Understanding Localization

Brandon Thompson, DJ Battle, Tien DeLong-Headley

October 27, 2025

What is Localization?

Definition

  • The process of adapting content, software, or documentation to the linguistic, cultural, and technical expectations of a specific locale (language + region).
  • This goes beyond translation to include formats, examples, legal requirements, and UI/UX adjustments so the material appears native to local users.

Scope

  • Translating text and metadata
  • Formatting dates/numbers/currency
  • Adapting images and examples
  • Handling plural forms and text direction,
  • Ensuring legal and accessibility compliance for the target locale.

Why it matters for documentation

Localization makes documentation accurate, usable, and culturally appropriate so readers can understand and trust the content without needing to mentally translate or adapt it themselves.

Examples: - Translating a user guide to Spanish - Switching date formats to DD/MM/YYYY - Providing RTL layout for Arabic - Localizing screenshots and examples with region-specific data.

Why practice localization?

Advantages

  • Wide Market Reach:
    • Makes software accesible to a variety of users of different languages and cultures increasing potential revenue.
  • Better User Experience:
    • Users can use their prefered language and formats (dates, currency, etc.).
  • Competitive advantage:
    • Localization can not only give a stronger brand image but can also provide a competitive advantage against other tools that may not have it.

Core technical challenges

  • Hard-coded strings require signifigant reworking to extract and translate.
  • Dates, times, and currencies require specific formatting for different regions.
  • Layout and design is a big concern because of some translated text being shorter/longer, Right to left languages can also require fundamental changes.
  • Can be very costly to update and maintain, might need proper translators to make sure translation is as accurate as possible.

What are the common practices of localization?

Internationalization

Internationalization is the process of ensuring that code is designed for flexibility. This means: - No hard-coded text/strings or cultural references - Adhere to Unicode (UTF-8) standards for global character support

  • Example:
    • Rather than print("Welcome!") use print(welcome_message)

Cultural Translation & Format Consistency

  • Translate images, idioms, and examples so they feel natural and relevant
  • Adjust text direction for right-to-left languages (Arabic, Hebrew)
  • Maintain tone and formality appropriate for the culture
  • Verify legal, accessibility, and measurement system compliance (imperial vs. metric)

Best Tools & Practices

  • Translation Management Systems (TMS):
    • Crowdin — Dveloper collaboration, automatic Git sync, supports software and docs localization
    • Lokalise — Clean UI & API integration, automation features
    • Smartling — Advanced workflow management and analytics
  • File formats for storing strings and translations:
    • .po (Portable Object) — Open-source projects, pairs with gettext
    • .xliff (XML Localization Interchange File Format) — Industry-standard format for exchanging translations between tools
    • .json (JavaScript Object Notation) — Lightweight & developer-friendly, ideal for web apps

Questions?