RFC 2825 (rfc2825) - Page 2 of 7
A Tangled Web: Issues of I18N, Domain Names, and the Other Internet protocols
Alternative Format: Original Text Document
RFC 2825 Issues: I18N, Domain Names, and Internet Protocols May 2000 This document is a statement by the Internet Architecture Board. It is not a protocol specification, but an attempt to clarify the range of architectural issues that the internationalization of domain names faces. 1. A Definition of Success The Internationalized Domain Names (IDN) Working Group is one component of the IETF's continuing comprehensive effort to internationalize language representation facilities in the protocols that support the global functioning of the Internet. In keeping with the principles of rough consensus, running code, architectural integrity, and in the interest of ensuring the global stability of the Internet, the IAB emphasizes that all solutions proposed to the (IDN) Working Group will have to be evaluated not only on their individual technical features, but also in terms of impact on existing standards and operations of the Internet and the total effect for end-users: solutions must not cause users to become more isolated from their global neighbors even if they appear to solve a local problem. In some cases, existing protocols have limitations on allowable characters, and in other cases implementations of protocols used in the core of the Internet (beyond individual organizations) have in practice not implemented all the requisite options of the standards. 2. Technical Challenges within the Domain Name System (DNS) In many technical respects, the IDN work is not different from any other effort to enable multiple character set representations in textual elements that were traditionally restricted to English language characters. One aspect of the challenge is to decide how to represent the names users want in the DNS in a way that is clear, technically feasible, and ensures that a name always means the same thing. Several proposals have been suggested to address these issues. These issues are being outlined in more detail in the IDN WG's evolving draft requirements document; further discussion is deferred to the WG and its documents. 3. Integrating with Current Realities Nevertheless, issues faced by the IDN working group are complex and intricately intertwined with other operational components of the Internet. A key challenge in evaluating any proposed solution is the analysis of the impact on existing critical operational standards IAB Informational
