NOTE: this software is for Classic Mac OS (eg: OS 9) and cannot be used on Mac OS X.
Nisus Writer Classic is no longer for sale. This page is only for archival purposes.
Nisus Writer supports writing in English
(and European Romanic languages--"Romanic" refers to languages using
the Latin alphabet and its extensions, regardless of linguistic
relationships), in right-to-left languages such as Arabic, Aramaic, Hebrew, Ladino,
Persian, Syriac, Yiddish, or in a mixture of these languages and English or other
European Romanic languages. It supports writing in languages where the shape of the
alphabetic character changes depending on its position in relation to other
characters (Arabic and Thai). It also supports writing in languages where writing
is syllabic or ideographic rather than alphabetic such as Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
Note: The
free Nisus Writer 4.1.6 does not support non-Romanic
text input except in Japanese, even if you have the appropriate Apple Language Kit
(unless you have an old ADB plug, called a Language Key which is no longer in
production).
The current version of Nisus Writer (5.1.3) does
not require anything other than an Apple Language Kit for non-Romanic text input and
editing. The Macintosh currently recognizes all natural
written languages as belonging to one of four script (writing) systems: Simple,
Bidirectional, Contextual and Ideographic.
Apple divides these into two separate sets of extensions:
- WorldScript I, which handles Bidirectional and Contextual writing systems
- WorldScript II, which handles Ideographic languages.
Of the scripts Apple intends to develop as separate products called "Language Kits," many are already released (Arabic (includes Persian), Chinese, Cyrillic, Hebrew, Indic, Japanese and Korean). More may be developed and released in the coming years. Other companies make additional Language Kits.
If you have multiple scripts in your System (the basic Romanic script anda Language Kit), the Macintosh displays a "Keyboard" menu in the upper right hand corner of the menu bar to the left of the Applications menu. In a U.S. localized version of the System, the menu is initially indicated by a U.S. flag or a blue diamond. When you pull down the menu, you can see the icons of the other scripts (and/or input methods) you have in your System. As you choose a different keyboard, you choose a different method of typing text in your document: a different script.
An individual script can have more than one keyboard or input method. Choose Customize Menu... (in Mac OS 8.5) from the Keyboard menu to learn more about them. The Keyboard menu only displays the input methods which you have installed in your System. Each Language Kit supplies "resources" for your System, including the required WorldScript extension, a basic "beginner" set of fonts, the Script file that goes into the System file itself and frequently other software as well. Nisus Writer was programmed to utilize this material in a variety of ways. Nisus Writer does not come with any Language Kits, unless you explicitly purchase it that way.
More about editing text in multiple languages...
More on our Dictionaries...
More on WorldScript and Language Kits...
To the FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions).
To the Tips Table of Contents.
