--WORD 97 and later allows the entry of polytonic Greek characters in Unicode fonts (via the "Insert Symbol" command) for the first time.
--POLYTONIC GREEK IN WINDOWS 2000: a keyboard utility to type the accents in Unicode (along with the new Unicode Palatino including polytonic Greek (dead-keys for accents are on the right side as in Greek typewriters) is available in the new Windows 2000.
--ANTIOCH UNICODE POLYTONIC GREEK FONT AND KEYBOARD FOR WORD 97/2000/XP is available as shareware: it is downloadable at this address: http://www.users.dircon.co.uk/~hancock/antioch.htm, and it installs smoothly and works excellently-particularly useful is the ability to re-map the dead keys for accents and other keys for Greek. It also gives the ability to convert older Greek formats (including GreekKeys) to Unicode. (Included as well is a biblical Hebrew font and keyboard which I have not evaluated.)
--"POLITONISTIS" UNICODE for WORD 97 and later is available for 15,000 drachmas (about fifty dollars) from MAGENTA software in Greece (where you can give a credit card number and order). Or write or phone: Magenta 17 Antimachou str. 115 28 Athens GREECE Tel (30 1) 7246947, (30 1) 7293760; Fax: (30 1) 7229292Tel. ++30 1 7246947, 7293760-1-2 (The "Politonistis" accent keys are placed on the punctuation keys as in the Greek typewriter, but the program allows them to be customized to other keys.)
-- to convert GreekKeys fonts (or WinGreek or TLG Betacode or any other standard encoding) to UNICODE Polytonic Greek, use the convenient converter within the ANTIOCH package.
The Unicode test font "Athena Roman", discontinued in fall 2001 because of missing characters and serious conflicts with some programs, is now available for distribution in its new form "Athena Unicode", revamped by Ralph Hancock (maker of "Antioch"). Athena Unicode contains combing accents (used in Perseus Unicode Greek), somewhat better hinting (for screen display) and many other small improvements. Further, it is now available in a Macintosh version (usable in OmniWeb only).
To read about which browsers (on Windows and Mac) can display Unicode Greek, consult Patrick Rourke's highly informative web pages.
To download Athena Unicode for WINDOWS (Windows 98 or later), click HERE. You will need to expand the font (with "WinZip") and then install it using the "fonts" control panel to access it.
To download Athena Unicode for MACINTOSH, click HERE. (Mac OS X, Text Edit and OmniWeb only) You will need to expand the font (with "Stuffit expander") and then install it in the fonts folder to access it.
To download the un-compressed font file (both platforms, but very slow) click HERE.
But there are also many other Windows Unicode fonts that enable polytonic Greek (see the list).
GreekKeys provides a set of fonts for typing Polytonic (Ancient) Greek, in Macintosh (up to and including system 9.1; NOT in OSX or Windows, where Unicode Greek is enabled). It also includes a keyboard utility which allows the typing of accents using two-key combinations ("dead keys"). The GreekKeys package ($50 + postage) includes a Macintosh disks, and an instruction and information manual.
You can purchase the GreekKeys fonts, keyboard utility and manual (for Macintosh only) for $50 (plus postage) from The American Philological Association, 291 Logan Hall, 249 S. 36th Street, The University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6304 USA. Telephone: 215-898-4975, FAX: 215-573-7874 E-mail: apaclassics@sas.upenn.edu Visa and Mastercard are accepted. (But read the item-after-next to see if GreekKeys is right for you.)
The original GreekKeys for Macintosh dates back to 1984, and was designed and distributed by George Walsh of the Department of Classics of the University of Chicago. He died in 1989, and the next year his wife, Susan M. Kastendiek (the eponym for the original name "SMK") donated the program to the American Philological Association. Since then it has been largely the responsibility of Jeffrey Rusten to update and answer questions about GreekKeys. The proceeds of sales are used by the American Philological Association to pay for distribution costs, to reimburse the costs of technical support and development, and to support the publication of other software of use to classicists.
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For the time being, people should purchase the GreekKeys package from the APA (with a keyboard utility, extra fonts for epigraphy/metrics and a full manual) ONLY if they use Macintosh. Windows users (WORD 97 or later) should use Unicode polytonic Greek with a keyboard. (See on Unicode above.)
NOTE: GreekKeys does not work with any version of Word Perfect for Windows, which has its own proprietary font modules. (It does work with Word Perfect for Macintosh).
For Unicode Greek (recommended for Windows), consult Patrick Rourke's web pages on Unicode Greek in various browsers.
