FAQ: East Cree Syllabics Usage on the Internet
Q: I want to put Cree on the Internet, what do I do?
A:
Unicode is the most reliable way to display syllabics on the Web. You can use any method to produce the
Cree text, depending on what you have available (see Which Cree fonts should I use?) and then you can
convert the text to Unicode before pasting it into your Web editing tool. (see Converting Legacy encoded
texts to Unicode). You will need a Web page designing program that is Unicode aware, like MS Front Page
or OmniWeb.You must also save your html files as (Unicode) UTF-8, and set your browser to (Unicode)
UTF-8 encoding or character coding.
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Q: I want to browse a web page that has Unicode Cree syllabics, but they do not show up on my screen.
A:
First make sure that your Operating System is Unicode compatible (see table above), and that your
browser is (see table below). Then make sure that you have downloaded and installed the Unicode Cree font
you want to see. To do the latter, go to eastcree.org or the  creeculture.ca web sites where the fonts can be
downloaded.
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Q: Why can’t I use a Legacy encoding on the Web?
A:
You can, but it is perilous. First of all, most of the Legacy encodings out there have one or two characters
that is “illegal” in certain important applications. The CreeKeys font, 8-bit BJECree, as currently distributed,
has a problem with the /maa/ character, at decimal d173, the character code for “discretionary hyphen”. In
many applications, this character is a “zero-width” character so it does not show. A new 8-bit BJECree font
has been developed with /maa/ re-encoded to another character code, and it works. However, to re-deploy the
“new” BJECree font is a major undertaking, because everybody would have to do it for all the documents
they have in the old font.
The 8-bit East Cree BJMac font for Macintosh in the “McCree” package also has several drawbacks, notably
the “illegal” Mac character code at d202 for the /taa/ character. A new edition of this font has also been
produced for a work-around, but we face the same re-deployment difficulties.
Even with the improved fonts, any text published to the Web would have to use some software strategy to
“convert” the encoding Cree texts “on the fly” for the different client computers, Mac or Windows. Or
different versions of each web page have to be deployed for each OS.
7-bit Legacy fonts have been used with some success to put syllabics on the web, notably for some
Inuktitut language sites (see What do you mean by ‘7-bit’ syllabic fonts or encodings?) but for most Cree
language sites a larger inventory of syllabics is required, and a strictly “7-bit” approach can seldom be
maintained: Certain character codes must also be used from the 8-bit range. Also, users of this approach are
switching to Unicode.
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Q: Can I send and receive E-mail in syllabics?
A:
You can. As usual, Unicode is the best approach. But you need a Unicode-aware e-mail client running on
Windows 2000 or XP. As of this writing, Outlook 2000 or 2002 works, also Outlook Express 6, and Opera 6.
You install CreeKeysPRO, use the BJCree UNI keyboard. Remember both the sender and receiver each need
a Unicode compliant installation.
You can also use a Legacy (8-bit or 7-bit), but it is perilous. See the problems listed under Why can’t I
use a Legacy encoding on the Web?
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Q: Can I “chat” using instant messaging in syllabics?
A:
You can. As usual, Unicode is the best approach. But you need a Unicode-aware messaging client
running on Windows 2000 or XP. As of this writing, Windows Messenger and Microsoft Chat work, others
may as well. We have not tried AOL or others. Remember both the sender and receiver each need a Unicode
compliant installation.
You can also use a Legacy (8-bit or 7-bit), but it is perilous. See the problems listed under Why can’t I
use a Legacy encoding on the Web? Depending on the sender and receiver setup, however (if both use
identical setups that work) then it is workable.
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Q: How can I create web pages with Cree Syllabics that do not require users to download a font?
A:
You can use little pictures of the syllabics, or design them with programs like Macromedia Flash.With
Flash 6 you can type either in Unicode or 8 bit using the CreeKeys keyboard. You can see examples of these
on the Cree website www.eastcree.org
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