ame problem and we began exchanging
email. Suddenly, it hit me... the software was written only 30 miles
away but I was getting help from a person half way around the world.
Distance and geography no longer mattered! OK, this is great! But what
is it leading to? I am only able to communicate in English but,
fortunately, the other person could use English as well as German which
was his mother tongue. The internet has removed one barrier (distance)
but with that comes the barrier of language. It seems that the internet
is moving people in two quite different directions at the same time.
The internet (initially based on English) is connecting people all
around the world. This is further promoting a common language for
people to use for communication. But it is also creating contact
between people of different languages and creates a greater interest in
multilingualism. A common language is great but in no way replaces this
need. So the internet promotes both a common language *and*
multilingualism. The good news is that it helps provide solutions. The
increased interest and need is creating incentives for people around
the world to create improved language courses and other assistance, and
the internet is providing fast and inexpensive opportunities to make
them available."

The internet could also be a tool to develop a "cultural identity".
During the Symposium on Multimedia Convergence organized by the
International Labor Office (ILO) in January 1997, Shinji Matsumoto,
general secretary of the Musicians' Union of Japan (MUJ), explained:
"Japan is quite receptive to foreign culture and foreign technology.
(...) Foreign culture is pouring into Japan and, in fact, the domestic
market is being dominated by foreign products. Despite this, when it
comes to preserving and further developing Japanese culture, there has
been insufficient support from the government. (...) With the
development of information networks, the earth is getting smaller and
it is wonderful to be able to make cultural exchanges across vast
distances and to deepen mutual understanding among people. We have to
remember to respect national cultures and social systems."

December 1997 was a turning point for a plurilingual web. AltaVista, a
leading search engine, was the first website to launch a free
translation software called Babel Fish (or AltaVista Translation),
which could translate up to three pages from English into French,
German, Italian, Portugu