govoplan-core/docs/LOCALIZATION_AND_HELP_QUALITY.md

Localization And Contextual Help Quality

Reference Language

German (de) is GovOPlaN's first-class reference target. Every translation key used by a shipped WebUI must exist in German and English. German completeness is a release gate; English remains the source-code fallback language so existing literal labels and external developer APIs do not change semantics.

New installations and tenants default to German. Existing system, tenant, and user preferences are preserved. The available-language and policy model can still select another default or disable a package at the relevant scope.

Explicit high-risk help content and browser acceptance are tracked in Core #284.

The platform inventory recognizes both inline locale objects and generated catalogs declared as const de / const en. Its strict mode requires both locales and reports de explicitly as the reference locale.

Help Resolution

Every focusable field and action receives a stable derived F1 identity from the shared shell, even when the component has no dedicated help text. Resolution falls back from field/action to dialog or page and then to the module's visible documentation baseline.

Backend manifests publish explicit topic associations first. Core additionally associates declared route, navigation, settings, and View surface IDs with the module's static user or administrator documentation baseline. Feature modules should still add exact metadata.help_contexts entries for consequential, unfamiliar, policy-controlled, destructive, security-sensitive, or legally meaningful fields and actions.

The generated help_review_candidates list is therefore a content-depth queue, not a list of controls on which F1 cannot work. It should prioritize:

1. effect, deletion, delivery, retention, disclosure, encryption, and recovery;
2. identity, representation, mandate, institutional context, and purpose;
3. valid-time versus recorded-time selection;
4. provider authority, synchronization, conflict, and outcome unknown;
5. fields whose consequences are not evident from their label.

Verification

cd /mnt/DATA/git/govoplan
/mnt/DATA/git/govoplan/.venv/bin/python \
  tools/inventory/platform-interface-inventory.py \
  --strict --strict-declarations --strict-endpoints

The check must report:

• reference locale de present and complete;
• no used key missing from de or en;
• every field has a resolvable F1 context;
• no duplicate stable IDs;
• no undeclared public WebUI surface;
• no stale runtime route or endpoint declaration.