MetaGlot is a command-line tool that unifies localization metadata for applications shipped on multiple platforms. It extracts or defines translatable strings from platform-specific metadata files, normalizes them into Gettext-compatible POT/PO catalogs, and compiles translated PO files back into platform-native files.

It currently is designed for projects that ship on Windows, Linux and macOS.

Instead of asking translators to edit platform-specific formats, MetaGlot lets them work with standard Gettext PO files.

Why MetaGlot?

Every platform has its own localization mechanism for application metadata. Windows applications use RC resource files to hold string tables and version resources, Linux applications use .desktop files to describe names and comments, and macOS applications use Info.plist together with localized InfoPlist.strings files.

These formats are necessary for packaging and distribution, but they are inconvenient as translation sources. MetaGlot introduces a common localization layer.

MetaGlot does not replace Gettext. It makes Gettext the canonical translation workflow for platform metadata.

Supported Metadata Types

MetaGlot supports compiling metadata from the following formats:

Platform	Metadata format
Windows	Windows resource file `.rc`
Windows	MSIX manifest (`Package.appxmanifest` or `AppxManifest.xml`) and localization files (`.resw` or `.resjson`)
Windows	InnoSetup script (`.iss`) and its localization files (`.isl`)
Linux	`.desktop` file
Linux	AppStream XML file (`.metainfo.xml`)
macOS	`Info.plist` and its localization files (`InfoPlist.strings`)

Getting Started

A typical MetaGlot workflow consists of four steps:

Write the TOML string manifest of your metadata — extracted by a tool or written by hand.
Generate a POT template from the manifest with metaglot pot.
Bring the translation PO files up to date with the POT using metaglot update.
Produce the platform-native files with metaglot render for every metadata type you ship.

When you need more information along the way, refer to the following resources:

Run a command with the --help option to inspect its command line arguments.
Read the documents in the doc directory for the TOML manifest format, the render contexts and the available Liquid filters.
Browse the examples in the example directory for ready-to-study samples.

Environment Variables

MetaGlot uses following environment variables at runtime:

Variable	Description
`METAGLOT_MSGMERGE`	Path to the `msgmerge` executable used by `metaglot update`, overriding the default lookup on `PATH`.

License

MetaGlot is released under the MIT License. See LICENSE for details.