Kazakhstan has joined a fast-expanding group of countries and regions that now have IDNs (28 and counting). I’ve highlighted Kazakhstan in the map above. The IDN is қаз. While getting approval for an IDN doesn’t guarantee a country will actually do anything…
Here’s a new article I’ve written for UX Magazine on the emergence of internationalized domain names (IDNs). I view IDNs as an inevitable (albeit awkward) evolution of the Internet. And here are the previous two articles I’ve written for UX Magazine: Select Country;…
So it’s official now. The Republic of South Sudan is a country. In case you’re curious what you have to do to become a country, here’s a brief list. The list fails to mention the need for a country code.…
Verisign published its quarterly industry brief a few weeks ago. In it, the guide includes the top 10 ccTLDs, reprinted below: There are now more than 81 million registered ccTLD domains, which comprise about 40% of all registered domain names. Verisign says ccTLD…
Paul Sawers of The Next Web has written an in-depth article on the evolution of internationalized domain names (IDNs). It’s a great article for quickly getting up to speed on how non-Latin domains work on the Internet and how they’ve…
If you’re interested in learning more about IDNs, UNESCO and EURid recently released a report on the evolution and challenges of IDNs. It’s a good read and it highlights some of the struggles that countries and registries face and taking…
Kobo is the name of an eReader and bookstore that competes with the Amazon Kindle. Flush with a recent investment, Kobo Inc. has big plans for going global, which, as an author, I’m very happy to see. Here’s a recent…
Yes, I’m aware of just how globally geeky this shirt is, but I love it nonetheless. Should you want one of your own, you can order it here. And you can change color/style as well.
About two years ago I wrote with concern about Bit.ly’s use of Libya’s country code. I noted that It’s always important to keep in mind that a company can’t “own” a domain the way it owns real estate. Now it appears that companies that…
If you’ve been following this blog for awhile, you know I’m a fan of internationalized domain names (IDNs). Over the past year or so, ICANN has approved more than 20 IDNs across a range of countries, scripts and languages. I’ve…
I am bullish on internationalized domain names (IDNs). I view them as a natural evolution of a multilingual Internet. But I also am well aware that there are those who says IDNs are more hype than substance. That they will…
When I first discovered the popular iPhone photo app Instagr.am, my first thought was: Look, another creative use of a country code! In this case, the country code in question is that of Armenia. What I found interesting about the…
This visual depicts about half of the currently approved internationalized domain names (IDNs), positioned over their respective regions. Notice the wide range of scripts over India and the wide range of Arabic domains. I left off the Latin country code…
Just as ICANN preps for the rollout of its much-hyped gTLD program, the US Dept. of Commerce comes along and makes a scene. I read the Dept. of Commerce letter and it basically says that ICANN hasn’t prepared fully for gTLDs…
‘Tis the season for greeting cards. Here is ours… I’ve posted the design to Zazzle. They may be customized with company name, etc. World Peace (green) World Peace (white)