Internationalized domain names (IDN) are domain names represented by native language characters followed by .com or .net (for example: .com).

Registrants will be able to register second-level domain names in .com and .net, through partners of WebNIC.cc - an ICANN accredited registrar for Verisign IDN.

To use an IDN to navigate to a Web site, the user types the IDN in the browser's address bar or clicks an active link. If the user does not have the i-Nav plug-in, most browsers will require that the user type "www." or "http://" before the IDN. These prefixes will enable the browser to recognize the IDN as a DNS query. The IDN is resolved and the desired Web site appears in the browser.

Since availability of languages is dependent upon Unicode, it would be best to answer this question in Unicode terms from the Unicode site. Many scripts (especially Latin) are used for a very large number of languages. The easiest answer is that Unicode covers all the languages that can be written in the following scripts: Latin; Greek; Cyrillic; Armenian; Hebrew; Arabic; Syriac; Thaana; Devanagari; Bengali; Gurmukhi; Oriya; Tamil; Telegu; Kannada; Malayalam; Sinhala; Thai; Lao; Tibetan; Myanmar; Georgian; Hangul; Ethiopic; Cherokee; Canadian-Aboriginal Syllabics; Ogham; Runic; Khmer; Mongolian; Han (Japanese, Chinese, Korean ideographs); Hiragana; Katakana; Bopomofo and Yi.

All non-English domain names registered during the testbed period will become second level domain names within .com and .net. For example, a Chinese domain name may appear as .com.

Yes. There is no variation from the current capability for domain names to share IP addresses.

We are not in the position and not authorized to resolve or decide on any of the intellectual property disputes surrounding domain name registration. However, the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) will be adopted to resolve disputes, including those involving internationalized domain names.

The registrar will use Row-based ASCII-Compatible Encoding and valid name prep checks to convert native language characters into ASCII-compliant codes. These ASCII strings will then be sent to the WebNIC.cc database via an internationalized domain name testbed protocol.

Starting 29th September 2003, the encoding will be Punycode.

Yes. Hyphens may be used in internationalized domain names. However, just as current standards do not allow names to begin or end with a hyphen, the ASCII transformation cannot begin or end with a hyphen.

The encoded form of the internationalized domain name (including the 4 characters for .com or .net) may contain up to 67 characters. The characters can be letters, numbers, and/or hyphens. Hyphens may not begin or end a domain name. The internationalized domain name transformation software will reject the name if the encoded conversion exceeds the limit.

When in the Zone file, internationalized domain names will appear as the encoded ASCII character string. For example, the RACE encoding of 國際化域名.com will be stored as bq--3blqxfu3kmlfpx2ubu.com. However, starting September 29th 2003, the ASCII character string will use Punycode, which for the same native domain name 國際化域名.com, Punycode will be xn--cjr6vy5ejyai80u.com.

Internationalized domain names are stored in database as ASCII-compliant Punycode with .com or .net suffixes.

The steps to register IDN as following:

1. Login to Private Label
2. Fill up the domain name in native/local language & select extension .com/.net. Submit for availability search. Domain will display in native and Punycode.
3. Continue with fill up other domain name information & submit for registration.

Please note that domain name will be display in Punycode as well. Please keep the Punycode for reference.

Just select Transfer feature, fill up Punycode of domain name and submit for transfer. Please refer to Domain Transfer FAQ for transfer process and information. You may use the Conversion Tool to check on the Punycode of domain name.

Just select Renewal feature. fill up Punycode of domain name, and submit for renewal. Please ensure only domain name transferred or registered with Webnic.cc may renew using this feature. You may use the Conversion Tool to check on the Punycode or native of domain name.

Web Address Manager is the feature available for you to manage your domain name with User ID and password. Please note domain name will be displayed in Punycode.

You may use the IDN Conversion Tool to find out the native or Punycode of domain name. A race code shall start with bq-xxxxxx.com. Starting September 29th 2003, Punycode will be used and it shall start with xn-xxxxxx.com.

IDN Conversion Tool is a tool to convert IDN domain name from native to Punycode, or vice versa. . The Conversion Tool is available at domain name registration page. Make sure your IE browser encoding is set as UTF-8 to use this tool.

In WHOIS, the internationalized domain name will appear as it is stored in the WebNIC.cc' database, which is RACE. Here is an example based on the currently proposed IDN Working Group Internet draft: bq--gde6djht.com. As the protocol evolves, the beginning of the string (bq--) could change. Starting 29th September 2003, Punycode will be used and it is begin with string (xn--).

Yes. The domain name, registrar name, WHOIS server, referral URL, name server record, and updated date will be recorded using ASCII characters (the current standard).

The RACE representation (and not the native character set) must be sent to the Registry WHOIS. At the beginning of the testbed, an internationalized domain name Conversion Tool will be available as a bridge until an internationalized domain name

WHOIS capability is available to accept queries using native language character sets. The Conversion Tool will allow the entry of native characters and will return the accurate RACE string which can then be linked to WHOIS to return WHOIS information.

Domain names are unique registrations for each language. Therefore, a user must request registration information by initiating a WHOIS query for the domain name, in each language (native character set).

Punycode is the standard for conversion of IDNs from their native character sets into an ASCII string.

The Standards Migration Plan will involve one migration - from the current Encoding Scheme (RACE) to the new Encoding Scheme (RFC 3491: punycode).

The advantage is that Punycode is a standard put in place by the IEFT whereas RACE was only a generally accepted process.

RACE code will be changed to Punycode on 29th September 2003.

You may get your new Punycode by using our Conversion Tool. Keyin your domain name in native & submit. Conversion Tool shall provide Punycode instantly.

