Transcriber

[Christopher Doty]

Kind of off-topic from the original question, but some might find the
below helpful...

Re: keyboard commands conflicting with IPA characters: there are a
couple of workarounds to this.  First is a keyboard layout called
IPAKeys (download link: http://tr.im/i35Z).  It installs a keyboard in
the 'International' settings, letting you switch to an IPA keyboard.

If you still have conflicts, you can also check out a program from SIL
called Ukelele [sic], which allows you to build your own keyboard
layout, and install it just like IPAKeys.  A nice feature of Ukelele
is that it also allows you to edit keyboard layouts, so you could take
the IPAKeys layout as a starting place, and only change the key
combinations which cause problems for you.  More information about
Ukelele can be found at:
http://scripts.sil.org/cms/scripts/page.php?site_id=nrsi&id=Ukelele

One final handy solution for customizing your keyboard is a utility
called DoubleCommand, which lets one modify what the various
'command', 'utility', 'open apple' keys do.  So, for example, I have
the 'enter' key at the lower-right of my keyboard mapped to function
as a 'command' key.  This is a system-wide change, so it won't
directly solve key combinations conflicts, but it can make typing IPA
characters easier/more comfortable. More info on DoubleCommand here:
http://doublecommand.sourceforge.net/

Re: emulators.  Another option, for folks who haven't purchased
something like VMFusionWare or Parallels is Sun Microsystem's
VirtualBox, which is free, and works great.  More info about this
here: http://www.sun.com/software/products/virtualbox/index.jsp

Best,

Chris

On Tue, Mar 31, 2009 at 04:48,  <lr81 at kent.ac.uk> wrote:
> Hi Margeret,
>
> I have had similar problems ever since I bought a Mac two years ago at the
> start of my PhD documenting an endangered language of Cameroon. I briefly
> looked at transcriber recently, but didn't have the time to look into it too
> carefully. I have also played with ELAN, but unfortunately you will likely
> get similar problems as with transcriber. I use a keyboard program to be
> able to type easily in IPA unicode, but the key seuqences I need to write my
> IPA doubles up as ELAN commands so that each time I try to type /ŋ/ it
> causes the whole program to shake. However if you are not using IPA this may
> not affect you and otherwise I think ELAN is worthwhile.
>
> Another question you posed was about virtual PC environments or emulators. I
> have been using Crossover (a PC emulator) so that I can run SILʼs toolbox
> although I havenʼt tried the emulator with transcriber or ELAN. I have found
> Crossover works pretty well, but if you try running too many programs at the
> same time on your computer, the program you are running on crossover wil
> tend to crash regularly. Luckily this doesnʼt necessarily mean lost data,
> but it is annonying.
>
> Hope this helps,
>
> Laura Robson
> PhD Anthropology and Linguistics
> Department of Anthropology
> University of Kent
> UK
> lr81 at kent.ac.uk
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Margaret Carew <margaret.carew at batchelor.edu.au>
> Date: Tuesday, March 31, 2009 5:25 am
> Subject: Transcriber
> To: Resource-Network-Linguistic-Diversity at unimelb.edu.au
>
>> Hi there
>>
>> I've just made the transition from PC to Mac, all ok, except I
>> can't get
>> transcriber to work. I have it loaded and it runs, I see a wave
>> form but get
>> no audio. I'm trying this on a 6 month old Macbook Pro, running
>> OSX and
>> transcriber 1.4.5 - this is the only download that works.
>>
>> I've read through the rnld archive on transcriber questions,
>> somewhere Nick
>> mentioned that transcriber's on its way out. Is this right?
>> Should I invest
>> time in getting it working, or switch to another eg. Elan. Some
>> issues with
>> this latter option are that I have transcriber files that I need
>> to continue
>> working on. I also like transcriber as it's basic and easy, elan
>> is more
>> challenging, especially when I need to use it with students.
>>
>> Another option might be for me to use it in the virtual PC environment
>> enabled by fusion, which I have installed. Has anyone tried this?
>>
>> Thanks
>>
>> --
>> Margaret Carew
>> Lecturer - Centre for Australian Languages and Linguistics
>> Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education
>> Alice Springs NT 0870
>> 08 8951 8339
>> 0422 418 559
>> margaret.carew at batchelor.edu.au
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>