Monthly Archives: July 2018

A desi keyboard for Indian languages

Business & Economy, Records, All, Science & Technology, World Opinion
Guru Prasad with his Ka-naada keyboard for Indian languages | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Guru Prasad with his Ka-naada keyboard for Indian languages | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Simulator Guru Prasad has developed a keyboard suited for Indian languages

A small room on a terrace in Uttarahalli, Bengaluru, is bursting with a big idea. It is the office of KaNaada Phonetics Pvt Ltd which has just launched their new product, ‘Ka-Naada’, in April this year.

Ka-Naada (ka-naada.com) is a patented keyboard layout available as both hardware (with a USB cable) and software. It groups letters according to phonetics, creating a more intuitive interface for languages based on the Brahmi (the common ancestor of Indian scripts) script. The keyboard is available in multiple languages: Kannada, Gujarati, Gurumukhi, Malayalam, Tulu, Oriya and more. A user can switch languages, using the keyboard of one script to type in another. The current keyboard requires QWERTY for certain commands, such as the control and function keys. The future version of Ka-Naada will have these commands as well.

A long time coming

The idea was born in 2009 when Guru Prasad — a simulator based in Orlando, Florida — saw children struggling to learn their mother tongues. With a Ph.D in industrial engineering (simulation systems) he is an expert in simulation, network architecture, distributed systems and systems modeling. The QWERTY keyboard, he determined, was unfit for Indian languages. Navigating a keyboard meant for English disrupted ‘native thinking’. He worked predominantly with linguist Professor BVK Sastry at theYoga-Samskrutham University in Florida, and a few others, to find a solution. The Ka-Naada keyboard layout was finalised by 2011, the first prototype was done by 2012 and the first full keyboard, by 2015. It was an uncomfortable square shape, and had to be redesigned to be rectangular.

KaNaada has received funding from associations such as Kannada Praadhikaara and ITBT (Department of Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science and Technology of Government of Karnataka) and design assistance from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME), Centre of Excellence, IISc. They received their patent in 2017.

“The response, particularly, has been very overwhelming,” Prasad says. “It is highly intuitive for users, right from the get go. Children, particularly, are thrilled to use it. I have heard comments like, Maine aankhe band karke, type kiya (I was able to type with my eyes closed), from them. For adults, there were some training issues because they are so accustomed to QWERTY. We are trying to work to come closer to that keyboard ergonomically.” While maintaining their current layout, the company is experimenting with the size and qualities of the keys and keyboard for the most user-friendly combinations.

For Prasad, the most fascinating part of his journey has been reviving the script of his mother-tongue — Tulu. “The language came alive. All of a sudden, we have a user interface for Tulu. It is the same with Kashmiri (in the Sharada script) and for all the other languages that might go out of use. This might be a boon, that we can keep them alive through our children.”

Increase accessibility

The entrepreneur lights up when asked about the potential of his product. It could open up job opportunities for those in the rural areas who do not know English. It could be a key learning device, and he plans on introducing a toy keyboard for children to use, as they learn their mother tongue. It could be used in government offices, for desktop publishing, or by visually-impaired users. It will soon be available in foreign languages, including Malay, Sinhalese, and Nepalese, which are all Brahmi-based.

As his dreams grow, so does his work. Currently, the entrepreneur is juggling production, research and development, and marketing. He receives his supplies from vendors across the country and is co-sharing a production facility in Bengaluru. However, a large machine has been ordered in anticipation of a full-scale production unit. He has now tied up with NGOs and is working with overseas students who come as part of a Youth Ambassador programme to distribute the keyboard in various rural schools in India.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Sci-Tech> Technology / by Priya Saraff / July 02nd, 2018

Karnataka man eats 3kg ragi balls, wins competition for 9th time

Arts, Culture & Entertainment, Records, All, Sports
Eregowda swallowed six ragi balls.
Eregowda swallowed six ragi balls.

Mandya :

Fifty-four-year-old Meese Eregowda is the talk of the town after he ate a mind-boggling three kg of ragi balls, which are also called ragi mudde. It is to be swallowed along with Nati Koli Saaru (country chicken rasam).

