[Indic-computing-standards] Re: [KB-IM] (1) what would you prefer - keyboard layouts

[Mahesh T P. <pai...@vs...>]

Guntupalli Karunakar wrote:

> What would you prefer
>(a) A keyboard with <insert ur language> printed on it (lets say
>    with both <ur language> & roman alphabet printed), as per inscript 
>    layout (or similar one not needing a keyb driver). Here simple keymaps are used.
>
>(b) Keyboard like the ones available in market today (only roman) + 
>    if u need to type <ur language>, you stick keyboard stickers as per
>    layout needed.  Layout could be straight one like inscript or 
>    one requiring a keyboard driver/Input method.
>

Speaking for myself,  it is not relevant as to what character appears on
my keys so long as there is some kind of indentifiable symbol ( a raised
dot, a raised dash, etc) to position my fingers.  I do not look at the
keyboard to type.  On the Computer, it always easy to create a typing
tutorial showing the onscreen layout.  for example, iLeap has an
excellent feature, whereby keyboard is displayed on the screen, with a
toggle switch, and also a drop down menu, showing the key combinations
required to create complex characters, which shows only the indian
script on screen, but on mouseover, the roman key and the indian
character on the roman key are displayed.  

Assuming that the industry adopts standard suggested in the first
question, the keyboard market in India is going to be divided into 17
segments, we lose the economies of scale, and this will drive up cost of
keyboards from the present Rs. 250 odd to stratospheric levels, like
1000 + charged by TVS for their keyboards.  

What?  Did somebody say that competition will drive down prices?  No,
competition is not likely to arise in such a fragmented market.

>(c) Roman keyboard, using a phonetic or transliteration schemes for
>    typing. You basically type in english to type in ur language.
>
Provided we arrive at a proper and refined transliteration schema, there
is no reason to have a inscript keyboard at all.  I often find that it
takes a lot of trial and error to find the correct keyboard combinations
to get the exact character I want.  Only justification for inscript is
that it is a 'learn once type all'  overlay.  Now, if the qwerty layout
can be used for the Indian languages, why should the user learn two
overlays (roman and inscript)?  
One issue that may need to be considered in choice of keyboard over lays
is the by now infamous diesease affecting the fingers of computer user (
something tunnelling syndrome ).  Whether using the qwerty layout for
Indian languages is likely to put strain on the weaker finger is a
question which needs to be studied.  

Being a user of the inscript lay out (malayalam), I will certify that
inscript does not pass this test.  The nukta, and the frequently used
vowel signs a aa, apart from the frequest use of the shift key means
that the inscript keyboard layout extremely unfriendly to your weaker
fingers.  ( by the time you finish a legal size page - 10 to 15 minutes
for me ) my finger start aching.

Regards,
Mahesh T Pai.


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