Easy to use, locale-specific functions

[MrBcx]

Hi Robert,

It works on my PC's, so I'd say your solution is a good one.

I discovered that 8.3.0 and my current 8.3.1 could not compile my demo.
After a bit of digging, I discovered another years old edge case.  I added
a missing line of code and that bug is kaput, so this thread was extra useful.

We left Payson in early November and have been enjoying our pleasant valley weather.

[Robert]

Hi MrBcx:

Hard to tell bad money from good money. See attached screen snips.

Changed all instances of

Code Select Expand

locale_currency(516.32)
to

Code Select Expand

locale_currency(516.32, 1)
to get the display the proper currency symbols.

Getting pretty cool in Payson. You outta there ?

[Robert]

It's about time ! 

Time is money.

Money talks in any language.

 

Thanks

[MrBcx]

For the BCX users residing outside of the USA, this small BCX code library
might be a useful addition to your BCX Basic toolbox.  It includes a detailed
example of the functions, so you can get up to speed immediately. 

Code Select Expand

'*************************************************************************
' Easy to use, locale specific functions, for use in console and GUI apps
'         By Kevin Diggins (MrBcx)  October 08, 2025  MIT License
'*************************************************************************
' These locale specific functions let BCX programs retrieve localized
' dates, times, numbers, currency, language, country, and time zone,
' automatically formatted for the user's regional settings.
'******************************************************************************************
' Below are some common LCIDs (for demonstration purposes).  Get more at the link below.
' Ref: https://help.tradestation.com/10_00/eng/tsdevhelp/elobject/class_el/lcid_values.htm
'******************************************************************************************
CONST LCID_ENGLISH_UK        = &H0809  ' en-GB
CONST LCID_FRENCH_FRANCE     = &H040C  ' fr-FR
CONST LCID_ENGLISH_US        = &H0409  ' en-US (for restoring original locale used in this sample)
CONST LCID_GERMAN_GERMANY    = &H0407  ' de-DE
CONST LCID_SPANISH_SPAIN     = &H0C0A  ' es-ES
CONST LCID_ITALIAN_ITALY     = &H0410  ' it-IT
CONST LCID_JAPANESE_JAPAN    = &H0411  ' ja-JP
CONST LCID_CHINESE_CHINA     = &H0804  ' zh-CN
CONST LCID_PORTUGUESE_BRAZIL = &H0416  ' pt-BR
CONST LCID_RUSSIAN_RUSSIA    = &H0419  ' ru-RU
CONST LCID_DUTCH_NETHERLANDS = &H0413  ' nl-NL
CONST LCID_SWEDISH_SWEDEN    = &H041D  ' sv-SE
CONST LCID_KOREAN_KOREA      = &H0412  ' ko-KR


TYPE LocaleBackup   ' Structure to store original locale settings
    OriginalLCID AS DWORD
    Country AS STRING * 64
    EngCountry AS STRING * 64
    CountryCode AS STRING * 16
END TYPE

'******************************
' Begin Sample Application:
'******************************

CALL SetConsoleUTF8               ' Set console to UTF-8

PRINT locale_time()               '  8:16:16 PM
PRINT locale_weekday()            '  Sunday
PRINT locale_month()              '  October
PRINT locale_date()               '  10/5/2025
PRINT locale_long_date()          '  Sunday, October 5, 2025
PRINT locale_country()            '  United States
PRINT locale_country_code()       '  US
PRINT locale_timezone()           '  US Mountain Standard Time
PRINT locale_language()           '  English (United States)
PRINT locale_language_code()      '  en
PRINT locale_native_language()    '  English
PRINT locale_temperature_unit()   '  Fahrenheit
PRINT locale_number(516.32)       '  516.32
PRINT locale_currency(516.32)     ' $516.32

DIM backup AS LocaleBackup

'*****************************
' Test with United Kingdom
'*****************************
PRINT "Testing with United Kingdom locale:"
backup = SetTempLocale("GB")
PRINT "Country: " , locale_country()
PRINT "Country Code: " , locale_country_code()
PRINT "Currency: " , locale_currency(516.32)
PRINT "Date: " , locale_date()
PRINT "Temperature Unit: ", locale_temperature_unit()
RestoreLocale(backup)

