Keyboard input for Japanese Hiragana (Ubuntu 14.04)

C: 10th April 2015, Fr / 20 Jamadilakhir 1436H, Ju. [Ubuntu 14.04]
P: 15th April 2015, We / 26 Jamadilakhir 1436H, Kh. [Ubuntu 14.04]
U: 15th April 2015, We / 26 Jamadilakhir 1436H, Kh. [Ubuntu 14.04]

Pic 1 - Really? Hontouni in hiragana.

Assalamualaikum warahmatullah.

Some things in this post:
Keyboard input for Japanese Hiragana and Chinese Pinyin
http://ubuntudigest.blogspot.com/2012/09/keyboard-input-for-japanese-hiragana.html

... have changed since last. Instead of fixing and correcting here and there to update that old post, I'll leave the post as it is and incorporate those modifications in this post. Activities in this post were performed on Ubuntu 14.04 Trusty Tahr. See Pic 2.

There are 5 parts to this post:
- Part A: Text Entry package
- Part B: Setup
- Part C: Testing
- Part D: Other input sources
- Part E: What is...

Pic 2 - Ubuntu 14.04 LTS.

Part A: Text Entry package

I'm not sure when or why i had this package installed.

If you already have this package installed, skip ahead to Part B.


1. Run Ubuntu Software Center.

i. Click the Dash Home icon in the Launcher.
ii. In the search field, type in: ubuntu software center.
iii. In the list of filtered results, click the Ubuntu Software Center icon.

See Pic 3.

The loaded Ubuntu Software Center will look something like Pic 4.

Pic 3 - Ubuntu Software Center in the list of filtered Applications.

Pic 4 - The Ubuntu Software Center, loaded.

Pic 5 - The Ubuntu Software Center version.

2. Search for the package.

In the search field of Ubuntu Software Center, type in: text entry.

The list will auto-filter.

See Pic 6.

Pic 6 - Searching for the Text Entry package in Ubuntu Software Center.

Pic 7 - Package description for the Text Entry package.

3. Install the package.

i. In the list of auto-filtered packages, click the package:

Text Entry
Change your keyboard or input method settings

See Pic 6.

ii. Then, either:
(a) click the Install button to straight-away install the package. Or,
(b) click the More Info button to read the package description and/or install optional add-ons. See Pic 7. Later, click the Install button.

iii. In the Authenticate dialog box, type-in your password in the password field, then click the Authenticate button. See Pic 8.

Once installed, the Install button will change into the Remove button.

You can close Ubuntu Software Center after installation is completed.

Pic 8 - The Authenticate dialog box.

Part B: Setup

4. Running the program that manages the text input source.

i. Click the Dash Home icon in the Launcher.
ii. In the search field, type in: text entry.
iii. Click the Text Entry icon in the filtered results.

See Pic 9.

The Text Entry dialog box will appear. See Pic 10.

Pic 9 - Starting Text Entry.

Pic 10 - The Text Entry dialog box.

5. Adding a new input source.

In the Text Entry dialog box:
i. Click the + (plus) button. The Choose an input source dialog box will appear.
ii. In the Choose an input source dialog box, scroll to and click: Japanese (Anthy).
iii. Then click the Add button.

See Pic 11.

The Input sources to use in the Text Entry dialog box will list the newly added input source. See Pic 12.

Pic 11 - Adding the new input source.

Pic 12 - The Japanese (Anthy) input source added to the list in the Text Entry dialog box.

6. This step is just to show you the 'Hiragana part' about the newly added input source.

In the Text Entry dialog box:
i. Select the Japanese (Anthy) input source.
ii. At the bottom of the Input sources to use list, click the 'screwdriver and spanner' icon. See Pic 13.

The Setup - IBus-Anthy dialog box will appear. See Pic 14.

In the Setup - IBus-Anthy dialog box, under the General tab, in the Initial Setting section, you will see: Input Mode: Hiragana. That's what i wanted to show. You can now close this dialog box.

Pic 13 - The 'screwdriver and spanner' icon in the Text Entry dialog box. It's besides the 'keyboard' icon.

Pic 14 - The Setup - IBus-Anthy dialog box.

7. Switching between input sources.

You can switch between input sources using either (a) the menu bar, or (b) keyboard shortcuts.

You don't actually have to choose between (a) or (b). You can use both -- display the input source in menu bar and change between input sources using the keyboard shortcuts.

(a) Menu bar.

In the Text Entry dialog box, at the bottom left, put a tick in the Show current input source in the menu bar tick-box. See Pic 15.

Instantly you will see a change in the menu bar. See Pic 16 (without tick), and Pic 17 (with tick).

Later when you need to switch between input sources, simply click the Text Entry shortcut in the menu bar and select the input source of your choice. See Pic 18.

Pic 15 - The Show current input source in the menu bar tick-box, from the Text Entry dialog box.

Pic 16 - The Text Entry shortcut is absent in the Menu bar because a tick is absent in the Show current input source in the menu bar tick-box.

