Chitrali Keyboard

Chitrali keyboard کھوار کلیدی تختہ
Language	Khowar
Invented by	RAK
Released by	Khowar Academy & Branah
Year	1996
Image	[1]
Caption	Screenshot of Khowar Keyboard

The Chitrali keyboard چترالی کلیدی تختی is any keyboard layout for an Khowar computer and typewriter keyboards. The first Khowar typewriter was made available in 1996.

“	Virtual Khowar Keyboard enables you to easily type Khowar online without installing Khowar keyboard. You can use your computer keyboard or mouse to type Khowar letters with this virtual keyboard. Clicking the Esc key on the Khowar keyboard layout above will toggle the mouse input between virtual QWERTY keyboard and virtual Khowar keyboard. The key will also turn on/off your keyboard input conversion. The Esc key on your keyboard has the same function.	”
—  Abraham Kifle, Owner Branah Company Alexandria, Virginia[2]’’

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Evolution of the Chitrali keyboard

Chitrali is a versatile language with the potential to expand and grow to fulfil the needs of modern communications technologies.

“	The new on-screen key board will allow the Khowar speaking population, living in Chitral, Gilgit-Baltistan and other parts of the world, to input characters in Khowar language online, regardless of the type of physical keyboard they are using. Talking to this scribe, Mr. Rehmat Aziz regarded this development as a revolutionary step to promote the use of Khowar language in online platforms. He said this on-screen keyboard will let people type directly in Khowar language script.	”
—  Akbar Ali, Correspondent Pamir Times Gilgit-Baltistan, Pakistan[3]’’

First generation

In 1996, the newly established Chitrali language association namely Khowar Academy standardardised the typewriter keyboard. The new standard Chitrali keyboard also incorporated special characters of other regional languages, such as Kafiri and Dangerikwaar. Languages spoken in Chitral and Ghizer could be easily accommodated within the Chitrali characters.

Second generation

The Chitrali keyboard was again modified in 1999. This time the layout was based on the frequency tables and bifurcation (balancing load on typist's fingers) techniques, and the characters relating to other languages were replaced with the numerals.

Third generation

In 2000, the Khowar Academy developed a new keyboard layout for typewriters based on Naskh script. The keyboard had 46 keys to type 71 Khowar consonants, vowels, diacritics, and punctuation marks, and 21 key symbols for arithmetic calculations and digits. However, with the arrival of the digital age, the layout became inadequate for computerised processing that required software^[4] backup to select the shape of the character appropriate to the context, and the ability to store multiple language character sets.^[5] These issues were addressed through the standardisation of keyboard^[6] for a bilingual teleprinter to use both English and Urdu. The new layout was found appropriate for use in computer-based applications and was immediately adopted with modifications for word processors.

Fourth generation

In 2001 Khowar Academy, under Rehmat Aziz Chitrali's supervision started working on a research and development project to standardise the Chitrali encoding. This resulted in the formation of Chitrali Zabta Takhti (چترالی ضابطہ تختی) (CZT). In July 2001, CZT 1.01 was standardised for all kinds of electronic computing, communications, and storage.

References

1. "Virtual Khowar Keyboard". Branah & Khowar Academy. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
2. https://www.branah.com/khowar/
3. http://pamirtimes.net/2013/10/26/khowar-virtual-keyboard-launched/
4. Afzal (1997)
5. Zia (1996)
6. Zia (1999b)

External links

• Rehmat Aziz Chitrali's Khowar Virtual Keyboard/