Working with Language Kits

Mac OS X has several languages built in so that you can view and work with text written in languages other than English. Mac OS 9, however, didn't include this feature by default. Instead, you could add a limited version of this functionality by adding Language Kits through a custom Mac OS 9 installation, giving you the ability to use Unicode fonts.

WorldScript-aware applications can display Unicode fonts, assuming that the correct Language Kit is installed. Several Language Kits were included with Mac OS 9, including Arabic, Cyrillic, Hebrew, Japanese, and Korean. Mac OS 9 applications running in the Classic environment will not properly display Unicode fonts without Language Kits installed, even though Mac OS X can.

If you are using a non-English version of a Mac OS 9 application in the Classic environment, it should work fine, assuming that you have the correct Language Kit installed.