Localizing ASP.NET Controls via Localizer Objects

Nov 30, 2020
6 minutes to read

Each DevExpress component or library has a specific Localizer class that provides localized strings (see the table below). For example, in the Data Grid control, this is the ASPxGridViewLocalizer class.

Important

Not all strings can be translated via Localizer classes. Some components contain form resources (e.g., the XtraReports Search dialog), and the only way to translate them is to create satellite assemblies. Thus, localization via resources is the preferable solution.

Localization Process

The localization process via custom localizers is as follows.

Create a descendant of a corresponding Localizer class and override its GetLocalizedString method, which should return strings for specific string resource identifiers.

Define the Activate method, which creates an instance of your custom localizer with a localizer provider, and sets this provider as an active provider for the localizer.

C#
VB.NET

using DevExpress.Web.Localization;
using DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal;
...

public class MyEditorsLocalizer : ASPxEditorsLocalizer {
     public static void Activate() {
          MyEditorsLocalizer localizer = new MyEditorsLocalizer();
          DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxEditorsStringId> provider = new DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxEditorsStringId>(localizer);
          MyEditorsLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider);
     }
     public override string GetLocalizedString(ASPxEditorsStringId id) {...}
}

Imports DevExpress.Web.Localization
Imports DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal
...

Public Class MyEditorsLocalizer
     Inherits ASPxEditorsLocalizer
     Public Shared Sub Activate()
          Dim localizer As New MyEditorsLocalizer()
          Dim provider As New DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxEditorsStringId)(localizer)
          MyEditorsLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider)
     End Sub
     Public Overrides Function GetLocalizedString(ByVal id As ASPxEditorsStringId) As String
     ...
     End Function
End Class

Call the Activate method in the Application_Start event handler within the Global.asax file.

C#
VB.NET

protected void Application_Start(object sender, EventArgs e) {
     MyEditorsLocalizer.Activate();
}

Protected Sub Application_Start(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs)
     MyEditorsLocalizer.Activate()
End Sub

The following table lists Localizer classes and Resource String enumerations for DevExpress ASP.NET controls.

Product	Localizer Class	Resource String Enumeration	Namespace
Reporting	ASPxReportsLocalizer	ASPxReportsStringId	DevExpress.XtraReports.Web.Localization
Chart Control	ChartLocalizer	ChartStringId	DevExpress.XtraCharts.Localization
Grid View, Card View, Vertical Grid	ASPxGridViewLocalizer	ASPxGridViewStringId	DevExpress.Web.Localization
Spreadsheet	ASPxSpreadsheetLocalizer	ASPxSpreadsheetStringId	DevExpress.Web.ASPxSpreadsheet.Localization
Rich Text Editor	ASPxRichEditLocalizer	ASPxRichEditStringId	DevExpress.Web.ASPxRichEdit.Localization
Data and Image Navigation Docking and Popups, Site Navigation and Layout, File Management, Multi-Use Site Controls	ASPxperienceLocalizer	ASPxperienceStringId	DevExpress.Web.Localization
Scheduler	ASPxSchedulerLocalizer	ASPxSchedulerStringId	DevExpress.Web.ASPxScheduler.Localization
HTML Editor	ASPxHtmlEditorLocalizer	ASPxHtmlEditorStringId	DevExpress.Web.ASPxHtmlEditor.Localization
Pivot Grid	PivotGridLocalizer	PivotGridStringId	DevExpress.XtraPivotGrid.Localization
Tree List	ASPxTreeListLocalizer	ASPxTreeListStringId	DevExpress.Web.ASPxTreeList.Localization
Gauges	GaugesCoreLocalizer	GaugesCoreStringId	DevExpress.XtraGauges.Core.Localization
Data Editors	ASPxEditorsLocalizer	ASPxEditorsStringId	DevExpress.Web.Localization
Spell Checker	ASPxSpellCheckerLocalizer	ASPxSpellCheckerStringId	DevExpress.Web.ASPxSpellChecker.Localization

Example

The following example demonstrates how to localize the ASPxGridView control via a custom localizer. For another localization approach, refer to Localizing ASP.NET Controls via Satellite Resource Assemblies.

