Most localization tools assume your product lives in a browser. But if you're localizing desktop software, mobile apps, embedded device interfaces, or legacy systems, that assumption leaves your team working blind. Translators see string lists, not UI. Reviewers guess at layout. And engineering gets pulled into every cycle to provide context that should already be available.
Rigi Snapshot eliminates that problem. It's now available for macOS and Windows as part of Rigi by XTM.
Web-based localization tools have matured significantly. If your product runs in a browser, you likely have access to in-context preview and automated QA workflows. Non-web applications don't have that luxury.
Desktop software, mobile apps, embedded device interfaces, and industrial instrument panels all share the same challenge: there's no scalable way to give translators visual context for the content they're working on. The workaround is manual screenshots, but those go stale fast and become a project in themselves.
The result is a set of problems that compound with every release:
These aren't edge cases. For teams localizing non-web applications, this is the daily reality. Rigi Snapshot was built to remove it.
Rigi Snapshot takes a different approach to visual context. Instead of asking teams to manually connect screenshots to strings, it automates the entire process by capturing live application interfaces and converting them into structured, translatable previews.
Turn on Optical Character Recognition in Rigi. This creates visible markers on every translatable string in your application, giving Rigi Snapshot something to map against.
Download your app's resource files as XLIFF. Each file now contains tokenized strings in double curly bracket format, so Rigi Snapshot can identify exactly where text sits on screen.
Import the tokenized resource files into your app simulator or emulator. All localizable text now appears with visible markers.
Take screenshots of every screen you want to localize. You can do this manually or automate it through your existing UI testing workflow.
Drop your screenshots into Rigi Snapshot. The tool scans each image, detects the curly bracket tokens, and matches them against your Rigi project strings.
Rigi Snapshot converts your static screenshots into interactive previews where every matched string is directly editable in context. These aren't images. They're structured, reusable assets.
Push your previews directly to Rigi. Your localization team can start using them immediately, with no additional setup required.
Inside the Rigi Editor or your CAT tool of choice, translators get a side-by-side view of the real UI alongside their translations. Reviewers can verify layout, truncation, and consistency without leaving their workflow.
Rigi Snapshot addresses a pain point that cuts across multiple roles. Here's what changes for each.
| Who it's for | Before Rigi Snapshot | After Rigi Snapshot |
|---|---|---|
| Localization managers | Chase developers for context every cycle | Run translation and review workflows independently |
| Engineering and product teams | Lose capacity to localization support requests | Stay focused on product development |
| QA and linguistic reviewers | Review strings in isolation with no UI visibility | Validate translations in the actual application interface |
The strongest fit today is in industries where non-web applications dominate: manufacturing (embedded device UI), life sciences (instrument panels and companion apps), automotive (dashboard and in-car interfaces), and enterprise software companies with complex desktop or mobile products.
Rigi Snapshot is available now for macOS and Windows and ships as part of Rigi by XTM. If you're an existing Rigi customer, you can start using it today. If you're evaluating Rigi for the first time, Snapshot is included in your license.
Setup is straightforward. Install the application, connect it to your Rigi project, and start capturing. No code integration required. No developer involvement needed.