Specification of Needs - Typeface and Software for the Writing of the Sámi Languages

Denne teksten på norsk

General needs

The Sámi Committee for Computer Standardization is looking for a software package consisting of a Sámi typeface, software for a keyboard set up, keyboard interchange and file transfering between different code tables. The package offered shall be able to document the authors' rights to the specific parts of the product and relinquish these rights to the people who can provide us with the package.

Using this package it shall be possible to read and write Sámi text on a computer. It shall be possible to exchange Sámi language documents between machines using the same operating system, and between Windows and Macintosh. This shall also be the case for electronic mail via X400 and Internet mail (SMTP). The package shall also support the Sámi languages in the various services on the Internet.

The word Sámi used here refers to the Sámi languages written using the Latin alphabet, with the characters which can be found in ISO-IR 6 and ISO-IR 197 (Appendix 1a: ISO-IR 197 and Appendix 1b: Picture of ISO-IR 197).

Operating System

The package shall support machines with the operating systems Windows 3.1 and above, Windows NT 3.1 and above, together with Macintosh System 7.1 and above. Packages offered can be valid for the individual systems or all of the above operating systems.

Standard for Sámi characters

The package shall make use of Macintosh Sámi standard (Appendix 2a: Macintosh Sámi Standard and Appendix 2b: Picture of Macintosh Sámi Standard) for Macintosh and ISO-IR 197 (Appendix 1) for Windows 3.1x, Windows 95 and Windows NT. For Windows NT the Sámi letters must be coded after the values in ISO/IEC 10646-1 (Appendix 3: Sámi characters in ISO/IEC 10646), with a transposing routine of between an 8- and 16-bit system.

In addition to this the Macintosh system shall include at least one typeface with the character set coding of ISO-IR 197.

The standard for keyboard layout

The package shall make use of the keyboard layout which the Sámi Committee for Computer Standardization has decided upon. There shall be one layout for Skolt Sámi, one for Inari Sámi and two for Northern Sámi (these two are identical apart from the mirrored placing of Norwegian Ææ/Øø and Swedish/Finnish Ää/Öö). Cf. the following appendices:

Appendix 4a: Northern Sámi keyboard for Mac (Norway)
Appendix 4b: Northern Sámi keyboard for Mac (Sweden-Finland)
Appendix 4c: Skolt Sámi keyboard for Mac
Appendix 4d: Inari Sámi keyboard for Mac
Appendix 4e: Northern Sámi keyboard for PC (Norway)
Appendix 4f: Northern Sámi keyboard for PC (Sweden-Finland)
Appendix 4g: Skolt Sámi keyboard for PC
Appendix 4h: Inari Sámi keyboard for PC

Shifting between keyboard setups

With the help of the Sámi package, the user shall be able to shift between the 4 Sámi keyboards and the national keyboards (Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish and U.S.) with the help of a simple keystroke.

Sorting

When used in conjunction with programs containing a sort function the Sámi package shall allow text written in Sámi to be sorted. The package shall sort all characters in ISO-IR 197 and all characters in Macintosh Sámi Standard, after the list in Appendix 5a: Sorting of ISO-IR 197 and Appendix 5b: Sorting of Macintosh Sámi Standard (but see the note in Appendix 6 on Macintosh sorting).

Local names of days and months etc. (Locales)

The names of days, months etc, shall be in Sámi when using programs which set these in automatically. They shall also be available as a sorting tool (cf. Appendix 6: Sámi locales).

Fonts which shall follow the package

The following fonts are to be the minimum which come with the package:

Proportional width Nonproportional or monowidth

The fonts shall be able to take plain, bold, italic and bold italic text. The fonts shall be of both True Type and Postscript types.

In addition all the system and dialogue fonts shall have Sámi characters.

Installation/Removal

The program shall have an installation as well as a removal program.

Conversion

Included in the solution shall be a file conversion program for the respective operating systems, which transfers text between ISO-IR 197 and the Macintosh Sámi Standard, and from the following character tables to ISO-IR 197 and the Macintosh Sámi Standard:

  • Appendix 7a: Latin 4
  • Appendix 7b: Winsam
  • Appendix 7c: Samtast
    Back to competition invitation