Add a "keep" import mode to keep files as-is and export them.

[reduz]

Just choose this mode, and the file will not be imported (but it will be exported as-is).

Cherry picking for 3.x should e relatively easy.

Fixes #38957.
Fixes #47061.

[akien-mga]

Thanks!

[akien-mga]

Cherry-picked for 3.3. (Via #47300.)

[golddotasksquestions]

I don't understand the nomenclature on this at all. Who keeps the file if I chose "Keep File"? And why is there a "No Import" setting on the Import tab? I literally have to click "reimport" to apply and reimport any of the Settings here. Selecting a "No Import" only then to reimport the file makes no sense to me at all.
Seeing this option I would even have more questions and be hesitant to use it: If Godot has auto imported a CSV and it shows up in the FileSystem, if I select "Keep File (No Import)" and then reimport the file, will it disappear from the FileSystem panel? Do I have to go to the Editor settings and enable "Show hidden Files" in order to reimport it again if I changed my mind?

To a godot beginner user (like a game designer who works a lot with spread sheets), non of this would be intuitive or self explanatory. I'm definitely not a beginner any more and I still don't understand what the expected process now is starting with 3.3 to use CSVs for general purpose data, and not for translations.

Right now in Godot 3.2.3 stable, I can use CSV files without fiddling with the Import tab. I would really like this to stay the same.

[akien-mga]

@golddotasksquestions Godot imports all files by default for which it has a ResourceImporter. CSV is one such file type as CSV files are imported by default as "CSV Translations" (.translation files) which are compressed and optimized translation resources in binary data used by the TranslationServer.

So as of 3.2.3, this is not accurate:

Right now in Godot 3.2.3 stable, I can use CSV files without fiddling with the Import tab. I would really like this to stay the same.

What actually happens when you add a CSV file to a project to use it, not as translation, but as raw data, is that you get a stream of errors each time you focus the editor:

ERROR: import: Error importing CSV translation: 'a' is not a valid locale.
   At: editor/import/resource_importer_csv_translation.cpp:104.
ERROR: _reimport_file: Error importing 'res://test.csv'.
   At: editor/editor_file_system.cpp:1801.

If that doesn't happen for you, it means that you did fiddle with the Import tab to select the "CSV" importer instead of "CSV Translation". That importer was a hack added to prevent trying to import the CSV as translations (but instead it would import them as nothing - leading to various bugs, such as .csv files being missing once the project is exported, since the import system considers the source files unnecessary given that it will only rely on the imported file).

This PR solves this issue by adding a proper "Keep" mode which tells the importer, on a file by file basis, that this file should not be imported by Godot, i.e. it's meant to be used "manually" from your script with the File API.

I appreciate that it might seem confusing to have to go to the "Import" tab to configure the non-import of a given file, but this dock is where the import behavior is configured, and disabling it for a file is part of this configuration.

With godotengine/godot-proposals#2500 you'd be further able to configure in the Project Settings that you want all CSV files to be left alone un-imported, without ever having to go configure it on a file by file basis in the Import dock. But this PR already fixes a completely broken system by making it at least usable.

[golddotasksquestions]

Thank you for taking the time to explain this in such detail Akien, also thanks to reduz for improving this issue, I really do appreciate the better CSV support a lot (I'm sorry I have not said this in my previous comment)

I am pretty certain I never fiddled with CSV import settings. I clearly remember last year after up grading my experience was that it "just worked". That's why I left this comment here.

I think the reason for this is because I never imported the CSV in the first place. I always loaded it from an externally file:

func parse_csv():
	var file = File.new()
	file.open(str(os_dependent_csv_path,"data.csv"), file.READ)
	while !file.eof_reached():
		var csv_rows = file.get_csv_line("\t")
		csv.append(csv_rows)

	file.close()
	csv.pop_back() #remove last empty array get_csv_line() has created 
	headers = Array(csv[0])
	cardnumber_idx = headers.find("cardnumber")
	name_idx = headers.find("name")
	type_idx = headers.find("type")
	csv_noheaders = csv 
	csv_noheaders.pop_front() #remove first array (headers) from the csv

So I guess this totally is a misunderstanding on my part, I am sorry for the confusion.

---

Having that cleared up, I still think the naming here does not make any sense.
Personally I would really prefer if CSVs would not be imported as translations by default with Godot 4.0 going forward.
CSVs have a much broader use in game design than just translation files. Translations seem like a specific usecase to me, I would therefore prefer to have to option to "reimport as translation" and maybe "reimport as text data" (with text data being the default), rather than "reimport as No Import" or "reimport as Keep File".