Mixing scripts (Re: Unicode versions (Re: Criteria forexceptional characters))

[Michel Suignard]

Martin, don't worry, the IDN restriction supersedes the mixed script
list in our case. I agree that the  list as presented may be confusing.
It was built as an exercise as which script elements may be not
confusable with ASCII characters in a more generic context than IDN.
Although I wonder now whether there are Arabic or Hebrew characters that
are neither R nor AL which could still qualify for the allowed mix. I am
now on an internet connection which is way too slow to check the general
categories of all Hebrew and Arabic characters to make sure of that
context and verify that. But like I said before, ToASCII still rules.

Michel
-----Original Message-----
From: Martin Duerst [mailto:duerst at it.aoyama.ac.jp] 
Sent: Saturday, December 23, 2006 9:37 PM
To: Michel Suignard; idna-update at alvestrand.no
Subject: RE: Mixing scripts (Re: Unicode versions (Re: Criteria
forexceptional characters))

Hello Michel,

This is a very interesting list. However, the fact that
Arabic and Hebrew are listed here may be confusing for
many people. In terms of spoofing on the character level,
the list is correct that the spoofing potential between
Ascii and Arabic or Hebrew is very low (make sure to use
a font that lets the user distinguish Arabic Alif and
l/I/1, though). However, mixing Ascii and Arabic or Hebrew
is disallowed both in IDNs and in IRIs to avoid bidi
problems.

So the fact that the list says that IE7 permits mixing
these scripts means that either IE7 is not correctly
implementing IDNA/IRIs, or the list is wrong. I hope
it's the later, and it can be clarified.

Regards,     Martin. 

At 19:31 06/12/22, Michel Suignard wrote:
>Probably another piece of info in the debate:
>http://blogs.msdn.com/ie/archive/2006/07/31/684337.aspx 
>It shows what IE7 does on the UI side. This rule relaxing on script
>mixing was to allow ASCII to be mixed with scripts where confusability
>risk is low. This was done among other to allow Japanese to be mixed
>with ASCII which is a common practice in Japan and quite a few other
>writing system where ASCII can't be easily confused with native
>characters but is also commonly mixed in brand names.
>This is by no mean an endorsement of what should be done at the
protocol
>level. The list of 'allowed scripts' can be useful input for the
ongoing
>discussion.
>
>Michel 
>
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#-#-#  Martin J. Du"rst, Assoc. Professor, Aoyama Gakuin University
#-#-#  http://www.sw.it.aoyama.ac.jp       mailto:duerst at it.aoyama.ac.jp