Pic 17 - The Text Entry shortcut is present in the Menu bar because a tick is present in the Show current input source in the menu bar tick-box.

Pic 18 - The input sources listed under the Text Entry shortcut in the menu bar.

(b) Keyboard shortcuts.

You have to know the keyboard shortcuts which are listed on the right of the Text Entry dialog box. See Pic 19. You can change these shortcuts if you have to.

The Super key is the keyboard key with the Windows logo... at least it is on mine :)

Later when you need to switch between input sources, simply press the according keyboard keys sequence.

Pic 19 - Keyboard shortcuts to switch between input sources, from the Text Entry dialog box.

You can now close the Text Entry dialog box.



Part C: Testing

This part is to test the newly added input source.

If setting-up is all you need and you've completed Part B, you can safely skip the rest of this post.

At the same time carrying out the steps in this part, do refer to Vid 1.

Vid 1 - Trying out hiragana in gedit (a text editor).


8. Open a text editor.

I use gedit.

Pic 20 - The gedit version.

9. Change the input source to: Japanese (Anthy).

If you seem lost, see Step 7 on how to setup and/or change the input source.


10. In the text editor, type-in this romaji:

hontouni

If you want to accept the hiragana (ほんとうに), press the Enter key.

If you want to change the newly typed text to kanji (本当に), press the Space bar key once.

If you want to change the newly typed text:
i - press the Space bar key twice,
ii - select the entry you want, then
iii - after the changes are complete, press the Enter key.

After you are done typing, remember to change the current input source back to your usual input source. :)



Part D: Other input sources

11. These are the other input sources setup on my laptop:

(a) Arabic (qwerty/digits)

See Pic 21.

This i use for both Arabic and Jawi.

Pic 21 - The Arabic (qwerty/digits) input source.

(b) Chinese (Pinyin)

See Pic 22.

Pic 22 - The Chinese (Pinyin) input source.

12. Rearranging the input sources.

In the Text Entry dialog box, use the 'up-down arrowheads' icon to rearrange the input sources. See Pic 23.

The order in the menu bar (see Pic 25) will automatically follow the order in the Text Entry dialog box (see Pic 24).

Pic 23 - The 'up-down arrowheads' icon in the Text Entry dialog box.

Pic 24 - The rearranged order of input sources in the Text Entry dialog box.

Pic 25 - The rearranged order of input sources in the menu bar.

Part E: What is...

(a) What is Anthy?

The mention of Anthy (in Step 5.ii of this post) started way back in the older post.

Anthy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anthy


(b) What is "hontouni"?

The romaji hontouni was mentioned in Pic 1 and Step 10 of this post.

For the meaning of the word, go here:
- http://jisho.org/words?jap=本当に;dict=edict
- http://beta.jisho.org/word/本当に

For a list of sentences using the word, go here:
http://jisho.org/sentences?jap=本当に

Thanks to my brother for suggesting these websites/webpages:
- Denshi Jisho — Online Japanese dictionary
http://jisho.org/

- What is On-reading and Kun-reading?
http://japanese.about.com/library/blqow43.htm

- How do you know when to use On-reading and Kun-reading?
http://japanese.about.com/library/blqow44.htm


Alhamdulillah.

Keyboard input for Japanese Hiragana and Chinese Pinyin

21 Syawal 1433H, Sa.

Assalamualaikum warahmatullah.


Part A: The Japanese Hiragana

My cousin asked how to make the Hiragana script (one of the Japanese scripts) available on Ubuntu because the script is available on Gwibber but not available system-wide. She noted that it was Katakana that is available system-wide.

The modern Japanese writing is dividable into three scripts:

1. Hiragana which looks like this: ひらがな (reads: hiragana)
2. Katakana which looks like this: カタカナ (reads: katakana)
3. Kanji which looks like this: 漢字 (reads: kanji)

Romanized Japanese is called Romaji.

Read more about the Japanese writing system, here:
Japanese writing system - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_writing_system)

You may find this webpage (one of Jim Breen's webpages) to be useful:
WWWJDIC: Text/Word Translation
(http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jwb/cgi-bin/wwwjdic.cgi?9T)



Part B: The Chinese Pinyin

Romanized Chinese is called Pinyin.

You may find this online dictionary to be very helpful:
Xiaoma Cidian - Chinese English Dictionary
(http://www.xiaoma.info/)

"Romaji is to Japanese as Pinyin is to Chinese"



Part C: How to "activate" Hiragana

After some googling, i found this blog:
Japanese Input on Ubuntu Linux 10.04 LTS Lucid Lynx - Localizing Japan
(http://www.localizingjapan.com/blog/2010/06/15/setting-up-japanese-input-on-ubuntu-linux-10-04-lts-lucid-lynx/)

which was mentioned, here:
How do I get keyboard to write hiragana instead of katakana? - Ask Ubuntu
(http://askubuntu.com/questions/28669/how-do-i-get-keyboard-to-write-hiragana-instead-of-katakana)


1. Accessing the Language Support window.


1.1. In the Launcher, see Pic 1, click the Dash Home icon, see Pic 2.

Pic 1 - Refer to Step 1.1. Accessing the Language Support window.

