        def urlencode(params)
            if Utils.empty(params)
                return ''
            end
            if params.instance_of? String
                return URI.encode(params)
            end
            result = ''
            params.each_key do |key|
                if ! Utils.empty(result)
                    result += '&'
                end
                result += URI.encode(key.to_s) + '=' + URI.encode(params[key].to_s)
            end

            return result
        end