Localizing List of Objects!

**mostafa.elabady** · 2013-03-08, 19:55

Hi,

I have A class called Station as follows:

Code:

    public class Station
    {

        private int StationID;
        public int ID
        {
            get { return StationID; }
        }

        private string nameArabic;
        public string NameArabic
        {
            get { return nameArabic; }
            set { nameArabic= value; }
        }

       private string nameEnglish;
        public string NameEnglish
        {
            get { return nameEnglish; }
            set { nameEnglish= value; }
        }

    }

and I have a list of Stations in ViewModel

Code:

        public List<Station> Stations{set; get;}

and I have a ListPicker that binds data from this list and ItemTemplate is:

HTML Code:

<DataTemplate x:Name="PickerItemTemplate"> 
                <Grid> 
                        <TextBlock FontFamily="Segoe WP Light" Text="{Binding NameEnglish}" FontSize="26" HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center" Margin="8,0,0,2" /> 
                </Grid> 
            </DataTemplate>

I wanna localize this, it should get NameArabic or NameEnglish based on the language.

Can I do this using LocalizedStrings?!

or do you have a better solution ?!

Thanks in advance

**Loukt** · 2013-03-08, 21:00

Can I know how do you get the stations data ? there might be a better solutions than what you're doing.

If you don't want to start you code over
Here is a solution

Add a new class name it LanguageConverter.cs
don't forget to replace "YourNamespace" with the one in your app

Code:

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Data;

namespace YourNamespace
{
    public class LanguageConverter: IValueConverter
    {
        public object Convert(object value, Type targetType, object parameter, System.Globalization.CultureInfo culture)
        {
            var station = value as Station;
            return System.Globalization.CultureInfo.CurrentCulture.Name.Contains("ar") ? station.NameArabic : station.NameEnglish;
        }
        public object ConvertBack(object value, Type targetType, object parameter, System.Globalization.CultureInfo culture)
        {
            return value;
        }
    }
}

in the xaml where your adding the list
add a to the page or a parent control (in my example I put it in the Grid which is my LayoutRoot )

Code:

<Grid.Resources>
            <local:LanguageConverter x:Name="LanguageConverter" />
</Grid.Resources>

then in your datatemplate

Code:

<DataTemplate x:Name="PickerItemTemplate"> 
                <Grid> 
                        <TextBlock FontFamily="Segoe WP Light" Text="{Binding, Converter={StaticResource LanguageConverter}}" 
                                         FontSize="26" HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center" Margin="8,0,0,2" /> 
                </Grid> 
</DataTemplate>

try this a give me a feedback.

PS: didn't try it

**paulo.morgado** · 2013-03-09, 01:13

Why not just use resources?

Globalization and localization for Windows Phone
Tips for Localizing Windows Phone 8 XAML Apps - Part1
Tips for localizing Windows Phone apps – Part 2

Also, beware of magic strings. They can hurt you.

I just ran this query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.Name.IndexOf("ar", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase) >= 0
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

in LINQPad/ on Windows 8 and got this result:

Name	DisplayName
ar	Arabic
arn	Mapudungun
ar-SA	Arabic (Saudi Arabia)
arn-CL	Mapudungun (Chile)
ku-Arab-IQ	Central Kurdish (Iraq)
ar-IQ	Arabic (Iraq)
pa-Arab-PK	Punjabi (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
sd-Arab-PK	Sindhi (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
ar-EG	Arabic (Egypt)
ar-LY	Arabic (Libya)
ar-DZ	Arabic (Algeria)
ar-MA	Arabic (Morocco)
ar-TN	Arabic (Tunisia)
ar-OM	Arabic (Oman)
ar-YE	Arabic (Yemen)
ar-SY	Arabic (Syria)
ar-JO	Arabic (Jordan)
es-AR	Spanish (Argentina)
ar-LB	Arabic (Lebanon)
ar-KW	Arabic (Kuwait)
ar-AE	Arabic (U.A.E.)
ar-BH	Arabic (Bahrain)
ar-QA	Arabic (Qatar)
pa-Arab	Punjabi
sd-Arab	Sindhi (Arabic)
ku-Arab	Central Kurdish (Arabic)

I know that not all of them are available in Windows Phone - yet - and I'm intentionally using case insensitive comparison, but it's always dangerous.

This query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.Name == "ar" || c.Parent.Name == "ar"
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

gives the intended result:

Name	DisplayName
ar	Arabic
ar-SA	Arabic (Saudi Arabia)
ar-IQ	Arabic (Iraq)
ar-EG	Arabic (Egypt)
ar-LY	Arabic (Libya)
ar-DZ	Arabic (Algeria)
ar-MA	Arabic (Morocco)
ar-TN	Arabic (Tunisia)
ar-OM	Arabic (Oman)
ar-YE	Arabic (Yemen)
ar-SY	Arabic (Syria)
ar-JO	Arabic (Jordan)
ar-LB	Arabic (Lebanon)
ar-KW	Arabic (Kuwait)
ar-AE	Arabic (U.A.E.)
ar-BH	Arabic (Bahrain)
ar-QA	Arabic (Qatar)

And this query:

Why not just use resources?

