fix(cli): default dir to auto for create, import, and export

README.md

@@ -232,9 +232,9 @@ msg export -p myApp
 
 - **Message keys** — Stored as unit `id` (sanitized for XML) and `name` (original key).
 - **Resource notes** — Emitted as file-level `<notes>` with category (e.g. `description`, `comment`).
-- **Resource attributes** — `dir` → file `srcDir`; `dnt` → file `translate="no"`.
+- **Resource attributes** — `dir` → file `srcDir` when it is not the default `"auto"`; `dnt` → file `translate="no"`.
 - **Message notes** — Emitted as unit-level `<notes>` with category (e.g. `description`, `context`, `parameters`).
-- **Message attributes** — `dnt` → unit `translate="no"`; message `dir` is serialized as the unit’s `srcDir` attribute (XLIFF text direction for the segment).
+- **Message attributes** — `dnt` → unit `translate="no"`; message `dir` is serialized as the unit’s `srcDir` unless it is `"auto"`.
 - **Message format** — Resolved `format` (`NONE` / `MF1` / `MF2`, including inheritance from resource/project) is written as the unit `type` attribute using the XLIFF custom form `msg:NONE`, `msg:MF1`, or `msg:MF2`.
 
 **Plural, gender, select (PGS):** Classifiable plural/select messages are exported to the [XLIFF 2.2 Plural, Gender, and Select module](https://docs.oasis-open.org/xliff/xliff-core/v2.2/xliff-extended-v2.2-part2.html) (`xmlns:pgs="urn:oasis:names:tc:xliff:pgs:1.0"`): `pgs:switch` on the `<unit>`, and one `<segment>` per variant with `pgs:case`.
@@ -354,14 +354,14 @@ msg import
 # or: msg import --project myApp --language fr
 ```
 
-**5. Resulting French translation file** — `l10n/translations/myApp/fr/messages.json` (notes omitted; `attributes.dir` is empty unless the XLIFF `<file>` carries `trgDir`):
+**5. Resulting French translation file** — `l10n/translations/myApp/fr/messages.json` (notes omitted; `attributes.dir` is `"auto"` unless the XLIFF `<file>` carries `trgDir`):
 
 ```json
 {
   "title": "messages",
   "attributes": {
     "lang": "fr",
-    "dir": "",
+    "dir": "auto",
     "dnt": false
   },
   "messages": [

package.json

@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@
     "@messageformat/icu-messageformat-1": "^0.12.0",
     "@messageformat/parser": "^5.1.1",
     "@oclif/core": "^3.21.2",
-    "@worldware/msg": "^0.11.0",
+    "@worldware/msg": "^0.12.0",
     "fast-xml-parser": "^5.3.4",
     "messageformat": "^4.0.0-10"
   },

src/commands/create/project.ts

@@ -143,7 +143,7 @@ export default class CreateProject extends Command {
     const loaderPathLine =
       "const path = `${TRANSLATION_IMPORT_PATH}/${project}/${language}/${title}.json`;";
     const loaderWarnLine =
-      "console.warn(`Translations for locale ${language} could not be loaded.`, error);";
+      "console.warn(`Translations for locale ${language} could not be loaded.`);";
     const loaderBody = `${loaderPathLine}
   try {
     const module = await import(path, { with: { type: 'json' } });
@@ -152,7 +152,7 @@ export default class CreateProject extends Command {
     ${loaderWarnLine}
     return {
       title,
-      attributes: { lang: language, dir: '' },
+      attributes: { lang: language, dir: 'auto' },
       notes: [],
       messages: []
     };

src/lib/export-helpers.ts

@@ -269,7 +269,7 @@ function resourceGroupToXliff22(group: ResourceGroup): string {
       `id="${fileId}"`,
       `original="${escapeXml(orig)}"`,
     ];
-    if (attrs.dir) {
+    if (attrs.dir && attrs.dir !== "auto") {
       fileAttrs.push(`srcDir="${escapeXml(attrs.dir)}"`);
     }
     if (attrs.dnt === true) {
@@ -295,7 +295,7 @@ function resourceGroupToXliff22(group: ResourceGroup): string {
       if (msgAttr?.dnt === true) {
         msgAttrs.push('translate="no"');
       }
-      if (msgAttr?.dir) {
+      if (msgAttr?.dir && msgAttr.dir !== "auto") {
         msgAttrs.push(`srcDir="${escapeXml(msgAttr.dir)}"`);
       }
 

src/lib/import-helpers.ts

@@ -381,7 +381,7 @@ export function extractResourceFromXliffFile(
 
   const attributes = {
     lang: trgLang,
-    dir: trgDir ?? "",
+    dir: trgDir ?? "auto",
     dnt,
   };
 

src/specs/create-project-command.spec.md

@@ -34,12 +34,12 @@ const loader = async (project, title, language) => {
     const module = await import(path, { with: {type: 'json'}});
     return module.default;
   } catch (error) {
-    console.warn(`Translations for locale ${language} could not be loaded.`, error);
+    console.warn(`Translations for locale ${language} could not be loaded.`);
     return { 
       title, 
       attributes: { 
         lang: language, 
-        dir: '' 
+        dir: 'auto' 
       },
        notes: [], 
        messages: []
@@ -94,6 +94,8 @@ When retrieving the path for the `i18n` and `l10n` directories from the package.
 - It should default `format` to `MF2` when `--format` is omitted and not inherited
 - It should inherit `format` from the base project when `--extend` is used and `--format` is omitted
 - It should always write `format` on the generated `project` settings object
+- It should write `dir: 'auto'` in the loader fallback attributes
+- It should warn when translations cannot be loaded without passing the caught error object
 - It should write an importable file.
 
