--- In qalam@yahoogroups.com, Michael Everson
<everson@...> wrote:

> Academic research has its place. When a theory suggests
>something
> which flies in the face of reality, however, well, bugger it.

Saying that some people use these keyboards doesn't mean
that most can. Everyone only sees a small portion of reality. That
is why we read other people's research.

> There is no one who cannot who cannot learn,

The point is that reading a syllabic script can be learned outside
of school without learning alphabetic literacy. Now that these
syllabic systems require alphabetic literacy for computer input,
the nature of that writing system, on the computer, at any rate,
will shift significantly. Vai literates will have to go to school to
learn how to input in Vai. Traditional Vai literates will not likely
have this opportunity.

If we accept that computers will only be accessible for those
who read the English alphabet that is one thing. I understand
that that is your position, and maybe it is realistic.

>
> >You must be aware that we are still gathering information on
> >how many symbols make up the inventory for Vai literates.
>
> The brief is 340 characters.
>
> >Certainly for Tamil we found a prototype application that offers
> >alternative design principles. Vai is a different type of writing
> >system again so a different solution will need to be found.
>
> QWERTY deadkeys solves the problem smashingly.

Deadkeys are hardly intuitive either.

>
> If you can differentiate them with a pencil, you can learn to do

so

> on a keyboard.

The point is that Vai literates do not differentiate these
phonemes when writing with a pencil.

> Given the fact that the Latin script is used for the official
> language of Liberia.

English is an official langauge of India and 10% are literate in
English.

> The Vai
> will be lucky indeed if they get a browser in Vai.

I would be surprised if they did. Once again, not being able to
read the buttons will only means that a person will use fewer
functions, not that they wouldn't be quite capable of learning a
set number of basic functions. What are all those little icons for if
you have to read evey little direction. Actually, you only have to be
able to read 'yes' and 'no' to successfully save your work.
Somebodiy shows you once or twice an you are away.

I had 3 dyslexic students who couldn't read much at all, train
younger children in powerpoint and google. They just asked the
teacher how to spell a word and then looked on a list for other
words. So they googled 'lion' then 'lion baby' then 'lion home'
then 'lion eating' etc. and copied the pictures into Powerpoint. I
can guarantee you that these children could not sound ot words
like 'copy' and 'paste' or 'google' or anything much at all.

The point is that for the few words they had to write, they copied
the visual image of the word, letter by letter. Where is L? Where
is I Where is O and where is N - LION. So they could input a word
without being literate in the alphabet. But when i siad,"Let's try
this in Tamil" but, oh, no, not until I could put the actual syllables
in front of them could they decide how to input.

I tried this with dyslexic and other ESL students. I have no end of
variety in children. I am talking about reality.

>
> > > Assuming access to the basic alphabet (which

EVERYONE in Liberia has,

> >> insofar as the road signs are written in Latin script),
> >
> >You offer the 'roadsign literacy hypothesis' as a counter

argument

> >to Scribner and Cole's research?
>
> The roadsigns are a fact.

And that people read the roadsigns? Hmm. I remember being
entertained by a story told by a Cree man about driving from his
home town to Toronto and back without being able to read the
roadsigns. Apparently he got his drivers license without being
able to read also.

I tried your roadsign idea out on a couple who worked for years
in Cameroun. They were mildly amused.

> That isn't true for Ethiopic.

I do know about the Ethiopic keyboard. However, Ethiopic is a
very regular alphasyllabary/abugida, not really comparable with
Vai. I also don't know much about Ethiopic demographics, how
many are biliterate,how many are digitally literate, etc. The
existance of a roman orthography keyboard for Ethiopic doesn't
really tell us much.

Suzanne