Simplified Chinese Input Method (ZIM)

AIX Version 4.3 General Programming Concepts: Writing and Debugging Programs

Simplified Chinese Input Method (ZIM)

The IBM-eucCN code set consists of two character groups:

ASCII (English)
Simplified Chinese (GB2312.1980)

Simplified Chinese (GB2312.1980) contains 6,763 Chinese characters. It is divided into two parts: first level and second level. The characters belonging to the first level are frequently used. Each character is comprised of one to six components known as radicals.

The pronunciation of Simplified Chinese is represented by phonetic symbols called Bo-Po-Mo-Fo. There are 25 phonetic symbols. A Simplified Chinese character is represented by one to three phonetic symbols.

ZIM features the following characteristics:

Four commonly used input methods:
Row/Column. An input method based on row and column numbers of Chinese characters.

PinYin (including legend). An input method based on phonetic combinations.

English-to-Chinese. An input method based on word-by-word translation from English to Chinese.

ABC. An intelligent input method based on phonetic combinations.
Half-width and full-width character input. Supports ASCII characters in both single-byte and multibyte modes.
Auxiliary pop-up window to support all the candidate lists. PinYin, English-to-Chinese, and ABC generate a list of possible characters that contain the same sound symbols or radicals. Users select the desired characters by pressing the conversion key.
Over-the-spot pre-editing drawing area. Allows entry of radicals in reverse video area that temporarily covers the text line. The complete character is sent to the editor by pressing the conversion key.

The ZIM files are in the /usr/lib/nls/loc directory.

The ZIM keymap is in the /usr/lib/nls/loc/zh_CN.IBM-eucCN.imkeymap directory.

Simplified Chinese Character Processing

ZIM is invoked by pressing one of the input method keys. Each radical or phonetic symbol is assigned to a key. The user inputs radicals or phonetic symbols to an over-the-spot pre-editing area. For row/column input, a character is generated when the conversion key is pressed. PinYin, English-to-Chinese, and ABC input generate a list of candidates that appear in a pop-up window. The user chooses the desired character by selecting the candidate number. Invalid input generates a beep and an error message.

The following special keys for the Simplified Chinese input method are defined on the Simplified Chinese 101-key keyboard.

Special Simplified Chinese Keys
Key Function	Keysym	Description of Function
Row/Column Shift key	XK_Row _Column	Invokes Row/Column input method.
Phonetic Shift key	XK_Pin_Yin	Invokes the phonetic input method.
Legend Shift key	XK_Legend	Under phonetic input method, invokes phonetic legend mode.
English-to-Chinese Shift key	XK_English _Chinese	Invokes the English-to-Chinese input method.
ABC Shift key	XK_ABC	Invokes ABC input method.
ABC Set Option Shift key	XK_ABC_Set _Option	Under ABC input method, invokes ABC Set Option mode.
Half/Full-Width toggle Shift key	XK_Half_Full	Toggles between half-width and full-width.
Conversion Shift key	XK_Convert	Converts radical and phonetic symbols into characters. Displays the candidate list in an auxiliary window, if needed.
Non-Conversion Shift key	XK_Non _Convert	Interprets a phonetic symbol as a character.
English/Numeric key	XK_Alph_Num	Invokes ASCII mode.
Five Stroke Shift key	XK_Five_Stroke	Invokes five stroke input method.
User Defined Shift key	XK_User _Defined	Invokes user-defined input method.