Localization tooling · 2026 · Solo — research, product design, build, verification
Plural Lens
An interactive localization QA instrument for inspecting plural categories, phrase fallbacks, and integer coverage.
The problem
Plural rules vary by locale: Unicode CLDR defines up to six cardinal categories, while ICU messages map values to category-specific phrases. Cross-referencing rules and runtime output makes an omitted form easy to miss. Plural Lens turns that check into one visual, keyboard-accessible workflow without claiming to replace a full localization platform.
Architecture
Key decisions
Use the browser's language rules, not a hand-maintained table
Intl.PluralRules keeps category selection deterministic and aligned with the runtime that renders the interface. The MVP clearly limits itself to curated locales and integer cardinals.
Make coverage spatial
A 201-cell ribbon reveals category transitions and missing phrases at a glance, while labels, hatching, and status text keep color from carrying meaning alone.
Instrument, not dashboard
The Command / Inspect composition puts editing and proof output in one split surface — no marketing hero, fake chart, or invented usage metric.
Ship only behind hard gates
Four TDD behaviors, lint, typecheck, production build, artifact/deploy checks, and local plus production Playwright golden paths all passed before portfolio integration.