Use your PC to Master Japanese and Chinese
Other word processors (e.g., Microsoft Word) store formatting information for
each paragraph in a data structure called a paragraph mark. It is not possible
to view codes using these products, because there are none.
Furigana
Furigana are small Japanese kana that are written usually above a kanji
(Chinese character) to indicate its pronunciation.
Gloss
A gloss is an equivalent word or phrase in an alternate language.
Contrast this to a definition, which is a sentence that describes what
an item is and is not.
Glossary
A glossary is a list of specific or frequently used characters, words,
or phrases. A
dynamic glossary(4-
6)
facilitates extremely rapid input of large amounts of standard text. See
dictionary(D-
-
3).
Glyph
A glyph is a rendering (drawing) of a character in a particular
typeface(4-
11)
and
point size(D-
-
6).
A character can be represented by glyphs in an infinite variety of typefaces,
styles, and sizes.
GuoBiao
GuoBiao (GB) is the name of a Chinese
document format(7-
2)
and
symbol set(D-
-
7)
used primarily for
simplified(4-
10)
characters. The encoding method is equivalent to
JIS(D-
-
4)
(7 bit) and EUC (8 bit). HZ is escaped 7 bit GuoBiao. See
Big Five(D-
-
1).
Help Topic
A Help Topic is a
Topic Entry(12-
3)
written for and used by help.
Hidden Codes
Hidden codes are codes in the text that do not print, but affect the
display, the printer, or how Smart Characters works. See
format codes(D-
-
3).
You can examine them in the
hidden characters(5-
4),
or the
Ascii Codes(5-
5)
window, or by using ASCII Only
display mode(3-
7).
Hypertext
Hypertext is a way of writing and presenting text with
hot buttons(5-
13):
words or phrases that the user can highlight and pick to get further
information on a concept or term. See
Writing Hypertext(12-
1),
a discussion of hypertext objects beginning with
context reference(12-
3),
and a summary of
hypertext codes(5-
12).
JIS
JIS Japanese Industrial Standards apply to text Chinese Character encoding,
storage and transfer. The
symbol set(D-
-
7)
is divided into three
levels(D-
-
5)
(I - common, II - less common, III -very uncommon) defined. Two
encoding methods(D-
-
3)
are specified:
Shin JIS(D-
-
7),
and
Shift JIS(D-
-
7).
Keyboard Mapping
Keyboard mapping is the relationship between the keys on the keyboard
and the characters they represent. Smart Characters uses
keyboard definition(4-
6)
files. to map the standard PC keyboard to kana, bopomofo, and Asian
punctuation. See the
Asian Punctuation Chart(E-
-
1).
Keystroke
A keystroke is what the computer receives each time you gets press a
key. A
typewriter key(5-
6)
such as a, Q, or 3 sends an
Ascii Character(D-
-
1)
plus a scan code that indicates which keyboard key was pressed. The
arrow and function keys send only scan codes.
Levels
Font levels are a portions of a
symbol set(D-
-
7)
that have been placed into separate font files in order to segment the symbol
set for different applications. See
JIS(D-
-
4)
and
Combined(4-
9)
symbol set.
Macro
A macro is a very short computer program that you create and use to
accelerate text entry, menu selections, or other tasks. See
macro keyboard(4-
6)
and the
Macro(3-
29)
command.
Mapping
Mapping is the
concordance(D-
-
2)
or correspondence between one list and another. For example, the 3 key maps to
the English number 3, and the Japanese letter A.
Maximized
A maximized window is a window of the largest possible size, neither
restored(D-
-
7)
nor
minimized(D-
-
5).
A maximized window is fills its parent window completely.
Menu Item
A menu item is a line or part of a menu. It can represent a choice, an
indicator, or a title. Active items represent choices, and can be
selected by the mouse or arrow keys. Inactive items cannot.
Minimized
A minimized window is a window of the smallest possible size, neither
restored(D-
-
7)
nor
maximized(D-
-
5).
A maximized window displays as an icon in its parent window.
Object Type Code
An object type code is a single
control character(D-
-
2)
that sets the
object type(4-
2)
of the following
text objects(4-
1)
until the next object type code. You can enter
object type codes(5-
11)
by pressing the corresponding control keys. See
Entering Object Type Codes(5-
7).
OLE (Object Linking and Embedding)
Object linking and embedding (OLE) is a group of related methods used by
Windows applications to share data. You can insert an object from an OLE server
(e.g., Smart Characters or
Paint(D-
-
6))
into an OLE client (e.g., Smart Characters or Microsoft Write) in one of
three ways: as a server object, as a link to a server object, or as a static
converted picture or bitmap. You need only double click the inserted object in
the client application to edit it (using the server application). See
Using Chinese and Japanese in Other Applications(10-
1)
and
Inserting Objects from Other Programs(10-
2).