The Standards Migration Plan will involve one migration - from the current Encoding Scheme (RACE) to the new Encoding Scheme (punycode). These are the only modifications required for IDN registrars. Therefore as partners/users, there is nothing need to be done by you. However in future, Registrants/administrators need to use Punycode for IDN registration and management.

Starting 29th September 2003, you need to use native or Punycode to manage IDN. You may get your new Punycode by using our Conversion Tool.

Starting 29th September 2003, you need to use native or Punycode to submit IDN transfer. You may get your new Punycode by using our Conversion Tool.

Starting 29th September 2003, you need to use native or Punycode to renew IDN. You may get your new Punycode by using our Conversion Tool.

The migration is move the IDNs from RACE to Punycode. End users to not need to make any changes on the DNS record as a result of the migration. In another word, the website resolution will not be affected.

1. What is the latest news on the functionality of IDNs? The i-Nav plug-in enables the resolution and display of IDN addresses in Microsoft's Internet Explorer browser. For more information and to download the latest plug-in go to www.idnnow.com. The i-Nav plug-in is free, both to users and to any of our registrar partners who are interested in distributing the i-Nav plug-in in their local area.
2. How does the i-Nav plug-in resolve an IDN? The i-Nav plug-in enables the resolution of an IDN while providing native script retention in the Internet Explorer browser address bar. The i-Nav plug-in needs to be installed only once; thereafter it automatically undertakes all the resolutions locally on your machine and updates itself automatically. For more info on the latest enhancements to the i-Nav plug-in go to www.idnnow.com.
3. What top-level domains (TLDs) are supported by the i-Nav� plug-in? The i-Nav plug-in resolves IDNs in the com, net and jp top-level domains.
4. Who is the audience or intended user for the i-Nav plug-in? The i-Nav plug-in is intended for Internet users, not registrars nor registrants. However, that the added functionality of the software will aid Internet end-users in adopting and using IDNs. This in turn will drive increases in renewal rates and new registrations, all of which benefit the registrars.
5. When is the i-Nav plug-in available? The plug-in for Internet Explorer is available immediately. Note that the plug-in does not require any special registrar implementation or integration.
6. Where can I get the plug-in? The i-Nav plug-in is available at www.idnnow.com.
7. Is there a schedule for deployment of e-mail clients? Currently, we are developing functionality for Outlook and Outlook Express. We will make updates to the deployment schedule as they become available.
8. Do I have to do anything to make sure I have the latest and most updated version? No. The i-Nav plug-in is automatically updated when a new version is available. You do not have to worry about keeping the plug-in up to date.
9. How will the i-Nav plug-in be updated once the IETF publishes IDN standards? The main impact to the i-Nav plug-in after IETF publication of IDN standards is the supported ASCII Compatible Encoding (ACE) version. The Registry IDN Testbed currently uses RACE to represent IDNs in DNS and the i-Nav plug-in supports RACE. The IETF IDN Working Group has recommended a different ACE called punycode. Registry intends to migrate all IDNs in the Testbed to punycode after the punycode RFC is published, and will also update the i-Nav plug-in to use punycode.

1. What are the system requirements for the i-Nav plug-in?
   The i-Nav plug-in currently works on the following platforms:
   1. Wintel based PC running WinNT 4.0, Win98, WinME, Win2000 or WinXP
   2. Internet Explorer� browser v5.0 or v6.x

1. Where can I download the i-Nav plug-in?
   A site has been set up at www.idnnow.com to provide more information to end users and partners alike. Downloads of the latest versions of the plug-in are available from this site.
2. What happens when the user downloads the i-Nav plug-in?
   Download for first-time users are as follows:
   1. After download of the i-Nav plug-in, the user is presented with a License Agreement.
   2. If the user clicks "Accept," the client software is provided to the user in the form of a signed ActiveX control and an install page appears.
   3. If the user clicks "Yes" to accept the software the software is automatically installed and once complete, the i-Nav plug-in opens a new browser window.
   4. After installation, the end user can fully utilize IDNs to navigate and resolve to any web site that supports the Internet standard for IDNs
   To resolve to an IDN-compliant web site:
   1. The user inputs an IDN in the browser's address bar (MS I.E. 5.0 or greater).
   2. The browser transforms the internationalized characters into an ASCII-compatible encoding using name preparation and the RACE encoding process.
   3. It then passes the query to DNS for resolution.
3. Can the end user download the i-Nav plug-in from behind a firewall?
   Yes. The download occurs over HTTP port 80, which is open on most firewalls.

1. Where will the resolution process take place after the i-Nav plug-in has been installed?
   Resolution takes place within DNS. The string is formatted into an ASCII-compatible encoding and then routed to DNS.
2. After the i-Nav plug-in is installed, will it work in Netscape?
   No. At this time the client plug-in only supports Microsoft� Internet Explorer 5.0 and above. Note: if Internet Explorer 5.5 or greater is not installed, the plug-in will not be downloaded.
3. Will I always need the i-Nav� plug-in?
   No. After the IETF publishes standards for IDNs, Registry expects application developers to integrate support for IDNs in their applications (such as Web browsers and e-mail clients). Eventually the functionality provided by the i-Nav plug-in will be supported natively by Internet applications.

1. How would I uninstall the i-Nav plug-in?
   To uninstall the program:
   1. Open Start->Settings->Control Panel->Add/Remove Programs.
   2. Select "i-Nav" under the currently installed programs.
   3. Click the "Change/Remove" button to uninstall the i-Nav plug-in.
2. How do I report a problem with the i-Nav plug-in?
   If you are experiencing problems with the i-Nav plug-in, consult the FAQs posted on www.idnnow.com.