Last fall and spring I collaborated with my dear friend and colleague Kainani Kahaunaele on a series of podcasts intended to assist beginning students of the Hawaiian language using the N? Kai ‘Ewalu textbook. It took a little longer than we planned, but the podcasts are now online. Please keep in mind that these podcasts are intended to be used in conjunction with the N? Kai ‘Ewalu textbook, whether you are learning in the classroom setting, in an online class or learning by yourself at home. There is a link on the podcast page if you need to order the…
Leok? Y2K7
I’m becoming a bit pessimistic that the developers of FirstClass are going to come through and commit to updating their localization process and tools so that we can localize the client software into Hawaiian and use Unicode. Their tardiness in getting Unicode support into the server and client was irritating enough, and it was only after they shipped the Unicode-compliant server and client did we learn that we would still be required to use our old custom fonts, keyboard and other hacks so that we can localize the user interface. Needless to say Keola was not a happy camper. After…
Is Google In Your Language Still Alive?
Google offers an impressive list of languages in its language options, including Klingon, Elmer Fudd, and Pig Latin. The language interface options states “If you don’t see your native language here, you can help Google create it by becoming a volunteer translator,” and provides a link for the Google In Your Language program. Looks impressive. I recently learned that some people in Aotearoa have translated the Google search interface into M?ori, and I have tried in vain to reach the person responsible for coordinating this within Google so that we could provide a Hawaiian translation. No joy. There is a…
Conversation On Hawaiian Social Network Space
I spent nearly an hour on Skype with Conn Ó Muíneacháin in Ireland this morning. The topic: minority languages in the social network space. I was sick as a dog all weekend, and while lying in bed had a lot of time to ponder our college’s next move in regards to providing telecommunication services through the medium of Hawaiian. While Conn has no specialized training in language perpetuation or sociology (nor do I), I felt that he is very much a kindred spirit in his desire to be able to use his language in as many daily contexts as are…
iPhone Supports Hawaiian Diacritics!
A colleague of mine showed up to work with an iPhone, so the first thing we did was to check if its email program supports Hawaiian characters. He already had it set up to check his .Mac account, so he sent himself an email from GMail which used the Hawaiian keyboard that ships with OS X. A few moments later is showed up on his iPhone, with the diacritics showing in both the subject field as well as the body text. Amazing! We haven’t found a way to generate the ‘okina and kahak? on the iPhone, but at least it…
Hawaiian Social Network Quandry
One of the blessings of being away in Ireland for nine months is that it will give me some separation and time to think out the future of our Hawaiian language technology initiatives, such as Leok? (our Hawaiian language intranet system built on FirstClass), Ulukau (our Hawaiian digital library) and the use of the Ka Leo Hawai‘i archives (about 700 hours worth of interviews with Hawaiian language speakers conducted in the 1970s and 1980s). I have been wavering back and forth as to whether or not it is worthwhile to us to continue using FirstClass, or move on to some…
N? H?k? Pio ‘Ole Online
At the request of the HARA Board of Governors, I’ve posted the audio file for “N? H?k? Pio ‘Ole” on the HARA welcome page. The original plan was to have it played going into and coming back from commercial breaks at the N? H?k? Hanohano Awards this year, but it looks like it may not be used in that way because of how tight the schedule is. Please keep in mind that this was originally intended to be a demo, and re-recorded if it won, however, there was not enough time to do so. My deepest mahalo nui to the…
N? Mele No N? Pua
Kenneth Makuak?ne and I have been collaborating on a mele for a new Hawaiian music heritage program, “N? Mele No N? Pua” (which figuratively is defined as “Music for the Generations”). It will feature two, expansive permanent exhibits highlighting Hawai‘i’s rich musical history, an ongoing monthly Hawaiian music concert series, special educational and cultural events, and interpretive displays – all free and open to the public. There is already a plaque with the song up, but it will undergo change as we’ve updated both the lyrics and the music of the song recently. I was surprised to find information on…
UH Football Warriors = “The Island Native People” In Navajo
The New Mexico State – Hawai‘i football game will be broadcast in the Navajo language, as have other NMS state games since last year. I would love to see someone broadcast those kinds of games in Hawaiian as well. But no, I’m not volunteering to do it.
“Makuak?ne” at the pad, ready for launch!
I’ve talked about my work with songwriter/producer/recording artist Kenneth Makuak?ne previously here. Well, the big day is inching closer. Kenneth picked up the master CD today, and after some final tweaks to the liner notes, the CD and graphics head off to be pressed. The entire process has been a three-pronged effort. I wrote all but one of the Hawaiian lyrics (“mele”), did all of the text layout, worked with Kenneth on the liners, developed his website and taught him how to maintain it. Kenneth wrote all of the music, two of the English songs, arranged and performed every instrument…