[sw-l] FOR SANDY: New Fan Handshapes

[Valerie Sutton]

SignWriting List
November 24, 2004

Very interesting, Charles and Sandy! I will document the rules for
symbol construction for each of 8 categories and then point you to the
rules document later, when it is ready...each category handles flops
and rotations slightly differently...especially faces...smile...so your
ideas are more for the handshape construction, which is only a piece of
the pie...but thanks for these interesting ideas! And it could
definitely be a useful software tool if it were not too complicated to
devise....Val ;-)

------------------



On Nov 24, 2004, at 9:56 AM, Sandy Fleming wrote:

> Hi Charles!
>
> Yes, it seems to me that the main point is that it would no longer be
> necessary for Val to create the graphics individually.
>
> Another useful thing would be that programmers would have the choice
> between
> having their program generate the graphics from the data dynamically
> or just
> using a fixed set of gifs. Also that if, in future, there was some
> unexpected development regarding the preferred appearance of
> handshapes in
> general, the whole IMWA could be re-issued by changing the relevant
> algorithms rather than having to do a whole set of new gifs by hand.
>
> My data representation (which, incidentally, arose from studying the
> handshapes of SW rather than being invented from scratch) involves
> making up
> a table with a row and column for each finger and listing the
> properties of
> each finger in the diagonal cells and properties describing how each
> _pair_
> of fingers relate to each other in the other cells. Here's an example
> of the
> "Spock" handshape, which is simple (use a fixed font to read this!):
>
>            Thumb      Index      Middle      Ring      Baby
> Thumb      straight   spread
> Index                 straight   unit
> Middle                           straight    spread
> Ring                                         straight  unit
> Baby                                                   straight
>
> Reading the diagonal first, this says "all the fingers are straight".
> The
> Thumb-Index cell says "the thumb and index are spread apart from each
> other", the Index-Middle cell says "the index and middle fingers are a
> unit
> (ie they're together), and so on.
>
> Although this is a simple example, more complicated handshapes are
> just as
> easy to work with once a system of values for the cells has been
> devised.
>
> Note that it's not necessary to list any entries below the diagonal as
> they
> relate precisely to the corresponding entries mirrored in the diagonal
> (eg
> if the pad of the thumb is touching the nail of the middle finger then
> the
> nail of the middle finger must be touching the thumb, or if the middle
> finger crosses over the index finger then the index finger must cross
> under
> the middle finger).
>
> Other values for the diagonal can be cup, bent, hinge &c. Other values
> for
> the cells can describe where one finger touches another and so on. So
> you
> might, in a more complicated handshape, express that the tip of the
> index
> finger touches the middle bone of the middle finger &c.
>
> Sandy
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
> [mailto:owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu]On Behalf Of Charles Butler
> Sent: 24 November 2004 16:46
> To: sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
> Subject: RE: [sw-l] FOR SANDY: New Fan Handshapes
>
>
> Query Sandy, and everyone,
>
> On generating a handshape from data, is you still have to select it.
> How
> could you do that quickly, as a word processor does, from data driven
> alone?
>
>> From Valerie's IMWA rules, I could see a program being able to
>> assemble from
> the IMWA codes a handshape, an orientation, and a palm facing, as they
> are
> directly linked to the code and one would need a Graphic Interface to
> manipulate the various parameters that make up the IMWA.
>
> Since her rules are clearly defined, it might be possible to make the
> IMWA
> self-generating for a new handshape, if one can work out, in
> principle, that
> "x finger" on "y" base can only be written one way in the IMWA.  If we
> can
> agree to that in principle, then a "generating" system would work that
> would
> enable Valerie to no longer have to actually create picture by picture
> 96
> drawings for any new handshape.
>
>
> Sandy Fleming <sandy at FLEIMIN.DEMON.CO.UK> wrote:
> Hi Val!
>
> Thanks, these look great!
>
> Your lessons on how handshapes were made were very interesting. A
> while ago
> I tried devising a non-graphical scheme where any handshape could be
> expressed using up to 16 pieces of data - it wasn't very hard to do
> but I
> imagine that it's already been done.
>
> I'm wondering, do you think it's possible for a computer program to be
> written that would generate handshpe graphics from data? This would be
> a
> better solution for wordprocessors, instead of having to have the IMWA
> downloaded, which is huge. But are the rules for drawing handshapes
> consistent enough to make this possible?
>
> Sandy
>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
>> [mailto:owner-sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu]On Behalf Of Valerie
>> Sutton
>> Sent: 20 November 2004 16:55
>> To: SIGNWRITING List
>> Subject: [sw-l] FOR SANDY: New Fan Handshapes
>>
>>
>> SignWriting List
>> November 20, 2004
>>
>> Dear SW List and Sandy:
>> A long time ago we discussed some new fan-like handshapes, as shown in
>> the attached diagram. Numbers 1 and 2 in the diagram are new
>> handshapes
>> that will be placed in the IMWA in the future, but number 3 is already
>> in the IMWA. Do these seem readable, Sandy? Thanks for your
>> suggestions for new handshapes - Val ;-)
>>
>>
>>
>
>