Multilingual User Interface

   

Multilingual User Interface

With Windows 2000 Professional, Microsoft introduced the Multilingual User Interface, a technology that enabled multiple localized interfaces to coexist on the same installation of Windows. Microsoft has continued to improve this technology. The MUI for Windows XP made this technology even more powerful, adding localizations and making the technology easier to use and deploy. The Multilanguage User Interface for Office XP, a related technology, enables user interface switching for Office applications as well as advanced proofreading and editing tools for multiple languages. With Windows Server 2003, Microsoft has taken this technology to the next level, including further improvements to the deployment methodology, support for multilingual Terminal Server sessions, and more.

Other MUI improvements in Windows XP Professional and Windows Server 2003 include the following:

  • Support for Terminal Services.

    Terminal Services is a technology from Microsoft that allows users to log on remotely to a central server and create virtual Windows sessions. The MUI for Windows Server 2003 now supports multilingual Terminal Services sessions. A server running the Multilingual User Interface and Windows Server 2003 will now allow users to log on and create terminal sessions in different languages simultaneously on the same Terminal Services server. In the past, a separate localized terminal server was required for each localization that was to be supported. The MUI can drastically reduce the costs involved in creating and supporting terminal sessions in a multilingual environment.

  • Better deployment options and technologies.

    Deployment costs are a major consideration in supporting the large number of possible language and localization combinations. To make deployment easier, the MUI for Windows Server 2003 now supports Microsoft Windows Installer technology. Microsoft Windows Installer is a technology for creating setup packages that can be easily managed and deployed. This means that the MUI is easier to deploy, maintain, and configure, resulting in a considerable savings in deployment costs. Microsoft has a number of deployment technologies that can be used to make your global deployment run more smoothly. For more information, see the section "Deploying a Multilingual Enterprise" later in this chapter.

Supported Software and Platforms

In addition to Windows XP Professional and Windows Server 2003, the MUI supports a number of platforms and applications.

  • Office XP.

    The Multilanguage User Interface for Office XP offers a number of powerful international features, including user interface switching and proofreading and editing tools for multiple languages.

  • Windows CE.

    Developers can use the MUI APIs to create localizable applications for mobile devices running Windows CE.

  • SQL Server.

    Unicode-aware server products such as SQL Server can be run on Windows Server 2003 with the Multilingual User Interface to provide services in a multilingual enterprise. Microsoft SQL Server offers support for multiple languages and character sets. See your SQL Server documentation for details.

  • Legacy products.

    The MUI for Windows Server 2003 uses technologies similar to those of the MUI for Windows 2000 and the MUI for Office 2000. At the time that a Windows 2000 Server is upgraded to Windows Server 2003, the MUI should be updated as well to achieve full functionality.

What the MUI Can Do for You

The Multilingual User Interface pack for Windows Server 2003 is a powerful tool for enabling your global enterprise to meet its goals. The MUI lets you provide flexible multilingual support while keeping costs manageable. In particular, it lets you do the following:

  • Accommodate regional requirements.

    The MUI provides a flexible way to accommodate regional requirements throughout your enterprise. The MUI supports management for a variety of alternative input devices such as keyboards for Asian character sets as well as language switching for the bulk of user interface elements, including the Start Menu, alerts and dialogs, and Help. This enables you to meet your regional software requirements around the globe with a single operating system.

  • Support multilingual desktops and users.

    Windows XP with the MUI is an excellent choice for a multilingual desktop platform. A more flexible multilingual solution means that you can support a wider variety of global scenarios. For example, under the MUI, users who log on to the same computer can use different languages. Without the MUI, this kind of functionality would typically require a cumbersome dual-boot configuration. The MUI can also be configured to support multilingual roaming users. In a fully MUI-enabled environment, users can log on in their language of choice at any computer.

  • Deploy a single-server configuration internationally.

    Deployment of software in a global environment can pose serious challenges. The MUI pack for Microsoft Windows Server 2003 has been designed to help reduce these challenges and make multilingual deployment as simple as possible. Because the MUI is based on the English-language versions of the operating system, IT staff have only one binary version of the operating system to deploy and maintain. This can lead to considerable savings in the deployment effort and in the cost of supporting and maintaining the software down the road. For more information about deploying the Multilingual User Interface, see the upcoming section "Deploying a Multilingual Enterprise."

  • Simplify support and maintenance.

    Deployment is only the beginning of the costs associated with supporting a piece of software. The MUI pack has been designed to offer companies the ability to achieve a lower TCO throughout the lifetime of the software. With the MUI, there is only one binary version of the operating system to be maintained and updated. The MUI makes common maintenance tasks , such as deploying hot fixes and patches, much simpler. Organizations that rely on localized versions of the operating system often experience lag time as hot fixes and updates are localized into various languages. Not only does this mean that fixes and updates are faster under the MUI, but it means that your environment is more secure because fixes are deployed in a timely fashion. The bottom line is a powerful, flexible multilingual enterprise that has a low TCO.

  • Support multiple language with terminal services.

    With Terminal Services, the Multilingual User Interface for Windows Server 2003 can provide terminal support to multiple users in their languages of choice. Terminal sessions can be created on the server in any installed language simultaneously. This gives administrators a cost-effective way to support multiple languages without requiring an additional server for each language supported.


   
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Introducing Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Introducing Microsoft Windows Server(TM) 2003
ISBN: 0735615705
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2005
Pages: 153

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