Mark, are there any other instances of a ZERO WIDTH JOINER being used in this way? (i.e. Outside of its intended use with Arabic and Indic scripts, etc.) Please excuse my ignorance.
On 27 June 2015 at 20:06, Mark Davis ☕️ <m...@macchiato.com> wrote: > Nothing really needs to be added to Unicode; vendors could already use: > > 🏳[image: 🌈] > U+1F3F3, U+200D, U+1F308 > WAVING WHITE FLAG, ZERO WIDTH JOINER, RAINBOW > > credit to Shervin for the idea > > > > Mark <https://google.com/+MarkDavis> > > *— Il meglio è l’inimico del bene —* > > On Sat, Jun 27, 2015 at 7:26 PM, Noah Slater <nsla...@tumbolia.org> wrote: > >> Hello! >> >> It is Pride Month and the US just legalised queer marriage in every >> state. No better time to start a conversation about including the >> internationally recognised rainbow flag in Unicode! >> >> Here’s some background reading on the flag itself: >> >> *https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_flag_(LGBT_movement) >> <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_flag_(LGBT_movement)>* >> >> Here's Bustle on the inclusion of the rainbow flag: >> >> > Nearly 40 years after it was first flown, the rainbow flag remains a >> powerful and potent symbol of not only current gay rights struggles, but >> the history of gay rights in America. So why isn’t it available as an >> emoji? The flag is in the public domain, so it certainly isn’t being held >> up by copyright issues. And the current range of rainbow-related emoji show >> that the technology to jam all those colors distinctly into a very tiny >> space is available. Numerous national flags have been emojified. And given >> that the flag has recently been added to the Museum of Modern Art’s design >> collection, everyone is in agreement about its ongoing cultural >> significance. So what gives? >> >> >> http://www.bustle.com/articles/93227-wheres-the-rainbow-pride-flag-emoji-why-the-iconic-gay-rights-symbol-should-be-on-our >> >> This article also includes an example (via screenshot) of how many people >> “make do” without the rainbow flag. Typically, they use U+1F308 RAINBOW. >> This can be seen by searching on Twitter (or any other social media >> platform) for that character. >> >> Indeed, GitHub uses RAINBOW for this: >> >> http://i.imgur.com/KaKQzIC.png >> >> Facebook did the same sort of thing, as seen here: >> >> http://mashable.com/2013/06/27/facebook-rainbow-pride-emoji-doma/ >> >> They also did this: >> >> >> http://www.newnownext.com/facebook-adds-lgbt-emojis-for-pride-month/06/2014/ >> >> These emojis are *derivative* of the rainbow flag, or include characters >> displaying the rainbow flag. >> >> While it can be argued that the RAINBOW emoji itself is usable as a >> stand-in (as above), it usually requires some sort of additional context to >> work. There is a clear need for a rainbow flag that unambiguously >> symbolises queer pride. >> >> This is already going on, with some platforms choosing to use a custom >> emoji shim where no Unicode code-point exists. >> >> This is Twitter’s rainbow flag: >> >> https://twitter.com/ericajoy/status/614822988609794048 >> >> Screenshot: http://i.imgur.com/1kewdN1.png >> >> Slack has one too: >> >> https://twitter.com/SlackHQ/status/602779337784430592 >> >> Screenshot: http://i.imgur.com/8cOK8MH.png >> >> Reddit also offers one: >> >> http://www.reddit.com/r/bisexual/comments/2lc2rc/can_you_see_the_emoji/ >> >> Screenshot: http://i.imgur.com/p6YDRkF.png >> >> In all three examples, the symbol is being used in running text. >> >> I found this: >> >> > [...] the UTC does not wish to entertain further proposals for encoding >> of symbol characters for flags, whether national, state, regional, >> international, or otherwise. References to UTC Minutes: [134-C2], January >> 28, 2013. >> >> http://www.unicode.org/alloc/nonapprovals.html >> >> I looked up the minutes, but could not find a more detailed explanation. >> My guess is that these concerns related to geopolitical issues. Hopefully >> the same rationale does not apply to the rainbow flag. >> >> Looking at: >> >> http://unicode.org/reports/tr51/#Selection_Factors >> >> Here's a quick list of summary answers: >> >> a. Compatibility: yes. There are existing platform-specific rainbow flag >> emojis, as demonstrated above. To build a Twitter or Slack client that >> replicated the native functionality, you would have to use an image instead >> of a Unicode code point. >> >> b. Expected usage level: the rainbow emoji is listed at #168 on >> emojitracker.com, and as demonstrated, the rainbow flag has been in wide >> use since the 1970s. >> >> c. Image distinctiveness: the rainbow flag is visually distinct. >> >> d. Disparity: the rainbow flag is a missing flag. >> >> e. Frequently requested: unsure. I could organise a petition if this >> would help to sway the decision. >> >> f. Generality: the rainbow flag is not overly specific. Indeed it is the >> most general of all the pride flags. >> >> g. Open-ended: the rainbow flag is open ended, being the most general of >> all the pride flags. (Wikipedia lists 18 pride flags on the LGBT symbols >> page, but there are many more in the wild.) >> >> h. Representable already: a rainbow can be represented, but it is >> ambiguous. The RAINBOW emoji cannot be combined with anything pictorial >> that makes the meaning clear. Context is required, such as paring it with >> the word "pride". >> >> i. Logos, Brands, UI icons, signage, specific people, deities: the image >> is suitable for for encoding as a character. >> >> What is the best thing for me to do next? >> >> My proposal is that we add RAINBOW FLAG to Unicode, and that we use the >> “six-color version popular since 1979”. >> >> I only found one official proposal for a single emoji: >> >> http://www.unicode.org/L2/L2014/14298-whisky-emoji.pdf >> >> I couldn’t find any templates for proposals, though I did look through a >> number of different examples. >> >> I noticed that a number of them include the ISO/IEC form at the end. Can >> someone explain that to me? Does it make sense to submit a proposal to the >> UTC without one of these? >> >> I also notice that it looks like I have to provide (or find a person to >> provide) a font for the character. Is there any guidance on that? I am >> happy to pay someone to prepare such a thing for me. >> >> Thank you in advance for your help. >> >> Noah Slater >> >> >