Method for culturally predictable key sort within a national language support (NLS) data processing system

摘要

Each sortable key within National Language Support (NLS) data processing system is assigned an alphabetic key value, a diacritic key value, a case key value and a special character key value. The various values assigned for the alphabetic key, the diacritic key, the case key and the special character key are ordered in a culturally predictable manner such that subsequent sorts of the keys within the data processing system based upon the alphabetic key value, the diacritic key value, the case key value, and the special character key value will result in a culturally predictable order. For example, if a particular national language implementation requires the character "" to follow "Z," an appropriate selection of alphabetic key values for these characters will result in this ordering. Special situations, such as ligatures or other idiosyncratic keys, are handled by locating each instance thereof and temporarily substituting a selected replacement key therefore. By assigning selected alphabetic, diacritic, case and special character key values for each such replacement key, a sort of the national language keys within the system will always result in a culturally predictable ordering of the ligature or other idiosyncratic key.