Modal
Modal is a term applied to the meaning of an item or event such as a
character code or a keystroke. Software is modal in order to increase
functionality without requiring a correspondingly large number of keys or
character codes. Smart Characters is particularly modal, because of the large
number of languages that must be written and displayed. The advantage is cost
and size: a standard keyboard can be used. The disadvantage is in remembering
how to use the software: each key has multiple meanings.
Paint
Paint is the name of a simple
OLE(D-
-
5)
server bitmap editor application that is part of Windows and located in the
Accessory group.
Phonetic Dictionary
A phonetic dictionary is a
dictionary(D-
-
3)
that is keyed or indexed by the pronunciation or sound of a word.
Pinyin
Pinyin is romanized Chinese text wo_ yo_ hun_dou bu\dong_de-
di\fang_. The check or underscore indicates the 3rd (low) tone, while the
dot or hyphen is the neutral tone. The first (high) tone has no mark, while 2nd
(rising) and 4th (falling) are indicated by "/" and "\." Smart Characters also
uses numbers for tone markings, e.g. wo3 yo3 hun3dou bu4dong3de5
di4fang3. Pinyin to bopomofo translation is controlled by
keyboard definition(4-
6)
files, typically ChiRules.kbd.
Pixel
A pixel is one dot on the screen or printed page. Characters are stored
and written by a rectangular pattern of pixels. Each pixel has a color. Simple
images have just two possible colors: black and white, while full color images
may have millions of possible colors. Resolution is the number of rows
and columns of pixels that make up an image. Chinese character
font resolutions(D-
-
3)
include 16x16, 24x24, and 48x48 pixels, and higher. See
Resolution and Point Size(4-
11)
and
Point Size(D-
-
6).
Point Size
Point size is the size of a printed character in points, or 1/72 of an
inch. Point size also measures the number of vertical
pixels(D-
-
6)
or scan lines used to render a
glyph(D-
-
4)
in a
bitmap font(8-
5).
See
Resolution and Point Size(4-
11).
Postscript Name
The postscript name is a name using English characters stored in a
TrueType(D-
-
8)
font file for use with postscript printers. The names are unique, but are not
intended for user selection. The
DoubleByte TrueType Font Interface(13-
1)
uses postscript names anyway as a basis for a platform independent way to
uniquely designate a font using English letters.
Preferred Mode
A preferred mode is an input mode whose Access is set to F12,
Side + - using the Keyboard
Setup(3-
26)
dialog.
Proxy Font
A proxy font is a small font that contains the
user characters(4-
10)
used in the document, and which is often embedded (see
embedded proxy font(9-
1))
into the document for electronic transmission, and correct display on other
Smart Characters systems.
Radical
A radical is a part of a
Chinese Character(4-
8),
used to classify characters so they can be identified by sight without knowing
their pronunciations. Chinese characters can be created using roughly 800
component parts, but only 214 of these are considered radicals.
Restored
A restored window is a window of intermediate size, neither
maximized(D-
-
5
)nor
minimized(D-
-
5).
You can adjust the size of a
restored(D-
-
7)
active window by dragging its borders with the mouse (or the arrow keys via the
child window system menu).
Rich Text Format
Rich text format is the name of an interchangeable word processing file
format that uses Ascii characters but preserves all types of formatting. This
format is also used for the "formatted text"
Windows clipboard(D-
-
9)
data type.
Romaji
Romaji is Japanese romanized text. Watashi wa nihongo wo benkyoo
shiteiru mono desu.
Scalable Typeface
A scalable typeface can be scaled to any
point size(D-
-
6)
to create a font. The two most popular scalable type formats are Adobe type 1,
and
TrueType(D-
-
8).
ScConv
ScConv converts or translates documents made by other Chinese and
Japanese word processors. Also converts romaji to hiragana, and pinyin to
bopomofo.
ScDict
The accessory utility ScDict builds new dictionaries of various types.
ScDisk
The accessory utility ScDisk reads and writes foreign (not DOS) disks,
as used in Japanese word computers and processors.
Shift JIS
Shift JIS is a
text encoding(D-
-
8)
method that uses the ASCII
extended characters(D-
-
3)
to make kanji and special symbols.
Shin JIS
Shin JIS is a
text encoding(D-
-
8)
method that uses the lower 128 standard Ascii characters to make Chinese
characters and special symbols.
Stroke
A stroke is a continuous line in a Chinese character. Most strokes are
straight or curved, but many have right-angle bends, and look like two strokes.
This makes counting strokes a difficult task for students.
