Iowans who speak Welsh or Tamil are in for some good news. The number of languages available on Microsoft Windows is being doubled, from 40 to 80. Most of the new additions are less common languages like Catalan from Spain — or Gujarati from India. Computer expert Robert Stevens says computers and the Internet are changing language as we know it. Stevens says the Internet is going to eventually create a “global mish-mash of pseudo-English with some local slang.” Stevens says until now, computer users in Iowa who speak lesser-known languages have had to abandon their native tongues. Many of them were probably either using English or one of the more common languages, like French. Many think the addition of new languages to Windows will help young computer users preserve native languages and increase techno-literacy in poorer countries. Still, Stevens has a warning:”No matter how many new languages they add, computers unfortunately are still going to crash in all languages.”
