
printer-accept.tmpl
This template shows "printer now accepting jobs".
printer-added.tmpl
This template shows "printer added".
printer-configured.tmpl
This template shows "printer configured".
printer-confirm.tmpl
This template asks the user to confirm the deletion
of a printer.
printer-default.tmpl
This template shows "default printer set".
printer-deleted.tmpl
This template shows "printer deleted".
printer-jobs-header.tmpl
This templates shows the "jobs" header for jobs on a
printer.
printer-modified.tmpl
This template shows "printer modified".
printer-purge.tmpl
This template shows "printer has been purged of all jobs".
printer-reject.tmpl
This template shows "printer now rejecting jobs".
printer-start.tmpl
This template shows "printer started".
printer-stop.tmpl
This template shows "printer stopped".
printers.tmpl
This template is used to list information on one or more
printers.
printers-header.tmpl
This template shows the "showing printer N of M" header in
the printers list.
restart.tmpl
This template shows "server restarting".
samba-export.tmpl
This template shows the export printers to Samba form.
samba-exported.tmpl
This template shows "printers exported to Samba".
search.tmpl
This template shows the search form.
set-printer-options-header.tmpl
This template shows the first part of the set printer options
form.
set-printer-options-trailer.tmpl
This template shows the last part of the set printer options
form.
subscription-added.tmpl
This template shows "subscription xyz added".
subscription-canceled.tmpl
This template shows "subscription #NNN canceled".
test-page.tmpl
This template shows "test page printed".
trailer.tmpl
This template is used as the standard trailer on all dynamic
content.
Template files consist of HTML with variable substitutions for
named inside curley braces "{name}". Variable names are generally
the IPP attribute names with the hyphen ("-") replaced by the
underscore ("_") character. For example, the
job-printer-uri attribute is renamed to
job_printer_uri.
Curley braces ("{" and "}") to indicate substitutions, and the
backslash ("\") character for quoting. To insert any of these
special characters as-is you need to use the HTML
&name; mechanism or prefix each special
character with the backslash ("\".)
You substitute the value of a variable using
{NAME} in your template file. If the variable is
undefined then the {NAME} string is output
as-is.
To substitute an empty string if the variable is undefined,
use {?NAME} instead.
Array Substitutions
The number of array elements can be inserted using
{#NAME}. If the array is undefined then 0 is output.
The current array element (starting at 1) is inserted with
{#}.
Arrays are handled using {[NAME] at the beginning
of a section and } at the end. The information
between the closing bracket ("]") and closing brace ("}") is
repeated for as many elements as are in the named array. For
example, the following template will display a list of each job
in the job_id array:
where true is the text that is included if the
condition is true and false is the text that is
included if the condition is false. A value of # is
replaced with the current element number (starting at 1.) The
character after the variable name specifies the condition to
test. Table 3 shows the available test conditions.
CUPS uses five CGI programs to manage the dynamic web
interfaces:
admin.cgi
classes.cgi
help.cgi
jobs.cgi
printers.cgi
Each CGI program accepts standard form variables such as
OP for the operation to perform,
PRINTER_NAME for the printer or class name to
operate on, QUERY for any search words,
FIRST for the first class, job, or printer to
display, and ORDER to control the order that
classes, jobs, or printers are displayed.
In addition, the classes.cgi,
jobs.cgi, and printers.cgi programs
support a WHICH_JOBS variable to control which jobs
are displayed. Table 4 lists the supported values.
The admin.cgi program handles all of the printer
and class administration functions and is run for all direct
accesses to the /admin resource. For most operations
it uses the PRINTER_NAME and OP form
variables to specify the action requested. Table 5 shows the
supported OP values.
Table 5: admin.cgi OP Values
OP Value
Description
accept-jobs
Accepts jobs on the named destination.
add-class
Adds a new printer class.
add-printer
Adds a new printer.
config-server
Configures the server.
delete-class
Deletes a printer class. The form variable CONFIRM
may be set to any value to bypass the confirmation page.
delete-printer
Deletes a printer. The form variable CONFIRM
may be set to any value to bypass the confirmation page.
export-samba
Exports printers to Samba.
find-new-printers
Find new printers that have not yet been added.
modify-class
Modifies a printer class.
modify-printer
Modifies a printer.
purge-jobs
Purges all jobs on the named destination.
redirect
Redirects the web browser to the location referenced by
the URL form variable.
reject-jobs
Rejects new jobs on the named destination.
set-allowed-users
Sets the allowed users for a destination.
set-as-default
Sets the default destination.
set-printer-options
Sets the default options for a printer.
set-sharing
Sets the printer-is-shared attribute for a destination.
The classes.cgi program is responsible for
listing class information, including jobs destined for that
class. It is for all direct accesses to the /classes
resource and supports the optional form variables OP
and WHICH_JOBS. If no form variables are supplied
then the CGI lists all or a specific class and the active jobs on
each class. Table 6 shows the supported OP
values.
Table 6: classes.cgi OP Values
OP Value
Description
move-jobs
Moves the jobs on this class to another destination.
The jobs.cgi program handles all of the job
functions and is run for all direct accesses to the
/jobs resource. For most operations it uses the
JOB_ID, OP, and WHICH_JOBS
form variables to specify the action requested. Table 7 shows the
supported OP values.
Table 7: jobs.cgi OP Values
OP Value
Description
cancel-job
Cancels a job.
hold-job
Holds a job indefinitely.
move-job
Moves a job to another destination.
release-job
Releases a job for printing.
restart-job
Restarts/reprints a stopped, canceled, completed, or aborted
print job.
The printers.cgi program is responsible for
listing printer information, including jobs destined for that
printer. It is for all direct accesses to the
/printers resource and supports the optional form
variables OP and WHICH_JOBS. If no form
variables are supplied then the CGI lists all printers or a
specific printer and the active jobs on that printer. Table 8
shows the supported OP values.