Global Markets

Culturally Sensitive Data

Text

Although multi-media applications have been around for years, nearly all programs primarily use text to communicate with the end-user. This is especially true in the business community. If you're reading this online, take a look at the amount of text displayed by the other applications running on your system. You see all of those button labels and menus? They all need to be translated if the application is to be sold around the world. Not only that, but the status messages, hardcopy reports, and online help screens also require translation. Because applications display and generate so much text, translation accounts for a major portion of the cost of localization.

If you manage the textual elements of your program properly, you can help reduce the cost of translation. You should move translatable text to properties files, where it can be loaded into ResourceBundle objects. You'll learn how to do this in the section, Backing a ResourceBundle with Properties Files.

Numbers

The formatting conventions for numbers vary with country. Different characters may be used to mark the decimal point and to separate thousands groups. The following table shows just a few of the different ways a particular number might be formatted:

Country	Formatted Number
France	123 456,78
Germany	123.456,78
U.S.	123,456.78

The Number and Currency Formatting lesson shows you how to create locale-specific formats for numbers.

Currencies

Currency units vary with country, as does the format of the amount. The following table illustrates some examples:

Country	Currency	Example
Spain	Peseta	1.234,56Pts
Italy	Lira	L. 1.234,56
U.S.	Dollar	$1,234.56

See Number and Currency Formatting for more information.

Dates and Times

The formatting of dates and times varies with country. The following table shows some examples:

Country	Date	Time
Canada	30/4/98	20:15
Germany	30.4.1998	20:15 Uhr
U.S.	4/30/98	10:15 PM

Date and Time Formatting explains how to perform formatting that conforms to various cultural conventions.

Images

With the advent of GUI applications, images seem to be popping up everywhere on our screens. We find them in icons, graphics, photographs, drawings, and banners. Although the usage of images is universal, their meaning is not. For example, you may be tempted to use icons in the shape of traffic signs to help your end-users navigate through an application. But since traffic signs vary from one country to another, your program will have to display different versions of the icons in different countries. Fortunately, you can manage Image objects for different regions by isolating them in a ListResourceBundle. This process is described in Using a ListResourceBundle.

Colors

Colors have different meanings throughout the world. In the U.S., the color white signifies purity, but in Japan white indicates death. In Egypt the color red represents death, but in China red suggests happiness. Like Image objects, culturally dependent Color objects can be managed if they are stored in a ListResourceBundle.

Sounds

If your application generates sound, you should be aware that the same sound may not be recognizable worldwide. For example, police sirens are different in the U.S. and Germany. Of course, if your application gives verbal instructions out loud, the instructions must be translated. You can keep track of cuturally dependent AudioClip objects by storing them in ListResourceBundle objects.

Global Markets