[A12n-forum] Re: Breaking free from UNICODE

["Don Osborn" <dzo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Michael, See
http://www.geneva2003.org/bamako2002/doc_html/languagesandinternet-en.html .
The concern there was evidently about lack of precomposed characters, and
the Consortium's decision not to add any more.  Though as others have
pointed out elsewhere, dynamic composition should address these needs.

The real issue, and the reason that I mention last year's meeting in Bamako,
is that it seems to indicate a need for more public relations / education
concerning aspects of Unicode in various potential user communities.  If
Africa seriously invests in 8-bit fonts at this stage and engages in
lobbying with Unicode for adding more precomposed characters (regardless of
the merits or not of that case), it would seem to be a costly detour off the
road to multilingual computing and internet across the continent.  However,
this is what has been called for and there is no answer from Unicode that I
am aware of, although there was some discussion on the a12n-collaboration
group.

Since I'm on the topic ... The character data linked and assembled on the
A12n page of the Bisharat site (http://www.bisharat.net/A12N) is in part an
effort to inventory what is needed in terms of characters so that hopefully
there can be more clarity through specificity in such discussions.  My
impression is that 1) the needs for composed (diacritical) characters are
relatively limited anyway, 2) most of those are addressed in Unicode by
existing precomposed characters, 3) they concern a limited number of
languages probably concentrated in certain countries, and 4) many of the
composed-character issues involve tone markings on vowels that may not be
regularly used.  So the needs may actually be relatively confined to certain
languages and/or particular uses.

If this is correct, then the issue - even accepting for a moment the
argument in favor of adding precomposeds to the Unicode standard - does not
seem that major to begin with. Which is to say, that common usage for most
African languages across most of the continent may be satisfied by existing
unicode characters without dynamic composition.  So for what's left, I'd
leave it to others to make the outreach with ACALAN (in particular among the
participants in the Bamako prepcom) for dynamic composition.

Don Osborn
Bisharat.net

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Michael Everson" <everson@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <unicode@xxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 9:17 PM
Subject: Re: Breaking free from UNICODE


> How is it that Unicode doesn't satisfy the requirements of the
> languages of Africa?
> -- 
> Michael Everson * * Everson Typography *  * http://www.evertype.com
>
>

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Don Osborn" <dzo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: "Don Osborn" <dzo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 9:51 PM
Subject: Re: [I18NdotNET] Breaking free from UNICODE


>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Don Osborn" <dzo@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
> To: <unicode@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Cc: "Suzanne M. Topping" <stopping@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Tuesday, August 19, 2003 7:45 PM
> Subject: Re: [I18NdotNET] Breaking free from UNICODE
>
>
> > Such opinions - and they are not necessarily isolated cranks - make one
> > wonder if there is not a huge "outreach" gap in Unicode's longterm
> strategy.
> > A session on internet & African languages that was part of the WSIS
> prepcom
> > in Bamako last year was critical of Unicode as it is.  An individual on
> the
> > newsgroup fr.comp.normes.unicode denounced Unicode as an American
scheme.
> > And the posting below...
> >
> > Or more benignly, an eminent linguist who seriously questions how one
can
> > treat several scripts on a single computer.  Or computer trainers (in a
> > multilingual society) who have heard the name "unicode," but have no
clear
> > idea what it means.
> >
> > Am I the only one wondering, or is there more that the Consortium could
do
> > for public education in its own cause?  Perhaps there are good
> explanations
> > and I should hasten to add I'm not criticizing anyone.  But the need
seems
> > evident, at least from out here in the cloudy Sahel.
> >
> > Don Osborn
> > Bisharat.net
> >
> > ----- Original Message ----- 
> > From: "Suzanne M. Topping" <stopping@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> > To: <unicode@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> > Sent: Monday, August 18, 2003 7:38 PM
> > Subject: FW: [I18NdotNET] Breaking free from UNICODE
> >
> >
> > > Thought you folks might be interested in this recent posting from
> another
> > list.
> > >
> > > -----Original Message-----
> > > From: Kiran Vinjamuri [mailto:surya_kiran19@xxxxxxxxx]
> > > Sent: Saturday, August 16, 2003 12:36 AM
> > > To: I18NdotNET@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
> > > Subject: [I18NdotNET] Breaking free from UNICODE
> > >
> > >
> > > Hi guys
> > > I am Working on a project for Indian Languages.
> > >
> > > what is the project?
> > > It is a total solution for all language complexities
> > > to break free from the painful & design of Unicode
> > > which is not copletely serving the purpose for indian languages.
> > >
> > > what it does?
> > > 1. Language shall not depend on Unicode.
> > > 2. It attempts to create a totally new encoding scheme
> > > for Indian use alone.
> > > 3. This scheme should be a encoding standard across
> > > all platforms specially designed for indian use
> > > 4. Will provide adueqte support for data exchange
> > >
> > > what i need?
> > > Any indians and other who feel unicode is not serving
> > > the purpose to use their complex languages ( like
> > > asian) please contact me.
> > >
> > >
> > > Thank you very much
> > > -Surya Kiran Vinjamuri
> > >
> > >
> >
> >
>
>