Here is how we think about date localization problems:
And here are the principles we’ll strive for:
- Adapt date & time for each person individually
Rather than assuming a company-wide standard, we acknowledge that even teammates might have different preferences, so we format date and time per user across Fibery. - Be clear and unambiguous
When displaying time, we always specify the time zone. When it’s the usual one, the indicator is unobtrusive (e.g. on hover); when the time zone differs from the user’s, it’s immediately clear (e.g. icon displayed). - Mind the diverse world
We allow the week to start on any day, not just Monday or Sunday, and display all options as equal. - Make the best effort to guess the right settings for each person
Rather than assuming everyone in the US and expecting everyone else to visit settings, we set the defaults based on the user’s browser locale. - Assume some guesses will be wrong and allow for tweaks
Sometimes people have weird browser locales, and sometimes they use a different preferred time zone for work-related stuff — that’s why we allow to override the settings.
The first day of the week is coming soon, the rest is less clear. Formatting date & time per user has the highest chances to be next (: