Re: Another --> Re: GtkMovementStep of GtkTextView

[Steve Underwood <steveu coppice org>]

Mark Leisher wrote:
> 
>     >>  Testing with native users.  And also playing with a couple new
>     >> Vietnamese word processors while I was in Hanoi last month.  As it was
>     >> explained to me, it is very inconvenient to delete the whole vowel when
>     >> you only want to change the tone mark (apparently a common
>     >> "misspelling").  The responses were inconclusive with regard to the
>     >> other pronunciation marks.
> 
>     Steve> You write as if there were only one input method in use in
>     Steve> Vietnam. When I looked around a call centre in Hanoi about 3 years
>     Steve> ago there were operators using different input methods. Some were
>     Steve> entering in a way that seemed close to how French might be
>     Steve> typed. Others were entering using methods that seemed much more
>     Steve> arcane. Perhaps things are shaking out now (I have no idea), but
>     Steve> how can you keep everyone happy unless you bury the differences
>     Steve> firmly in the input method?
> 
> I was under the impression that we were still talking about expected behaviors
> when editing scripts, not about the fact that input methods come in many
> varieties.
> 
> In fact there were three different input methods being used in a small travel
> agency I visited in Hanoi.  All of which treated vowels+accent+tone as single
> characters.  The travel agents said they were used to it, but it was a little
> inconvenient.

I don't see how you can separate the two. If I edit text, I use my
available input method to do it. When I enter Chinese, for example, the
cursor behaviour is intimately tied to the input method (as I said in a
post earlier today). With most input methods I can only move or zap
characters HanZi by HanZi, once they are committed. With some cleverer
input methods (currently mostly seen under Windows, but hopefully to
soon to make progress onto higher planes) text can re-enter the input
method for more dynamic editting. The point is that if you design a
cursor movement scheme, it has to be compatible with the behaviour of
widely varying input methods, or you will be in trouble.

Remember the chosen cursor scheme must behave well in all circumstances
- all keyboard usage, handwriting input, everything.

Regards,
Steve