This is a nice touch on the AirBnB website. In Dutch the combination of i and j is one letter ij. It only really shows when hand written, as on keyboards we type i followed by j. Internationally the ij combo causes confusion, e.g. when conference organisers book my plane ticket and turn my last name Zijlstra into Ziljstra. It is why I mostly replace the ij with y in usernames (@ton_zylstra) and domain names (zylstra.org).
This morning I logged into AirBnB for an upcoming trip, and typed my username which in this case does contain ij. After following the i with a j, it automatically rendered it as written in Dutch, a single letter.
AirBnB may wreak havoc on Amsterdam, making the city center unlivable and filling it with rolling suitcases, but the ij they’ve got down pat like a local.
If you ever really want to mess with an online system, swap out the i + j for the single Unicode ij (U+0133). Probably not actually recommended practice, but it sure is fun to see systems unable to separate the i & j. On Facebook I disappear once someone gets to “Marti”.
Nice one Martijn! I now have replaced the i and j in my byline in the header with the ij sign. (Which you only notice when you try to select just the i in my name on top, it will always pick ij in its entirety) Didn’t know it was actually a separate unicode character.