Translating error messages from an external API?

Posted by Jan Fabry on Programmers See other posts from Programmers or by Jan Fabry
Published on 2011-03-01T13:34:46Z Indexed on 2011/03/01 15:32 UTC
Read the original article Hit count: 420

Filed under:

api

|

error-messages

|

internationalization

If I am localizing a piece of software that uses an external API, how should I handle error messages that originate in this API? I do not control the API, I only consume it. The error responses are not very structured: some contain error codes, some contain verbose details in the text, others almost nothing. Some errors can be fixed by the user (incorrect configuration), some are caused by the external service (server overload), some could be caused by a bug in my software (of course, this would be very unlikely...).

I would like to provide a smooth experience to my end-users, so they know what went wrong and what they can do to fix it. What is the best strategy to use here?

(This is a generalization of a question from the WordPress Stack Exchange. I thought it would be worth re-asking here, because it is not limited to WordPress plugins.)

© Programmers or respective owner

Related posts about api

Where does ASP.NET Web API Fit?

as seen on West-Wind - Search for 'West-Wind'
With the pending release of ASP.NET MVC 4 and the new ASP.NET Web API, there has been a lot of discussion of where the new Web API technology fits in the ASP.NET Web stack. There are a lot of choices to build HTTP based applications available now on the stack - we've come a long way from when WebForms… >>> More
An Introduction to ASP.NET Web API

as seen on West-Wind - Search for 'West-Wind'
Microsoft recently released ASP.NET MVC 4.0 and .NET 4.5 and along with it, the brand spanking new ASP.NET Web API. Web API is an exciting new addition to the ASP.NET stack that provides a new, well-designed HTTP framework for creating REST and AJAX APIs (API is Microsoft’s new jargon for a service… >>> More
Introduction to the ASP.NET Web API

as seen on Stephen Walter - Search for 'Stephen Walter'
I am a huge fan of Ajax. If you want to create a great experience for the users of your website – regardless of whether you are building an ASP.NET MVC or an ASP.NET Web Forms site — then you need to use Ajax. Otherwise, you are just being cruel to your customers. We use Ajax extensively in… >>> More
Introduction to the ASP.NET Web API

as seen on Stephen Walter - Search for 'Stephen Walter'
I am a huge fan of Ajax. If you want to create a great experience for the users of your website – regardless of whether you are building an ASP.NET MVC or an ASP.NET Web Forms site — then you need to use Ajax. Otherwise, you are just being cruel to your customers. We use Ajax extensively in… >>> More
How can I setup dependencies for Axis2 / Axiom on Maven2

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
I've tried the following settings on pom.xml to use Axis2 wsdl2code: <dependencies> <dependency> <groupId>org.apache.axis2</groupId> <artifactId>axis2</artifactId> <version>1.5.1</version> </dependency> </dependencies> ... <build> … >>> More

Related posts about error-messages

Moose and error messages, the sun and the moon [closed]

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
So again using Moose I write a role like this: package My::Role; use Moose::Role; use Some::Class::Consuming::My::Role; With the note that Some::Class::Consuming::My::Role consumes the role My::Role; And what do I get ? I get an error message like this: A role generator is required to generate… >>> More
Windows vista, IIS7 and error messages/pages

as seen on Super User - Search for 'Super User'
Hei, I have a new laptop installed with Windows Vista ultimate (Swedish version). I changed the display language to English, everything seems ok except error pages in IIS7 are still in Swedish. Is it possible to get error pages/messages in English ? How? Thanks in advance! >>> More
Access custom error messages for InArray validator when using Zend_Form_Element_Select

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
Hello, I'm using Zend Framework 1.62 (becuase we are deploying the finished product to a Red Hat instance, which doesn't have a hgih enough PHP version to support ZF1.62). When creating a Form using Zend Form, I add a select element, add some multi options. I use the Zend Form as an in-object… >>> More
How to get users to read error messages?

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
If you program for a nontechnical audience, you find yourself at a high risk that users will not read your carefully worded and enlightening error messages, but just click on the first button available with a shrug of frustration. So, I'm wondering what good practices you can recommend to help users… >>> More
Turn off error messages in a bash script

as seen on Stack Overflow - Search for 'Stack Overflow'
Hi, how can one turn off the error messages of a bash script? I want to turn it off, and handle the expected ones by myself For instance, when it does not find some files, to show my specific error message. Thanks >>> More