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From fsug-cusat-bounce@freelists.org Mon Feb 02 04:57:42 2004
Return-path: fsug-cusat-bounce@freelists.org Delivery-date: Mon, 02 Feb 2004 04:57:42 +0530 Date: Mon, 02 Feb 2004 05:41:41 +0800 From: Anwar AU anwar@hackermail.com Subject: [fsug-cusat] incomplete Swantantra Malayalam Computing To: fsug-cusat@freelists.org Errors-to: fsug-cusat-bounce@freelists.org Reply-to: fsug-cusat@freelists.org Message-id: 20040201214141.15376.qmail@hackermail.com MIME-version: 1.0 X-Mailer: MIME-tools 5.41 (Entity 5.404)
Well showing a few screenshots of how a Malayalam Gnu/Linux will look is really very impressive for the layman. But that is no way to impress the guys here with a solution for a Malayalam desktop. The Swatantra Malayalam Computing (SMC) hasnt achieved anything by showing a few pics on a malayalam destop working on someone elses computer. Its easy to show some one that 'I have created a malayalam gnome by showing how it works on my computer and others who need to see this can come to my house. Every One Is Invited.' Thanks but no.
Its really easy to show the desktop icon names using a changed font, edit a few files so that a few of the easy applications are now in malayalam, rename the menu items with the font and worst of all show a web page that shows a malayalam site in full screen. This could be done on any gnu system. If this were to be seen by people of other languages they would laugh at our face saying these malayalees are'nt even capable of creating a locale of their own, and so doesnt have even the basic qualification to stand among us in the hall of locales.
As far as I know, if I am right, the first meeting for the necessity of Indians to have a localized operating system to suit their purposes was first held at Trivandrum in around 1999. The meeting concluded with a descision to make localized versions of desktops for all the languages in India. And after this, it was descided to form a group of developers in kerala to do the specific task. It was called SMC and most of them were from Trivandrum. They started their work on it, and after 3 years these pictures and a few files on how to do this on your computer, is what they have achieved.
The SMC's developers were properly funded and in the end we get to know that the work they have done is using a patented by some one else and could lead to patent problems in the future.They had taken pango as the rendering engine and used a code to support indic module which was a patented technology from IBM. Then how do we call it Swatantra Malayalam Computing. 'I am really proud of you guys. You have done a really great work'. The SMC's GPL'ed otf fonts were made from rachana fonts which was owned by the rachana group and also not even in GPL. This font could have later on made drastic impact on the project if the rachana team went to sue them in the court. But its only a few days back that the rachana came under the GPL.
But I am happy that their work could'nt materialize otherwise, it would have roused too many complications. Every one is free to correct me where i went wrong.
Thanks
True Love for freedom comes from the love for source code and through the understanding of humanity's desire to share.
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