Chinese Unicode to HTML

When Chinese characters need to become entities

A Chinese character is a Unicode code point like any other, and a page served as UTF-8 will display it without help. The problem is the chain in between. A configuration file that must stay ASCII, a system that transcodes on the way through, an old mail gateway, an interface whose encoding you do not control: any of them can turn Chinese into a row of question marks, and you will only find out once it is published.

Converting each character to its numeric HTML reference removes the risk entirely. The file becomes pure ASCII, nothing in transit can alter it, and the browser reassembles the characters at the last moment. The cost is size and unreadability, which is why this is a solution for the places that need it rather than a habit.

The tool works on any Chinese text, simplified or traditional, and leaves everything else untouched. The reverse operation is on the HTML to Chinese page, which is the one you want when you have received such a file and need to read it.