Selecting attribute based content for server applications

The present invention provides a decision engine and a content directory for use in identifying an appropriate instance of data to be used by an application. This process of localizing data is related to the need of providing contextually appropriate data to an end user. The application presents a request for an instance of the data to the decision engine. The decision engine accesses the content directory to determine the rules and attributes that govern the decision made by the decision engine. Depending on the rules and the attributes, the decision engine may require the application to supply certain values that are indicated by the rules and attributes. Based on these values, the decision engine is able to identify the contextually appropriate instance of the data for the application. The application is responsible for accessing the identified instance.