Home Messages Index
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]
Author IndexDate IndexThread Index

Re: [ot] What percentage of the Internet is written in English?

  • Subject: Re: [ot] What percentage of the Internet is written in English?
  • From: Roy Schestowitz <newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sat, 23 Dec 2006 03:24:38 +0000
  • Newsgroups: comp.os.linux.advocacy
  • Organization: schestowitz.com / Netscape
  • References: <NJSdnZ88Ga407RHYnZ2dnUVZ_h63nZ2d@speakeasy.net> <slrneoot0o.fgo.jason@jason.websterscafe.com> <Xns98A274402D02hpt@194.177.96.26>
  • Reply-to: newsgroups@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
  • User-agent: KNode/0.7.2
__/ [ High Plains Thumper ] on Saturday 23 December 2006 02:25 \__

> Handover Phist wrote:
>> John Bailo wrote:
>>>
>>> http://www.englishenglish.com/english_facts_8.htm
>>>
>>> "More than 80% of home pages on the Web are in English,
>>> while the next greatest, German, has only 4.5% and
>>> Japanese 3.1%"
>> 
>> And this is surprising? The Internet was developed in a
>> primarily English speaking country and adopted in primarily
>> English speaking countries before it got bigger than huge.
> 
> It has also to do with English as a primarily understood
> worldwide language.  However, if one looks, will find pages in
> native languages, too.  This is because there is more
> development of IT resource in those countries and people are
> always more comfortable with their native language, than other
> spoken language.
> 
> Things have gotten quite good.  Linux now supports multiple
> language installs, so do others.  One can now buy PC keyboards
> with Japanese, Korean, etc. symbology that supports software
> and OS extensions using these.

IIRC, a recent UN(ish/?) meeting at Greece raised this as an issue. It's a
language monopoly. If you think about it, it puts native English speakers at
an advantageous position. As in, Let others adapt their communication to us,
rather than do this the other way around, or even find a common/even ground.
Maybe the Web should adopt Clingon (?). Everyone would be happy... well, at
least nobody can then complain... not in Clingon anyway... the semantic Web
will make these dilemmas even deeper.

-- 
                        ~~ Kind greetings and happy holidays!

Roy S. Schestowitz      |    Useless fact: 21978 x 4 = 21978 backwards
http://Schestowitz.com  |    RHAT Linux     |     PGP-Key: 0x74572E8E
  3:20am  up 65 days 13:34,  6 users,  load average: 0.08, 0.11, 0.27
      http://iuron.com - Open Source knowledge engine project

[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]
Author IndexDate IndexThread Index