Changing website default language from Chinese to English

Gilgamesh · August 26, 2008, 5:01am

Does anyone know how I can stop from getting sent to help sites that are only in Chinese? If I try to check help sites with MSN messenger, or windows, or even google I always get sent to the Chinese language sites. I can’t read Chinese and can’t seem to get to the English site. I try to take off the “tw” on the web address but I still get sent back to the Chinese site.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I’m trying to figure out why I can’t seem to talk with my parents on a webcam with MSN messenger but I can’t access their help site.

Joesox · August 26, 2008, 5:15am

[quote=“Gilgamesh”]Does anyone know how I can stop from getting sent to help sites that are only in Chinese? If I try to check help sites with MSN messenger, or windows, or even google I always get sent to the Chinese language sites. I can’t read Chinese and can’t seem to get to the English site. I try to take off the “tw” on the web address but I still get sent back to the Chinese site.

Any help would be greatly appreciated. I’m trying to figure out why I can’t seem to talk with my parents on a webcam with MSN messenger but I can’t access their help site.[/quote]For Google, first go to google.com/ncr
That sets their cookie so any of their pages you go to are the English versions.

Regarding MSN, this from the help page:
"View Help in a different language
MSN.com Help is shown in the language that you have configured in your Internet browser. To change the display language for Windows Internet Explorer:

On the Internet Explorer Tools menu, click Internet Options.
On the General tab, click Languages, and then click Add.
Select a language to add, and then click OK.
Select the language that you added, and then click Move Up until the language is at the top of the list.
Click OK, and then click OK again.
Close any Internet Explorer browser windows that you have open, and then re-open MSN.com Help."

Hope that helps.

Charlie_Phillips · August 26, 2008, 5:36am

How about Youtube?

Ever since they set up Youtube Taiwan, my pages have been in Chinese. Also, since that time I haven’t been able to upload anthing. Unlike google, they don’t have an English option button.

Any ideas?

Joesox · August 26, 2008, 5:37am

[quote=“Charlie Phillips”]How about Youtube?

Ever since they set up Youtube Taiwan, my pages have been in Chinese. Also, since that time I haven’t been able to upload anthing. Unlike google, they don’t have an English option button.

Any ideas?[/quote]Isn’t the button the flag thingy at the top right-ish? Can’t access it right now but that’s what I remember.

Gilgamesh · August 26, 2008, 1:06pm

Thanks for the help. I checked and when I use explorer (I usually use firefox) the help file is in English. If I press the help button when I am in Windows Live Messenger, that will still send me to the Chinese site. Windows Live Messenger is the one I am having trouble with. I can’t get a video call working. I will check the explorer help site to see if it also deals with Windows Live Messenger.

Again thanks for your help.

Ah_Q · August 26, 2008, 1:43pm

[quote=“Charlie Phillips”]How about Youtube?

Ever since they set up Youtube Taiwan, my pages have been in Chinese. Also, since that time I haven’t been able to upload anthing. Unlike google, they don’t have an English option button.

Any ideas?[/quote]

In the upper left corner you probably see this: 台灣 | 中文.

台灣 is your location, Taiwan.

中文 is your language, Chinese. Click on this to change to another language, like English.

Mark_Nagel · August 26, 2008, 2:45pm

If you are using Chinese Windows, then the Chinese websites and help files are usually the default. But if you are using English Windows, then the English websites and help files should be the default unless your “Regional and Languages Options” control panel is set to Taiwan.

Open up your “Regional and Languages Options” control panel and click on the “Regional Options” tab (the first tab). Then at the bottom of the dialog box, you will see it says “Location.” If you set it to an English-speaking country like USA, Canada, UK, Australia, or New Zealand, then when you go to Google, Yahoo, Windows Live Spaces, etc., it should automatically go to the English website instead of the Chinese website.

Also, in the “Regional and Languages Options” control panel, go to the “Advanced” tab. You will see that at the top, it says “Language for non-Unicode programs” and then it says “This setting allows non-Unicode programs to display menus and dialogs in their native language.” You should select English for this, too.