Globalization and localization for Windows Phone
Tips for Localizing Windows Phone 8 XAML Apps - Part1
Tips for localizing Windows Phone apps – Part 2

Also, beware of magic strings. They can hurt you.

I just ran this query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.Name.IndexOf("ar", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase) >= 0
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

in LINQPad/ on Windows 8 and got this result:

Name	DisplayName
ar	Arabic
arn	Mapudungun
ar-SA	Arabic (Saudi Arabia)
arn-CL	Mapudungun (Chile)
ku-Arab-IQ	Central Kurdish (Iraq)
ar-IQ	Arabic (Iraq)
pa-Arab-PK	Punjabi (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
sd-Arab-PK	Sindhi (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
ar-EG	Arabic (Egypt)
ar-LY	Arabic (Libya)
ar-DZ	Arabic (Algeria)
ar-MA	Arabic (Morocco)
ar-TN	Arabic (Tunisia)
ar-OM	Arabic (Oman)
ar-YE	Arabic (Yemen)
ar-SY	Arabic (Syria)
ar-JO	Arabic (Jordan)
es-AR	Spanish (Argentina)
ar-LB	Arabic (Lebanon)
ar-KW	Arabic (Kuwait)
ar-AE	Arabic (U.A.E.)
ar-BH	Arabic (Bahrain)
ar-QA	Arabic (Qatar)
pa-Arab	Punjabi
sd-Arab	Sindhi (Arabic)
ku-Arab	Central Kurdish (Arabic)

I know that not all of them are available in Windows Phone - yet - and I'm intentionally using case insensitive comparison, but it's always dangerous.

This query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.Name == "ar" || c.Parent.Name == "ar"
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

gives the intended result:

Name	DisplayName
ar	Arabic
ar-SA	Arabic (Saudi Arabia)
ar-IQ	Arabic (Iraq)
ar-EG	Arabic (Egypt)
ar-LY	Arabic (Libya)
ar-DZ	Arabic (Algeria)
ar-MA	Arabic (Morocco)
ar-TN	Arabic (Tunisia)
ar-OM	Arabic (Oman)
ar-YE	Arabic (Yemen)
ar-SY	Arabic (Syria)
ar-JO	Arabic (Jordan)
ar-LB	Arabic (Lebanon)
ar-KW	Arabic (Kuwait)
ar-AE	Arabic (U.A.E.)
ar-BH	Arabic (Bahrain)
ar-QA	Arabic (Qatar)

And this query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.TwoLetterISOLanguageName == "ar"
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

gives the same results.

So, what you should be testing is if System.Globalization.CultureInfo.CurrentUICulture.TwoLetterISOLanguageName == "ar".

Noticed CurrentUICulture instead of CurrentCulture? CurrentUICulture should be used to localize text and CurrentCulture for data formatting (numbers, dates, currency).

All of this is provided to you by using resources.

**mostafa.elabady** · 2013-03-09, 13:24

Originally Posted by Loukt

Can I know how do you get the stations data ? there might be a better solutions than what you're doing.

If you don't want to start you code over
Here is a solution

Add a new class name it LanguageConverter.cs
don't forget to replace "YourNamespace" with the one in your app

Code:

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows;
using System.Windows.Data;

namespace YourNamespace
{
    public class LanguageConverter: IValueConverter
    {
        public object Convert(object value, Type targetType, object parameter, System.Globalization.CultureInfo culture)
        {
            var station = value as Station;
            return System.Globalization.CultureInfo.CurrentCulture.Name.Contains("ar") ? station.NameArabic : station.NameEnglish;
        }
        public object ConvertBack(object value, Type targetType, object parameter, System.Globalization.CultureInfo culture)
        {
            return value;
        }
    }
}

in the xaml where your adding the list
add a to the page or a parent control (in my example I put it in the Grid which is my LayoutRoot )

Code:

<Grid.Resources>
            <local:LanguageConverter x:Name="LanguageConverter" />
</Grid.Resources>

then in your datatemplate

Code:

<DataTemplate x:Name="PickerItemTemplate"> 
                <Grid> 
                        <TextBlock FontFamily="Segoe WP Light" Text="{Binding, Converter={StaticResource LanguageConverter}}" 
                                         FontSize="26" HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center" Margin="8,0,0,2" /> 
                </Grid> 
</DataTemplate>

try this a give me a feedback.

