Java Internationalization

But how do you go from acknowledging the need for internationalized software to the practice of developing it? Java Internationalization shows you how. The Java platform provides a powerful framework for creating international applications. Support for the Unicode Standard is only the beginning. You need to understand how to isolate language-dependent resources (such as prompt strings) for your program logic; how to package these resources in resource bundles; how to accommodate text that may not read from left to right; and how to rethink your application's user interface so it "translates" as well as the text. Java Internationalization covers the various APIs in the Java platform to make sure that your application can sort text in other languages, display currency and dates correctly, and manage all the fine points that distinguish a truly multicultural application from one that screams "Tourist!"

Java Internationalization brings Java developers up to speed on the new generation of software development: writing software that is no longer limited by language boundaries. This book can't translate your dialog boxes into Finnish or Nepalese, but it can show you how to design and build your application so that, with the help of competent translators, it can "pass for native."

Java Internationalization covers:

• Locales and resource bundles
• Formatting issues
• Character sets and the Unicode Standard
• International font support
• Searching and sorting international text
• The Java Input Method Framework
• Internationalizing graphical user interfaces and web applications

Preface

1. Introduction to Internationalization
     What Are Software Internationalization, Localization,
     and Globalization?
     Why Choose Java for International Applications?
     What is a Locale?
     A Simple Application

2. Writing Systems
     Ancient Writing Systems
     Far East Writing Systems
     Bidirectional Scripts
     Greek, Latin, and Cyrillic
     Indic Scripts
     Thai Script
     Punctuation

3. Locales
     Defining a Locale
     Working with the Locale Class
     Querying for Locale Information
     Checking Available Locales

4. Isolating Locale-Specific Data with Resource Bundles
     Why Use Resource Bundles?
     The ResourceBundle Class
     How Resource Bundles Are Discovered and Named
     Property Resource Bundles
     List Resource Bundles
     Resource Bundle Caveats
     Deploying Resource Bundles with Applets
     Design Considerations for Resource Bundles

5. Formatting Messages
     Date and Time Formats
     Number Formats
     Message Formats

6. Character Sets and Unicode
     What Are Character Sets?
     What Are Encoding Methods?
     What Is Unicode?
     Unicode Encoding Methods
     Code Set Conversion

7. Searching, Sorting, and Text Boundary Detection
     Collation Issues
     Sorting in Java
     Tailoring Collation
     Improving Performance
     Searching
     Detecting Text Boundaries

8. Fonts and Text Rendering
     Characters, Glyphs, and Fonts
     Java's Font-Related Classes
     Components for Rendering Complex Text
     TrueType Font Support in Java
     Working with the font.properties File
     Adding New Fonts to Your System

9. Internationalized Graphical User Interfaces
     General Issues
     Component Orientation
     Internationalization and Localization Caveats
     for Various Components
     Using a Layout Manager
     Copying, Cutting, and Pasting International Text
     A Simple Example

10. Input Methods
     What Are Input Methods?
     What Is the Java Input Method Framework?
     Selecting Input Methods
     Using the Input Method Engine SPI
     Developing a Simple Input Method
     How to Package and Install Input Methods
     Developing a More Complex Input Method

11. Internationalized Web Applications
     Applets
     Servlets
     JavaServer Pages

12. Future Enhancements to the Internationalization
     Support in Java
     Unicode 3.0 Support
     Enhanced Complex Text
     Character Converter Framework
     Improving the Input Method Framework

A. Language and Country Codes

B. Character Encodings Supported by Java

C. Unicode Character Blocks

D. Programmer's Quick Reference

E. Internationalization Enhancements

Across Versions of the JDK

Glossary

Bibliography