'*****************************
' Test with France
'*****************************
PRINT "Testing with France locale:"
backup = SetTempLocale("FR")
PRINT "Country: " , locale_country()
PRINT "Country Code: " , locale_country_code()
PRINT "Currency: " , locale_currency(516.32)
PRINT "Date: " , locale_date()
PRINT "Temperature Unit: ", locale_temperature_unit()
RestoreLocale(backup)

'*****************************
' Verify original settings
'*****************************
PRINT "Original settings restored:"
PRINT "Country: " , locale_country()
PRINT "Country Code: " , locale_country_code()
PRINT "Currency: " , locale_currency(516.32)
PRINT "Date: " , locale_date()
PRINT "Temperature Unit: ", locale_temperature_unit()
PAUSE
END   ' end of demo

'****************************
' End of sample application
'   Library begins below
'****************************


SUB SetConsoleUTF8()
    '********************************************************************
    ' SetConsoleUTF8
    ' Sets the console output code page to UTF-8 (65001) to properly
    ' display international characters and currency symbols.
    '********************************************************************
    SetConsoleOutputCP(65001)
END SUB


FUNCTION SetTempLocale(countryCode AS STRING) AS LocaleBackup
    '********************************************************************
    ' SetTempLocale
    ' Temporarily sets the thread locale to a specified country code.
    ' Backs up the current locale settings and returns them in a
    ' LocaleBackup structure for later restoration.
    ' Parameters:
    '   countryCode - Two-letter ISO country code (e.g., "GB", "FR", "DE")
    ' Returns: LocaleBackup structure containing original locale settings
    '********************************************************************
    DIM backup AS LocaleBackup
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS LONG
    DIM targetLCID AS DWORD

    ' Get current thread locale
    backup.OriginalLCID = GetThreadLocale()

    ' Backup current locale settings
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(backup.OriginalLCID, LOCALE_SCOUNTRY, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        backup.Country = buf
    ELSE
        backup.Country = "Unknown Country"
    END IF

    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(backup.OriginalLCID, LOCALE_SENGCOUNTRY, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        backup.EngCountry = buf
    ELSE
        backup.EngCountry = "Unknown Country"
    END IF

    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(backup.OriginalLCID, LOCALE_SISO3166CTRYNAME, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        backup.CountryCode = buf
    ELSE
        backup.CountryCode = "??"
    END IF

    ' Map country code to LCID
    SELECT CASE UCASE$(countryCode)
        CASE "GB"
        targetLCID = LCID_ENGLISH_UK
        CASE "FR"
        targetLCID = LCID_FRENCH_FRANCE
        CASE "US"
        targetLCID = LCID_ENGLISH_US
        CASE "DE"
        targetLCID = LCID_GERMAN_GERMANY
        CASE "ES"
        targetLCID = LCID_SPANISH_SPAIN
        CASE "IT"
        targetLCID = LCID_ITALIAN_ITALY
        CASE "JP"
        targetLCID = LCID_JAPANESE_JAPAN
        CASE "CN"
        targetLCID = LCID_CHINESE_CHINA
        CASE "BR"
        targetLCID = LCID_PORTUGUESE_BRAZIL
        CASE "RU"
        targetLCID = LCID_RUSSIAN_RUSSIA
        CASE "NL"
        targetLCID = LCID_DUTCH_NETHERLANDS
        CASE "SE"
        targetLCID = LCID_SWEDISH_SWEDEN
        CASE "KR"
        targetLCID = LCID_KOREAN_KOREA
        CASE ELSE
        PRINT "Unsupported country code: " + countryCode + ". Defaulting to US."
        targetLCID = LCID_ENGLISH_US
    END SELECT