Ragi mudde, meaning ‘lump’ (flour) is a wholesome meal in Karnataka and the Rayalaseema region in Andhra Pradesh.

Eregowda won a trophy along with Rs 5000 prize money at a competition held at Mangala village of Mandya district in Karnataka. The event was held at Anjaneya Swamy temple premises.

Eregowda has won this competition for ninth time.

Eregowda – from Arakere village of Srirangapatna  in Karnataka – swallowed six ragi balls (three kg in total) in 20 minutes and was declared winner, while Suresh who ate 2.75 kg (5.75 balls) was declared runner up and got Rs 3000. Ramamurthy ate 2.5 kg and got Rs 2000 as prize. Nandish, Karasawadi Shankaregowda, HD Yogesh, Nagesh each ate five ragi balls and got Rs 1000 each.

Sixty-five people participated in this district-level Ragi ball eating competition, where the lone woman competitor Jayamma of Siddakalehalla ate two ragi balls.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> News> City News> Bangalore News / by Channamade Gowda / Vijaya Karnataka / July 02nd, 2018

Remembering an icon who strove for harmony in society

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Santa Shishunala Sharif (right) and his guru Govinda Bhat strived hard for unity and brotherhood between the two religions.
Santa Shishunala Sharif (right) and his guru Govinda Bhat strived hard for unity and brotherhood between the two religions.

Stage is set for the bicentenary celebrations of Santa Shishunala Sharif from tomorrow

The stage is set for the bicentenary celebration of Karnataka’s Kabir — Santa Shishunala Sharif from Tuesday. The legendary 19th century saint, mystic minstrel poet, philosopher and social reformer had strived for communal harmony and traversed across the region (which now forms part of Karnataka ) carrying his messages through songs accompanied by his ‘Ekatare’ (a single string instrument).

Considered to be the first sufi poet in Kannada literature, Sharif lived between 1819 and 1889, offering his ‘Tatvapada’ (moral poems) in Kannada. While historians differ over Sharif’s date of birth — some believing he was born in March while others saying it was July 3, 1819 — the celebrations are starting on Tuesday. “Though historians and researchers differ over the birth date, they are unanimous in their opinion that Sharif breathed his last on the day that he was born that is July 3. As 2018 marks the beginning of the bicentenary year (completing 199th year and beginning of the 200th), it was decided to celebrate,” said Mahesh Joshi, a descendant of saint Govinda Bhat, the Sharif’s guru.

Sharif was born in Shishuvinahala in Shiggaon taluk to Imam Hazarat Saab and took Govinda Bhat as his guru. Both strived hard for unity and brotherhood between the two religions. Even now, both Hindus and Muslims can be seen worshipping Sharif at the temple in Shishuvinahala. Interestingly, Sharif was known to compose poems in accordance with the situation and sing them to spread his philosophy. Though Sharif never wrote down his compositions, his poems were passed by word of mouth to the future generation.

Filmmaker T.S. Nagabharana made Santa Shishunala Sharif in 1990 based on Sharif’s life, whose preachings are likened with those of Kabir of north India. The film starring Girish Karnad, Sridhar, and Suman Ranganath went on to win the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration, besides winning multiple awards at the State level.

It was the efforts of Lakshminarayana Bhatta and various sugam sangeet artists who popularised the soulful poems of Sharif in the southern part of Karnataka, where he was less known. Recently, Raghu Dixit also contributed to popularising his poems.

Programmes

The celebrations is being organised by the Saint Shishunala Sharif and Guru Govinda Bhat Foundation, in association with the Department of Kannada and Culture and other cultural organisations. Former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda will be inaugurating the function. A special music and dance programme based on Tatwa Padas of both Sharif and Govinda Bhat, ‘Tatvarasayana’, will be held at Ravindra Kalakshetra. To mark the occasion, the Department of Posts will be releasing a special postal cover.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> States> Karnataka / by Muralidhara Khajane / Bengaluru – July 01st, 2018