For older Mac browsers, the font Athenian has been made available for free download for use in displaying Greek in the Perseus web pages. The address is:
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Help/Athenian_Font.html#download
BUT different browsers (and different versions of the same browser) handle the "extra" characters needed to display polytonic Greek in different ways, so unfortunately, it will frequently happen that any particular browser will not display the Greek correctly, either particular characters or the whole alphabet. The Perseus project has posted some instructions on how to set your browser for Greek at:
http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/Help/
Please figure out what browser you are using (Netscape, Internet Explorer or some other), and what version (Greek cannot display on version 2 or earlier), and which system (Windows or Macintosh), and consult the instructions there for that configuration. I can provide only very limited tech support for Perseus display of Athenian, since here in Greece I don't have access to the full range of browsers and systems with which different users may be attempting to access Perseus.
NOTE: you CANNOT simply paste text in Athenian (or any other non-Roman font) into a web page and expect it to display properly when others use it--there are far too many incompatibilities among browsers, fonts and operating systems for that to be possible right now. (Perseus manages to display Greek onscreen by temporarily transforming betacode-text to match your particular font-encoding, browser and system.) Perhaps someday this can will done with Unicode or "embedded" fonts, but not yet.
The Unicode font/keyboard package "Antioch" contains macros to convert most GreekKeys and other earlier Greek fonts to Unicode polytonic.
Click here to view samples of Athenian or Attika on the web.
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Allotype Typographics offers Kadmos and Bosporos fonts in formats for use with the GreekKeys keyboard. For samples and ordering information: http://www.mich.com/~allotype/
The Greek Font Society offers Bodoni and Didot fonts in formats for use with the GreekKeys keyboard. For samples and ordering information click HERE.
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--WORD X for Macintosh has problems with BOTH GreekKeys AND Unicode--GreekKeys users should NOT upgrade!
Unfortunately, the just-released version of Microsoft WORD 10 for MAC OS X does NOT support Greek extended (polytonic) fonts as hoped. Unlike some other OS X programs (Text Edit and BBEdit), WORD 10 will not even display Unicode ancient Greek characters.
The other side of this disappointment is that GreekKeys text (in Athenian) can still be displayed and used in OSX; Donald Mastronade of Berkeley has prepared an updated GreekKeys Universal keyboard (and installer) for OSX for thsi prupose--but in the just-released version of WORD, this keyboard will NOT produce the accents in the Athenian font. (One can type the accents in a Roman font and then convert it to Athenian for correct display, clearly not a satisfactory method!)
Several Mac and Unicode users are experimenting to come up with solutions or recommendations for the future of ancient Greek on Macs. But for the time being, GreekKeys users who need OS X should use older versions of WORD within the "Classic" OS 9.1 emulator within OSX. GreekKeys for OS 9 and earlier will continue to be supported.
For details on GreekKeys and OS X/WORD X see Donald Mastronarde's FAQ pages.
The limitations of Unicode Greek support on OS X (No keyboard, Text/BBEdit, OmniWeb only, NOT WORD X)
Although Macintosh OS X enables the full range of Unicode characters, including "extended"(i. e., ancient) Greek, Microsoft WORD 10 for OS X does NOT even allow the display of Unicode Greek characters and is thus useless for Unicode Greek users. (This was unexpected, since WORD for Windows was a pioneer in enabling Unicode Greek already in 1997). For displaying Unicode Greek on OS X one is limited to Mac's basic program "Text Edit". Even in this programs, there is NO keyboard utility for typing the any of the Greek characters easily. One must use the keyboard "Unicode Hex," then hold the option key down while typing the four characters of the hexadecimal code for the Greek character provided by Apple. For details on GreekKeys and OS X/WORD X see Donald Mastronarde's FAQ pages.
For viewing Unicode Greek on the web in Mac OSX, the only supported browser is "OmniWeb". For details on Unicode on web browsers, see Patrick Rourke's pages on Unicode Greek on the web.
GreekKeys for Mac 1995 still works with all Macs including Power Macs, and with all system (7 and later) including system 9(But DO NOT use the utility "Keyboard menu on/off" in System 8--for details, click HERE.). It does not require upgrades (except for pre-1995 versions; if you have a BLUE manual you do NOT need an upgrade).
If you have installed GreekKeys fonts and keyboard according to the instructions in the manual, but still can't type the accented characters (remember to type the option with accent key FIRST, THEN the vowel), try going through the following procedure:
Step 1: checking the keyboard menu
(NOTE: if you have an older version of GreekKeys with the "keyboard menu on/off" utility, DO NOT RUN IT! It is not necessary and may freeze systems (8.0 or later).
