Click to join Amharic keyboard
|
Ethiotrans made the first Amharic live demonstration in San Diego CA on Feb 16, 2003 for the invited audiences. The demo was run from 1:00AM till 6:00 PM at the Microcomputer Plus show room. During the live demo the audience had a chance to test the Amharic/Ethiopic keyboard and there was a chance for audiences to ask questions about some of the questions they had for log time. According to Ethiotrans founder Amdework Mitiku, the show was the first milestone that laid a great foundation the future of Ethiopian/African languages. When conditions permits similar show will run in major US and Europe as well as African cities. If you missed the live show and wants to get some see the Power Point presentation please click here4
|
|
THE FIRST AMHARIC/ETHIOPIC
KEYBOARD IS ON THE MARKET. San
Diego, CA - 2.7.2003 Ethiopic
keyboard
The fist Amharic/Ethiopic keyboard/tablet that will allow the user to
type Amharic and most of the other Ethiopian/African languages on the computer
is now on the market.
The keyboard is based on the traditional Amharic alphabetical table,
"Fedel Gebeta", which means that all the characters from
"Ha" to "Pe" are arranged exactly the way they appear in
"Fedel Gebeta".
However, since the keyboard supports many of the Ethiopian languages,
such as Tigrigna, Oromo, Gurage, Sidamo, and so on, the tablet also contains
additional characters which do not exist in the traditional "Fedel
Gebeta".
In addition to allowing users to type most Ethiopian languages it also
make it possible for them to type other African languages, such as Somali,
Swahili and several Latin-based languages.
Indeed, there is a great possibility that the keyboard will be used not
only in Ethiopia but also in other African countries because Ethiotrans is
working hard to support most of the African languages in its next release.
One of the outstanding features of the
Amharic/Ethiopic keyboard is that it is based on "UNICODE" (www.unicode.org),
a feature which will help eliminate the inconsistency found in most Amharic
software applications. This will allow any document written with the help of
this keyboard to appear exactly as the original document appeared on the
computer screen, if that computer
and the software application support UNICODE.
The Ethiopic Keyboard/Tablet was developed through
a collaboration between the San Diego based Ethiotrans.com, a Yebbo
Communications Company, and Big Format Computing, a leading language tablet
developer, based in San Francisco.
Amdework (Amde) Mitiku, the founder and owner of Ethiotrans, stated that
the first live demonstration of this product will take place in San Diego, CA on
Feb 16, 2003.
There are also tentative plans to organize similar promotions of the
product in other major US cities, such as Los Angeles, New York, Washington,
D.C., San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, as well as in some European cities
Mr. Mitiku added that the product will elevate the
Ethiopian languages to the next level, i.e. to the 21st century.
It will also help preserve Ethiopia's heritage, language, and history by
allowing the new generation to learn and practice its languages, history, and
culture and integrate them into their daily lives.
This is a dual learning tool for anyone who wants to learn the Ethiopian
languages, and, at the same time use the keyboard to type and save assignments
into the computer.
The keyboard will be the ultimate tool for those who want to use local
languages in today's technology.
The system consists of one graphics tablet attached
to a computer, one pressure-sensitive pen, one Amharic template, and one
text-entry software. It makes text entry in Amharic simple; in order to enter
them into the document, all that users have to do is open a target document,
launch the language tablet software and then select the characters on the tablet
template with the pen.
Overall, the Ethiopic Keyboard/Tablet is a superior product because it is
EASY TO USE: *
NO stick-on labels over the tops of existing keyboards. *
NO manual for re-mapping all the keys on the keyboard. *
NO hard-to-read drop-down text insertion boxes. ·
NOTHING to memorize-just type what you see.
Also the Ethiopic Tablet works with all Amharic
Unicode fonts.
It has an active working area of 8" x 6" and a transparent
lift-up cover to secure the template. The tablet connects to the computer via
USB, and uses an AAA, battery-powered pen. When not in use as a language tablet,
the devise may be used as a regular graphics tablet. Customers receive the Text
Entry Software for the Amharic System requirements: Windows 2000, NT or XP with
appropriate Language Support options installed.
About
Ethiotrans:
Ethiotrans was founded by Amdework (Amde) Mitiku.
It is a service arm of Yebbo Communication Network (www.Yebbo.com),
which has been providing its services since 1999.
It is a localization and translation company serving the world community.
Today Ethiotrans supports the following languages: Amharic, Oromo, Tigrigna,
Somali, Swahili, Ibo, Hausa, Arabic, Dinka, Sidamo, Welayta, Gurage, Deresa and
Kembata. Among Ethiotrans' clients are: Casio, Inc. of Japan, Red Cross
International, Bridgestone Tires, Care View Medial Groups, ZUXXEZ Entertainment
and several others. Ethiotrans hires professional translators and interpreters,
developers, salespersons and other resourceful individuals as subcontractors.
Ethiotrans has been featured in several news media,
such as the Voice of America (VOA), the San Diego Union Tribune, Pan African
Association, and several on-line publications.
For more information, please contact us at: Ethiotrans.com 6461
University Avenue San
Diego, CA 92115 619
255 5530 619
254 2932 (cell) http://www.ethiotrans.com/ethiopickeyboard/ Related works by Yebbo.com 1. Ethiopian Super Yellow Pages 4. Creating zero in Amharic numeric system 5. Ethiopian Sport Heroes and Heroines 8. Yebbo Travel 10. Shengo 11. African Chamber of Commerce
|