[SCIM] Re: Custom Keyboard Layout Editor/Interpreter for SCIM

[Mike FABIAN]

Zhe Su <james.su at gmail.com> $B$5$s$O=q$-$^$7$?(B:

> Hi,
>   Sounds interesting. I'll investigate it. But it seems that it's a
> not so easy to be implemented. Maybe I should implement a plugin API
> into SCIM for such purpose, so that some one can implement it
> indenpendently.
>
> Regards
> James Su
>
>
> On Mon, 22 Nov 2004 15:32:54 +0900, Yukiko Bando <ybando at k6.dion.ne.jp> wrote:
>> Hello,
>> 
>> With M17N, SCIM can support more than thirty languages, but there is not an
>> easy way to type Western/Eastern European languages on a Japanese/Chinese or
>> US standard keyboards.

There are inut methods in M17N which are very nice for that purpose,
for example M17N-t-latn-post, M17N-t-rfc1345, and recently Kenichi
Handa added M17N-t-latn-pre.

>> Users have to change the whole keyboard layout to
>> another language (this is what KDE offers) or use Multi keys to input
>> non-English characters unless they use customized xmodmaps.  The first option
>> is confusing because it often causes mismatch between the glyph printed on a
>> key and what users actually get.

Yes, I don't like switching keyboard layouts either, it is too
confusing, I think it is more efficient to stick with one layout and
use input methods for everything which is not on that keyboard layout.

>> The second one is not for everyone either,
>> IMHO.  Multi keys are not as easy to use as dead keys...

M17N-t-latn-pre and M17N-t-latn-post are equally efficient as dead
keys, using these input method one needs only 2 keystrokes for accented
characters, just as with dead keys, not 3 keystrokes as with
Multi_key.

M17N-t-rfc1345 is less efficient than M17N-t-latn-pre and
M17N-t-latn-post because it needs 3 keystrokes for most accented
characters, just like Multi_key but on the other hand it allows the
input of many more special characters.

M17N-t-latn-pre is currently my preferred way to type German.

>> 1. Users choose one from the SCIM's input methods menu:
>> 
>>     Custom Keyboards > MyHungarian
>>     Custom Keyboards > MySpanish

That has about the same effect as using the M17N input methods
now, I don't really see an advantage here.

-- 
Mike FABIAN   <mfabian at suse.de>   http://www.suse.de/~mfabian
$B?gL2ITB-$O$$$$;E;v$NE($@!#(B