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localized-attribute-migration

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Procedure for migrating DAX Studio OptionsViewModel attributes ([DisplayName], [Description], [Category], [Subcategory]) to their localized equivalents. Use when localizing the Options UI.

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Localized Attribute Migration for OptionsViewModel

Background

DAX Studio's Options UI is built by PropertyList.cs which reads attributes via reflection:

  • DisplayNameAttribute → option label
  • DescriptionAttribute → help text below option
  • CategoryAttribute → tab grouping
  • SubcategoryAttribute → sub-grouping within tab

These standard attributes require compile-time constant strings. To localize them, we use custom subclasses that accept a resource key and override the virtual property to return a localized value at runtime.

Localized Attribute Classes

Located in DaxStudio.Common:

  • LocalizedDisplayNameAttribute extends DisplayNameAttribute
  • LocalizedDescriptionAttribute extends DescriptionAttribute
  • LocalizedCategoryAttribute extends CategoryAttribute
  • LocalizedSubcategoryAttribute extends SubcategoryAttribute

Migration Procedure

Step 1: Replace Attributes

For each property in OptionsViewModel.cs:

// BEFORE
[Category("Editor")]
[DisplayName("Editor Font Size")]
[Description("The font size used for the DAX editor")]
[Subcategory("Formatting")]
[SortOrder(20)]
[MinValue(6), MaxValue(120)]
[DataMember, DefaultValue(11d)]
public double EditorFontSize { get; set; }

// AFTER
[LocalizedCategory("Category_Editor")]
[LocalizedDisplayName("Options_EditorFontSize_DisplayName")]
[LocalizedDescription("Options_EditorFontSize_Description")]
[LocalizedSubcategory("Options_Formatting_Subcategory")]
[SortOrder(20)]
[MinValue(6), MaxValue(120)]
[DataMember, DefaultValue(11d)]
public double EditorFontSize { get; set; }

Step 2: Resource Key Naming

AttributePatternExample
CategoryCategory_{Name}Category_Editor
DisplayNameOptions_{PropertyName}_DisplayNameOptions_EditorFontSize_DisplayName
DescriptionOptions_{PropertyName}_DescriptionOptions_EditorFontSize_Description
SubcategoryOptions_{Name}_SubcategoryOptions_Formatting_Subcategory

Step 3: Add Resx Entries

Add each key-value pair to src\DaxStudio.UI\Resources\Strings.resx with the original English text as the value.

Known Categories

These are the existing category values to create resource keys for:

  • Editor, Results, Trace, Server Timings, Proxy, Query History
  • VertiPaq Analyzer, Timeouts, Defaults, Sounds, DAX Formatter
  • Metadata Pane, Custom Export Format, Preview, Privacy, Logging

Known Subcategories

  • Grid, Tooltips, Double-Click, Defaults, Theme, Excel File
  • Detect Metadata Changes, Hidden Objects, Scrollbars
  • Preview Data, Sorting, Benchmark

Important Notes

  • Do NOT change [SortOrder], [MinValue], [MaxValue], [DataMember], [DefaultValue] — these are not user-visible text.
  • Do NOT change [EnumDisplay] or [EnvironmentVariableAttribute] — these control behavior, not display text.
  • Properties without a [DisplayName] attribute are intentionally hidden from the UI — do not add one.
  • PropertyList.cs should require ZERO changes — the localized attributes extend the standard ones, so GetCustomAttribute(typeof(DisplayNameAttribute)) still finds them.