if I assign French or Spanish as the default form language?

What is supposed to happen if I assign, say, French or Spanish as the default language?

Do the system messages revert to the selected default language?

Do the widgets, like date picker revert to the selected default language?

So far, in my experience, not.

So I can't understand the point of offering a default language selection.

I wish you would offer the option of "localizing" all messages and labels for desired languages. I mean, offer this outside of "translating" for multiple languages. It seems what you offer revolves around the assumption that localization means multi-lingual. When often, it just means uni-lingual, but not English.

Hello,

Default language should be selected when you want to create a multi-lingual form to specify the language to translate FROM. That is why if you assign French or Spanish as the default language for the form created in English, nothing will happen nor be translated. 

If you want to create a form using a language different from English, you should first change your account language. You can do that quickly at the bottom of JotForm page:

Form fields will be auto-translated for your new forms. 

Please try this option and let us know if you need more help.

Thank you.

Right, so don't many of your users serve multi-lingual niches??

What if we have clients that need different languages?

I have a Silver account (100 forms). I serve a niche that needs 2 (sometimes 3) languages.
But every form doesn't need to be in several languages. 

If I change the language of my account (for example to French), then I lose all of my native English forms?

In most cases, we can just go ahead and create forms with the target language in the fields. But necessary widgets like calendars don't localize and make for a terrible user experience.

I have other "questions" open on the calendar issue.

In my case, I have a client (with website) that is in 3 languages. English, Japanese and Portuguese. But we can't completely localize our forms. This is frustrating.

There needs to be a better way to customize/localize system messages and widgets.

Best regards,

Bruce

What if we have clients that need different languages?

You need to translate the form to multiple languages as shown on this guide: https://www.jotform.com/help/298-How-to-Make-Your-Forms-Multilingual 

If I change the language of my account (for example to French), then I lose all of my native English forms?

No, the forms will stay at the languages the were originally created from.

"necessary widgets like calendars don't localize and make for a terrible user experience." Could you explain this further? Are you having trouble finding the widgets when the form is in a different language than English?

In my case, I have a client (with website) that is in 3 languages. English, Japanese and Portuguese. But we can't completely localize our forms. This is frustrating.

Your forms can be localize in your "My Forms" page regardless of the languages it was created from, or the multiple languages you have translated it to. If this is not the case, can you indicate one of the forms that is not be located in your My Forms page?

Thanks for the follow up.

I guess it is hard to discern from my emails, but I have a pretty good understanding of how you are supposed to localize with Jotform (although I keep learning more with each reply) :-)

That is good that forms retain the original language when changing account language.
But, so that means I just need to keep changing my account language each time I need to build a form in another language?

The issue with "widgets" is mainly (right now) to do with the date picker.
I NEED the basic labels (days, months) to be in Japanese.
I don't want to waste your time on that. There is an open issue (with no expected resolution date).
But I fear the same problems with a payment widget that I am currently setting up.

Again, yes, I know how to localize forms by adding languages via settings (clunky process that that is)..
But generally, I don't want forms that toggle between languages. It usually serves us best to simply create multiple stand-alone forms (for each language). And easiest to clone forms once the first is complete. and then change the labels as needed.

Thanks for your patience.

Bruce

As a test, I just switched my account to French.

I created a form .Added a date picker, and voila... it was in English.

I also changed the form default language to French..and still English.

So how would one get his desired language into the date picker?

"But, so that means I just need to keep changing my account language each time I need to build a form in another language?" No, you can keep the a default language(let say English), and then translate it to any langue you want to, and set that language as the default one for that form.

On regards of the date picker, that is something that can not be changed at the moment. As you mentioned, a request to our back-end team has already been sent, but there is no time-frame for a resolution.

Okay thanks.
I suppose I am fixating too much on the date picker.
I hope they actually work on it soon. Sometimes it's the small things that make a difference.

Regards,

Bruce