Localisation Faux Pas (Archive)

When Lotus initially decided to localise their best selling 1-2-3 spreadsheet package for the Japanese market, they were presented with a problem. They quickly realised that they would have to remove all beeps from the program.  

Beeps were normally used as a signal to the user that an error had been made. However in a crowded Japanese office, this form of audio feedback would cause embarrassment to an individual by broadcasting to his/her co-workers that a mistake had been made.