Messages in this thread | | | Date | Mon, 1 Feb 1999 19:14:09 -0800 (PST) | From | Alex Belits <> | Subject | Re: Unicode console patch |
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On Tue, 2 Feb 1999, Guest section DW wrote:
> - Code Page nnnn is not ISO 2022 compliant. > Alt and KOI-8 are not ISO 2022 either. > And Unicode does not follow ISO 2022 either. > We'll need something more general than ISO 2022 in any case.
This is exactly what I was saying for years (actually it's exactly part of what I was saying for years) -- the multiple languages/charsets support, both in serialized form (charsets switching, labeling of chunks of text) and internal representation (language/charset-labeled strings) should be implemented in such way that multiple languages support will be possible in some natural way. It should be possible to place at least some generic language-dependent code (input, sorting, phonetic matching, hyphenation/formatting...) into libraries, and load versions for different languages/charsets when text in such languages/charsets is processed. This can become a real, useful languages support framework, and it's a shame that there is still no such thing now, and people can only face a choice between bad internationalization support and even worse one.
Indeed, we need a better standard, but that standard should not originate from the needs of kernel driver for text console -- it should be targeted to real application development, and once that thing will be done, it will be possible to modify console drivers, xterm, etc. to fit it. Right now it probably will be better to leave poor console alone, and do something to make some reasonable language/charsets labeling/processing design. Once that is done, implement it in things where the addition of it will be the least painful -- X libraries, editors, etc. If it will succeed, make console driver that will be compatible with it -- and I believe, such console will be much more simple and clean than whatever can be done now, when standards are messy, and ideas in their base are either no longer valid, or unclear.
Despite loudly proclaimed victory of Unicode over everything that speaks and writes, it's not yet too late to make a better alternative. If it will be done, we will have a chance to have a framework that allows clean handling of multiple languages and charsets in a manner that will allow to respect those languages and their rules without resorting to messy bloat of application-specific language handling everywhere.
-- Alex
---------------------------------------------------------------------- Excellent.. now give users the option to cut your hair you hippie! -- Anonymous Coward
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