--can you see an icon for the keyboard menu in the upper right? If it is there, click on it, hold the mouse button down and go down list to select GreekKeys Universal (you should see temple icon in the far right upper corner). If you CAN select the GreekKeys keyboard, in this way, skip to Step 5 ; if NOT, continue to Step 2 below.Step 2: checking the control panel "keyboard"
--if the GreekKeys keyboard is not accessible through the keyboard menu, try going to the Apple Menu, and select Control Panels, then double click on "Keyboard". You should see a list of all the different keyboards installed in your system. If "GreekKeys Universal" is in the list, then select it to make it the default keyboard, then close the control panel. If you CAN select the GreekKeys keyboard, in this way, skip to Step 5 ; if NOT, continue to Step 3 below.Step 3: searching for the GreekKeys Universal keyboard in your system folder
--Open the system folder, and find the file marked "system"; double-click this file (it will take some time to open--be patient), then scroll through the files listed inside it to find "GreekKeys Universal", which should be a keyboard.
IF THIS FILE IS NOT PRESENT IN THE SYSTEM, YOU WILL HAVE TO REPEAT THE INSTALLATION, making sure that you copy the GreekKeys Universal keyboard into the System FILE (INSIDE the system FOLDER).Step 4: searching for the GreekKeys Universal keyboard elsewhere on your hard disk
--Open the utility "find file" from the FILE menu, type in the words "GreekKeys Universal" and press "Find".
--If you find the GreekKeys Universal keyboard anywhere OTHER than inside the system FILE, drag it over the system file to copy it inside, and open the system file to confirm that it is inside.
ONCE THE GREEKKEYS KEYBOARD IS INSIDE THE SYSTEM FILE, YOU CAN ACCESS IT from the Control Panel or (if the keyboard menu is installed) from the keyboard menu.Step 5: testing for the accents using "KeyCaps"
--Once the GreekKeys keyboard has been selected (i. e., its icon appears at the top of the keyboard menu, or is highlighted in the "keyboard" control panel), go to the Apple menu and select the utility "keycaps". when the keyboard picture appears, go the "keycaps" menu and select a GreekKeys font like Athenian or Attika, then press down and hold the option key. On the top row of characters, you should see a picture of the different accents in a row; if so, try typing individual accented characters to test them (e.g., option-1, then "a" (WITHOUT option depressed) to produce alpha with acute).If you can type the accents from "KeyCaps", you should be able to type in the same way in your word processor.
If you have tried all these methods and still have trouble, please e-mail tech support stating how much of the above procedure you were able to complete successfully, and also the answers to the following questions:
--what operating system version are you using? (in the apple menu, check "About this Macintosh")
--what kind of Mac?
--what word processor and version?
In order to access some non-Roman characters, Word Perfect requires the installation of special "character maps" for the fonts in its program. If you are using WP for the Macintosh, open the folder "Word Perfect CharMaps" on GreekKeys disk #1; open the file "read me" and follow the instructions contained there to install the character maps for GreekKeys fonts.
NOTE THAT THERE ARE NO CORRESPONDING CHARACTER MAPS FOR WP/WINDOWS, AND SO GREEKKEYS DOES NOT WORK WITH WORD PERFECT FOR WINDOWS.
The GreekKeys fonts and keyboard continue to function as before in Macintosh's latest operating system, OS 9. (The fonts still reside in the "Fonts" folder inside the "System" folder, and the keyboard still belongs inside the "System" file (not folder).) BUT you should NOT USE the program "Keyboard Menu On/Off" to activate the keyboard menu--it has crashed the system for some users. (The keyboard menu will now appear automatically if you activate more than one keyboard in the keyboard control panel, so the program is unnecessary anyway.)
One possible adjustment to watch out for: if you install System 9over an existing system, your keyboard settings may be reset to default values (US keyboard). You will need to go to the "keyboard" program in "Control Panels", and select the "GreekKeys Universal" keyboard again to make it the default keyboard at startup once again.
Certain default-settings in WORD 98 and 2001 can cause Greek characters to be "corrected"--you have to find these features and turn them off. Thanks to Professor Donald Mastronarde for the following tips:
--In general, a user must deselect the option for autocorrection of text as you type. Go to the "Tools" menu, select "Autocorrection", and in the dialogue box that appears find the box for "Correct text and you type" and make sure it is UNCHECKED.
--Among the specific options that get in the way is capitalizing first letter of a sentence. Otherwise a sentence in a Greek text will have its first letter changed automatically. Under Tools/AutoCorrect/AutoCorrect uncheck the box for Capitalize first word of sentence.
