[sw-l] Vertical and Horizontal Writing, Sign-Poetry

[Valerie Sutton]

SignWriting List
December 9, 2004

On Dec 9, 2004, at 1:38 PM, Stephen Slevinski wrote:
> Lanes are not an unnecessary complication.  Lanes can add a richness
> and
> clarity to SignWriting grammar.  Lanes are not always needed.  But when
> lanes are used properly, nothing can replace their simplicity and
> effectiveness.  If each symbol can have a x,y coordinate, I don't
> understand
> why each sign couldn't have a lane.
>
> I believe using oral-processing word processors is wishful thinking.
> The
> differences between linear langauge and spatial language, for data
> entry and
> display, is too vast....

I agree.... Native signers skilled in SignWriting, were the ones who
requested Expressive writing in vertical columns with SignLanes...that
was their request and I can tell you that it took time before we
hearing people grasped the importance of this, but I am totally sold on
it...Stephen's new SignText will be the first program to give us the
opportunity to create sentences vertically with SignLanes. SignLanes
give us a way to show the visual nature of signed languages. There are
some movements that simply do not have a direct correlation with spoken
languages, and those visual components show themselves well in
sign-poetry...

Remember that ASL poem we started to transcribe? Stefan Woehrmann wrote
the whole poem horizontally, from left to right, in SignWriter DOS, and
now I plan to write the same poem vertically with SignLanes to show
everyone...Both versions will be valuable lessons in how to transcribe
from video...and both versions will be correct and good
documents...simply two different ways to write...

Thank you for your patience, Stefan...I know you have been waiting, and
Tini too...How is your transcription coming, Tini? And thank you, Tini,
for your Christmas card in SignWriting...I just went to the Post Office
and it was waiting for me there!...What a wonderful surprise ;-)) Happy
holidays to you and Henk too!! And to everyone...smile...

Val ;-)


Valerie Sutton
Sutton at SignWriting.org

1. SignWritingSite
http://www.SignWriting.org
Read & Write Sign Languages

2. SignBankSite
http://www.SignBank.org
Sign Language Dictionaries
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