The lookalike problem(s)

[Michael Everson]

At 14:20 -0800 2006-11-25, Paul Hoffman wrote:

>It appears that draft-klensin-idnabis-issues-00.txt only deals with 
>mixing scripts in a single label in one place. In the middle of 
>section 2.1.6, there is the following:
>    Registry restrictions might include prohibition of
>    mixed-script labels, or restrictions on labels permitted in a zone if
>    certain other labels are already present (See [RFC3743] and [RFC4290]
>    for discussion of some of the methods that have been applied by some
>    registries).
>
>This seems like a very weak protection against the problem mentioned 
>by Harald above.

I tend to agree, if I understand what you are saying. A weak 
protection is still a protection. Other protections may augment it.

>On the other hand, strengthening the restriction will either lead us 
>into making tables about which specific characters can be mixed 
>together ("a Latin label cannot contain TELUGU DIGIT ZERO because it 
>looks like a lowercase o"),

I understant this example. Better: "A Latin label cannot contain 
GREEK LETTER OMICRON for the obvious reason".

>  or coarser-grained prohibitions ("cannot mix Latin and Greek") 
>which will have negative effects on non-Latin names.

Can you be explicit about what you think this means, with examples?
-- 
Michael Everson * http://www.evertype.com