The Neon Rush

Is Windows 7 slower in different languages?

Nov 4, 2009 16:33

Earlier today I was discussing Windows 7 with a colleague in the tech department at work.

We're both impressed by the slick new interface and how the Win 7 bootup and shutdown times are faster than on XP and, of course, on Vista. No more turning on the computer and heading off for a long morning coffee break these days.

I have the English version, but my Taiwanese colleague uses Windows 7 in both English and traditional Chinese. One thing he mentioned is that the Chinese version is a little slower than the English version.

I was surprised because I thought operating systems are supposed to perform the same regardless of language. But in reality, it all comes down to bytes.

In English, it takes only 1 byte to make a single character. But for Chinese, it requires 2, sometimes 3 bytes to render a single character. Considering the amount of information required to create some of the more intricate Chinese words, it starts to make sense.

Source: Wikipedia, screenshots used for those without the traditional Chinese language pack installed.

Yes, it's a rare character, but at 48 strokes it's amazing how they figured out how to print all of them on the screen. I can barely make out the strokes on a 19-inch monitor. Just imagine if you had a Netbook.

Here are some other examples of characters in "frequent modern use".



So, technically, the Chinese language version of Windows 7 is a bit slower, but it doesn't make a big difference, so says my colleague. The fact that my coworker is a hardcore techie tells a lot and I'm sure most people won't even notice. 

Obviously, it's not a deal-breaker. Just interesting to see how a single byte can affect performance once the digital river of 1s and 0s starts flowing throughout the entire system.

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