Instructions for installing a Ge’ez Virtual Keyboard on Android:
Root your device – exactly how this is done will depend on your device and you’ll need to look up on Google how to do this – note that rooting is not the same as unlocking your phone, rooting means you get administrative privileges to update system files, such as the font files we’ll update below.
Install and run the RootExplorer application and go to the sdcard folder
In rootexplorer, find the DroidSans.ttf file and copy it
Go to the /system/fonts folder and push the button marked “mount R/W”, the button will the change to be marked “mount R/O”
Paste the DroidSans.ttf file into this folder – replacing the existing DroidSans.ttf file. Leave all the other font files as they are. It’s probably a good idea to make a backup of the original DroidSans.ttf file first, before you overwrite it. Just rename the original file to (something like) DroidSans.ttf.bak.
Now restart the phone and the new font will be installed
Copy this to your phones SD card and install the application
You should now be able to switch between the standard and Ge’ez keyboards. You may need to enable the keyboard by going to: Settings -> Language & Keyboard then select check the box to enable the new keyboard
To find out how to switch between keyboards, watch our video:
We have tested this installation procedure on a few different phone models, though obviously we can’t cover every possible phone type and can’t guarantee it will work for every device. If you have any problems/issues then please post a comment. We’d also be very happy to hear that it did work for you!
Over the past few weeks, a group of graduate students at Alcalá University have been creating a virtual keyboard for Android to allow the input of Ge’ez script. This will allow anyone using Android smartphones or tablets to input Amharic and Tigrinya in their native script. We’ll be trialling use of this keyboard in our mHealth projects.
As the script contains over 200 characters they can’t all be displayed on the keyboard, so tapping the root consonant character will allow users to cycle through the 7 consonant+vowel combinations to enter a particular character, much like using a numeric keypad to enter Latin script characters. We’re also working on a version where the possible combinations appear in a small pop-up window when the root consonant is pressed.
The installation isn’t yet as simple as we’d like because the Ge’ez font isn’t default on Android, so the devices need to be rooted and the system font installed before the keyboard will work correctly. We’re currently putting together some full instructions and video and I’ll post up a link when these are ready. If anyone wants to try it out now, please contact me, we can provide a ROM with the font and application pre-installed.
Realising the other day that I don’t even know what Amharic or Tigrinya sound like when spoken I’ve now found a few learn Amharic videos on YouTube… the one below gives some basic phrases to use whilst shopping or eating out:
Though not sure I’ll ever be able to pronounce ‘… ligezaw ifeligalehugn’ (meaning ‘I would like to buy…’)!
Unfortunately I’ve not found any videos for learning Tigrinya, though I did find out that Tigrinya and Amharic do use the same script/alphabet (Ge’ez) – but unsure yet if that actually makes things any easier or not!
If anyone has any pointers to videos of how to learn Tigrinya, then please pass them on.
Turns out that my Amharic phrasebook may be of less use than I first thought – I’ve now found out that in the Tigray province (Mekelle is the capital city of Tigray) it’s actually Tigrinya that’s spoken! The script looks quite similar to Amharic, but I’m not sure if that’s where the similarity ends… guess I’ll find out soon enough!
This weekend I’ve met 3 more people who have visited Ethiopia, mainly on tours of the ‘historical circuit’ (the towns and churches around northern Ethiopia), so has been great to hear that they all had an excellent time.
I’ve also been finding out more about the IT infrastructure in Ethiopia, emails from other volunteers currently working there have explained that generally the PCs being used are relatively recent and have Windows (XP or Vista) installed – although they may not always be genuine copies, which then causes problems with essential security updates not getting installed – perpetuating virus issues. However, the networking might be lacking (esp. compared to what I’m used to a the OU), i.e. few servers and no firewalls.
I’m also already thinking about what I need to take with me, what I’ve got left to buy , whether it’ll all fit in my rucsac and whether I’ll still be able to lift the rucsac once packed!
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