Re: [tlug] Re: font/char set question

[Curt Sampson <cjs@example.com>]

On Mon, 30 Jul 2007, Darren Cook wrote:

> ...it is that doubt that keeps Amazon using Shift-JIS. Though if they
> are actually doing the conversion at the gateway, surely there is not
> room for doubt? Or do more modern phones use a different gateway?

There is always room for doubt. :-)

If having Japanese display properly to Japanese overrides all other
considerations, defaulting to Shift_JIS when you are not sure that the
terminal supports UTF-8 is the correct choice, IMHO.

> The biggest problem I've so far had with "everything in UTF-8" is when a
> client exports our database into Shift-JIS to use in a legacy (address
> label printing) system. It is not so much people inputting Chinese, or
> European accents, the problem was question marks appeared in addresses
> and the P.O. couldn't deliver. It turns out there are many more kinds of
> hyphens in UTF-8 than in Shift-JIS, and so people end up using them.

Fascinating!

> So now my forms collect data in UTF-8, convert the known problem hyphen
> characters, then convert to Shift-JIS, then convert back to UTF-8, and
> if the start and end string are not the same I give the user an error
> message and tell them not to use weird characters.

That's one solution. A better one might be to use the Post Office
database; that will do an even better job of ensuring deliverability,
and you may well find that you can set up a UI that will allow easier
and faster input, as well.

cjs
--
Curt Sampson       <cjs@example.com>        +81 90 7737 2974
Mobile sites and software consulting: http://www.starling-software.com