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No, that's not an error in the headline. With new developments scheduled for 2010, the Internet will really go global.

(That's Arabic, by the way).

Here is the rundown:

Countries will be able to reserve national domain names in their own native language. Individuals will be able to apply for a domain consisting of entirely non-Latin characters. This will facilitate the global reach of the Internet to non-Western countries.

Here is an excerpt from ArsTechnica on the switch:

"To those of us who have been using Latin domains for our entire lives, the change may seem superficial, but many believe that it will be a major step in reaching more Internet users. Though English and other European languages are indeed popular in Asian countries, for example, there are still millions of people who only speak their native language and find themselves limited by the Internet."

This was made possible because of a vote by ICANN, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.

ICANN predicts this will attract billions of people, many of which don't use Latin characters in their lives daily.

For more information:

ICANN Web site: http://www.icann.org/

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Angel Sierra is the Digital Production Coordinator at Sauk Valley Newspapers. Find something interesting in the world of science and technology? You can to write to him at asierra@svnmail.com. Your topic may be discussed in an upcoming blog!

Reader poll

Of these languages, which do you think will become the most popular in international use?

	Middle Eastern (Arabic, Hebrew, etc.)
	Cyrillic/Eastern European (Russian, etc.)
	Asiatic (Simplified Chinese or Japanese, etc.)

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