Note

A complete sample project is available at https://github.com/DevExpress-Examples/how-to-use-a-custom-aspxgridview-localizer-e1315

<%@ Page Language="C#" AutoEventWireup="true" CodeBehind="Default.aspx.cs" Inherits="CustomLocalizer._Default" %>

<%@ Register Assembly="DevExpress.Web.v15.2, Version=15.2.9.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b88d1754d700e49a"
    Namespace="DevExpress.Web" TagPrefix="dxe" %>

<%@ Register Assembly="DevExpress.Web.v15.2, Version=15.2.9.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b88d1754d700e49a"
    Namespace="DevExpress.Web" TagPrefix="dxwgv" %>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">

<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" >
<head runat="server">
    <title>How to use a custom ASPxGridView localizer</title>
</head>
<body>
    <form id="form1" runat="server">
    <div>
        <dxwgv:ASPxGridView ID="ASPxGridView1" runat="server" AutoGenerateColumns="False" KeyFieldName="ID" OnRowDeleting="ASPxGridView1_RowDeleting" OnRowInserting="ASPxGridView1_RowInserting" OnRowUpdating="ASPxGridView1_RowUpdating" Width="420px">
            <Columns>
                <dxwgv:GridViewCommandColumn ShowEditButton="true" ShowClearFilterButton="true" ShowNewButtonInHeader="true" ShowDeleteButton="true" VisibleIndex="0">

                </dxwgv:GridViewCommandColumn>
                <dxwgv:GridViewDataTextColumn FieldName="ID" VisibleIndex="1" Width="150px">
                </dxwgv:GridViewDataTextColumn>
            </Columns>
            <Settings ShowFilterBar="Visible" ShowFilterRow="True" ShowGroupPanel="True" />
        </dxwgv:ASPxGridView>
    </div>
    </form>
</body>
</html>

using DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal;
using DevExpress.Web.Localization;

namespace CustomLocalizer {
    public class MyEditorsLocalizer : ASPxEditorsLocalizer {

        public static void Activate() {
            MyEditorsLocalizer localizer = new MyEditorsLocalizer();
            DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxEditorsStringId> provider =
                new DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxEditorsStringId>(localizer);
            MyEditorsLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider);
        }

        public override string GetLocalizedString(ASPxEditorsStringId id) {
            string result = base.GetLocalizedString(id);
            return string.Format("editors:{0}", result);
        }

    }
}

using System;
using System.Data;

namespace CustomLocalizer {

    public partial class _Default : System.Web.UI.Page {

        protected void Page_Init(object sender, EventArgs e) {
            ASPxGridView1.DataSource = GetDemoData();
        }
        protected void Page_Load(object sender, EventArgs e) {
            ASPxGridView1.DataBind();
        }

        private DataTable GetDemoData() {
            DataTable table = new DataTable();
            table.Columns.Add("ID", typeof(int));
            table.Rows.Add(1);
            return table;
        }

        protected void ASPxGridView1_RowInserting(object sender, DevExpress.Web.Data.ASPxDataInsertingEventArgs e) {
            CancelEditing(e);
        }
        protected void ASPxGridView1_RowUpdating(object sender, DevExpress.Web.Data.ASPxDataUpdatingEventArgs e) {
            CancelEditing(e);
        }
        protected void ASPxGridView1_RowDeleting(object sender, DevExpress.Web.Data.ASPxDataDeletingEventArgs e) {
            CancelEditing(e);
        }

        private void CancelEditing(System.ComponentModel.CancelEventArgs e) {
            e.Cancel = true;
            ASPxGridView1.CancelEdit();
        }

    }
}

using DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal;
using DevExpress.Web.Localization;

namespace CustomLocalizer {
    public class MyGridLocalizer : ASPxGridViewLocalizer {

        public static void Activate() {
            MyGridLocalizer localizer = new MyGridLocalizer();
            DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxGridViewStringId> provider =
                new DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxGridViewStringId>(localizer);
            MyGridLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider);
        }

        public override string GetLocalizedString(ASPxGridViewStringId id) {
            if (id == ASPxGridViewStringId.GroupPanel)
                return "Testing: group panel caption";
            string result = base.GetLocalizedString(id);
            return string.Format("grid:{0}", result);
        }

    }
}

using DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal;
using DevExpress.Web.Localization;

namespace CustomLocalizer {
    public class MyWebLocalizer : ASPxperienceLocalizer {

        public static void Activate() {
            MyWebLocalizer localizer = new MyWebLocalizer();
            DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxperienceStringId> provider =
                new DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider<ASPxperienceStringId>(localizer);
            MyWebLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider);
        }

        public override string GetLocalizedString(ASPxperienceStringId id) {
            string result = base.GetLocalizedString(id);
            return string.Format("web:{0}", result);
        }

    }
}

Imports DevExpress.Web.Localization
Imports DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal

Namespace CustomLocalizer

    Public Class MyWebLocalizer
        Inherits ASPxperienceLocalizer

        Public Shared Sub Activate()
            Dim localizer As New MyWebLocalizer()
            Dim provider As DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxperienceStringId) = _
                New DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxperienceStringId)(localizer)
            MyWebLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider)
        End Sub

        Public Overrides Function GetLocalizedString(ByVal id As ASPxperienceStringId) As String
            Dim result As String = MyBase.GetLocalizedString(id)
            Return String.Format("web:{0}", result)
        End Function