PS: didn't try it

Thanks Loukt for your answer.

till now, the data will be static.

Is there a faster way than Converters, because Converters are slow!

**mostafa.elabady** · 2013-03-09, 13:26

Originally Posted by paulo.morgado

Why not just use resources?

Globalization and localization for Windows Phone
Tips for Localizing Windows Phone 8 XAML Apps - Part1
Tips for localizing Windows Phone apps – Part 2

Also, beware of magic strings. They can hurt you.

I just ran this query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.Name.IndexOf("ar", StringComparison.OrdinalIgnoreCase) >= 0
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

in LINQPad/ on Windows 8 and got this result:

Name	DisplayName
ar	Arabic
arn	Mapudungun
ar-SA	Arabic (Saudi Arabia)
arn-CL	Mapudungun (Chile)
ku-Arab-IQ	Central Kurdish (Iraq)
ar-IQ	Arabic (Iraq)
pa-Arab-PK	Punjabi (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
sd-Arab-PK	Sindhi (Islamic Republic of Pakistan)
ar-EG	Arabic (Egypt)
ar-LY	Arabic (Libya)
ar-DZ	Arabic (Algeria)
ar-MA	Arabic (Morocco)
ar-TN	Arabic (Tunisia)
ar-OM	Arabic (Oman)
ar-YE	Arabic (Yemen)
ar-SY	Arabic (Syria)
ar-JO	Arabic (Jordan)
es-AR	Spanish (Argentina)
ar-LB	Arabic (Lebanon)
ar-KW	Arabic (Kuwait)
ar-AE	Arabic (U.A.E.)
ar-BH	Arabic (Bahrain)
ar-QA	Arabic (Qatar)
pa-Arab	Punjabi
sd-Arab	Sindhi (Arabic)
ku-Arab	Central Kurdish (Arabic)

I know that not all of them are available in Windows Phone - yet - and I'm intentionally using case insensitive comparison, but it's always dangerous.

This query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.Name == "ar" || c.Parent.Name == "ar"
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

gives the intended result:

Name	DisplayName
ar	Arabic
ar-SA	Arabic (Saudi Arabia)
ar-IQ	Arabic (Iraq)
ar-EG	Arabic (Egypt)
ar-LY	Arabic (Libya)
ar-DZ	Arabic (Algeria)
ar-MA	Arabic (Morocco)
ar-TN	Arabic (Tunisia)
ar-OM	Arabic (Oman)
ar-YE	Arabic (Yemen)
ar-SY	Arabic (Syria)
ar-JO	Arabic (Jordan)
ar-LB	Arabic (Lebanon)
ar-KW	Arabic (Kuwait)
ar-AE	Arabic (U.A.E.)
ar-BH	Arabic (Bahrain)
ar-QA	Arabic (Qatar)

And this query:

Code:

from c in System.Globalization.CultureInfo.GetCultures(System.Globalization.CultureTypes.AllCultures)
where c.TwoLetterISOLanguageName == "ar"
select new {c.Name, c.DisplayName }

gives the same results.

So, what you should be testing is if System.Globalization.CultureInfo.CurrentUICulture.TwoLetterISOLanguageName == "ar".

Noticed CurrentUICulture instead of CurrentCulture? CurrentUICulture should be used to localize text and CurrentCulture for data formatting (numbers, dates, currency).

All of this is provided to you by using resources.

What is the relation between your answer and my questions ?!!

**Loukt** · 2013-03-09, 14:48

the static data is stored in xml files or hardcoded?

if it's stored in xml and you can still edit it then make two files one for english and another for arabic

stations.ar.xml and stations.en.xml

and when loading your files
(assuming you have ResourceLanguage identifier in your AppResouces which is mandatory in WP8)

Code:

var stationsElements = XDocument.Load("YourPath/stations." + AppResources.ResourceLanguage + ".xml");

Your Station class code will be

Code:

public class Station
    {

        private int StationID;
        public int ID
        {
            get { return StationID; }
        }

        private string name;
        public string Name
        {
            get { return name; }
            set { name= value; }
        }

    }

and you DataTemplate

Code:

<DataTemplate x:Name="PickerItemTemplate"> 
                <Grid> 
                        <TextBlock FontFamily="Segoe WP Light" Text="{Binding Name}" FontSize="26" HorizontalAlignment="Center" VerticalAlignment="Center" Margin="8,0,0,2" /> 
                </Grid> 
            </DataTemplate>

**paulo.morgado** · 2013-03-10, 23:57

You might not see the immediate relation if you haven't gone through the links at the top.

It might not be the answer to your question, but it's the recommend answer to your problem.

**mostafa.elabady** · 2013-03-11, 06:48

Thanks, paulo.morgado

Thanks, Loukt

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