Java I18n.pdf

What Are Software Internationalization, Localization, and Globalization? Conducting business in the global marketplace has been the battle cry of companies in recent years. Since the mid-1990s, the world has been consumed by an explosive growth of the Internet, driven largely by the World Wide Web (WWW). The global nature of the Web and the growing acceptance of electronic commerce have been instrumental in helping companies reach global markets. As businesses continue to expand globally and more countries become wired to the Internet, it will be increasingly important for these businesses to ensure that the products they manufacture and sell are appropriate for the world’s markets. Software engineering practices have been trailing more traditional engineering in this regard. For example, U.S. automobile manufacturers would not find much success if they attempted to sell lefthand drive cars in Australia, the United Kingdom, or Japan.1 Likewise, clothing manufacturers that sell their products around the world must label clothing appropriately, depending on the local market.2 In the United States washing machines are typically loaded vertically (top-loaded) even though top-loading machines consume more water and put more wear and 1 Lefthand drive cars are those that have the steering wheel on the left side of the vehicle (i.e., designed to be driven on the righthand side of the road). 2 European sizes differ from U.S. sizes, and symbols indicating cleaning directions are different around the world. 2 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO INTERNATIONALIZATION tear on the clothing. In the rest of the world, however, washing machines are typically loaded horizontally (front-loaded). Washing machine manufacturers tailor their products to their customers’ needs and local market acceptance.