🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <1hkff3EINN5uv@uni-erlangen.de>, unrza3@cd4680fs.rrze.uni-erlangen.de (Markus Kuhn) writes:
> I suggest that this international local should use existing ISO standards
> where possible. Some conventions for this international locale might be
> 
>   - use the metric system (SI units)
>   - use ISO paper sizes (e.g. A4, C5, ...)
[lines deleted]
>   - ... (additional suggestions are welcome)

  - a unified currency (say, the ECU)
  - a single natural language (say, English)

> This solution for internationalization is so simple that I wonder, why
> still so many people are working on much more complicated systems that
> will never give a perfect solution.

Some people believe that computers should be made to fit the needs
of humans, not the other way around.  As a programmer, I prefer
array indices originating at 0 rather than 1.  To a non-programmer,
this is strange and unintuitive, and I'd never suggest that house
numbers should start at 0 just to simplify the implementation of my
mail-delivering robot for the postal services.

Likewise, if we really want native speakers of Buginese to use
natural language to communicate with computers, then we should
provide them with Buginese-speaking computers, rather than telling
them to learn computer language (English or whatever).

While patiently waiting for the ultimate solution, we'll have to
stick to what's available, i.e. software that is heavily US-oriented,
and heavily computer-oriented.  Enforcing yet another artificial
standard to replace what is popular use only serves to make people
equally miserable.  If they adopt one voluntarily, fine.
--
Anders Andersson, Dept. of Computer Systems, Uppsala University
Paper Mail: Box 325, S-751 05 UPPSALA, Sweden
Phone: +46 18 183170   EMail: andersa@DoCS.UU.SE