Transcribed from Moleskine:

1. Spits out raw steno when hooked up to Gemini. Not vertically, but left to right to fit screen, delineated by spaces. [I've changed my mind on this, and now think it should simply be |STENO| corresponding phrase, alternating next to each other, and made invisible or visible depending on what's used to view it -- like HTML markup.

2. Interfaces with simple lexicon (pref. rtf/cre) to translate strokes. Option of interlinear display with space between English words expanded to accommodate steno [again, I think this is misguided, because it further restricts steno output to Plover as a display/editing program rather than a translating-and-piping program], displayed centered below them. Toggle display of only steno, only English, and interlinear. No timer; provisional display appears immediately [with no confusing syntax designators like Eclipse has; option of toggling syntax in status window] and is replaced as new strokes alter the definition.

3. Editing, display customization, and keyboard emulation [I'm worried that keyboard emulation may have to be a more integral step; possibly the first thing through which everything is routed. Otherwise you might get the imperfect emulation of other steno programs]. Raw steno
can be piped to external applications as if by keyboard, as can translated steno. Separate command mode, or integrated?
4. How much Vim integration, and at what stage? [Should Plover be in two parts? One that loads on startup, like a keyboard driver, and allows for instant stenoing into any program with default dictionary settings, and limited options? And one that is more of an editing program, that allows customization and definition and all of that? Very hard to see where the line should be drawn. What it comes down to is that I want my steno keyboard to do everything my regular keyboard can do, with a minimum of fuss, but not giving up dictionary customization, and I want to be able to use Vim as easily as I do now with the regular keyboard. Maybe it means an invisible Plover background application and a Vim plug-in for steno-specific editing features.]


5. Guessing algorithms, metadictionary, etc. Plugins such as Typestriker, Bozzy, IRC. [Until we are able to duplicate Translation Magic, Plover, for all its virtues, will not be as practical as Eclipse, for all its flaws. High priority -- but, I fear, very complex.]

6. Optional status bar with stored (even after panic key) provisional definitions [this was what I was sketching out in the previous post], quarantine [unique among steno programs, as far as I know], one-stroke regex search. No dialogue boxes ever. [that might be a little extreme, but they're pretty damn annoying. Try to restrict everything to status bar, with silencing option]. Mouse support only a training wheel afterthought [Again, tone it down a little. A steno mouse emulator would be damn cool, especially for wearable applications. Might work, though -- one key of right bank, move mouse a little right, two keys, a little further, three keys further still, etc. I'd like to try it out.]

Invisible text (different levels of invisibility?), ability to write to file, suspend and resume definitions, taskbar.

Expand later when there's time.

Eclipse's Alt-R function (in the global window), which takes you to a dictionary entry and allows you to delete it from any of the dictionaries in which it appears, is invaluable. Duplicate it.

I've loaded the entry page as one of my home tabs, so I'm just going to use it as a brain dump for a while, until I've accumulated something worthwhile.

Eclipse bug: jumps to top of screen when new Speaker dialogue starts with a number. What could be causing this?

S + any entry in dictionary + S/Z (single stroke):

If it equals any entry in the dictionary: as written.
If it equals any entry in the dictionary that begins with S: as written, plus -s/-es. (If S,G,Z rule is on)
If it doesn't equal any entry in dictionary, but does when you strip S- and -S/Z off, translate as: "As [entry] as".

Text Processing in Python

The book came yesterday. I've been reading through the Appendix -- a review of Python. It's very well written; apparently the guy used to be a Humanities professor. I've gotten over my block with lambda and tuples and now understand them well enough. Classes, however, still stymie me. I'll keep working at it.

Link for my reference:

http://gnosis.cx/TPiP/

Arduino

Arduino is an open source language and hardware system. Might be very good to work with when building my own machine; certainly more practical than Flash. Not ideal for wearable use, perhaps, but I'll have to look into it. Might want to invest in classes at LEMUR, though the price is a bit steep. Probably should get Plover working first; this is a sidetrack. Still, something to file away.