🚀 go-pugleaf

In article <SHEPARD.91Apr10171132@finch.pa.dec.com>, shepard@finch.pa.dec.com (Mark Shepard) writes:
> 0. How is Unicode different from X's KEYSYM standard (aside from being
>    more extensive)?  What are the fundamental technical differences?

You answer yourself in your next question.

> 1. One difference in philosophy I can see is this:  Unicode is a std. for
>    _character_ symbols, while KEYSYMs are a std. for _keyboard_ symbols.
> 
> 1a. If Unicode includes codes for "BackSpace", shouldn't it include codes
>    for more exotic functions such as "Alt_L" or "Meta"?  If not, perhaps
>    Unicode shouldn't include "BackSpace" either...

Unicode's BS character is simply a zero-extended version of ASCII's BS.  Both
represent the _character_, rather than the _keyboard_ symbol, as you pointed
out.

>    Do the Unicode standard-makers see including "non-printable" chars such
>    "BackSpace" as a "good thing" or as a necessary evil?

I believe they would view it as a necessary evil, in order to keep
compatibility with the widespread ASCII format.

> 1b. Is the area of "keyboard symbols" too broad to make a reasonable 
>    standard?

Couldn't KEYSYM be considered a "reasonable standard"?  Perhaps you could do
some introductory research into keyboard standardization.

>    Can we write sophisticated Unicode-based applications w/o a standard
>    encoding for "FunctionKey1" or "Insert"?

Sure.  Unicode has NOTHING to do with keyboard encodings--it deals with
character encodings.  You'll need something like KEYSYM to deal with the
keyboards.

> 1c. Is it possible to build a Unicode to KEYSYM translator? 
> 
> 1d. Is the reverse translation possible (KEYSYM to Unicode)?

That would be like the old Lost In Space episode where the robot states
"Eleventy eleven plus one mile equals six oranges".  You could build a Unicode
to ISO 10646 translator, because they both deal with character codes.  You
could build a Sun 4 to KEYSYM translator because they both deal with keyboard
codes.  Mixing the two gets you six oranges.

I hope this helped.

Crispy
-- 
"It is a question of cubic capacity; a man with so large a brain must have
something inside it."--Sherlock Holmes, _The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle_

Christian Carey (size 8 hat (USA))     uunet!cucstud!xcarey