I've read selected messages in this thread (on Unicode list) and some messages bring to mind the thought of developing routines or standards to permit toggling back and forth between standard Latin and Arabic transcriptions for the same language, such as between the Boko and Ajami writing of Hausa. (Same applies to any two or three transcription systems used for particular languages.)
One of the benefits of ICT is, theoretically anyway, that one can have text both (all) ways. Which would mean that the user has options, people using alternative systems are not excluded, and the society does not have to debate a decision of which writing system to use, etc. Because there is generally not a 1-to-1 character correspondence in spellings in different transcriptions, I wonder if you don't end up having to consider something that operates a bit like machine translation, analyzing the context of words in cases where transcription of a word in one system could be transliterated into something misspelled or taken as more than one word in the other system. Necessarily, I think, such routines would have to be language-specific. Any feedback would be appreciated. TIA... Don Osborn Bisharat.net
