# Mixing english and japanese in DB? **URL:** \ **Category:** Rails\ **Created:** [December 12, 2006, 12:35am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/mixing-english-and-japanese-in-db/79072 "2006-12-12T00:35:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/taylorstrait)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 12:35am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/mixing-english-and-japanese-in-db/79072/1 "2006-12-12T00:35:38Z")
I want user to be able to input various flooring types for their rooms. Ideally, I would like to use a pulldown (and validation) so that there are a few consistent options. One of these options, though, is Japanese ‘tatami’ flooring (畳). Is there any reason NOT to store this in the database as ‘畳’ instead of ‘tatami?’ Or should I just wait until I integrate the Globalize plugin? ---
**Author:** ![taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/taylorstrait)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 1:34am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/mixing-english-and-japanese-in-db/79072/2 "2006-12-12T01:34:38Z")
Taylor S. wrote: > I want user to be able to input various flooring types for their rooms. > Ideally, I would like to use a pulldown (and validation) so that there > are a few consistent options. One of these options, though, is Japanese > ‘tatami’ flooring (畳). Is there any reason NOT to store this in the > database as ‘畳’ instead of ‘tatami?’ Or should I just wait until I > integrate the Globalize plugin? If it will be the only kanji in the database, it seems like a lot of trouble to go through (making sure everything is set to unicode, making sure that your webserver can handle it [for some reason mongrel chokes on kanji for me], and so on.) I guess it all depends on how much that little character is worth displaying for you. Personally, I’d just write it out in romaji. ---
**Author:** ![taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/taylorstrait)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2006, 7:45pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/mixing-english-and-japanese-in-db/79072/3 "2006-12-12T19:45:42Z")
On 12/11/06, Taylor S. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote: > I want user to be able to input various flooring types for their rooms. > Ideally, I would like to use a pulldown (and validation) so that there > are a few consistent options. One of these options, though, is Japanese > ‘tatami’ flooring (e$B\>ve(B). Is there any reason NOT to store this in the > database as ‘e$B\>ve(B’ instead of ‘tatami?’ Or should I just wait until I > integrate the Globalize plugin? This is an interesting localisation problem. Obviously technical stuff: store everything in the database as UTF-8 and you are covered (well its not that simple but thats the basics). That way the user can enter custom information for flooring types that are japanese-only, or you can offer it as a choice in a drop down or whatever. Note that Globalise AFAIK assumes that you pick a dominant language and stick to it. Translation is in effect unidirectional. (Someone correct me on this if I am wrong). For the ‘english reference’ I would just romanize it: ‘tatami’ or ‘tatami (japanese floormats)’. I am curious though, is tatami in this sense, just a flooring type? In the same sense, that a user may have wooden, hard-wood, carpeted, tiled, stone, linoleum, or PVC flooring etc. Or is it a unit of measurement (like a 4-tatami room)? I know that tatami have a uniform size and are as a consequence used as a unit of room _size_ measurement, in the same way that we might otherwise use square metres or square feet. If thats the case, I wouldn’t try unit conversions between tatami and sq/m,sq/ft. ---
**Author:** ![taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/t/b5a626/32.png) [@taylorstrait](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/taylorstrait)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2006, 5:31pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/mixing-english-and-japanese-in-db/79072/4 "2006-12-15T17:31:25Z")
Richard C. wrote: > If thats the case, I wouldn’t try unit conversions between tatami > and sq/m,sq/ft. No one answered this, but I think it’s the latter. In Japan, it is common to measure the size of a room in terms of tatami units… Cheers Mohit.