I received a request for Unicode text of African languages written in Latin script with extended characters. The purpose is testing some new fonts. Does anyone have access to such digital text of Yoruba?

Don Osborn
Bisharat.net

Excerpt from a message posted by Manuela Noske on A12n-collaboration:

FYI that Microsoft Corporation has released the Windows Vista Language Interface Packs for Hausa, Igbo and Yoruba on June 2nd. The LIPs are available at the locations below. They are free downloads that install on any PC that runs Windows Vista with either SP1 or SP2.

Yoruba Details Page and .mlc:

http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details...7f5b&displaylang=yo

http://download.microsoft.com/download/A/E...F5EB9/LIP_yo-NG.mlc

...

(See also /m353 on this message board.)

Mr Osbon

In response to your post number 355 below, I quote as thus

"Ringtones that are set to "say" something, such as the name of the caller"

I've outlined how it can be done below

YORUBA RINGTONES ALERT
----------------------

Just a little modification to phone contact list, old handsets may not have this feature, user need to check their phone manual about "CONTACT LIST" settings

1.Record your ringtone as ( ADE npe o, gbe foonu re) means (ADE is calling you pick your call)in .mp3,.mp4 or 3gp with any audio programs such as Audacity ( http://audacity.sourceforge.net/)then copy it onto your phone memory card.

2. Or use phone voice recording features.

3. Rename the recorded audio clip to e.g."ADE" the name of the person

4. At phone contact list, "ADD NEW CONTACT" add the person's name.

4. Scroll to a section that says "RING TONE" click it

5. Browse the ring tone list, look for "ADE" then select it

6. Now you've assigned recorded audio clip "ADE.mp3" as "RINGTONE" to ADE on your contact list, it will alert you of all "ADE's" incoming calls.

7.Whenever ADE calls, you will hear(ADE npe o, gbe foonu re)means (ADE is calling you pick your call)

6. That's all, Wao! you're done.


Olalekan
YorubaWorld Information Service

Yeah! this is a good idea, as I've posted on several Yoruba sites / forums that, the best way to promote Yoruba language and culture online at the moment is by publishing Yoruba contents in multimedia format. because support for Yoruba orthography is still at its infancy. Therefore, the use of aural and visual elements along with textual content will aid understanding of Yoruba language.

In year 2002, YorubaWorld forum at yahoo, published an Interactive multimedia Yoruba Alphabet & Number Tutor, we had an overwhelming downloads and positive comments, we also modify Windows Operating System sound scheme to "Yoruba sound scheme" applied to events in Windows and Programs i.e. Greetings in Yoruba on Windows Opening(Ekaabo), Closing(Oda bo), Alert: OK (Beeni), NO(Beeko)and so on.

In 2003, TeachME ABD, an instructional program was designed to teach Yoruba Language online, Visually interactive with an on-screen demonstration.


A full fledge free interactive Yoruba e-content will be featured on our forthcoming web site YorubaWorld Information Service
Pl's Watch Out

The Google web search engine now has a Yoruba interface. See http://www.google.com/intl/yo/ . It seems that they did not use any subdot characters, but do have some tone marks.

Given the tonal nature of Yoruba and the talking drum tradition/technology, and noting the work that Tunde Adegbola has been doing with that, what might be the possibility of doing something creative with cellphone technology that would be unique to Yoruba? Such as:

• ringtones that are set to "say" something, such as the name of the caller
• SMS messages that are tone sequences
  

Don Osborn
Bisharat.net

Edited by author 01-02-2009 02:12 PM
The A12n-collaboration list has had a thread of possible interest under the title "Tech support for Yoruba orthography." It began (or resumed) with a posting by Dr. Samuel Olamijulo on 26 Dec. at http://lists.kabissa.org/lists/archives/pu...ation/msg01174.html

The full archives A12n-collab are accessible at http://lists.kabissa.org/lists/archives/pu...a12n-collaboration/ and mirrored on Linguist List (since 2004) at http://listserv.linguistlist.org/archives/a12n-collaboration.html

Don Osborn
Bisharat.net

Microsoft's Local Language Program is working to localize Windows Vista in Yoruba.

See this story on 'Gbenga Sesan's Oro blog:
"Vista, MS Office in Hausa, Igbo, Yoruba"
Friday, December 12th, 2008
http://www.gbengasesan.com/blog/?p=307

The translation of terminology in Yoruba is available for review at:
http://www.pinigeria.org/microsoft/yorubaglossary.pdf

You can check out more information about Windows Vista Language Support in Yoruba and other languages at:
http://www.microsoft.com/globaldev/vista/V...nguage_Support.mspx

Don Osborn
Bisharat.net

Edited by author 08-02-2008 09:02 AM
Hi, re /m350 I neglected to put the URLs for the abstracts. They're on the ACM Ditital Library Portal at:

A modular holistic approach to prosody modelling for Standard Yorùbá speech synthesis
http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1288084

A fuzzy decision tree-based duration model for Standard Yorùbá text-to-speech synthesis
http://portal.acm.org/citation.cfm?id=1221595.1221970

These are only abstracts. Apparently, one can subscribe (not free) to read the full text of the articles.

Unfortunately it looks like the ACM site is Unicode-challenged - note how some words in Yoruba seem garbled. I assume that subdot characters or combining diacritics were involved.

Thanks a lot I'll check it out

FYI (but not light reading) - 2 articles on text to speech for Yoruba:

A modular holistic approach to prosody modelling for Standard Yorùbá speech synthesis
Computer Speech and Language
Volume 22 , Issue 1 (January 2008) table of contents
Pages 39-68
Year of Publication: 2008
ISSN:0885-2308
Authors
dtúnjí A. djbí Room 109, Computer Buildings, Computer Science and Engineering Department, báfmi Awólw` University, Ilé-If`, Nigeria
Shun Ha Sylvia Wong Computer Science, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK
Anthony J. Beaumont Computer Science, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK

A fuzzy decision tree-based duration model for Standard Yorùbá text-to-speech synthesis
Source Computer Speech and Language archive
Volume 21 , Issue 2 (April 2007) table of contents
Pages 325-349
Authors
dtúnjí A. djbí Computer Science, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK and Room 109, Computer Buildings, Computer Science and Engineering Department, báfmi Awlw` University, Ilé-If`, Nigeria
Shun Ha Sylvia Wong Computer Science, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK
Anthony J. Beaumont Computer Science, Aston University, Aston Triangle, Birmingham B4 7ET, UK

RE: Yoruba Text to Speech

Thanks Mr. Adegbola