Here's a little something that's been bugging me recently. It's a tiny little usability thing which would be *really easy* to fix: entering mobile phone numbers.

I've found a few times recently that some sites (whether on mobile or web) insist that I enter my phone number in "international format". Why is this? It's not difficult to convert numbers from formats like

07971 781422
(07971) 781422
+44-(0)-7971-781422

into the One True International Representation of 447971781422, but these sites expect me to do it myself, and to bother with it.

Comments

[Thomas Landspurg]

Isn't 00447971781422 the true international representation of this number?

[Jo Rabin]

No, the international format is governed by E.164. A fascinating document to be sure. Summarised at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E.164