 ### Constraints

src/specs/export-command.spec.md

@@ -125,7 +125,7 @@ Each unit’s resolved message `format` (`NONE` / `MF1` / `MF2`) is written as `
 2. Dynamically import the `MsgResource` objects using the array of file paths, and return an array of `MsgResource` objects.
 3. Group the `MsgResource` objects by their associated `MsgProject` project name, and return an array of objects with type `{ project: string, resources: MsgResource[] }`
 4. If the `--project [projectName]` filter out the objects where the `project` property does not match `projectName`. Return the filtered array.
-5. Serialize each `resources` array to an XLIFF 2.0 string, and return an array of objects with type `{project: string, xliff: string}`
+5. Serialize each `resources` array to an XLIFF 2.0 string, and return an array of objects with type `{project: string, xliff: string}`. Omit file/unit `srcDir` when `dir` is the default `"auto"`.
 6. Iterate through the array of objects, writing each `xliff` string to a file in the `l10n/xliff` directory that has the `project` name as the filename.
 
 ## 7. Implementation

src/specs/import-command.spec.md

@@ -137,6 +137,7 @@ Unit `type` values `msg:NONE` / `msg:MF1` / `msg:MF2` (or bare format tokens) ar
     - Iterate through the file objects in the parsed xliff object in order to create new translated `MsgResource` objects.
       - Use the `original` attribute of the file object to extract the `title` from the file name. 
       - Use the `trgLang`, `trgDir`, and `translate` attributes to create an object of type `MsgAttributes`.
+        - Default `dir` to `"auto"` when the file has no `trgDir`.
       - If there is `notes` object directly inside the `file` object, use it to create an array of `MsgNote` objects.
       - Use `MsgResource.create` with the information just gathered to create a new resource with an empty `messages` array
       - Recursively iterate through the file object's `unit` and `group` objects (if any) in order to add messages:

src/tests/create-project.test.ts

@@ -128,6 +128,32 @@ describe("CreateProject command", () => {
       expect(content).not.toContain("export default");
     });
 
+    test("loader fallback uses dir auto and warns without the error object (CJS)", async () => {
+      setupValidProject(tmp);
+      await CreateProject.run(["myApp", "en", "fr"], CLI_ROOT);
+
+      const content = readFileSync(join(tmp, "i18n", "projects", "myApp.js"), "utf-8");
+      expect(content).toContain("dir: 'auto'");
+      expect(content).not.toContain("dir: ''");
+      expect(content).toContain(
+        "console.warn(`Translations for locale ${language} could not be loaded.`);"
+      );
+      expect(content).not.toContain("could not be loaded.`, error)");
+    });
+
+    test("loader fallback uses dir auto and warns without the error object (ESM)", async () => {
+      setupValidProject(tmp, { type: "module" });
+      await CreateProject.run(["myApp", "en", "fr"], CLI_ROOT);
+
+      const content = readFileSync(join(tmp, "i18n", "projects", "myApp.js"), "utf-8");
+      expect(content).toContain("dir: 'auto'");
+      expect(content).not.toContain("dir: ''");
+      expect(content).toContain(
+        "console.warn(`Translations for locale ${language} could not be loaded.`);"
+      );
+      expect(content).not.toContain("could not be loaded.`, error)");
+    });
+
     test("TypeScript project writes .js file", async () => {
       setupValidProject(tmp);
       writeFileSync(join(tmp, "tsconfig.json"), JSON.stringify({ compilerOptions: {} }));

src/tests/export-helpers.test.ts

@@ -474,6 +474,29 @@ one {{One item}}
       expect(result[0].xliff).toContain('srcDir="rtl"');
     });
 
+    test("omits file srcDir when resource dir is auto", () => {
+      const res = createTestResource("R", "P", [{ key: "k1", value: "v1" }], {
+        attributes: { dir: "auto" },
+      });
+      const result = serializeResourceGroupsToXliff([
+        { project: "P", resources: [res] },
+      ]);
+      expect(result[0].xliff).not.toContain("srcDir");
+    });
+
+    test("omits unit srcDir when message dir is auto", () => {
+      const res = createTestResource("R", "P", [
+        { key: "k1", value: "v1", attributes: { dir: "auto" } },
+      ], {
+        attributes: { dir: "ltr" },
+      });
+      const xliff = serializeResourceGroupsToXliff([
+        { project: "P", resources: [res] },
+      ])[0]!.xliff;
+      expect(xliff).toContain('srcDir="ltr"');
+      expect(xliff).not.toMatch(/<unit[^>]*srcDir="auto"/);
+    });
+
     test("sets unit type from resolved message format", () => {
       const res = createTestResource(
         "R",

src/tests/import-helpers.test.ts

@@ -499,6 +499,26 @@ one {{一}}
       expect(data.notes![0].content).toBe("File note");
     });
 
+    test("defaults resource dir to auto when file has no trgDir", () => {
+      const fileEl = {
+        "@_original": "R.json",
+        "@_trgLang": "zh",
+        unit: {
+          "@_id": "u1",
+          "@_name": "k1",
+          segment: { source: "S", target: "T" },
+        },
+      };
+      const result = extractResourceFromXliffFile(
+        fileEl as unknown as Record<string, unknown>,
+        "zh",
+        project,
+        ["zh"]
+      );
+      expect(result).toBeInstanceOf(MsgResource);
+      expect(result!.attributes.dir).toBe("auto");
+    });
+
     test("extracts from groups (nested structure)", () => {
       const fileEl = {
         "@_original": "Grouped.json",