RE: Much better Latin-1 keyboard for Windows

From: Alain LaBonté (alb@sct1.gouv.qc.ca)
Date: Mon Jul 26 2004 - 09:24:07 CDT

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    At 13:00 2004-07-23, Mike Ayers wrote:
    >From: unicode-bounce@unicode.org
    >[<mailto:unicode-bounce@unicode.org>mailto:unicode-bounce@unicode.org] On
    >Behalf Of Alain LaBonté
    >Sent: Friday, July 23, 2004 5:39 AM
    >
    > > [Alain] There is no « plane » at all in ISO/IEC 9995. This is ISO/IEC
    > > 10646 terminology, which also has a term called "group", but it is not
    > > the same thing (and yet, you do not find the notion of plane, group, row
    > > and cell complicated while it is indeed multiple enough to make it more
    > > difficult to remember). I think you did not try hard to understand the
    > > concept of keyboard groups, even if I have explained it to you many
    > > times (^;
    >
    > I don't know about "complicated", but I just don't understand the
    > terms. I have read your explanation of keyboard groups, but I still
    > don't quite grasp the meaning. Part of the problem is that your
    > explanation includes other terms that I don't understand, either. Can
    > you please point me to further, preferrably more pedantic explanations?

    [Alain] Here are the "pedantic" definitions of ISO/IEC 9995-1 (1994
    version, which will be revised this year, most likely). There is no other
    notion than "level" and "group":

    4.12 level: A logical state of a keyboard providing access to a collection
    of graphic characters or elements of graphic characters. Usually these
    graphic characters or elements of graphic characters logically belong
    together, such as the capital forms of letters. In certain cases the level
    selected may also affect function keys.

    4.9 group: A logical state of a keyboard providing access to a collection
    of graphic characters or elements of graphic characters. Usually these
    graphic characters or elements of graphic characters logically belong
    together and may be arranged on several levels within a group. The input of
    certain graphic characters, such as accented letters, may require access to
    more than one group.

    In less pedantic terms:
        * a standard American keyboard layout is by itself a keyboard group
    composed of two levels (one unshifted, one shifted).
        * a European national keyboard is by itself in general a keyboard
    group composed of three levels (one unshifted, one shifted, one obtained
    with AltGr).
    Any national group is group 1 by definition according to ISO/IEC 9995.
    Group 2 is a Latin supplementary group to access those Latin-script-written
    languages not accessible with a national group 1 also using Latin script.
    Other groups are still not numbered and their actual access not standardarized.

    Is it allright now? Definitions could be bettered, I know.

    Alain

    PS: I forgot: given that there are typically more than 1 shifted state on
    non-American keyboards, ISO/IEC 9995 talks about level select. ("Shift" key
    becomes "Level 2 select", "AltGr" becomes "Level 3 select" -- now one can
    use synonyms, but ISO standardization may be used as a pivot for all the
    different synonyms in existence). "Group select" is just an extension when
    you need to go to other languages (other groups") or to more than 3 levels:

    4.13 level select: A function that, if activated, will change the keyboard
    state to produce characters from a different level.

    4.10 group select: A function that, if activated, will change the keyboard
    state to produce characters from a different group.



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