[Fsf-india] Bangla still off computer code (fwd)

[Frederick Noronha]

Would anyone at FSFIndia have additional info? FN

---------- Forwarded message ----------

[with thanks to the UNESCO Observatory on the Information Society
http://www.unesco.org/webworld/observatory/index.shtml for the lead.
for more on unicode support for bangla see
http://www.akshor.com/project1.html#benunicode ]



February 21, 2002

Bangla still off computer code


Mustak Hossain

Bangla, the mother tongue of the world's eighth-largest population
group, is not included in the cluster of languages that are part of
the computer operating system.

Popular computer software makers have incorporated more than 250
languages into their operating system, but Bangla did not find its
place yet, despite a sharp rise in the use of computers, experts in
the information communications technology (ICT) said.

The operating system is the low-level software, which handles the
interface to peripheral hardware, schedules tasks, and allocates
storage and default to users when no application programme runs.

Bangla has lost its possibility of entry to the computer operating
system due to lack of initiatives and patronisation by the government
and non-implementation of copyright laws in the country.

Bangladesh is yet to have the universal computer code of its language
since the country is not a member of the Unicode Consortium, a body
on formation of a global character standard or universal computer
code. The Unicode Consortium has successfully created International
Standard ISO/IEC 10646 for languages.

Bangla works in the English operating system as a 'mask', and users
have already lost Bangla as a language in the system, said Mostofa
Jabbar, an ICT expert.

There is no Bangla software available in the rules of Bangla
dictionary or according to the rules of Bangla, he added.

"We would not be able to proceed further with Bangla until we could
integrate it into operating system," Jabbar said.

He, however, said the use of the language is increasing gradually
since over 30 crore people use the language, which is the state
language of an independent nation and mother language of a large
number of people in West Bengal, India.

Even, many tribal people use the Bangla alphabet in their languages
like Ahomia, Monipuri, Naga and Chakma.

The then government in 1987 initiated a move to have the universal
computer code for Bangla, but no progress has since been made,
sources said.

As a solution to the problem, Bangladesh needs to become a member of
Unicode Consortium, Jabbar suggested.

The consortium has developed different languages of the world in a
unified language code, since computers deal with numbers. They store
letters and other characters by assigning a number to each other.
Before invention of Unicode, there were hundreds of encoding in
assigning these numbers. Unicode provides a unique number to every
character, no matter what the programme is and what the language is.

Global computer giants like Microsoft, Apple, Xerox, HP and IBM
ignored inclusion of Bangla in their operating system due to absence
of implementation of copyright in the country, said Akhtar Hussain,
an ICT expert working at a multinational company.

He said the companies lost their interest in Bangladesh though having
a potential market, as people use pirated software rather than buy
them.

"If we could implement the copyright laws, the large-scale companies
would come forward to adopt Bangla in the operating system," Jabbar
said.

He said the implementation of Unicode is a problem for Bangla, as the
letters in use are not Unicoded. So, a combination of Bangla letters
and glyphs is a must and a list of glyphs and its standardisation is
needed -- both to bring uniformity and ensure acceptability.

He suggested that the government make a huge investment to implement
the Unicode.

The country requires only Tk 7 lakh (US$12,000) to become a full
member of the Unicode Consortium. Of relevance, Pakistan and India
have become members of the consortium to protect their languages.

When Ekushey February has earned the recognition as the International
Mother Language Day, the
authorities concerned are doing a little for the betterment of the
language.

There is no initiative by the Ministry of Cultural Affairs and the
Ministry of Science and
Technology to resolve the problem to include Bangla in the computer
operating system, sources said.


source:
http://www.dailystarnews.com/200202/21/n2022110.htm#BODY1