Ever since I changed my Regional and Language Options control panel, I no longer have any problem of websites and help files being automatically directed to the Chinese site, except that whenever I do a search on YouTube, most of the matches that it finds are Taiwanese videos, even though I’m at the U.S. YouTube website.

However, I do have a language problem when I try to run Nero. I want to run the English version of Nero, but every time I install the program, it automatically installs the Chinese version! I have tried removing the program and re-installing it several times, but the same thing happens every time. I am sure that the version of Nero that I am installing is supposed to be the English version because when I go to the Nero website (nero.com/ena/downloads-nero8-trial.php), it specifically asks me which language of Nero I want to install, and I choose English, and yet it still installs the Chinese version! Also, the filename is Nero-8.3.6.0_eng_trial.exe. Isn’t the “eng” supposed to mean “English”? So why does it keep installing the Chinese version? It’s strange because Nero is the only program that does this. Whenever I install any other program, the English version is always the default because I’m running English Windows.

Belgian_Pie · August 27, 2008, 1:42am

That’s the price you pay for ‘convenience’ … the server sees an IP # that correspondents with Taiwan and there you go to a Chinese site … they assume too much if you ask me …

Google even redirected and put me on a Dutch site Picasaweb.google.nl because I have a Dutch Windows installed, and they don’t even care to ask if I’m Belgian Dutch or from the Netherlands … or if I even like to be put there …

Gilgamesh · August 27, 2008, 4:16am

Problem solved (I think). I had the windows explorer language set for English but I didn’t do it on Firefox which is the one I use the most. I changed the language to add English on Firefox (and put it first) and it seems to have worked.

Thanks for your help everyone

Charlie_Phillips · August 27, 2008, 6:22am

[quote=“Ah Q”]
In the upper left corner you probably see this: 台灣 | 中文.

台灣 is your location, Taiwan.

中文 is your language, Chinese. Click on this to change to another language, like English.[/quote]

Thanks, I feel like a blind noob.

Mark_Nagel · August 27, 2008, 8:19am

How can you change the language of Firefox? I looked at all of the preferences (Tools → Options), but I couldn’t find anywhere where you can change the language.

Joesox · August 27, 2008, 8:50am

How can you change the language of Firefox? I looked at all of the preferences (Tools → Options), but I couldn’t find anywhere where you can change the language.[/quote]Tools > Options > Content tab > Languages

Gilgamesh · August 27, 2008, 12:14pm

How can you change the language of Firefox? I looked at all of the preferences (Tools → Options), but I couldn’t find anywhere where you can change the language.[/quote]Tools > Options > Content tab > Languages[/quote]

Yup, that’s how I did it.

Again, thanks for all the help.

Mark_Nagel · August 27, 2008, 2:56pm

How can you change the language of Firefox? I looked at all of the preferences (Tools → Options), but I couldn’t find anywhere where you can change the language.[/quote]Tools > Options > Content tab > Languages[/quote]
When I go to Tools > Options > Content tab, I don’t see a button called “Languages.” I guess that’s something that Firefox added for Version 3.0.1. (I’m still using Version 2.0.0.16.)

Gilgamesh · August 27, 2008, 11:57pm

[quote=“Mark Nagel”]
When I go to Tools > Options > Content tab, I don’t see a button called “Languages.” I guess that’s something that Firefox added for Version 3.0.1. (I’m still using Version 2.0.0.16.)[/quote]

That’s possible. I’m using 3.0.1. I guess if you really want the language option then it’s time to upgrade.

Fox · February 11, 2009, 2:24am

Any idea?

irishstu · February 11, 2009, 2:32am

Top left, there should be a link for the country and a link for the language right beside each other (in Chinese). It will currently say Taiwan, Chinese (in Chinese). Just click to change each.

Fox · February 11, 2009, 2:44am

Thanks Stu.

EHuynh · February 11, 2009, 3:41am

Be forewarned: you may get a number of “video not available in your country”; it’s VERY annoying.

Big_Fluffy_Matthew · February 11, 2009, 5:07am

[quote=“EHuynh”]Be forewarned: you may get a number of “video not available in your country”; it’s VERY annoying.[/quote]You’ll get them anyway. They look at your IP, not your language settings.

I think I’ve explained how to change the language already about 2 or 3 times :neutral: