Committee Reports > List of Committees > Joint > 1988 > Committee on the Irish Language (2nd Committee) > Report No. 05 - Influence of Computerisation on the Irish Language

1 Introduction

1.1.1It is only thirty years since the first computer was introduced into this country, when the Irish Sugar Company installed one in their offices in Thurles. The following ten years saw little expansion in their use here. The first machine in the Public Service was that of the Revenue Commissioners in 1963 and in 1967 both the Land Commission and the Department of Defence purchased computers. By the year 1969 there were 59 machines in the country, the majority in the Universities, the Semi-State bodies, in the Public Service and a very small number in private companies.

1.1.2All these computers were intended for business use and in particular number crunching. They were all large, expensive and powerful inasmuch as they could very quickly undertake basic clerical work. They were usually to be found in the backroom and were only accessible to a very small number of specialist staff - the information managers who acted as mediators to establish user needs and implement these on the equipment. Usually the wider public was unaware of the presence of such machinery behind the office backdrop, until faults developed in the systems or their operators and bills for one million pounds or for zero sums were issued!

1.1.3This relative invisibility endowed these computers with a degree of public awe. They were controlled by specialists and were seen as controlling daily life in some mysterious fashion. Certainly some of this distrust was well-placed, for as long as this invisible equipment existed without any great understanding of its role by the ordinary person, the more possible was it to imagine it as all-powerful. The results of computerisation could be seen but the computers themselves could not.

1.2.1A major revolution in the world of computing occurred about ten years ago with the appearance of the microcomputer, or the personal computer as it came to be known. This latter name gives us an inkling of the fundamental change which this new era of computing wrought in public attitudes. Now, in place of the mainframes in the backroom, we have the inexpensive computer on the office desk, visible, manageable and, most importantly, entirely under the control of the end user. Of course, the expansion of the mainframe machines continued through this period and we have a fairly clear idea of the numbers of such equipment and the uses to which they are put. But it is impossible to reckon the numbers of personal computers and the variety of programs being run on them. We know, for example, that the total CPU memory power of computers in the Public Service here at the end of 1986 was 600MB and that most of these were involved in number crunching. There has in fact been an increase over the past few years of about 35% per annum in the use of computers in the State system. But without even going outside the world of education, it is estimated that post-primary schools have an average of ten microcomputers each, engaged in a range of data handling and processing.

1.2.2This new freedom brought another change in the use of computers. Human beings usually think in language rather than in numbers and it is this facet of communication with personal computers which has brought the microcomputer much closer to stage centre in the public mind. As we now look to the future of computing, it is clear that language based communication is going to become the major means of intercourse between operators and computing equipment.

1.3.1It is this increasing importance of language in dealing with computers which brings the question of Irish to the fore. As we explain below, computer science has mainly grown out of the world of English and it is through that language that most communication with computers takes place. The Joint Committee in this Report wishes to examine some of the problems which face us in this situation and to make a number of recommendations designed to ameliorate those involving the Irish language. It is clear to us all that this new technology has an inordinate effect on the public mind, particularly on young people. Unless a number of urgent steps are taken to raise and establish the status and position of Irish vis-à-vis the new technology, regard for the language will suffer and the cultural and intellectual life of this country will be the poorer. However, if we can take these necessary steps, the result will be an enrichment, not only for Irish, but for the general development of information science.

1.3.2The members of the Joint Committee would like to express their thanks to organisations and individuals listed in Appendix 1 who contributed to this Report through submissions or by providing information. We are also grateful to Dr Cathair Ó Dochartaigh, who has acted as Advisor to the Joint Committee, and to the Clerk to the Joint Committee, Seosamh Ó Riain, Uasal, and to his assistant for their contribution to the research in preparing and writing this Report.

2 A foundation for Irish

2.1.1As the main thrust of this report is directed toward the processing of Irish language materials on computer based equipment, it must be ensured from the outset that the basic necessities are available for this purpose. The principal need is that the computer be capable of handling text, or any collection of characters, according to the norms of the language in which that text is written. This ability in the computer is based on a numeric system of encoding whereby a relationship is established internal to the computer between a particular set of numbers and the letters of the alphabet. This relationship is employed by the computer in handling and processing characters and text.

2.1.2What is implied by such text processing, is that the computer should be provided with the ability of manipulating letters in the context of words and of handling words in long series - in sentences, articles, books, etc. This ability may be compared with the power of computers to handle numbers in various contexts - addition and multiplication, for example. As a foundation for these abilities, the computer itself must offer certain facilities.

2.1.3These needs can be examined from the point of view both of the hardware and of the software designed to run on it, but it must be understood that these two areas are intimately connected and that it is not always possible to consider each in complete isolation from the other.

2.1.4In any work with computers, is is possible to identify three areas where character processing is involved. These are, the keyboard used for the input to the computer, the internal storage system of the various characters and thirdly, the output - that is the characters as they appear either on the screen or are seen on printer output. In addition to these areas, increasing stress is being laid on the interconnectivity of computers and it must be ensured that one system should be capable of exchanging material and text easily with any other system. These various areas of interest are dealt with below.

2.1.5As the initial development of computers took place mainly in the world of English, it is not surprising that all text software and associated hardware was designed around the needs of that language. Of course, the only difference between English and Irish as far as the alphabet of characters is concerned lies in the use of the accented vowels in Irish and the absence of a few letters (k, w) from that language. However, from the point of view of character processing, these differences effectively mean that programs which are designed on the basis of the alphabetic structure of English cannot be easily adapted for Irish usage. As well as these basic differences in the alphabet, there are other distinctions between the two languages. For example, attention must be paid to the initial mutations of words if Irish is to be correctly handled in a word processor environment.

2.1.6The handling of the acute accent by computers is probably the most immediate of the questions raised in the submissions received from various bodies. (See Appendix 2 where a number of extracts from these submissions are given.) When microcomputers began to appear widely among the public in this country several years ago (i.e. in the schools and in businesses, or in communication with the public), little attention was paid to the needs of Irish and only systems suitable for English were introduced, both hardware and software.

2.1.7An example of this is the decision made by the Department of Education to support a particular system of computers for schools. When the contract for this scheme was being discussed by the Department, the problems of Irish were not examined closely. This lack of planning has meant that it is not possible to make educational software in Irish available for this group of machines.

2.2.1The principal need in all of this is that of the basic storage of the various characters within the computer itself. This must be examined before anything else as it is on this internal storage system that the connections between the computer and its surrounding environment are based. As we have already stated, an internal relationship is established in the computer between a series of numbers and a series of characters in an alphabet. The most usual encoding here in microcomputers designed for the English language is the ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange) code. This coding is based on establishing a relationship between characters and numbers in the series 0 - 127 and was first designed for English over ten years ago. In the meantime, however, a number of advances has taken place, as the usage of computers, in particular microcomputers, has spread out from the world of English and several encoding systems have been proposed to cater for the needs of different languages.

2.2.2When computer manufacturers began to deal with the world of microcomputers, the ASCII coding of the time left a degree of freedom for them to encode other characters into the internal representation. They were able to make use of numbers in the series 128 - 255 to represent characters other than English language ones. As as result of this freedom, the main computer manufacturers adopted different encoding representations in the space available to them. For example, the system used by Wang is not the same as that used by Apple in this range.

2.2.3The IBM PC has probably had the greatest influence on the massive growth of computers among the wider public and the character encoding system which it has established has become a de facto standard because of the large user base. In this system one has access to a range of characters for various languages which make use of one form or another of the roman alphabet. From the point of view of Irish, the lowercase vowels are available with acute accent, but only uppercase E is provided with an accent. This difficulty may be overcome by various software schemes, but these are usually not too satisfactory as solutions.

2.2.4In the most recent microcomputer system from IBM a wider choice is provided for the user in this area. With this system, various different character sets, at the choice of the user, can be downloaded and two of these, Code Page 850 and 860, are entirely suitable for use with Irish. We consider it unfortunate, however, to note from documentation received from IBM, that the encoding schemes on these code pages do not conform to the international standard which forms the basis of the Irish standard for internal character coding (see Appendix 4). We would recommend that IBM, as a de facto establisher of computer standards, should make available an encoding set which conforms to the international standard (ISO 8859/1), and, through this, to the Irish standard. This is a standard which covers the needs of the character sets of most European languages and if it were to be widely implemented within the European Community, would solve a number of the problems of handling such sets. We would also wish to see other computer manufacturers making available coding sets which follow the international standards.

2.2.5The Joint Committee welcomes the directive from the Department of Finance (Reference E 167/2/88 - see Appendix 4 following) and we hope that this will be followed throughout the State system. In particular, we would like to draw the attention of the Department of Education to the details of this directive and we would recommend that these should be put into effect as soon as possible in the area of computer usage in the schools.

2.2.6Although these directives apply to the State system only, the Joint Committee is of the opinion that other services in the public sector should operate them also. Any body using computers in their dealings with the public ought to be able to send out letters, etc., in Irish. Although we have seen a long listing of mainframe and other computers in use by the Local Authorities, it is claimed of most of them that they are not capable of handling the acute accent. Against this, the Director of the Computer Services Board for Local Government has informed us that it is believed that any equipment which is recommended, or which will be recommended in the future, is capable of providing an output in Irish, if such is requested from the users. The Joint Committee would like to draw the attention of the Department of the Environment and of the Local Authorities to this comment and would recommend that the directives from the Department of Finance should be extended to the whole of the public sector.

2.2.7Although the Joint Committee is encouraged by these proposals from the Department of Finance, we feel that they could be strengthened by their implementation through a Statutory Instrument by the Minister for Industry and Commerce. Such a decision would give legal backing to the proposals and mean that every piece of computer equipment sold here would handle Irish characters in an identical fashion. Since the proposed coding derives from an international standard, it has the additional advantage of being able to handle most European languages. We feel that we will come under increased pressure in the future from the European Community, irrespective of any advantages for Irish, to move in the direction of a trans-national standard as we approach the ‘open market’ in 1992. We must ensure that specific attention is paid to the needs of Irish in any system which is implemented.

2.3.1Other aspects of handling Irish are concerned with the physical interfaces between the computer and its users. The first of these is the keyboard used to input textual or other material to the computer. The computer keyboard has descended from the typewriter keyboard and shows clear evidence of this ancestry. In this country the QWERTY keyboard is used, with various modifications to cater for the needs of Irish. The most common of these is probably the provision of a dead key on the keyboard, to be used in conjunction with a vowel symbol to strike an accented vowel. Other modifications are also possible: the five accented vowels, upper- and lowercase, could be assigned to five underused keys.

2.3.2Any of the above systems can be implemented on most computers by means of modifications to the keyboard interpretation software. In the light of the flexibility of such software, the members of the Joint Committee do not feel that it is a matter for them to recommend any single solution to the keyboard implementation of the acute accented vowels. If the internal character encoding follows the standard system recommended above, we would prefer to leave the choices regarding the layout of the keyboard to the users. However we would like to stress that potential users will be best served if suppliers of computer equipment present such choices clearly and make it possible for reasoned decisions to be made.

2.3.3Apart from the keyboard, there are a number of other methods of inputting material to the computer. The only one of these which has any relevance for the case of Irish is the optical character reader. This can be used to input textual material directly into the computer from typescript or from a book, without making use of the keyboard. If it is intended to use such devices for the purposes of reading Irish text, it is important that the supplied software can identify and encode correctly all accented vowels, both lower- and uppercase.

2.4.1If the keyboard is the users’ principal means of ingress to the computer, the screen and the printer are the two chief sources of output. The first of these is an ephemeral medium but the second provides permanent hardcopy on paper and this difference between the two output media means that they must be considered independently of each other.

2.4.2The screen or visual display unit (VDU) represents a window into part of the computer’s memory which provides an opportunity for the operator to receive immediate feedback on material input through the keyboard or otherwise. This implies that the characters which appear on the screen must be clearly legible. From the point of view of Irish, it should be ensured that vowels with an acute accent are clearly distinguished from those without it and that the user does not have to strain to distinguish the two. It may be useful, as in some current implementations, to show the accented vowels as somewhat smaller than their unaccented congeners in order to make the distinction as clear as possible. Particularly in the case of accented ‘i’, it is not always the case that this is distinguished as well as it might be from the unmodified vowel. The Joint Committee feels that it is a matter for the user to ensure that any system supplied should be suitable for the purposes to which it will be put.

2.5.1Although it is often asserted that the era of the paperless office is almost upon us, it is clear that modern office technology has simply added to the existing mounds of paperwork. There are three principal types of printer in use with computers at present, each with its own advantages and disadvantages. These are, the dot-matrix printer, the daisy wheel printer and the laser printer. The first and last of these are usually capable of downloading different sets of characters to be used at the users’ choice for the output. This possibility means that it is well within the powers of the user, or the seller, to make available the accented vowels for Irish. The Joint Committee therefore welcomes the proposal from the Department of Finance that it is a matter for the suppliers to ensure that printers be adjusted to provide for an Irish output (Appendix 4).

2.5.2The dot-matrix printer is normally the least expensive of the three types and is used commonly to provide quick copies of material. As has been pointed out, it is both easy and cheap to provide accented vowels for most dot-matrix printers. Even if such vowels cannot be printed as single characters, it is usually possible to output them as composite characters of the basic vowel symbol accompanied by a superposed acute accent.

2.5.3The daisy wheel printer provides a higher standard of print and is used for letters and other wide-circulation documents. It is important, therefore, that such equipment should be capable of handling the acute accent on vowels correctly. Once again, the directions for the State system cover such printers and the Joint Committee accepts that adjustments similar to those with the other printer technologies will be made as necessary.

2.5.4The highest standard of printer output is at present found with the laser printer and it would seem that this type will gradually be extended to cover areas presently served by daisy wheel printers. Though such printers are more expensive than other types, they do have a number of advantages: speed of printing, high standard of output and flexibility in the design and choice of character fonts. The Joint Committee sees no difficulties as far as Irish is concerned, provided that such laser printers are suitably adjusted according to the recommendations above.

2.5.5As a postscript on the matter of printers, the Joint Committee would like to draw attention to one further possibility from the point of view of handling Irish output. Daisy wheel printers, like typewriters, only provide for a limited range of predefined characters. However, as has been pointed out, it is relatively easy with both dot-matrix and laser printers for additional character fonts to be designed for use by them. This freedom means that it is possible to escape somewhat from the tyranny of the typewriter and to once again provide for Irish script (cló Gaelach) in printed documents, if this is wished for. Such an output would not add anything to the costs of the printout, and such a font could be trialled at first through its use as a decorative headline in general printed matter.

2.6.1Although most of the discussion so far has concerned standalone computers, it must also be recognized that different computer systems do interchange data - on disk, on tape or through direct on-line connection. The third option here is one where this type of data exchange will become increasingly important as more and more computers are linked together in networks. In addition, central databases will become more accessible to personal computer users and it is important that a standard for textual transmission is available so that any Irish materials in such databases can be accessed by the public as required.

2.6.2The Joint Committee would therefore propose that, where a software package is provided for data communications purposes, it should be capable of both transmitting and receiving correctly the internal character codes proposed for use in Irish. That is, the software should convert as necessary from the internal coding to the external text transmission standards and vice versa.

2.7.1There is one further aspect of character handling on computers which it is worth considering here - that is, the ability to sort text according to some alphabetical order. Such sorting of text by computer is based on the internal coding of the characters and these are sorted correctly by reference to their position in the numeric encoding (in the range 0 - 255). Although this question is more concerned with software, it may be dealt with here as it is so closely connected with the encoding system in use.

2.7.2If the recommendations regarding the use of the Irish standard for the internal encoding of accented vowels are followed, then such vowels cannot be sorted to their correct place in the alphabetic sequence if the normal sorting programs are used. These programs, based as they are on English alphabeticisation, will place the accented vowels at the end of the alphabet, after the letter ‘z’. The Joint Committee recommends that suitable software programs should be made available for dealing with these accented vowels of Irish. Although programs designed for English cannot be used correctly with Irish, the reverse is not true - only one type of sorting program is needed to cover the needs of both languages.

2.7.3However such sorting programs based only on character by character sorting are relatively simple and cannot answer all the problems associated with sorting Irish text, where the hyphen, the raised comma, prefixed-h and the mutation-h, etc., must all be considered. Some of these difficulties are discussed in the following chapter.

2.8.1Moving away somewhat from these technical problems, we may identify one further basic need for Irish. This is the new terminology which has to be provided in order to allow the language to handle the range of additional experiences with which we are faced. In this area, the opinion of the Joint Committee is that the Department of Education, through its Terminology Committee and An Gúm, should make available as soon as possible a series of lists of terms, or even a handbook of computer-associated terminology. These publications could be directed at various groups in turn - for example, a textbook or books for the schools, a handbook for office use, lists of technical terms for researchers and teachers, etc. Such new terminology should then be used in the Irish language media so that it becomes a familiar part of the landscape and serves to increase computer awareness on the part of the public.

2.9.1In our discussions and contacts with various large computer companies in this country, we have perceived no foot dragging in the matter of Irish. It is clear to them that there are a number of needs to be satisfied and they are happy to address most of the problems identified above. Most influence on computer purchasing has to be at the level of the public and state sectors and we would like to emphasize that movement in this area depends on consumer demand. Unless Irish speakers do require of the public and state sectors, as well as of the computer dealers, that they provide certain facilities, then no movement will take place and the language will be further impoverished.

3 Software for Irish

3.1.1Computerisation balances on a tripod, the first leg of which represents the hardware or the computer considered as a simple electronic skeleton. The second leg is the software which allows the computer to act according to some predesigned program. This area has been our major interest in the preceding chapter, when we discussed the basic problems related to the close connection between the software and the hardware. The present chapter is concerned with the relationship between the user, the third leg of the tripod, and the computer. This connection is always mediated through the software and one must consider both computer on one side of the software interface and the user on the other. It is the connection between software and user which is the focus here.

3.2.1As has already been explained, most of the advances in the world of informatics have been made through English, particularly in the field of computer based information technology. This means that English is the dominant language seen by the user in working with most software packages. English is used on the screen to display menu choices or to give a warning of an error situation. It is also used when the user interacts with a database to extract relevant facts. Although this latter usage only requires a limited range of language, a great deal of current research is focussed on bringing the user interface much closer to natural language - that is, everyday English.

3.2.2In the opinion of the Joint Committee, Irish speakers should have the facility of using the language as a medium of communication with computers, whether in a word processor or any other type of software package. This is a basic need for the status of the language in the context of computerisation and unless it is made clear that Irish is fully capable of operating with these new facilities, it will be further marginalised.

3.3.1To ensure that appropriate facilities are made available for Irish, one needs a number of developments at the level of software. The first of these is concerned with the menus which are presented on screen to determine the user’s choice of function. Such menus can be seen, for instance, in a number of word processors and on a large number of software packages concerned with data handling.

3.3.2In the case of microcomputers, the Joint Committee would recommend that a number of computer programs should be made available in which Irish is used as the medium of communication between the machine and its users. The Joint Committee does not believe it to be right to spread scarce resources thinly by attempting to develop completely new Irish language versions of applications programs at this stage. Rather, we would prefer to see Irish translations of currently well-established and widely used packages.

Among the software needs here we would mention a word processor, a database system and a spreadsheet program. In addition, there will soon be a need for an Irish communications package, in order to encourage and enhance data interchange between computers.

3.3.3In addition to the above, Irish versions of the appropriate handbooks and training manuals for such software will be required.

3.4.1Outside the immediate area of the microcomputer, the public will come increasingly into contact with computers in the area of information handling in general. A good illustration of this is the growing use of on-line catalogues in libraries. With these, the user searches for books or other materials, not on the cards of the traditional catalogue, but through the keyboard and screen of the computer. The Joint Committee would urge that where such systems are introduced, the public should be given the choice of on-screen menus and messages in Irish or English as wished (see 5.3.3).

3.5.1As regards the needs of Irish in the area of word processing, the Joint Committee understands that a current project will develop spellcheck software for Irish (see Appendix 3.3). We welcome this development and hope that it will soon be made available.

3.5.2The research required for this latter package will also be of value in the area of sorting programs which were discussed in the previous chapter. Programs will be needed for the special needs of Irish which will be able to handle correctly, for example, word-initial mutations. The Joint Committee would also wish to see a package which allowed for the correct hyphenation of Irish words to be used in conjunction with a word processor.

3.6.1In addition to the above-mentioned software, there are various training packages available to develop general computing skills. Among these are familiarisation courses on the computers themselves, courses for self-tuition in typing and computer keyboarding, and many packages aimed at the educational world. Once again here, the members of the Joint Committee are of the opinion that such materials should be made available with Irish as the language of computer-user communication. The needs of schools and the particular problems associated with this area are discussed in Chapter 4.

3.6.2The members of the Joint Committee would like to draw attention to one further area here, as it has overwhelming importance for the development of young people’s interest in computers and computing. This is the field of computer games, in particular adventure games. In such games the player interacts directly with the computer, asking questions, collecting information and giving directions to the game personality which is controlled through the computer. Limited sub-sets of the English language are used in this communication with the computer. The Joint Committee members are of the opinion that such games could be produced with Irish as the basis of the messages and commands and that these could be used to provide a degree of practice in the language in a situation where the emphasis is more on game-playing than on learning.

3.7.1The most intense research field at the moment on the interface between computer and user lies in the area of spoken communication. With this, the computer would be enabled to understand natural speech and act according to spoken commands instead of the commands which are input at present through the keyboard. In addition, the computer would be able to speak, in some way, to the user, instead of outputting messages through the screen.

3.7.2This is a complicated and difficult field and it is clear to the members of the Joint Committee that no basic research on the needs of Irish in this area is taking place in Ireland at the moment. What is needed here is collaboration between computer scientists and linguists and we would recommend that support should be given for any proposed research scheme here, in third level institutes or elsewhere. It is clear to us, from the experience in other countries, that the major computer manufacturers support such research and we would draw attention to the possibilities for research funding in this area.

3.8.1Underlying all the above proposals, however, is the basic question of the translations: what are the most appropriate mechanisms for obtaining these? Although some of the previous suggestions do have implications for the educational world and although it is possible to use a number of the proposed packages in the schools (e.g. word processor or spreadsheet), the members of the Joint Committee are of the opinion that these have a wider application. It would be helpful if the basic responsibility for this provision were to be located in a single source.

3.8.2The members of the Joint Committee were very interested in the work which is already under way in this general area by An Foras Ríomheolais, a voluntary grouping of Irish speakers interested in the relationship between the language and computers (see Appendix 3.1). This body is connected with GCOMM Teoranta, a subsidiary company of Údarás na Gaeltachta founded to provide training facilities in the use of computers (Appendix 3.2). The Joint Committee would propose that this translation task should be undertaken under the aegis of An Foras Ríomheolais and that the facilities and expertise of the GCOMM staff and others should be used as far as possible in order to produce the necessary Irish language versions of the software packages outlined above.

4 Education and new technology

4.1.1It is clear that the education system plays a crucial role in the widespread development of computerisation in the country. The schools have a special responsibility, not only because the use of computers is seen as a young person’s phenomenon, but computer expertise and education have to be developed accordingly. It is certain that the influence and the pressures of the new technology will increase in the years to come and we must ensure that the country’s youth are fully capable of dealing with it lest our children be left at a severe disadvantage in comparison to their contemporaries in other countries. In this chapter the contribution which the new technology can make to the world of schooling will be discussed and we will also consider the ways in which computer experience or computer literacy in general can be introduced into the educational sphere.

4.1.2As far as we are aware, there is not one computer program, of which Irish is a fully integrated part, in use in any school in the country, Irish medium school or otherwise. If this situation continues, it is certain that the children will come to believe that it is impossible to effect a marriage between Irish and new technology and thus modernism will have gained another victory in the public perception of the language. Against this view, the members of the Joint Committee are of the opinion that there are a number of areas where this technology can be used to improve the situation of Irish in the schools. This is true, not only from the point of view of teaching and of practical learning materials, but also from the viewpoint of a computer culture generally and as a possible answer for some of the structural problems of all-Irish schools.

4.1.3Our understanding of the notion of computer experience at the level of the school is that everyone, both pupil and teacher, ought to have the opportunity for using the new facilities in order to solve some of their own problems. This is possible at a number of levels: the child seeking information from a databank and writing an essay based on these data; the teacher preparing materials for classwork and integrating the computer into the teaching of that class; the headteacher preparing the year’s timetable or working on a yearly report. Until the computer and the other new technologies of communication are fully accepted within the school walls, the computer culture will not be able to play its correct role in the education system.

4.2.1Before we move to a discussion of these matters, there is one basic problem which has to be faced as an obstacle to the genuine development of computerisation in Irish schools. This is the collection of diverse machines which are now available to pupils, a situation which has come about through a lack of coordination in the education sphere. When the Department of Education placed one computer in each secondary school a number of years ago, these machines were made by Apple. However, it would seem that schools have since moved to increase their computer stock and it is now believed that the average number of machines in each secondary school is ten. These include equipment by BBC, Commodore and IBM, all mutually incompatible and incompatible with the supplied Apples. This diversity is no real problem in those schools where English is the medium of instruction as there is an abundance of software available for all these computers. However, it is an obstruction to the development of suitable educational programs for the small number of Irish medium schools.

4.2.2It would appear that no decision has yet been reached regarding the standards for the next phase of computerisation in the schools. There are two main systems available at present, those of Macintosh and MS-DOS (on which IBM computers and their clones are based). It is the opinion of the members of the Joint Committee that any immediate development of software packages for Irish should be directed at these two standards only. It would only result in a wasteful spreading of present scarce resources if one were to attempt to serve the software needs of a wider range of equipment.

4.3.1As we have already explained, the new technology can play a large part in the life of the school. At the very least, software packages will be required in those areas which we have already identified in the preceding chapter of this report. Among these are a word processor and software to handle data, both numeric and non-numeric. Although such packages are essentially the same as those required for more general use, programs directed at schools must cater for pupils over a wide range of ages. It is necessary therefore to ensure that the precise needs of the children are fully taken into account in choosing and translating software.

4.3.2Software by itself is not sufficient however, without data to operate upon. As far as the word processor is concerned, this can be left to the needs of the users who will soon discover how valuable this can be as an aid in the normal work of the school. As regards the database packages, attention will have to be given to the types of material which are suitable for class work and which will aid the educational process. What is needed is a well, or wells, of data out of which material can be extracted and worked upon by the pupil: this is how the child will come to the educational experience of asking questions, discovering facts and seeking answers. It will obviously depend to a great extent on teachers to choose and make available suitable materials in various subject areas: history, geography, science, Irish, etc. In this they ought to be helped as much as possible and the members of the Joint Committee welcome the scheme in the Department of Education to assist the development of software to aid teaching in various subjects. We would recommend that Irish medium schools ought to collaborate in identifying or designing suitable materials for their own use.

4.4.1It is in the classroom itself that we can see the greatest possibilities in the use of these new aids. There is a vast range of software available at present aimed at the teaching of different subjects by means of the computer. This applies in the primary school as well as the secondary level and most subjects are covered to some extent, from mathematics to language practice, from history to handling materials in the biology class. It is clear from figures supplied by the Department of Education that teachers are very interested in the influence of this computer technology and they regularly attend in-service courses to improve their knowledge and experience.

4.4.2We may examine the special needs of Irish in respect of the new technology at the primary and secondary levels independently of each other. However, it must be appreciated that we are not dealing here with two mutually watertight systems but with a single ladder of progress for the child. Coordination, collaboration and clear directives are needed to weld these two systems together and to ensure the development of knowledge and intellectual growth for the child studying computing and gaining computer awareness through the medium of Irish.

4.5.1The members of the Joint Committee are unhappy to learn from the Department of Education that there is not yet available any educational software to advance the development of Irish in the primary schools. We find this difficult to understand: if one only compares the situation here with that for Scottish Gaelic, it is clear that much more has been attained there, in spite of financial and other difficulties. We also regret that the Department of Education has no intention at present of making increased use of computers in primary schools, because of cost considerations. We understand that a pilot scheme on computers in national schools was carried out between 1984 and 1986 and that the results of this are being assessed by the Department. The members of the Joint Committee welcome the recommendation from the School Inspectors that the Department of Education ought to make assistance available for the development of educational software suitable for the Primary School Curriculum. The members presume that the question of Irish has been discussed in the report and that appropriate attention will be paid to the needs of the language.

4.5.2In addition to those computer programs directed at drill and practice in language, there is a deep need for programs to enhance Irish medium education. Multifaceted materials are required here in various fields, from telling the time for infants’ classes to mathematics drill for the sixth class.

4.6.1Turning to the secondary level, particularly the Irish medium schools, the language is clearly in an extremely parlous state with regard to computers and new technology. There are many more subject areas to be covered, the standards of difficulty are rising and the number of suitably qualified and dedicated teachers is decreasing. Once again, as is the case in the primary schools, the crying need is for teaching materials to be made available in the classroom. While it is possible to use software packages where English is the language of communication with the computer, such an approach will inevitably lead to a defeatist attitude towards Irish among the pupils, as we have already suggested.

4.7.1It is clear to us that we do not have the resource base in this country at the moment to service all these needs. That is, it is not possible for us to move in the direction of home produced educational software development through the medium of Irish. As an answer to some of the difficulties of the Irish medium schools identified above, the members of the Joint Committee would recommend that attention should be given to the development of a scheme similar to that which has been underway for a number of years in Gwynedd, Wales, to provide appropriate software materials through the medium of Welsh for school use.

4.7.2This project is funded jointly by the Local Educational Authority and by the Welsh Office and it has succeeded in making available a range of suitable software materials. The primary function of the unit on which it is based is to implement a range of policies designed to make the best use of scarce resources, both financial, staff and equipment, in the introduction of computer awareness and computer education to the schools of Gwynedd. To this end, it has provided Welsh language versions of 150 educational computer programs for primary schools, by negotiating with the suppliers of English language software for translation rights before such software is introduced into the schools. This ensures that the Welsh language is given equal status with English as far as the children are concerned, with all the pupil interaction with the computer in these translated packages being through Welsh.

4.7.3In the opinion of the Joint Committee, this unit appears to offer a suitable model for implementation in Ireland, at least in the first instance as an adjunct to the development of computer literacy in the Irish medium schools. We would expect also that the staff and teacher expertise developed through some such scheme would be of benefit in the increasing role which information technology is clearly going to play in our schooling system, both primary and post-primary. However, although we are here proposing a translation scheme as we did in the case of business software earlier, it must be emphasised that this should only be regarded as a first step, designed to meet a pressing need. Until we have developed the requisite expertise in this country to produce educational software which takes full account of our own needs and culture, we will not be able to take our proper place at the table of this new technology.

4.7.4In the same way as An Gúm operates to make printed materials in Irish available for the school system, the members of the Joint Committee feel that it would be appropriate for the Department of Education to accept the same responsibility in the area of Irish language software. This proposal must of course be tied to a clearly defined policy and a suitable timetable based on a survey of the expressed needs of the schools. In the opinion of the Joint Committee, it should be the responsibility of the Department of Education to develop and implement such a policy. Appropriate resources should be made available to An Gúm for this, both hardware and adequate staff as required. Otherwise, the lack of Irish language materials in this new field of educational technology will represent a further deterioration of an already poor situation.

4.7.5In order to serve the needs of the Irish medium schools from the point of view of computer science or information science generally, the members of the Joint Committee would recommend that a series of textbooks should be produced to cover those areas where the present deficiencies lie. Among these are the lack of materials to introduce children to the subject at the primary level, for example an Irish version of the LOGO program, or an introductory book with a general survey of computers and their uses. At the secondary level, there is a need for comprehensive courses on computer science and informatics so that these pupils are not left at any disadvantage with respect to the rest of their age groups.

4.7.6The members of the Joint Committee would wish to draw the attention of the Irish Departments in the third level colleges to the possibilities in this area. We would like to see some development by these departments in the subject area of Irish and computer and information technology. Unless teaching, appropriate experience and research are being developed in these areas at the third level, the chances of any advances taking a proper hold at an earlier stage of the educational system are slim.

4.8.1Although we have been mainly concerned so far with the relatively narrow fields of educational computing, this technology may also be used in other ways. One of the severest problems facing the Irish medium schools is the shortage of a wide range of suitable teaching materials. What is required here are class work sheets and other handout materials covering the normal range of subjects. This problem will become even more acute with the introduction of new curricula and teaching syllabuses. It is clearly the teachers on whom most of the burden will fall.

4.8.2The two main structural weaknesses of Irish medium schools are their small numbers and their relative isolation from each other. The first of these implies that it is difficult to provide textbooks and other teaching materials for these schools at a reasonable cost. The second problem leads to difficulties in establishing any cooperative group of teachers to develop materials. The members of the Joint Committee would propose that these problems should be tackled again in the light of the computer and communications aids now available.

4.8.3Computers offer several advantages which could alleviate some of the above difficulties. These are, the ease with which material can be composed and changed according to need on a word processor, and the relative cheapness of exchanging disk based materials within a group. These two advantages mean that one could establish a network of teachers to collaborate on the design and composition of class materials, if all the work were to be carried out on computer. Such a group could prepare worksheets, etc. on disks which were circulated from one teacher to another for comment and additions. Such materials could be trialled in classes on an ongoing basis and a consensus reached. A major advantage of this approach is that it would allow the individual teacher easily to adapt materials for specific purposes or class groups.

4.8.4As regards the actual production of hard copy of these materials, this could be carried out in a central office on a laser printer. The advantage of this is that such output would match in quality that produced in English and that only short runs of materials would have to be produced on demand. As well as a saving of costs here, such materials, with the possibility for continual easy updating, would not quickly become out of date.

4.9.1If computer studies are to be developed properly in the Irish medium schools, the problem of the lack of equipment will have to be tackled. As a short term measure, the members of the Joint Committee would recommend the use of some type of mobile classroom computer unit. Such a facility, coupled with the development of week-long intensive courses, in co-operation with the regular teachers, would go a long way toward alleviating the isolation problems of these schools.

4.9.2In addition to the above suggestion, the members of the Joint Committee would propose that a communication network should be established between the pupils at the various Irish medium schools. This could be based on a similar method to that described above: the production of a computer magazine which circulated on a disk format and where as many pupils as possible would have the opportunity to add their own contributions. This is an attempt at a simulacrum of the bulletin boards which are available on-line and which cater to various special-interest groups for the interchange of information.

4.10.1On the whole, the Joint Committee feels that the facilities offered by the new technologies can be used to improve the quality of Irish medium education. If the problems are tackled in the light of the availability of such aids, both presently available and to appear soon, we will be able to inculcate in the pupils an understanding of the new world which is developing around them. And with this, an understanding of the place that Irish can maintain in this world.

5 New technology and the Irish speaking public

5.1.1Although the foundations must be raised on the educational system, it is outside the school walls that the result of this building will be observed. It is clear that the influence of the new technology can be seen all around us. Computers, both large and small, and their intercommunications; information engineering and everything connected with it in storing and handling data; the mass communication media and the information they provide us with: all of these create a interlinked network with a powerful influence on our everyday lives.

5.1.2The public is in touch with all these sources of information in many ways, in particular through the mass media, radio, television, newspapers and journals. However, we must also take account of the hidden influences of this technology. In shopping, for example, we can catch a glimpse of the hidden power of the computer, from the light displays of advertising messages to the computer generated receipt at the checkout. Generally on these, English is the norm, even though in most instances it would be relatively simple to provide for a bilingual format. Another instance of this hidden influence is to be seen whenever members of the public deal with most administrative services (usually in the public domain). Here, computers are deployed to provide information, to write letters or to store personal data.

5.1.3In this chapter the Joint Committee will examine some of these areas and assess the position of Irish in them. Given the sheer range of types of equipment, the uses to which they may be put and the many influences on our lives, we are only in a position to offer a general outline of some of the possibilities for the integration of Irish into these networks, both obvious and hidden. Today’s visions are tomorrow’s castoffs.

5.2.1In the case of the mass communication media such as radio or television, the Joint Committee would wish to draw attention to some of the possibilities which the proposed changes in these media will bring about. Among these are the development of local radio or television which could be used as the means of making a wider choice of programmes available. This could bring about an increase in the range and variety of Irish language programmes available. However, without appropriate planning and unless sufficient attention is paid to the needs of the Irish speaking public, these new services could easily lead to a diminution in access to such programmes. The status of the language will be further threatened with the spread of satellite broadcasting and cable television when one considers the increasing conformity of such services to foreign cultural models.

5.2.2The impact of this new technology will perhaps be most obvious in the world of Irish publishing. As we have already pointed out in the case of the Irish medium schools, the number of readers for Irish material in general is small and hence the unit cost of providing a reasonable reading service for them is high. Some of the new printing technologies, such as desk top publishing, could assist here. As has been pointed out, such a system allows for short runs of books at a cost which is not exorbitant and this should provide a new opportunity for writers to serve a wider reading public.

5.2.3In the opinion of the Joint Committee, a central facility should be made available for writers where materials could be prepared and printed using a computer and laser printer. What we have in mind here is a centrally located office, where writers would have access to desk top publishing equipment so that they could take full responsibility for their own work, from composition to sales. Such equipment would give them the creative freedom to present their own work and liberate them from older methods of typesetting, illustration, binding and selling.

5.2.4Since the changeover from Irish type to Roman type in Irish language publishing, there are a large number of Irish speakers who have never had the opportunity of reading much of the literary heritage from the earlier part of this century. Most of the books of that period are now out of print and even if they are obtainable, the traditional spelling and Irish type impose an additional barrier on potential readers who have had their education through the new type and reformed spelling. If some of the better books from this earlier period were to be input to a computer, by optical character reader or otherwise, these could be edited with the assistance of a number of programs in order to modify them appropriately for present day readers.

5.2.5We have one clear example of the advantages of using this new technology and that is the Irish-English Dictionary published in 1977 under the editorship of Niall Ó Dónaill. The Joint Committee congratulates An Gúm for the decision made at this early period in the development of computerisation, whereby the typesetting for this dictionary was carried out on a computer driven typesetter. This foresight has meant that it is now possible, with little extra effort, to implement changes and additions to the existing dictionary in the preparation of a new edition. In addition, the existence of the computer readable basic materials means that an excellent foundation has been laid for a future English-Irish dictionary (see Appendix 3.3).

5.3.1However, the public comes into contact with the new technology in various ways, some visible and others where the technology is more or less hidden. As we have already pointed out, the Local Authorities are in close contact with the public and this implies a special responsibility on their part as regards the preservation of Irish. Although we were concerned earlier to discuss letters and public notices, there are other relationships between this sector and the public. One example of this is the application forms which are dealt with daily by every public body in the country and another is the local library which is used by the public as a source of many different types of information.

5.3.2The Joint Committee is pleased to learn of the advances which have been made by Clare County Council to make bilingual versions of forms available. These new forms were designed and stored on computer so that they are now easily accessible to allow appropriate changes to be made to them. In addition, it is easy and inexpensive to print off additional copies from the basic computer storage. In the opinion of the Joint Committee, all Local Authorities, Government Departments and State Agencies ought to avail of this opportunity to design and print for themselves appropriate bilingual versions of forms - particularly in the light of Mr Justice O’Hanlon’s recent High Court Judgement on this issue.

5.3.3It is clear that libraries will be moving in the direction of providing computerised catalogue services online and even of providing access to large scale computer based data banks. In this event, the Joint Committee recommends that libraries should take account of the needs of Irish speakers and provide appropriate interfaces for users. This would not involve any great additional work or costs if attention is paid to these needs at the design stage of any particular project. The Joint Committee feels that appropriate language interfaces could be provided in public and college libraries.

5.3.4Outside the public service domain, as the use of computers spreads among the general public, users will demand access to other central sources of information, either by means of computers or through other devices such as television. We have one instance already of this in the recently developed Aertel system which permits access to information and facts by means of a television set at home. It is clear that such means of data access will increase and it must be ensured that Irish is given an appropriate place in any such development. This can be done by allowing the public the opportunity of using Irish in any interaction with these systems, as well as making materials in Irish available on the data bases.

5.3.5An example of this interaction with computers can be seen every time one uses an ATM (automated teller machine) in a bank or building society. A menu is presented to the user and a range of buttons are employed to make various choices. In such limited choice systems, it would be a relatively easy task to provide an Irish language menu option for the user screen.

5.4.1We have already discussed the office environment and recommended that suitable software packages should be made available for those who wish to use Irish in the interface with computers. In adddition, however, there are other advantages with computer storage, which could be used in offices where a large number of standardised letters are sent out, based on a limited phraseology. There are already available software packages which permit the user to make an appropriate selection from a menu of English language phrases and which output the equivalent phrases to a letter in French, German, etc. Such a system, designed for English-Irish use, would permit office workers, even those with a limited command of Irish, to produce efficient and correct business or other official letters in Irish.

5.4.2As an aid for those working with computers through the medium of Irish in offices, the Joint Committee recommends the early production of an office handbook in Irish. This should cover the range of activities concerned with the new technology in the modern office and would be an indispensible adjunct for office training courses. It could also be used as a textbook in schools to provide enrichment materials for computer literacy courses. We have already noted (2.8.1) that the basic terminology exists for the preparation of such a handbook and we would recommend that some of the major computer companies be invited to become involved in its preparation.

5.5.1To summarise this chapter, the members of the Joint Committee would like to emphasise that the new technology is here to stay and that it will affect all our lives whether we like it or not. Although such systems have not grown out of the ordinary public’s needs, nonetheless it is the average person who will be most affected by them, either positively or negatively. Unless the general public can take this new technology on board and adapt it to its own needs, it will do more harm than good. But if they can do this, and are permitted to do so, then they will be aided by it and will be able to integrate it into their own lives and to their own advantage.

6 Some proposals and possibilities

6.1.1In this chapter the members of the Joint Committee would like to draw attention to some of the possibilities which the new technology provides us with for the implementation of necessary research into, and analysis of, Irish. Computers offer a number of advantages when they are used with large bodies of data such as are normally found in collections of language materials. These are, that they do not become tired, they do not make mistakes and they are much faster than humans in processing the data. These advantages mean that the new technology can be employed in a number of areas in order to provide necessary information for educationalists or researchers, from those involved with designing basic Irish language courses to those preparing teaching materials at the highest level.

6.1.2In the world of English, such research work on language has a long history and involves a range of disciplines from dictionary making to the preparation of class materials for students of English as a Foreign Language. Of course, it was well worth the researchers’ time to undertake such work, since there was, and is, a wide market in the English speaking world for such materials. The situation with Irish, or any other minority language, is quite different and we have been left behind in this process due to a lack of financial and personnel resources. However, a great deal of this linguistic work was sheer drudgery, in its word counting and analyses of sentences. Modern technology offers us the opportunity of avoiding much of this spade work by using the computer under expert supervision to perform basic linguistic analyses.

6.2.1As a preliminary for any work which it is intended to undertake on languages, one must ensure that the basic data are readily available and in a format suitable for computer processing. For instance, if one were to carry out an analysis of word frequencies in a variety of Irish texts, then the texts themselves must be accessible to the computer. The Joint Committee would recommend that a central data bank or text archive for Irish texts should be established, where machine-readable copies of published materials would be held for research purposes.

6.2.2Most books published at present are set by means of a computer driven typesetter and this system automatically has as an end product a tape or disk in machine readable form. This is the raw material of any research work on the language of these texts. The members of the Joint Committee are of the opinion that such an archive should be established in a higher education institute so that it might be linked with the development of appropriate research work on it.

6.2.3In the opinion of the Joint Committee the easiest way to ensure the provision of materials for this archive would be to require any Irish language publisher to make available machine readable copies of any books published using a computer typesetter. The model suggested here is the requirement to provide a copy of any copyright book to the library of Trinity College Dublin (among others) and we do not feel that such a scheme would add very much to the publishing costs. It might even be suggested that the requirement for depositing such a tape or disk should be imposed on any publisher awarded State grants for the production of Irish language materials.

6.2.4In addition to books, the Joint Committee would wish to see parallel materials provided from the Irish language newspapers and magazines, where such are composed using word processors. Although such articles are somewhat transitory in comparison to the book materials, they nevertheless represent a valuable source of language information which ought to be included in the data bank.

6.2.5These suggestions are only intended to provide a basis for the development of a text archive. A great deal of material has been published in Irish over the past century and the members of the Joint Committee would urge the organisers of such an archive to develop a comprehensive plan for the eventual incorporation of most of this into the data bank.

6.3.1The Dictionary of Modern Irish has been in preparation for a number of years under the auspices of the Royal Irish Academy and the Joint Committee would congratulate the editors for the attempts so far made to employ computer technology as a research tool in this work. The members of the Joint Committee understand that the research will become more complex as the amount of material scanned becomes greater and we are of the opinion that the computer facilities at present in use in the Academy could be upgraded to store and handle a greater range of basic lexicographical data. We were interested to hear of the research and hardware support provided in Britain by a major computer company for the development of a laser disk version of the Oxford English Dictionary and we would recommend that the Academy should attempt to examine the possibilities of seeking support for the development of software and necessary hardware for their work.

6.3.2In addition to this basic material for the dictionary, we understand that there are other sources of lexical data in the collections of the dialect archives in University College Dublin. The Joint Committee would propose that these materials should be prepared into a machine readable format in order to facilitate the development of appropriate indexing. If such were to be done, the resulting data bank would form a useful extension to the text archive discussed above and we feel that these two operations should be sited in the same archive as constituting a basic research tool. It is also understood that the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies has already begun work in the area of historical Irish lexicology using computer storage and analysis and we feel that there is scope for extending and developing this area of research and expertise.

6.4.1In the general field of lexicology we would also like to draw attention to the needs of Irish terminology. These apply not only to the Terminology Committee of the Department of Education which is working to make available series of terminologies in a number of educational fields. Other bodies also require access to newly created terms and among these we would mention the Translation Section of the Houses of the Oireachtas which has a large collection of terms in its archives, as well as the mass media, the newspapers and Irish journals and RTÉ, particularly Raidió na Gaeltachta.

6.4.2To service these needs, terms must be made available as soon as possible after they have been approved by the Terminology Committee. The members of the Joint Committee understand that a scheme has been proposed by a number of groups involved in the work of Irish terminology that they should develop computer storage for the range of terms at present kept mainly on cards in various locations. Such a project would bring together several organisations with concerns in this area, such as the Linguistics Institute of Ireland, the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, University College Galway and others, as well as the Terminology Committee itself. The project would ensure the accessibility of the new terminology and also ease somewhat the eventual editing and publication of such terms. The Joint Committee would recommend that the Terminology Committee should organise this particular project in order to ensure its early implementation through the cooperation of the various groups concerned. We would draw the attention of the Department of Education, as the body responsible for this work in Irish terminology, to the need for such a data base and suggest that additional funding should be sought for it if necessary.

6.5.1As far as the Joint Committee is aware, there is a very large collection of Irish language materials among the manuscript materials of the Irish Folklore Department in University College Dublin, data which are not easily accessible for indexing or research in the area of lexicology. The Joint Committee recommends that a project to computerise all these data should be drawn up, to allow them to be indexed fully and commented upon. Once again here, we would draw attention to the possibilities of external funding sources for such a proposal.

6.5.2The country’s placenames have been studied for many years and we have been informed that there is a need for a computer based storage system for the materials held at present. The Joint Committee was interested to note that work on Irish placenames is being undertaken at present in Northern Ireland and that computer storage and handling forms an integral part of this study. We would suggest that the Placenames Office should consider a scheme, in cooperation with the ongoing work in the Department of Celtic, Queen’s University Belfast, if possible, to implement a computer data base of the current collections. We feel that such a resource would be of interest not only to schools, but that it might also be used for a data base for visitors to the country and for generalogical and other research.