    End Class

End Namespace

Imports DevExpress.Web.Localization
Imports DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal

Namespace CustomLocalizer

    Public Class MyGridLocalizer
        Inherits ASPxGridViewLocalizer

        Public Shared Sub Activate()
            Dim localizer As New MyGridLocalizer()
            Dim provider As DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxGridViewStringId) = _
                New DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxGridViewStringId)(localizer)
            MyGridLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider)
        End Sub

        Public Overrides Function GetLocalizedString(ByVal id As ASPxGridViewStringId) As String
            If id = ASPxGridViewStringId.GroupPanel Then
                Return "Testing: group panel caption"
            End If
            Dim result As String = MyBase.GetLocalizedString(id)
            Return String.Format("grid:{0}", result)
        End Function

    End Class

End Namespace

Imports DevExpress.Web.Localization
Imports DevExpress.Utils.Localization.Internal

Namespace CustomLocalizer

    Public Class MyEditorsLocalizer
        Inherits ASPxEditorsLocalizer

        Public Shared Sub Activate()
            Dim localizer As New MyEditorsLocalizer()
            Dim provider As DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxEditorsStringId) = _
                New DefaultActiveLocalizerProvider(Of ASPxEditorsStringId)(localizer)
            MyEditorsLocalizer.SetActiveLocalizerProvider(provider)
        End Sub

        Public Overrides Function GetLocalizedString(ByVal id As ASPxEditorsStringId) As String
            Dim result As String = MyBase.GetLocalizedString(id)
            Return String.Format("editors:{0}", result)
        End Function

    End Class

End Namespace

<%@ Page Language="vb" AutoEventWireup="true" CodeBehind="Default.aspx.vb" Inherits="CustomLocalizer._Default" %>

<%@ Register Assembly="DevExpress.Web.v15.1, Version=15.1.10.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b88d1754d700e49a"
    Namespace="DevExpress.Web" TagPrefix="dxe" %>

<%@ Register Assembly="DevExpress.Web.v15.1, Version=15.1.10.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b88d1754d700e49a"
    Namespace="DevExpress.Web" TagPrefix="dxwgv" %>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">

<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
<head runat="server">
    <title>How to use a custom ASPxGridView localizer</title>
</head>
<body>
    <form id="form1" runat="server">
        <div>
            <dxwgv:ASPxGridView ID="ASPxGridView1" runat="server" Theme="Mulberry"
                AutoGenerateColumns="False" KeyFieldName="ID" Width="420px"
                OnRowDeleting="ASPxGridView1_RowDeleting"
                OnRowInserting="ASPxGridView1_RowInserting"
                OnRowUpdating="ASPxGridView1_RowUpdating">
                <Columns>
                    <dxwgv:GridViewCommandColumn ShowNewButtonInHeader="true" ShowDeleteButton="true" ShowClearFilterButton="true" ShowEditButton="true" VisibleIndex="0">
                    </dxwgv:GridViewCommandColumn>
                    <dxwgv:GridViewDataTextColumn FieldName="ID" VisibleIndex="1" Width="150px">
                    </dxwgv:GridViewDataTextColumn>
                </Columns>
                <Settings ShowFilterBar="Visible" ShowFilterRow="True" ShowGroupPanel="True" />
            </dxwgv:ASPxGridView>
        </div>
    </form>
</body>
</html>

Imports System
Imports System.Data


Namespace CustomLocalizer
    Partial Public Class _Default
        Inherits System.Web.UI.Page

        Protected Sub Page_Init(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs)
            ASPxGridView1.DataSource = GetDemoData()
        End Sub
        Protected Sub Page_Load(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As EventArgs)
            ASPxGridView1.DataBind()
        End Sub

        Private Function GetDemoData() As DataTable
            Dim table As New DataTable()
            table.Columns.Add("ID", GetType(Integer))
            table.Rows.Add(1)
            Return table
        End Function

        Protected Sub ASPxGridView1_RowInserting(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As DevExpress.Web.Data.ASPxDataInsertingEventArgs)
            CancelEditing(e)
        End Sub
        Protected Sub ASPxGridView1_RowUpdating(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As DevExpress.Web.Data.ASPxDataUpdatingEventArgs)
            CancelEditing(e)
        End Sub
        Protected Sub ASPxGridView1_RowDeleting(ByVal sender As Object, ByVal e As DevExpress.Web.Data.ASPxDataDeletingEventArgs)
            CancelEditing(e)
        End Sub

        Private Sub CancelEditing(ByVal e As System.ComponentModel.CancelEventArgs)
            e.Cancel = True
            ASPxGridView1.CancelEdit()
        End Sub

    End Class

End Namespace

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