[bt-devel] UTF-8 and new module classes

[Joachim Ansorg]

Hi Chris!

Thank you for your eMail and explanations what's going on in Sword.

> Since BibleCS and Diatheke can handle UTF-8 now (if not in their current
> releases, in their next releases at least), I was wondering if/when
> GnomeSword and BibleTime will be able to handle it?  If I remember
> correctly, both are using HTML controls, so UTF-8 support might depend
> heavily on support in the underlying controls.  The respective developers
> can use the ChiGU-utf8 module to test & compare it against the Chinese text
> at Unbound Bible.  UTF-8 works very nicely with Sword since we no longer
> need the Font setting, about which Martin was complaining.  The downside is
> that you need UTF-8 support in your renderer and a good font with lots of
> Unicode characters.

Qt supports Unicode and also UTF-8. How do we see if a module uses UTF-8?
We have to know this because we have to use different functions then 
(QSTing::fromUTF8(...) instead of QString::fromLocal8Bit(...)).
The HTML widget should also support UTF-8 if it was converted using 
QString::fromUTF8()
If we get information how to recognize UTF8 modules before the code freeze we 
might try to implement it.

But I have to test it with a module. Where do I get a suitable unicode font?

> The other issue I wanted to touch upon with respect to the Linux front-ends
> is support for new module classes.  I just want to be sure that everyone is
> aware that new classes are cropping up and are being used in new modules.
> The compressed module class zCom is being used for all new ThML
> commentaries (MHC, JFB, TDavid, and the new Scofield shortly).  There's
> also the RawLD4 class that will be used in the next version of ISBE and
> some other new LD-type modules in the pipeline like the Catholic
> Encylopedia (for which there's a possibility we will receive permission to
> distribute) and McClintock & Strong's Cyclopedia (for which there is a slim
> possibility we will receive permission to distribute if we get enciphering
> working on LD modules).

We support Sword's classes. As long as Sword creates the right things for the 
different modules in SWMgr::CreateMods() we support it. A problem might be 
new types of filters like ThML2HTML because we had to reimplement 
SWMgr::InitModules. Are new filters in the queue?

zCom was supported after recompilation :)

> I particularly hope that these features can be incorporated into BT 1.0
> despite its fast approaching code freeze.  Between Barry, me, and anyone
> else who starts making modules, I would expect the quantity of modules we
> have to start growing rapidly, and I hope they'll be usable once they get
> to the front-end.

Please ask if something is unclear,

Joachim