ASL sign for HOW ;-)

[Ingvild Roald]

Several months ago I posed the question of the inconsistency of the 
symbolset regarding the thumb. Now I know that Val - and Steve as well- has 
put an enormous amount of work into making the system consistent - and yeat 
we are not satisfied. Because I agree with you, Charles - something seems 
wrong. But when I take a close look at my hand with the thumb up, I see that 
if I strech the other fingers of the hand, my hand is actually parallell to 
the floor, not to the wall. So the problem seems to be in just one of the 
rows of the  system - se illustraion attached.
The thumb is in a special position among the fingers - and if I do this 
streching out of the other fingers, and thus do get an opening in the 
symbols concerning the other finger, I do not get a similar opening for my 
thumb - it is still parallallell to the wall. So maybe there is a solution 
that is not too costly in work and time - and would give us a possibility to 
write ASL 'not' and other signs with thumbs up or down - se attached 
illustration

Just my 2-pennies worth -

Ingvild





>From: "Charles Butler" <chazzer3332000 at YAHOO.COM>
>Reply-To: sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
>To: sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu
>Subject: Re: [sw-l] ASL sign for HOW ;-)
>Date: Sun, 25 Sep 2005 07:05:16 -0700 (PDT)
>
>It's WRONG, no matter how logical it is, it's wrong.  It's not readable as 
>it is in that position.
>
>I'd like to see a real poll comparing, not by logic, but by actually 
>putting 100 Deaf people in the U.S. without explaning the system, as to 
>which would put their thumbs in the correct position upon looking at "how" 
>in that writing, which now looks like "motorcycle" with crossed hands.  The 
>Palm Facings just don't cut it on first glance.
>
>HOW   MOTORCYCLE
>
>
>You shift the forefinger for hunh,
>
>Why not shift the thumb for how?
>
>.  Every last one of them would stick their two thumbs out to the side, as 
>if trying row a boat with crossed hands, and that is wrong.
>
>The thumb is NOT up, it's now to the side.  Icons are important.  With the 
>A hand one can understand it, but NOT with the 10 hand.  The visual angle 
>just doesn't match what you see.  If I photograph the hand, and put your 
>writing on it, the thumb does NOT match the hand, it just doesnt'.
>
>Sign writing MUST match photography, at first glance, I should be able to 
>lay down my hand on the photgraph and have a match, or there is a serious 
>problem.  My thumb is NOT to the side in that position.
>
>There is a problem here.  I am NOT smiling, and I will argue, and continue 
>to write it the old way, even if I have to construct the hand every time in 
>every angle.  I think the German fellow made a serious mistake in logic.  
>We've used the system for 25 years, and used it a LOT, and printed a LOT of 
>materials, and I honestly don't think people have been confused.
>
>
>Charles
>
>
>
>Valerie Sutton <sutton at signwriting.org> wrote:
>SignWriting List
>September 24, 2005
>
>Look at the ASL sign for HOW...the style written in number 6
>attached...It is correct...smile...oh those thumbs! smile...Val ;-)
>

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