i18n-check

name	i18n-check
description	Analyze code for internationalization issues, understanding the UI context and user impact before flagging problems. Use when reviewing code for global readiness.
allowed-tools	Read, Grep, Glob, Bash
user-invocable	true

i18n Check

Analyze code for internationalization issues, with emphasis on understanding impact and user experience.

Philosophy

This is not about flagging every hardcoded string. It's about asking:

"If someone in Cairo, Munich, or Tokyo uses this, will it work for them?"

i18n issues aren't just bugs—they're barriers. A date shown as "12/05/2024" is ambiguous to most of the world. A text field that truncates German words breaks the experience. A layout that assumes left-to-right excludes 400 million RTL readers.

Scope

The user may specify a file path, glob pattern, or directory. If not specified, ask what they'd like to check.

Config Integration

Before starting, follow the migration preflight in references/config-migration.md, then read .assistant-config.md from the project root.

If it exists:

1. Read scope decisions and acknowledged findings
2. If i18n is "out of scope": Skip the check entirely, output brief note:

   ## i18n Analysis: [path]
   
   **Skipped:** i18n checks disabled per project config (US-only)
   To re-enable, update .assistant-config.md
   

3. If in scope: Skip acknowledged findings, note them in output
4. Note at the top of output: "Config loaded: .assistant-config.md"

Process

1. Read and Understand

First, read the code to understand:

• What does this component/file do?
• Is this user-facing or internal tooling?
• What kind of content does it display? (dates, numbers, text, forms)
• Is there existing i18n infrastructure? (react-intl, i18next, etc.)

2. Trace the User Experience

Think through what users see:

• Where do dates/times appear? How are they formatted?
• Where does text appear? Can it expand without breaking?
• What direction does the layout assume?
• What do forms ask for? Are fields US-specific?

3. Assess Impact by Audience

Critical (breaks functionality):

• Date formats that cause confusion (12/05 - December 5 or May 12?)
• Forms that require US-only fields (State, ZIP) with no alternatives
• Layouts completely broken in RTL

Serious (degraded experience):

• Text truncated due to expansion
• Currency/number formats that look wrong
• Hardcoded strings that can't be translated

Minor (suboptimal):

• Missing locale parameter where one could be added
• CSS using left/right instead of logical properties
• Concatenated strings that work but aren't ideal for translators

4. Apply Context

Not everything needs fixing. Use judgment:

Probably needs attention:

• User-facing dates without locale formatting
• Forms with required State/ZIP fields
• Fixed-width containers with text
• Hardcoded currency symbols users will see

Probably fine:

• Internal logging timestamps
• Developer-facing debug output
• Config files with technical strings
• Third-party library code you don't control

Reference

For detailed patterns to check, see references/i18n-checklist.md. Use this as a guide for what to look for, not a checklist to grep through.

Output Format

Keep it compact. Group by severity, use tables, actionable fixes.

## i18n Analysis: [path]

[1-2 sentences: What is this? i18n setup present? Overall readiness?]

**Readiness:** Not ready / Partial / Good / Excellent

---

### Critical (breaks functionality)

| Location | Issue | Who's Affected | Fix |
|----------|-------|----------------|-----|
| form.tsx:17 | Hardcoded MM/DD/YYYY | Non-US users (ambiguous date) | `Intl.DateTimeFormat(locale)` |
| form.tsx:52 | Required "State" field | International users | Make optional or use "Region" |

### Serious (degraded experience)

| Location | Issue | Who's Affected | Fix |
|----------|-------|----------------|-----|
| card.tsx:34 | Fixed 200px width | German (+30% text) | Use flexible width |
| btn.tsx:72 | `text-align: left` | RTL users (Arabic, Hebrew) | `text-align: start` |

### Minor (improvements)

| Location | Issue | Fix |
|----------|-------|-----|
| utils.ts:15 | Hardcoded `$` | `Intl.NumberFormat` |

---

### Exceptions

- Timestamp in logger.ts:8 — internal debug, fine

### Summary

**5 issues**: 2 critical, 2 serious, 1 minor. Priority: date format and State field block international users.

**i18n setup:** None detected. Consider react-intl or i18next.

Output Guidelines

• Use tables grouped by severity—Critical/Serious/Minor
• "Who's Affected" column—makes impact concrete
• Fix column—specific solution, not generic advice
• Readiness rating upfront—quick assessment
• Summary as TL;DR—counts, priority, i18n tooling status

What Makes This Different From a Linter

A linter would flag every margin-left. You should:

1. Understand the UI - Is this actually directional or just spacing?
2. Assess real impact - Will this actually break for RTL users?
3. Prioritize by visibility - User-facing > internal tooling
4. Consider the stack - Does this project even need RTL support?

Your value is understanding user impact, not finding patterns.