Re: [Scim-devel] SmartCangjie6 input method 快倉六輸入法

[Ronald S. <str...@zo...>]

Quintus Leung wrote:
>Dear Ronald,
>
>Thank you for putting SmartCangjie6 into the SCIM SVN.  The input
>method will benefit users who are familiar with Cangjie input method.
>
>Best regards,
>Quintus

Dear Quintus Leung,

I read on the next web-page:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cangjie_method
 the next text
>Issues
>
>Cangjie was designed to be an easy-to-use system to help promote the use of Chinese computing; nevertheless, many users find Cangjie to be a difficult method. Many of the perceived difficulties arise from poor >instruction.[verification needed]
>Perceived difficulties
>
>    * In order to input using Cangjie, one must know not only the names of the radicals, but also all their auxiliary shapes (which might not appear to make sense, though Mr. Chu had intended all the auxiliary shapes >to be related to the basic shapes and "easy to remember"); it is common to find tables of the Cangjie radicals with their auxiliary shapes taped onto the monitors of casual computer users.
>    * One must also be familiar with the decomposition rules; unfortunately, a lot of casual computer users are not even aware of the existence of decomposition rules but rather type by guessing. This makes Cangjie >a very difficult method.
>
>Enough practice, however, can overcome the above problems. A typist with sufficient practice in Cangjie touch types, much like a typist that works on the English language; it is entirely possible for a touch typist to >type at 25 words (Chinese characters) per minute or better in Cangjie, yet have difficulty remembering the list of auxiliary shapes or even the decomposition rules. Experienced Cangjie typists can reportedly attain a >typing speed between 60 wpm and over 200 wpm.
>
>Cangjie, however, also has some "real" problems:
> Actual difficulties
>
>    * Cangjie is not error forgiving (不容錯): The decomposition of a character depends on a predefined set of "standard shapes" (標準字形); however, because Cangjie is used in many different countries, the standard >shape of a certain character in Cangjie is not always the standard shape of the same character the user has learnt. Learning Cangjie would then entail not only learning Cangjie itself, but also the standard shape of >some characters. The difference between 溫 and 温, or 黑 and 黒, for example, illustrates the frustration learners of Cangjie might have to go through. The Cangjie IME is also not expected to handle mistakes in >decomposition other than tell the user (usually by beeping) that there is a mistake.
>    * Punctuation marks are not geometrically decomposed, but rather given random-looking codes that begin with ZX followed by a string of three letters related to the ordering of the characters in the Big5 code. >Typing punctuation marks in Cangjie thus becomes a frustrating exercise in either memorization or pick-and-peck.
>    * The user cannot type a character which he or she has forgotten how to write. This, of course, is not a real problem with Cangjie but a problem with all non-phonetic input methods. (This is not to say that >phonetic input methods are superior; in fact they suffer from the opposite problem, namely that the user cannot type a character which he or she does not know how to pronounce.)

This means for me that Cangjie is an input-method that can not used rightaway without any instruction.
The usage and performance will improve much if instructions in the form of a helppage is available.
I hope that you can point me to instructions for Cangjie (both in English and Chinese (yes, it will also benefit Chinese users))
If so, then I can include them in the helppage (docbook)

Ronald