The Unicode Standard

Abstract

The Unicode Standard is a global character set for worldwide computing covering the major modern scripts of the world as well as classical forms of Greek, Sanskrit, and Pali. The history and implications of Unicode Standard are discussed. The principles underpinning the design of the Unicode Standard are described with reference to those principles that also are present in USMARC and UNIMARC. Unicode give the potential to support every script. Expanding the character set would have consequences for transcription. Faithfulness of transcription has implications for retrieval. The addition of more characters to support more exact cataloging affects the economic cost of cataloging. The need for characters should be related not to the production of a surrogate for the physical item that has been cataloged, but to facilitating retrieval.