Unicode support for Uralic languages

[Johanna Laakso]

At the moment, it appears, we have only one Microsoft font with full
Unicode 2.0 support - Arial MS Unicode that can be downloaded from
http://office.microsoft.com/downloads/2000/aruniupd.aspx

This is a very large font - the zip-file weighs 13 MB and the font
itself 23 MB, so DO NOT try to download it unless you have a cable
connection. Trying to install it to an old and slow computer can cause
MAJOR DAMAGE - your computer will slow down or may seize up altogether
and you may have to do a complete Windows re-installation.

Lucida Sans Unicode, at least the version I have seen, includes only a
few Cyrillic letters used in Uralic languages.

Uralic fonts for Windows at http://www.peoples.org.ru/uralic.html
include Unicode characters for Khanty, Komi, Mari, Nenets, Selkup and
Udmurt. The fonts look much better now, but are still far from Microsoft
quality.

The latest versions of Microsoft's Arial, Courier New, Times New Roman,
Microsoft Sans Serif, Palatino Linotype and Tahoma have Unicode support
for Cyrillic-based languages of all former Soviet republics, as well as
for Tatar, Bashkir and Chuvash (the latter two, apparently, only in
Palatino Linotype). I wrote to Microsoft a couple of months ago and was
told that the company DOES NOT plan to include additional Cyrillic
letters in its fonts.

Microsoft is WELL PREPARED and WILLING to add new languages (fonts and
keyboard drivers) to its Unicode-based oparating systems such as Windows
2000 (the latest additions include Armenian, Azeri, Georgian, Kazakh,
Tatar and Uzbek). It will, however, DO NOTHING unless it is contacted by
official government institutions. So, unless there will be a major
change in the attitudes of the central and local governments, we may
NEVER SEE proper Unicode support for Russia's minority languages.

Esa Anttikoski, Joensuu, Finland
esa.anttikoski at joensuu.fi