You don't see flags on the site, but in the language package you download, there are flags. I can't remember if we used to display the flags on the site - it's been redesigned since I left.
1. US citizens are not annoyed by the UK flag. As someone else pointed out, if someone in the US sees a British flag they will probably think the site is not for them. I don't think it works the other way around since the USA dominates international media.
2. We supported US and UK English. The UK people loved this and it was one of the first translations we received.
3. Certain mainland Chinese people are annoyed by Taiwan's existence. Aside from technical errors and categorizations that were simply wrong, the only complaints I received were from mainland Chinese people trying to get me to remove the Taiwanese language pack.
4. Flags look cool but cause some problems with languages that are spoken in different countries, or single countries with many languages. Do you really need Swiss French and France French? Do you need an Indian flag for every language spoken in India?
I actually did have different language packs for the same language in different countries. 22 different kinds of Arabic, etc. However, this was a lot of extra work I made for myself and if I were to do it over again I would not use flags or tie the languages to countries.
I'd say using the USA flag will disenfranchise Brits (to varying degrees) - we're generally annoyed when those in the USA assume everyone reading an English language page is centred in the culture of the USA. Or at least that's the impression I get.
Personally I'd try and go for a dropdown list of language names in that language - probably choosing the default selection from the UA string or the accept-language; then keeping the language setting in a cookie.
> We supported US and UK English. The UK people loved this and it was one of the first translations we received.
As a brit I can back that up. There's no malice in the feeling but a common consensus here is that our English is very different from the US version (coff the first coff :D) so it's nice to see it recognised and supported.
Speaking as another Brit I really don't get it. Leaving aside differences in pronunciation, the only thing that separates the two dialects is a few minor spelling/vocabulary differences. I don't remember ever bothering to change from US to UK English on sites that support both. The one exception might be if dates are involved, in which case it is confusing to have the US order.
Go to the US, and ask for a 'glass of water' anywhere. Honestly, hardly anyone will get it first time - and usually you have to break down and ask for a 'wadder'.
Same with Butter.
There are some major differences that aren't obvious - us brits tend to be more flexible with mangling of the pronunciation (because everyone here does), but in the US they like it their way or the highway, so to speak.
I live in the US and that's not really my experience, but I was thinking more of written communication, where the differences are very small. (I did say "leaving aside differences in pronunciation.")
You don't see flags on the site, but in the language package you download, there are flags. I can't remember if we used to display the flags on the site - it's been redesigned since I left.
1. US citizens are not annoyed by the UK flag. As someone else pointed out, if someone in the US sees a British flag they will probably think the site is not for them. I don't think it works the other way around since the USA dominates international media.
2. We supported US and UK English. The UK people loved this and it was one of the first translations we received.
3. Certain mainland Chinese people are annoyed by Taiwan's existence. Aside from technical errors and categorizations that were simply wrong, the only complaints I received were from mainland Chinese people trying to get me to remove the Taiwanese language pack.
4. Flags look cool but cause some problems with languages that are spoken in different countries, or single countries with many languages. Do you really need Swiss French and France French? Do you need an Indian flag for every language spoken in India?
I actually did have different language packs for the same language in different countries. 22 different kinds of Arabic, etc. However, this was a lot of extra work I made for myself and if I were to do it over again I would not use flags or tie the languages to countries.