A new significant version of Linguist Translate has been published, focusing on the privacy of browser additions for full-functional translation from one language to another. The update includes bookmarks and extensive configuration options, such as adding its own translation modules. The organization of translation is supported on the local system using engines like bergamot, Libretranslator, tartunlp, and Lingvatranslator. Additionally, it allows connection to external services such as Google Translate, Yandex Translate, Bing Translate, Deepl, and Chatgpt. The code is distributed under the BSD license. The extension works on browsers based on Chromium and Firefox, including Firefox for Android.
In the latest version, the addition has been transitioned to the third version of the Chrome manifesto (Manifest V3) for browsers based on the Chromium engine. However, it remains on the version of Manifest V2 for Firefox due to the API and Sandbox APIs that have not been implemented in the Firefox API for the third version of the manifesto. With the transition to Manifest V3 on Chrome, the extension ceased to function for users on Windows 7 with chromium versions 109 and below, as these versions did not implement the ‘offscreen’ API.
Due to limitations in the Chrome add-ons store, users with Chrome versions 109 and below can no longer use the old version of the extension after automatic updating to the new version. Users experiencing this issue can install version 5.0.17 in developer mode.
The transition to Manifest V3 is driven by Chrome’s decision to phase out Manifest V2 starting in July 2024. Other changes in the new version include the translation modules being performed in an isolated context for improved safety, the option to disable the recording of translation history, and the fixing of minor errors. Additionally, Linguist Translate has been released on ProductHunt today, an aggregator of projects with transparent ratings.