    ' Set new thread locale
    ret = SetThreadLocale(targetLCID)
    IF ret = 0 THEN
        PRINT "Failed to set thread locale to " + countryCode
    ELSE
        PRINT "Successfully set thread locale to " + countryCode
    END IF

    FUNCTION = backup
END FUNCTION



SUB RestoreLocale(backup AS LocaleBackup)
    '********************************************************************
    ' RestoreLocale
    ' Restores the thread locale to its original settings using the
    ' information stored in a LocaleBackup structure.
    ' Parameters:
    '   backup - LocaleBackup structure containing original locale settings
    '********************************************************************
    DIM ret AS LONG

    ' Restore original thread locale
    ret = SetThreadLocale(backup.OriginalLCID)
    IF ret = 0 THEN
        PRINT "Failed to restore original locale"
    ELSE
        PRINT "Successfully restored original locale"
    END IF
END SUB




FUNCTION locale_currency(amount AS DOUBLE, AppType AS INT = 0) AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_currency
    ' Formats a numeric amount as currency according to the current
    ' thread locale settings (currency symbol, decimal separator, etc.).
    ' Parameters:
    '   amount - Numeric value to format as currency
    '   AppType - TRUE for GUI apps, FALSE for console apps (default FALSE)
    ' Returns: Formatted currency string (e.g., "$516.32", "£516.32", "516,32 €")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM numStr[64] AS WCHAR
    DIM buf[128] AS WCHAR
    DIM ansiBuf[512] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD
    DIM tempStr AS STRING
    DIM codePage AS INT

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()

    ' Format the double to a string first, then convert to wide char
    tempStr = STR$(amount, 2)
    MultiByteToWideChar(CP_ACP, 0, tempStr, -1, numStr, 64)

    ret = GetCurrencyFormatW(lcid, 0, numStr, NULL, buf, 128)

    IF ret > 0 THEN
        IF AppType THEN
            codePage = CP_UTF8
        ELSE
            codePage = CP_ACP
        END IF

        ret = WideCharToMultiByte(codePage, 0, buf, -1, ansiBuf, 512, NULL, NULL)
        IF ret > 0 THEN
            FUNCTION = ansiBuf
        ELSE
            FUNCTION = "$" + STR$(amount, 2)
        END IF
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "$" + STR$(amount, 2)
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_weekday() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_weekday
    ' Returns the localized name of the current day of the week.
    ' Returns: Day name in the current locale (e.g., "Sunday", "Dimanche")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM st AS SYSTEMTIME
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    GetLocalTime(&st)
    ret = GetDateFormat(lcid, 0, &st, "dddd", buf, SIZEOF(buf))

    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Unknown"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_month() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_month
    ' Returns the localized name of the current month.
    ' Returns: Month name in the current locale (e.g., "October", "Octobre")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM st AS SYSTEMTIME
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    GetLocalTime(&st)
    ret = GetDateFormat(lcid, 0, &st, "MMMM", buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Unknown"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_time() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_time
    ' Returns the current time formatted according to the current
    ' thread locale settings.
    ' Returns: Formatted time string (e.g., "8:16:16 PM", "20:16:16")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM st AS SYSTEMTIME
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    GetLocalTime(&st)
    ret = GetTimeFormat(lcid, 0, &st, NULL, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "00:00"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_date() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_date
    ' Returns the current date formatted as a short date according to
    ' the current thread locale settings.
    ' Returns: Short date string (e.g., "10/8/2025", "08/10/2025")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM st AS SYSTEMTIME
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    GetLocalTime(&st)
    ret = GetDateFormat(lcid, DATE_SHORTDATE, &st, NULL, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "01/01/1970"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_long_date() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_long_date
    ' Returns the current date formatted as a long date according to
    ' the current thread locale settings.
    ' Returns: Long date string (e.g., "Wednesday, October 8, 2025")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM st AS SYSTEMTIME
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    GetLocalTime(&st)
    ret = GetDateFormat(lcid, DATE_LONGDATE, &st, NULL, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "January 1, 1970"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_language() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_language
    ' Returns the full language name for the current thread locale.
    ' Returns: Language name (e.g., "English (United States)", "Français (France)")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(lcid, LOCALE_SLANGUAGE, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Unknown Language"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_country() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_country
    ' Returns the country name for the current thread locale.
    ' Returns: Country name (e.g., "United States", "United Kingdom", "France")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(lcid, LOCALE_SCOUNTRY, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Unknown Country"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_language_code() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_language_code
    ' Returns the two-letter ISO 639-1 language code for the current
    ' thread locale.
    ' Returns: Language code (e.g., "en", "fr", "de")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM buf[16] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(lcid, &H59, buf, SIZEOF(buf))  ' &H59 = ISO language code
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "??"
    END IF
END FUNCTION


