svaagata.m!
This is more of a "work around" than it is a solution.
It isn't perfect, but it is a lot easier than remembering the codes for
characters. It might be a good idea for people to write Microsoft an email
suggesting that:
a) they make it possible for users to create custom transliteration tables
for any font, and
b) that they make it possible for people to share their transliteration
tables by email.
This would solve the "user entry" side of data entry for multi-lingual
people (and multi-language documents) once and for all. Pre-defined "Input
Method Editors" (IMEs) are *not* the solution (for a lot of reasons - both
because of weird little problems in the "internal machine representation"
with Unicode/fonts *and* the many differing needs of users entering data).
The alternative to the MS-Word entry method below is creating "macros" to
generate the special characters. The macros would work better, but:
a) you would have to remember the macro names
b) you need to find some keystroke combinations that Word (and your other
macros) does not already use.
c) you would need to know how to create and use macros.
It should take you about about 10 minutes to set up the characters using the
method below.
System requirements: The font 'Arial Unicode MS' and 'MS-Word 97' (or
better). If you do not have the font, you can download it from the Microsoft
web site. It is a huge font (about 8Mb? as a download and 40Mb. installed.)
The font comes 'standard' with many Windows computers since the year 2000.
Here is what I discovered:
a) open a new document in MS-Word
b) main, top-level menu "Insert"->"Symbol..."
c) Choose 'Font: ' Arial Unicode MS
d) Choose 'Subset: ' Basic Latin
e) find the '~n' character in the table and click on it
f) press the button 'Insert'
e) press the button 'Close'
g) in the document, select the ~n character with your mouse
h) main, top-level menu "Insert"->"AutoText"->"AutoText..."
i) press on the tab at the top called 'AutoCorrect'
j) now you see the character in a box called 'With: '.
h) to the left of that is a box called 'Replace: '
i) enter ~n in the box called 'Replace: "
j) press the button 'OK'
(Note: Now, to get the character keep this in mind - MS-Word wants to
"auto-correct" a *word* for you. This means that you need to have a blank
character before the ~n and after the ~n.)
So, now type:
a) a blank space
b) ~n (nothing happens)
c) a blank space (and the ~n character is there).
Comments:
1) you will need to put a blank before *and* after the Pali special
characters, and then go back and remove the extra blanks after you are
finished typing your word.
2) The Unicode fonts are a total marketing fake-out: a) they aren't really
standardized at all and b)not all Unicode fonts have all of the characters!
Oh well... I know that 'Arial Unicode MS' works for Pali.
3) You may wish to use !n for the 'overdot n' (instead of "n). Otherwise,
every time you enter a real quote that starts with the character n then the
text will transliterate.
4) You only need to enter the characters once. This sets the transliteration
characters for all MS-Word documents, not just the document that you are
currently working on.
5) This works for any characters in any language in the Unicode fonts (in
case you need other characters from other languages and you want to use
'transliteration' codes for them).
6) You will *not* be able to get capitalized Pali characters using this
method.
Here is where you can find the Pali special characters in the font 'Subset:
' groups:
~n Basic Latin
aa Latin Extended-A
ii Latin Extended-A
uu Latin Extended-A
(Subset: Latin Extended Additional is way down the list of subsets)
.d Latin Extended Additional
.l Latin Extended Additional
.m Latin Extended Additional
.n Latin Extended Additional
"n Latin Extended Additional
.t Latin Extended Additional
Last but not least: Palitrans 2.0 supports easy, natural, direct
transliteration and the following Pali fonts:
a) Times CSX+
b) VriRomanPali (used on CSCD)
c) Leedsbit PaliTranslit
d) Times Norman
e) Skt Times
So, if Unicode isn't that important to you, it is probably easier just to
use Palitrans 2.0.
So, it would help everybody in the world if people would at least email
Microsoft and ask for customizable and shareable transliteration tables in
MS-Word.
Good luck!
peace from
Andy
-----Original Message-----
From: Piya Tan [mailto:
libris@...]
Sent: Sunday, April 28, 2002 8:59 AM
To:
Pali@yahoogroups.com
Subject: Re: [Pali] Unicode / transliteration / MS-Word
Andy,
Instructions needed.
Sukhi.
P.
Andy wrote:
> Hi;
>
> Has everyone figured out how to set up MS-Word so that you can get the
Pali
> special characters using Pali transliteration? If not, I can post the
> instructions on this list. <snip>