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The Windows command prompt uses fixed width fonts.

This is fine for most western languages as well as Chinese, Japanese, and Korean.

But for some languages fixed width fonts are not really possible in the same way. Windows is still distributed in countries with such languages.

In Thailand, using a standard local version of Windows 10, if you open a command prompt and type "dir" in a directory with files using Thai script int the filenames, do you see the Thai filenames, or do you see boxes as in a typical Western Windows 10?

If you see Thai script, which Thai font is used?

hippietrail
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  • Windows 10 should support Thai language normally as the font is just one of windows fonts. I don't know what font it will use though, but in theory it should work. – LPChip Nov 03 '19 at 18:56
  • I've got many language packs and keyboard layouts and fonts installed, including Thai. But it's either an English or Japanese Windows distro. In a cmd.exe window I can try every font available and none of them have Thai-sounding names and none cause the filenames to display. They do display correctly in GUI apps such as Explorer and I do have all the Windows Thai fonts installed to the best of my knowledge. I'm wondering if it's the same for Thais using Windows or if there are certain differences. Something may be set differently when it's the primary/install language though. – hippietrail Nov 03 '19 at 19:03
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    You made need to use the Thai Code Page (874 - ANSI/OEM Thai (ISO 8859-11); Thai (Windows)). Open `cmd` and run `chcp 874`. – DavidPostill Nov 03 '19 at 19:18
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    @DavidPostill: `chcp` is to get non-Unicode tools to use the right encoding. Encodings are independent to fonts and there is a lot of confusion. Most MS tools on Windows have long been Unicode. Yet this does in fact work. It seems that `chcp` these days also makes changes that affect the font! In fact when you look at the command prompt fonts after doing this, neither the selected font nor the list of fonts changes and if you select another font it does not change the font actually used. It seems to be a hack but it's a hack that works! (-: – hippietrail Nov 03 '19 at 19:35
  • Out of interest, it doesn't work in the Linux Subsystem for Windows console. At least not that I've been able to figure out so far. – hippietrail Nov 03 '19 at 19:40
  • @hippietrail On the Linux system you probably have to play with the `LC...` locale variables. See [Thai Locale](https://linux.thai.net/~thep/th-locale/), and [Linux: Define Locale and Language Settings - ShellHacks](https://www.shellhacks.com/linux-define-locale-language-settings/) – DavidPostill Nov 03 '19 at 19:52
  • [How to add Custom Fonts to Command Prompt in Windows 10](https://www.thewindowsclub.com/add-custom-fonts-to-command-prompt). The `SimSun-ExtB` font shows Thai symbols partially. Checked using `powershell -noprofile -command "& {((0x0E01..0x0E3A)+(0x0E3F..0x0E5B)|%{[char]$_}) -join ''}"`. – JosefZ Nov 28 '19 at 21:23

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