FUNCTION locale_country_code() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_country_code
    ' Returns the two-letter ISO 3166 country code for the current
    ' thread locale.
    ' Returns: Country code (e.g., "US", "GB", "FR")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM buf[16] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(lcid, &H5A, buf, SIZEOF(buf))  ' &H5A = ISO country code
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "??"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_number(amount AS DOUBLE) AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_number
    ' Formats a numeric value according to the current thread locale
    ' settings (decimal separator, thousands separator, etc.).
    ' Parameters:
    '   amount - Numeric value to format
    ' Returns: Formatted number string (e.g., "516.32", "516,32")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM numStr[64] AS CHAR
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS INT
    DIM lcid AS DWORD

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    sprintf(numStr, "%.6f", amount)
    ret = GetNumberFormat(lcid, 0, numStr, NULL, buf, SIZEOF(buf))

    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = numStr
    END IF
END FUNCTION




FUNCTION locale_timezone(AppType AS INT = 0) AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_timezone
    ' Returns the time zone name for the current system settings.
    ' Parameters:
    '   AppType - TRUE for GUI apps, FALSE for console apps (default FALSE)
    ' Returns: Time zone name (e.g., "US Mountain Standard Time",
    '          "Pacific Standard Time")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM tz AS TIME_ZONE_INFORMATION
    DIM buf[128] AS CHAR
    DIM ret AS DWORD
    DIM chars AS INT
    DIM codePage AS INT

    ret = GetTimeZoneInformation(&tz)
 
    IF AppType THEN
        codePage = CP_UTF8
    ELSE
        codePage = CP_ACP
    END IF

    SELECT CASE ret
        CASE 0, 1
        chars = WideCharToMultiByte(codePage, 0, tz.StandardName, -1, buf, SIZEOF(buf), NULL, NULL)
        CASE 2
        chars = WideCharToMultiByte(codePage, 0, tz.DaylightName, -1, buf, SIZEOF(buf), NULL, NULL)
        CASE ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Unknown Timezone"
    END SELECT

    IF chars > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Unknown Timezone"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_native_language() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_native_language
    ' Returns the native language name (in the language itself) for the
    ' current thread locale.
    ' Returns: Native language name (e.g., "English", "Français", "Deutsch")
    '********************************************************************
    DIM buf[64] AS CHAR
    DIM lcid AS DWORD
    DIM ret AS INT

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(lcid, LOCALE_SNATIVELANGNAME, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        FUNCTION = buf
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "English"
    END IF
END FUNCTION



FUNCTION locale_temperature_unit() AS STRING
    '********************************************************************
    ' locale_temperature_unit
    ' Returns the preferred temperature unit for the current thread locale.
    ' Returns: "Celsius" for metric countries, "Fahrenheit" for US
    '********************************************************************
    DIM buf[4] AS CHAR
    DIM lcid AS DWORD
    DIM ret AS INT

    lcid = GetThreadLocale()
    ret = GetLocaleInfoA(lcid, LOCALE_IMEASURE, buf, SIZEOF(buf))
    IF ret > 0 THEN
        IF buf = "0" THEN
            FUNCTION = "Celsius"
        ELSE
            FUNCTION = "Fahrenheit"
        END IF
    ELSE
        FUNCTION = "Fahrenheit"
    END IF
END FUNCTION