Study Abroad - Continental Europe

Profile: Continental Europe

In addition to a wide range of languages, Americans traveling in Europe will also be faced with a wide range of computer keyboards, power plugs, and language encoding methods.

Power issues

Both the power levels and the electrical plug types are different in Europe. There are four different types of electrical outlets in use in Europe: three in most countries and a fourth in Switzerland, so an adapter that works in one particular room of one building may not work in the next room, the next building, or the next country over.

The three plug types most commonly used in Europe are called type C, type E, and type F. European countries use voltages between 220 and 240 on a 50 hertz frequency, so if your device doesn't support dual voltage (both 120 and 240 volts), any adapter kit you buy will need to convert the power as well as the plug type.

Read the power adapter on any electric or electronic equipment that you bring with you, and make sure to buy an adapter kit that has interchangeable ends so that you can connect to any of the possible socket types. (Note also that the three socket types used in continental Europe are not the same three types used in Britain; if you plan any British side-trips during a European study abroad, you will need more plug adapters.)

An illustrated list organized by country is available at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_with_mains_power_plugs%2C_voltages_and_frequencies.

Keyboard issues

While some European countries use a QWERTY-based keyboard layout, there are three major keyboard layout types in use in Europe, with dozens of variations on punctuation placement and extra letters. Scandinavian countries use keyboards that resemble the QWERTY layout with different punctuation positions. Central and Eastern European countries use a keyboard beginning with QWERTZ and replace some punctuation with additional alphabetical letters not present in the English 26-character set. France and Belgium use a keyboard beginning with AZERTY. For more detailed information, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keyboard_layout.

In addition, there are several different ways that computers encode and communicate characters with each other; if your computer is working with a different encoding than a web page or networked application, you may encounter difficulties in reading or interacting with a page. If the page shows some strange characters (like •¶Žš‰) in place of what should logically be punctuation or accented letters, you're using a different encoding than the web page or application (resulting in a phenomenon named mojibake).

If you're working in a web browser, you can try to correct the mismatch by selecting another language from the languages shown under View -> Encoding or View -> Character Encoding. Many browsers also offer an auto-select option; however, depending on how the web page's author created it, the auto-select may not produce correct results and you may need to try one at a time.

If you're working in an application such as Microsoft Office or Outlook, check the Help section for information on "character encoding" or "keyboard layout" for assistance.

Most operating systems allow you to define both which type of keyboard is attached to your computer and which language you are typing with that keyboard. In Windows XP, this is controlled in the "Keyboard" and "Regional Options" sections of the Control Panel. Microsoft's Knowledge Base offers more details on adding additional keyboard and language support to a Windows computer.

Network issues

ADSL is the most common connection method in continental Europe, though fiber-optic and Ethernet-based networking to the individual homes are more common in European countries than in America. Similarly, cable television is not as widespread in Europe as in America, so cable modem companies are fewer. Metropolitan areas have the greatest selection of providers and options, with rural areas having less coverage.

Most European countries are not facing the telephone line monopoly issues that Britain and Australia have, so you don't need to be as concerned about who owns the phone or network lines between you and the service provider.