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In the presentation titled "Getting Ready for I18n" delivered by Edouard Chin at the Balkan Ruby 2019, the focus was on the localization process at Shopify, specifically aimed at making their platform accessible to users from various countries. Localization goes beyond mere translation; it involves adapting content to meet cultural and regional preferences. This talk emphasized how critical it is to prepare products for international audiences by managing language nuances and formats. The key points discussed throughout the video included:

- **The Necessity of Localization**: Translating hundreds of thousands of words in Shopify's administrative interface was essential for accessibility.  
- **Challenges Encountered**: The two main challenges included detecting hard-coded strings and ensuring no new ones were added that were not translation-ready.  
- **Development of Localization Tools**: The team created tools to identify hard-coded strings, focusing initially on Ruby files and HTML. They employed static analysis tools, particularly RuboCop, to enforce translation requirements across their codebase.  
- **Integration of Static Analysis**: Custom cops were developed to check for translation compliance, allowing the detection of hard-coded strings in both Ruby and HTML files effectively.  
- **Automating Detection and Correction**: An auto-correction feature through RuboCop was implemented to minimize manual translation efforts by generating keys for hard-coded strings automatically.  
- **Best Practices Established**: Developers were trained to use the i18n translation method effectively and to develop features that allow for quicker identification of translation needs, ensuring that pull requests would be checked for compliance before merging.  
- **Translation Options**: Chin discussed various translation tools, contrasting Ruby i18n with gettext, while noting the performance drawbacks of handling a large number of translation files.  
- **Cultural Adaptation Beyond Language**: Examples were given on how localization extends to cultural formats like date and time settings, as well as address formats, to cater to regional user expectations.  
- **The Importance of Data Collection**: Gathering data about different countries helps replicate user expectations across global platforms, enhancing the localized experience for users.  
  The main takeaway from 'Getting Ready for I18n' is that the process of localization is comprehensive, requiring careful planning and execution to ensure a seamless and culturally relevant user experience across diverse geographical regions. Effective strategies include leveraging static analysis tools, establishing clear coding standards, and being mindful of cultural differences in formatting and interpretation.

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