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Re: [westasianconlangs] Technical advice needed



From: "Isaac A. Penzev" <isaacp@hidden.email>

> I want to present some materials about Rumean (Rumiya) on a web page.
> The language uses Arabic script (with additional characters that occur in
> Farsi).
> How should I write Rumean examples?
> - to use nice fonts encoded in lower ASCII and make them available for
> download -- easy but unconvenient for users;

That's been the de facto standard for quite a while. All you have to do is
install a font (or two or three). It can be a problem if there are a lot of
fonts to install. And scripts that require a large number of glyphs (like
Ethiopic, for example) need more than one font, and writing the documents
can be tedious since you have to change font all the time.

They're also not usually in lower ASCII only.

If you're going to use Arabic script in that fashion, a "simplified" Arabic
(or Farsi, etc.) font like those that come with ParsNegar are good. The only
character that requires more than two different forms is /h/.

> - to use Unicode fonts -- there are diffculties with Unicode input;

Yes there are, not all people can handle Unicode. For Windows users, IE 5 or
later is required, and full functionality with Arabic-type scripts is only
in Windows 2000/XP, or an Arabic version of Windows 9x.

It's better now for Arabic encoding, though there are several standards
(Windows, ISO, ASMO 708, DOS). Farsi and Urdu are only encodable in Windows
right now, or pure Unicode.

> - to use graphics (e.g. in *.gif format) -- it's easier to die...

UGH. A pain in the neck for the poor soul having to make the document, and
can take a while to download too.

~Danny~