On 9/16/05, HHamilto(a)doe.k12.ga.us
<HHamilto(a)doe.k12.ga.us> wrote:
Videos could be stored on the Commons and linked
to from the English text
page but the video file size limit would need to be increased dramatically
from 2MB. The sample video in the link above is about 1.5 minutes and is
16MB.
You are kidding, right? You want a 16MB video attached to each
article in enwiki? That would take up, what, about 10TB? Are you
going to pay for that storage array? How about the added bandwidth?
ASL (like all sign languages) should be a text encyclopedia written in
a generally accepted orthography for ASL; users who cannot read the
orthography (illiterate users) may utilize tools to generate
computer-generated signed videos from the text, the same way that an
illiterate English-speaking person may use a speech synthesis tool to
have an article in English read to him.
Kelly
Hoi,
The question of cost is something that is something that should be
seperate from this discussion. In the past I have informed the Wikimedia
community that Kennisnet would be willing to undertake the streaming of
content for Wikimedia. I did ask Jan-Bart if Kennisnet would be willing
to host signed content. I have not had an answer yet.
Many organisations are willing to spend a considerable sum of money to
help people like the deaf to have the resources that other people take
for granted. The idea that because of the "cost of video" we would not
be able to do these things is therefore premature. The conclusion that a
signed language needs to have an orthography is not necessarily correct.
Mark has informed us quite correctly that many deaf people do not know
how to write their signed language in one of the representations of
signed languages. Technically I am not sure that you can call them
orthographies.
There is *no* generally accepted orthography for any of the signed
languages. Even the computer generated videos are not generally
accepted. Calling people who cannot read one of the "orthographies"
illeterate is a bit of a stretch. Typically illitereate is used for the
inability to understand the pervasive written language. Typically this
would be written English in America. When you require people to write
one of the "orthographies" in order to contribute to an ASL wikipedia,
you will disqualify most of the people who can sign ASL. This means that
what you want a Wikipedia to be (the ability of everyone to contribute)
a dream. "I have a dream ...."
Thanks,
GerardM