From: walshj@SJUVM.STJOHNS.EDU (Jerome T. Walsh)
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.notabene
Subject: RE: Hebrew Woes
Date: 12 Nov 92 16:10:01 GMT
Reply-To: walshj@sjuvm.stjohns.edu
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU
X-NUPop-Charset: English

In Message Wed, 11 Nov 92 19:15:22 PST,
  "James M. Lindenberger" <USERJML@UBCMTSG.BITNET> writes:

>There are odd problems in writing and printing pointed Hebrew.
>Specifically, if I write the only the consonants of a text
>and then go back to add vowel points, what frequently
>happens is that when I put the cursor on a given consonant and
>press the key for the vowel, nothing happens.  No composite
>character appears, no separate vowel, nothing!  Repeated keystrokes
>make no difference.  Neither does moving the cursor about and
>returning it to the same place, or toggling the various font
>pools.  The behavior is inconsistent--frequently typing the
>FIRST vowel in a word replaces the consonant character in the the
>display to the correct composite character, but the SECOND vowel
>will not function.
>
>Sometimes a stand-alone vowel WILL appear, but several spaces
>away from the cursor (the exact location is unpredictable).
>It makes no difference whether I am in overstrike or
>insert mode, or whether I am working in columns or not.
>
>For some reason, if I move the cursor to the bottom of the file
>and type the needed vowel as a stand-alone character (or if I
>type another consonant elsewhere), then move the cursor back to
>the original text and retype the desired vowel, the correct com-
>posite character will invariably appear.  What is going on here?
>

I have encountered something similar in composing transliterated characters
with exotic diacriticals.  Here's how I explained the problem to myself; I
don't know whether it's correct or not, but it works...
  It seems that when you press F6 the first time, the character that the
cursor is on becomes the base character for the composed diacritical (i.e.,
in vocalized Hebrew, the vowel).  IF YOU DO NOT TYPE ANOTHER INDEPENDENT
CHARACTER SUBSEQUENTLY, BUT SIMPLY MOVE THE CURSOR SOMEWHERE ELSE AND PRESS
F6, then the base character for the next diacritical *is not changed*; it
remains the same as the one you just worked on, no matter where that
character is located in the file in relation to the cursor's present
position.  (I suppose this has something to do with the feature that allows
you to double-compose two diacriticals on the same base character.)  As a
result, your cursor flees back to wherever the base character is, and
attempts to attach a second diacritical to it.  Hope this helps.
=======================================================================
Jerome T. Walsh                                   (718) 990-6161 x 5432
Dept. of Theology and Religious Studies            FAX:  (718) 380-3803
St. John's University                              msgs: (718) 476-2126
Grand Central & Utopia Parkways                     walshj@sjuvm.bitnet
Jamaica, New York 11439               walshj@sjuvm.stjohns.edu.internet
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