The Role of the Local Alphabet in Enhancing of the Development of Digital Communication and the Associated Problems

One of the often overlooked aspects of the today’s electronic information spread is that not all people use the Latin alphabet for writing, and even those who use it do not use the standard English version of it. Since the standards and software applications of those standards are mainly made by people who use the Latin alphabet and speak English as a first language, the situation today is that people who do not use English or would like to use their own alphabet are somewhat deprived and as a result are sometimes quite reluctant to start using electronic communication. This paper concerns itself with the sources, consequences and means to solve this problem. The issue is discussed with regard to real-life examples involving the use of the Macedonian language and a comparative analysis of the solutions applied. The examples concentrate on Internet publishing using the Macedonian language and the digital usage of the Macedonian Cyrillic Alphabet, which is different from any other Cyrillic alphabet and thus incompatible with the specific solutions applied in other countries. The paper provides an analysis of the current situation from which conclusions applicable to other cultures can be extracted.