Symbol Set
A symbol set is the group of characters intended for a particular use.
The most popular single byte symbol sets in use are realized in the standard
roman fonts using the Windows
code page(D-
-
2),
and the Symbol and WingDings fonts. There are various incompatible
Asian symbol sets(4-
9).
A symbol set is similar to a printed
character dictionary(D-
-
1)
in that both contain certain characters numbered with a
character number(D-
-
2)
in a specific order. You can browse a symbol set in the
symbol set view(8-
1)
window.
System Path
The system path is the directory Smart Characters uses for font,
keyboard, glossary, dictionary, concordance, menu and dialog resource, and help
files.
Text Encoding
Text encoding is the relationship between a character as shown on the
screen or page, and how it is stored in a document file. Whatever method is
used has to be distinguishable from whatever
format codes(D-
-
3)
are employed. The notable world standards are ASCII, China's GB2312, Taiwan's
CNS11643, Japan's JIS X0208, Korea's KS C5601, ANSI Z39.64, and Unicode.
TrueType
The TrueType font format is one of several formats that uses
mathematical formulas instead of fixed
pixel(D-
-
6)
bitmaps. The formulas are scaled to create bitmaps for high quality display at
any resolution over a certain minimum. TrueType was developed by Apple Computer
and adopted by Microsoft Windows. Its principal competitor is the Adobe Type 1
format. See
DoubleByte TrueType Font Interface(13-
1).
Unify
Unify is a DOS utility for
symbol set(D-
-
7)
unification supplied with font updates, or available on the
User's Group(D-
-
8)
bulletin board(D-
-
1).
User's Group
Anyone can donate their
vocabulary lessons(D-
-
8)
or
user dictionary(4-
7)
to the Smart Characters User's Group. You can obtain these lessons
whether you donate or not. The best of the User's Group materials are available
in the \Sc\Jpn and \Sc\Chi directories. For new materials, check
the User's Group
bulletin board(D-
-
1).
Unix Japanese
Unix Japanese (frequently called EUC) is the Japanese JIS
text encoding(D-
-
8)
method adapted for the Unix operating system by setting bit 7 high.
Version
The version name indicates the name and revision of the product. For
example Smart Characters comes in various versions: for Students and for
Windows. The latter versions contain more word processing functions, and are
adaptable for use by native as well as non-native speakers. Additional versions
include specific user interfaces to machine translation systems, etc. A
version number indicates the version of the software currently in use.
For example, this manual covers Smart Characters for Windows version 3.0.029.
Vocabulary Lesson
A vocabulary lesson is a Smart Characters document consisting of
vocabulary words or phrases organized one per line in the
vocabulary lesson format(6-
3).
Chinese vocabulary lessons typically have an extension of .cv#, where
the "c" stands for Chinese, the "v" for vocabulary, and the # is the font
symbol set(D-
-
7)
character order number (usually 0, 1 or 2). The
User's Group(D-
-
8)
vocabulary lessons are included for your amusement.
Wild Cards
Wild cards are special characters which indicate that any character can
be substituted when searching or matching. The DOS wild cards are the asterisk
("*") and the question mark ("?"). The question mark matches any single
character. The asterisk matches any character and all following characters. See
your DOS or Windows manual.
Windows
Windows is a popular operating system, written and sold by Microsoft
Corporation. Smart Characters works on the following versions of Windows: 3.1
(enhanced mode), 3.11, Windows for Workgroups 3.11, NT, and Windows 95.
Windows Clipboard
The Windows clipboard is a Windows function to copy and paste text and
objects between and within applications. Smart Characters uses its own internal
clipboard(4-
3)
window and font clipboard for speed. The Edit
Paste(3-
9)
command pastes text from the internal
clipboard(4-
3)
window. The Edit
Copy(3-
9)
command copies text to the
clipboard(4-
3)
window, and exports text,
text objects(4-
1),
and graphics to the Windows clipboard for importing into other applications.
Windows Directory
The Windows directory is the directory containing the version of
Win.com and Win.ini which launched the currently-running version
of Windows. Most windows directories are named c:\Windows, but for those who
run multiple versions of Windows, it is convenient to name the windows
directory after the version name followed by the language name (e.g.,
d:\Wfw311jp, or \W95us).
ZIP Archive File
An archive file or archive is a file that contains one or more
other files. An archive can hold dozens or hundreds of files and their
directory path names. Archives can be compressed to take up much less disk
space than the individual files alone. The ZIP archive file format uses
a variety of compression schemes to yield high compression ratios, and is
widely used on computer
bulletin boards(D-
-
1).
A Zip program makes archives from files, while the UnZip extracts
and expands the original files from an archive.
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Copyright © 1996 Apropos, Inc.