Antw: Re: SW-HamNoSys

[Valerie Sutton]

Hello Franz and everyone -

It depends on the skill of the writer (translator). It also depends on what the writer wants to do.

If the software is used without a knowledge of sign languages, and how to translate, then you are right that any software and any writing system can be used incorrectly.

But a translator who knows sign languages and spoken languages well, and knows how to translate between the languages, and knows how to use the SignWriting-related software to produce good translations, can produce linguistically correct documents using any SignWriting-related software.

In the case of SignPuddle, we have an Editor called the SignText Editor. In the SignText Editor we can write directly in sign languages without any connection to spoken languages. We can also then save each individual sign within a sign language document, into a dictionary, which can then be accessed by DELEGS software.

Inside DELEGS software, the writer can then write the gloss for the sign language sentences that will access or bring in the signs from the special SignPuddle file created for the work…so the writer in DELEGS is not required to do Signed German - a translation that provides proper spoken German and proper DGS can be created using a combination of SignPuddle's SignText Editor, SignPuddle dictionaries, and the DELEG's Editor.

I know the DELEGs developers are planning to produce their own Editor in time, but at the moment, this is how it is being done…

Val ;-)

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On Jul 3, 2012, at 11:48 PM, Franz.Dotter at UNI-KLU.AC.AT wrote:

> Dear colleagues,
>  
> Concerning DELEGS you have to add that "translate" is not the adequate word here: DELEGS simply puts a German word into a SignWriting notation of an adequate DGS sign. If you use a real German sentence, you create pure Signed German. Only if you use a correct glossing of a signed sentence (i.e. if you know how the grammar of DGS), you will get a grammatically acceptable DGS sentence. Moreover, the face is enriched with a full notation of the sounds of the German word used (not only a possible mouthing).
> Both systems, the Woehrmann-system of symbolising sounds within the SignWriting face as well as DELEGS do have their merits for several educational settings and I would not like to underscore the creative work contained in them.
> But: There is no TRANSLATION from anywhere to somewhere. As there are some similar advertisements of "translation" in the context of sign languages /cf. e.g. also http://www.pslt.org/), I'm a little bit concerned about the result of such advertisements when people from outside learn that all these announcemenst were not true. Please, tell the linguistic truth!
>  
> Best Regards
>  
> Franz Dotter
>  
> 
> 1. Now, there is new software from the University of Hamburg and C1 WPS Workplace Solutions, called DELEGS, that coordinates with the SignPuddle DGS dictionary, Stefan and other teachers of Deaf students in Germany, can create documents that translate spoken language textbooks, into written sign language, so their students can understand both languages better and can grasp the content of the textbooks. So the German SignPuddles online are geared towards Deaf Education, and are used with this software:
> 
> DELEGS
> http://www.delegs.com/delegseditor/
> 
> DELEGS stands for "German Learning with SignWriting" but in German of course…I believe it is "Deutsch lernen mit GebaerdenSchrift" (Stefan and others, please correct me if I am wrong ;-))
> 
> Anyway - that specific database is impressive for its educational purpose…
> 
> THANK YOU, to all of you, who have created DELEGS…and thank you to Stefan Woehrmann for making this possible
> 

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