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Contributing to Timberborn Mods Universal Translate

Thank you for your interest in contributing!
This project maintains a large, shared translation database.

1️⃣ Register

You need a GitHub account to contribute.

  • If you don’t have one, sign up here:
    👉 sign up

2️⃣ Apply to Join

After creating your account, please fill out the Join Us form:

👉 Join Us

Once approved, you will receive edit permissions for this repository.

3️⃣ Why Git (GitHub)?

Git is a tool that helps many people work on the same project without overwriting each other’s work.

In this project, we maintain a large and constantly growing translation database. Git allows us to:

  • Track every change to every translation
  • Know who changed what, and when
  • Review and fix mistakes easily
  • Restore previous versions if something goes wrong
  • Let many contributors work in parallel safely

Without Git, managing hundreds of translation files from many contributors would be chaotic and error-prone.

4️⃣ Do I need to know Git?

No.

You do not need to learn Git commands to contribute.

You can choose any method you feel comfortable with:

  • Edit directly in the
    👉 GitHub online editor
    (recommended if this is your first time using Git)

  • Use any Git software (such as GitHub Desktop)

    • clone to your local computer
    • edit with any text editor (such as VS Code or Notepad)

More tutorial for git: Pro Git

We do not require signatures for commits.

5️⃣ Basic Files: What You Usually Edit

Mod Translations

  • Edit the appropriate TOML files in the /data directory
  • These files contain the actual translation content
  • See DATA_STRUCTURE.md for all format and structure details

Global Glossary

  • The global glossary is located at data/_glossary.toml
  • It is used for common terms shared across multiple mods
  • Please follow the rules described in DATA_STRUCTURE.md

6️⃣ Modify & Submit Changes

All changes must be submitted via Pull Requests (PRs).

This ensures changes can be reviewed, tracked, and safely merged.

7️⃣ Merge Rules (Branch Protection)

To protect the main branch, all changes must be merged via Pull Requests to avoid breaking changes.

✅ You may merge by yourself if only edit /data

More tutorial for PR: About pull requests

8️⃣ Advanced Files

Files outside /data affect project behavior, build scripts, and documentation.

If you believe such changes are necessary:

  1. Open a Pull Request
  2. Clearly explain the reason and impact
  3. Wait for review before merging

🔒These changes must be reviewed and approved before merging.

This is a safety measure, not a restriction.
It exists to protect everyone’s work and keep the project stable, and keep access tokens security.

9️⃣ Translation Rules & Limitations

This project uses both AI and manual work:

  • AI provides fast translation support and reduces workload
  • Manual work is used for proofreading and modification

We are not responsible for the absolute accuracy of translated text.

Content that will NOT be translated

  • Built-in IDs
    These keys are used internally by the game. Modifying them may cause unpredictable behavior and violate the “universal” principle.
    The build script will automatically detect and remove known built-in IDs.

  • Content that violates public order or morals, including but not limited to:

    • Racial discrimination
    • Adult content
    • Hate speech

Such content will not be translated to avoid potential problems.

How these change become mod?

An automatic script will:

  • Generate the latest language CSV files from /data
  • Publish updated files every day

Thank you for helping make Timberborn mods accessible to more players ❤️