Pic 2 - Refer to Step 1.1. The Dash Home icon in the Launcher.

1.2. In the Search field, type-in "language", see Pic 1.


1.3. Click the Language Support icon, see Pic 3.

The Language Support window will appear, see Pic 4.

Pic 3 - Refer to Step 1.3. The Language Support icon.

2. Step 2 to Step 4 is to install the packages for the language.

In the Language Support window, under the Language tab, click the Install/Remove Languages... button, see Pic 4,.

The Installed Languages window will appear, see Pic 5.

Pic 4 - Refer to Step 2. The Language Support window.

3. In the Installed Languages window, see Pic 5, search for the Japanese language.

Put a tick in the box under the Installed column for the Japanese language.

Then click the Apply Changes button.

Pic 5 - Refer to Step 3. The Installed Languages window.

4. The Authenticate window, see Pic 6, will appear to ask for your password.

Key-in you password in the Password field.

Then click the Authenticate button.

The Applying changes window, see Pic 7, will appear to show the progress. Allow some time for the process.

Pic 6 - Refer to Step 4. The Authenticate window.

Pic 7 - Refer to Step 4. The Applying changes window.

5. Step 5 to Step 9 is to setup the input method.

In the Language Support window, see Pic 8, under the:

Keyboard input method system:

choose:

ibus

Then the Language Support window can be closed.

Pic 8 - Refer to Step 5. Setting the keyboard input method system.

6. Setting up the input method.


6.1. In the Launcher, see Pic 9, click the Dash Home icon, see Pic 2.

Pic 9 - Refer to Step 6.1. Accessing the IBus Preferences window.

6.2. In the Search field, type-in "ibus", see Pic 9.


6.3. Click the Keyboard Input Methods icon, see Pic 10.

Pic 10 - Refer to Step 6.3. The Keyboard Input Methods icon.

7. A nameless window, see Pic 11, will appear with:

Keyboard Input Methods (IBus Daemon) has not been started. Do you want to start it now?

Click the Yes button.

The IBus icon, see Pic 12, will appear in the Panel.

Pic 11 - Refer to Step 7. Nameless window-1.

Pic 12 - Refer to Step 7. The IBus icon which appears in the Panel. Note that the Keyboard Layout icon has nothing to do with the IBus icon.

8. Another nameless window, see Pic 13, will appear with:

IBus has been started! If you can not use IBus, please open System Menu -> System Settings -> Language Support and set the "Keyboard Input Method" to "ibus", then log out and back in again.

Click the OK button.

Pic 13 - Refer to Step 8. Nameless window-2.

9. The IBus Preferences window, see Pic 14, will appear.

Go to the Input Method tab.

Put a tick in the box next to:

Customize active input methods

From the Select an input method menu, choose Japanese > Anthy.

Click the Add button.

Then close the window.

Pic 14 - Refer to Step 9. Adding the input method.

10. Giving Hiragana a try.

Open LibreOffice Writer or any other program.

Click the IBus icon in the Panel, see Pic 15.

In the menu, change from Input method Off to Japanese - Anthy then type-away.

To write, you type in romaji, e.g. nihongo. As you type, that would be replaced by hirigana にほんご. Hit space and that would be replaced with the kanji 日本語. Hit space again and you get a menu of other ways to represent it, which is important as Japanese has many homonyms.

Source: How do I get keyboard to write hiragana instead of katakana? - Ask Ubuntu
(http://askubuntu.com/questions/28669/how-do-i-get-keyboard-to-write-hiragana-instead-of-katakana)

When you're done, remember to change the input method back to Input method Off.

Pic 15 - Refer to Step 10. Changing the input method.

Part D: Starting IBus the next time

11. If the input method is giving you trouble, try restarting the application automatically by choosing Restart from the menu, see Pic 15.

If the problem persists, simply Quit the application, see Pic 15, and restart it manually, see Step 12.


12. Next time, to start the application, in the Launcher, see Pic 9, click the Dash Home icon, see Pic 2.

In the Search field, type-in "ibus".

Click the IBus icon, see Pic 16.

Pic 16 - Refer to Step 12. The IBus icon.

Part E: How to "activate" Pinyin

I don't think the Pinyin input in my system came with the Japanese language package shown in Step 3 to Step 4. i think it came with some other packages that were installed in the previous version of Ubuntu.

Pic 17 - The added input methods.

13. If you need to add Pinyin, repeat Step 3 to add the package.

Search for the Chinese (simplified) language package see, Pic 18.

Pic 18 - Refer to Step 13. Adding the language package.

14. Repeat Step 9 to add the input method.

In the IBus Preferences window, see Pic 17, go to the Input Method tab.

In the Select an input method menu, add Chinese > Pinyin.

Then click the Add button.



Wassalam.