6.6.1In the general matter of research in information technology, the Joint Committee would propose that every attempt should be made to take account of the position of Irish in any schemes which are at present being designed. In projects which are proposed for funding by the European Community or by other sources at home or abroad, it is of ten possible, with very little additional effort, to include the needs of the Irish language when research plans are being drawn up. The Joint Committee would suggest that, when such research plans are being discussed or put forward for funding, EOLAS should ensure that attention is paid to ways in which the needs of Irish can be met through them. The types of research which we have in mind here are proposals for work in the area of information technology in the office or in data bases, or research schemes concerned with computer assisted linguistic analyses such as those involved in machine translation or speech production software and hardware.

7 The future: directions and structures

7.1.1As we have already pointed out, in this Report we have only tried to cover some of the areas of the new technology in so far as they are of direct concern to Irish. It is clear that the world is changing around us: as was noted in the first chapter the recent growth rate of computer penetration in parts of the Public Service is over 35% per annum. With this pressure, it behoves us to be careful: on the one hand we must not allow the tyranny of the technology to overwhelm us, on the other, we must not allow its beckoning trail to lead us astray into impossibilities. We must be careful not to tie ourselves either to worn out methodologies or to false promises.

7.1.2In the preceding Chapters we have tried to present a range of practical and attainable proposals which are cost effective and should not take overlong to implement. Most of the suggestions are only steps in the direction of a full and fair status for Irish vis-à-vis the new technology and computerisation. Certainly some of our proposals will cost money but the amounts involved are relatively small and a great deal can be undertaken with sensible planning and implementation. Much change can also take place in a very short period of time, if an effective plan is brought forward.

7.2.1Although a wide range of proposals has been made in this Report, most of them are directly related to computers and to the needs of Irish in regard to these. The opinion of the members of the Joint Committee is that one single body ought to accept responsibility for the work required here and we feel that An Foras Ríomheolais is the most appropriate for this. We were impressed by the effort already shown by this group in bringing together expertise from the world of Irish and education, from business and from computer science (see Appendix 3.1). Since this cooperation has already been established it appears to us that it is unnecessary to suggest additional or parallel structures. The members of the Joint Committee would wish to draw the attention of the members of An Foras Ríomheolais to the proposals and suggestions made in this Report and to direct their attention towards the possibilities for funding sources for the development of Irish in this area, for example from the National Lottery.

7.2.2However, as we have already explained, the field is much wider than that of straightf orward computing and careful attention must be paid to other developments in the new technologies and their possible implications for Irish. We might mention the introduction of satellite television which could be used in schools, for instance, to extend the usual classwork and to expand the pupils’ range of experience. Unless we ensure in this country that such a service is fully suited to our own needs, it will do more harm than good to Irish language schools and their pupils. The Joint Committee would intend to keep a watching brief on the introduction of a number of these new technologies and to assess carefully their potential effects on the language. In addition, the members of the Joint Committee would wish to look again at the situation of Irish and these new information technologies after a period of a year or so, in order to re-examine the proposals in this Report in the light of any further advances and the perceived needs at that time.

7.3.1It is clear that, faced with the growing wave of this technology, we will need to establish as much cooperation as possible between individuals and between groups. Only thus will we be able to influence matters. We have already mentioned the importance of collaboration at home in order to express our needs and problems to the purveyors of the technology. This by itself is not enough and we have to admit that the potential influence of the Irish-speaking public must be accepted as being extremely small. However, we are not alone in the problems we face and it is clear that most other small countries and minority languages have similar needs in this respect. The Joint Committee is strongly of the opinion that Irish language groupings concerned with the impact of these technologies should make contact and form a network of communication and support with other similar groups both inside and outside the country. In the first instance this could be done through our contacts with other minority language organisations in the European Community. We all understand that the resources, both financial and personnel, are limited. But hope is not limited and through this we can create the tomorrow we wish to see.

(Signed) Tom Fitzgerald

Senator Tom Fitzgerald

Chairman

1 December 1988

8 Summary of the more important recommendations

As regards hardware, both computers and printers, the following proposals:

1That manufacturers of computers and printers should provide an internal character coding which conforms to the international standard and, through this, to the derivative Irish standard. This would ensure that users would have access to accented vowels both on the computers and on any printers which might be attached. (2.2.4)

2That this Irish standard should be promulgated by a Statutory Instrument of the Minister for Industry and Commerce. (2.2.7)

In regard to software and programming:

3That computer manufacturers should make available a package for the alphabetic sorting of Irish characters. (2.7.2)

4That a suite of office-based applícations programs should be made available in Irish. (3.3.2)

5That such programs should in the first instance be based on presently available software and that An Foras Ríomheolais should have the responsibility for arranging for these translations. (3.8.2)

In the educational sphere the following proposals should be implemented:

6That a range of software materials in Irish should be made available to the schools, through the extension of the current schemes in An Gúm for supplying Irish language textbooks (4.3.1 and 4.7.4)

7That the Department of Education should publish a series of Irish language textbooks for the schools to cover the general area of informatics. (4.7.5)

8That a scheme be introduced into the Irish medium schools to prepare teaching and other class materials, through making more computers available. (4.8.3)

9That a computer based information network be established between Irish medium schools. (4.9.2)

10That the Department of Education, through An Gúm, should publish a handbook of computer terminology as soon as possible. (2.8.1)

11That a central database should be established for new terminology currently being created by the Terminology Committee and others. (6.4.2)

In the public domain:

12The directives regarding the use of the accented vowels which were introduced earlier this year in the State system should be extended to the whole of the Public Service domain. (2.2.6)

13That Government Departments, Local Authorities and State Agencies should make available bilingual versions of all forms. (5.3.2)

14That a handbook should be published to strengthen the position of Irish in the new office technology. (5.4.2)

15That it should be ensured that Irish can be used on Aertel and on any similar system which may be introduced. (5.3.4)

General:

16That a machine readable text archive should be established to hold copies of Irish books and magazines to be published in the future. (6.2.3 and 6.2.4)

17That a central unit be established for writers, to provide desk-top publishing facilities.(5.2.3)

18That the computer facilities of the Royal Irish Academy should be extended to service the work of dictionary making, with the assistance of external funding if possible. (6.3.1)

19That Irish materials held by the Department of Folklore should be input to computer. (6.5.1)

20That a database of the placenames of the country should be established, through the cooperation of the Placenames Office and the Department of Celtic, Queen’s University Belfast. (6.5.2)

21That EOLAS should, as far as possible, ensure that due attention is paid to the needs of Irish in assessing informatics based research programs. (6.6.1)

22That appropriate cooperation and collaboration in these areas should be established between lesser-used language groups in the European Community and outside it, so that co-ordinated proposals may be presented to equipment manufacturers and Governments. (7.3.1)