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The availability of alternative commercial keyboards is possibly not the best metric to use to judge actual need/desire. There are a large number of non-ASCII l

The availability of alternative commercial keyboards is possibly not the best metric to use to judge actual need/desire. There are a large number of non-ASCII layouts that can be mapped on top of a standard QWERTY[0] which show that ASCII is not a valid assumption for a modern general purpose programming language. The idea that we should all be grateful for the unification that using one language brings is a sentiment that reinforces the idea that this is cultural imperialism. There are definitely benefits to conformity, no doubt, but imposing it unnecessarily is a design decision that should be questioned. Why take away options from people who might value that freedom? [0] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyboard_layout#Keyboard_layouts_for_non-Latin_alphabetic_scripts https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyboard_layout#Keyboard_layou... [1] - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_imperialism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_imperialism

attractivechaos 5y ago
> There are a large number of non-ASCII layouts that can be mapped on top of a standard QWERTY[0] which show that ASCII is not a valid assumption for a modern general purpose programming language. I have seen multiple "foreign" keyboards. They all have ASCII labeled on each key. Using the QWERTY layout demonstrates the dominance of ASCII, which is a valid assumption that modern programming language can reliably rely on.
eterevsky 5y ago
Please lookup in Image Search a Russian keyboard and a Japanese keyboard. What do they have in common? Right, besides the respective alphabets they have QWERTY Latin layout on them. Basically all of the keyboards can be used to input ASCII symbols out of the box. I don't really care whether you call this cultural imperialism or not. What matters is that a whole industry can use the same standard worldwide. It's the same as metric system. We already have to deal with imperial system, imagine how much more painful would it be if every country used its own measurement system or its one calendar.

attractivechaos 5y ago

> There are a large number of non-ASCII layouts that can be mapped on top of a standard QWERTY[0] which show that ASCII is not a valid assumption for a modern general purpose programming language. I have seen multiple "foreign" keyboards. They all have ASCII labeled on each key. Using the QWERTY layout demonstrates the dominance of ASCII, which is a valid assumption that modern programming language can reliably rely on.

eterevsky 5y ago

Please lookup in Image Search a Russian keyboard and a Japanese keyboard. What do they have in common? Right, besides the respective alphabets they have QWERTY Latin layout on them. Basically all of the keyboards can be used to input ASCII symbols out of the box. I don't really care whether you call this cultural imperialism or not. What matters is that a whole industry can use the same standard worldwide. It's the same as metric system. We already have to deal with imperial system, imagine how much more painful would it be if every country used its own measurement system or its one calendar.