RE: Names for UTF-8 with and without BOM

From: Joseph Boyle (Boyle@siebel.com)
Date: Sat Nov 02 2002 - 12:59:24 EST

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    The first time I thought of UTF-8Y it sounded too flippant, but actually it
    is fairly self-explanatory if UTF-8 is taken as a given, and has the virtue
    of being short.

    UTF-8S for signature would also make sense, but is the same as the name of
    Toby Phipps's proposal which eventually became CESU-8.

    UTF-8J will certainly make sense, after UTC changes all the character names
    to Esperanto, conducts its meetings in Esperanto, and publishes TUS in
    Esperanto.

    If we want to be really explicit, there's UTF-8EFBBBF.

    -----Original Message-----
    From: William Overington [mailto:WOverington@ngo.globalnet.co.uk]
    Sent: Friday, November 01, 2002 10:37 PM
    To: unicode@unicode.org
    Cc: archive@ngo.globalnet.co.uk
    Subject: Re: Names for UTF-8 with and without BOM

    As you have UTF-8N where the N stands for the word "no" one could possibly
    have UTF-8Y where the Y stands for the word "yes".

    Thus one could have the name of the format answering, or not answering, the
    following question.

    Is there a BOM encoded?

    However, using the letter Y has three disadvantages for widespread use. The
    letter Y could be confused with the word "why", the word "yes" is English,
    so the designation would be anglocentric, and the letter Y sorts
    alphabetically after the letter N.

    However, if one considers the use of the international language Esperanto,
    then the N would mean "ne", that is, the Esperanto word for "no" and thus
    one could use the letter J to stand for the Esperanto word "jes" which is
    the Esperanto word for "yes" and which, in fact, is pronounced exactly the
    same as the English word "yes".

    Thus, I suggest that the three formats could be UTF-8, UTF-8J and UTF-8N,
    which would solve the problem in a manner which, being based upon a neutral
    language, will hopefully be acceptable to all.

    William Overington

    2 November 2002



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