There is a similar automatic substitution that appears more inconsistently: a sentence-opening or paragraph-opening alpha with acute [which admittedly you type word-initial only in some kind of list or typing test] is shifted to omega with smooth and grave (ascii 139 to 203). This seems to go away when the autocapitalization is deselected, but my tests have been inconsistent on this. Also, whereas in other cases autocapitalization occurs as soon as you type the second letter of the first word of a new sentence, the change from ascii 139 to 203 occurs only when you finish the word by entering a space or a return.
--Second, if ascii code 230 (upsilon with acute) is displayed on the screen as ascii 202 (omega with smooth acute) instead, (although the correct character will print) is related to the option to "show hidden characters," specifically to show spaces. In Word 98 this option must be turned off if you want the 230-character to show properly on the screen. (Under Tools menu, select Preferences..., select View panel, in the Nonprinting Characters section make sure that "spaces" and "all" are NOT checked.)
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Since WORD 97 and 2000 for Windows have altered permanently the treatment of symbol fonts (the type GreekKeys used to match Macintosh Greek with Windows), GREEKKEYS WILL NO LONGER BE SOLD FOR USE WITH WINDOWS effective May 25, 1999. (But you CAN STILL USE GreekKeys/Windows with WORD 95; and with the freely-downloadable Greek font "Athenian" to read Greek text in PERSEUS) Users of ancient Greek on WORD 97 and 2000 are recommended to start using UNICODE Polytonic Greek (see above), either with the Unicode fonts and keyboard utility "Antioch" from Ralph Hancock (shareware, $50 registration fee)) or "Politonistis" from Magenta software in Greece (15,000 drachmas, about $50), which may be downloaded/ordered from their websites. (see below for details).
This is not always an easy task, and no one should expect to do it regularly--for one thing, conversion from Windows Greek back to Macintosh format is usually NOT possible, even with the "backward" converters supplied by Microsoft. YOU DEFINITELY SHOULD NOT OPEN A GREEKKEYS MACINTOSH TEXT DIRECTLY IN WORD FOR WINDOWS 97--THE GREEK WILL BE LOST.
The best tips are:
--when possible, save the file with Greek to be converted in rtf format.
--always save backups of your original Greek text--if an incompatible word processor
converts it into gibberish (all boxes, for example) you cannot retrieve your Greek by
saving it back to original format.
--only convert to and from Microsoft WORD (for difficulties with Word Perfect click here),
using the earliest versions possible
--convert the file GRADUALLY: for example, if you have an old mac Write file with Greek,
first convert it from MacWrite to Word on the Mac (first to WORD 5) before moving it to
Windows [no converter available there]); in Windows, first convert it to WINWORD 5
or WORD 95, and save; then convert the saved WINWORD document to WORD 97 format.
(For difficulties with certain characters in WORD 97 click HERE.)
--if your Greek text appears as English, use rtf on Mac to change font id (as described on
p. 33-4 of the manual), then test and convert to WINWORD, then to WORD 97.
--FIRST: check to make sure the fonts have been properly installed (can you see them in the fonts menu of your word-processor? Can you insert accented Greek characters via the "Insert Symbol" command, even if not via the keyboard?)
--SECOND: If you have installed GreekKeys as a startup program and can see its icon in the taskbar (and have selected "GreekKeys" from the keyboard menu), but still cannot type the accents with the alt-key, there may be another startup program on your computer that is preventing GreekKeys from controlling the keyboard.
CHECKING FOR CONFLICTS BETWEEN AUTO-LOADING PROGRAMS IN WINDOWS 95 AND THE GREEKKEYS KEYBOARD PROGRAM. The way to look for it is to close all running programs, then, in the desktop window, press ctrl-alt-del, then view the list of programs autoloaded when you started up. Then you can test GreekKeys by selecting them, pressing "end task" to close them, and then restarting GreekKeys in your word processor to see if it works now (this kind of troubleshooting is mostly for advanced users; check with tech support or a local expert for help). So far, the only known confllict with GreekKeys (and with every other keyboard program, like WinGreek and Gamma Unitype) is with some autoload programs for Hewlett-Packard scanners (which can be safely removed; contact GreekKeys tech support for details). But there are probably others, and tech support would appreciate hearing of them as you identify them.
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PROBLEMS WITH WORD-SPACING IN CONTINUOUS GREEK TEXT IN WORD 97: Microsoft Word 97 introduces many changes in font formats, and among them is the treatment of the space character in fonts that (like Athenian and Attika) are "symbol-encoded": the Greek font still reproduces all the same characters, but the breaking space (between words) no longer "breaks"--i.e., the words run on between lines regardless of word-end (lines can end in the middle of words), and when you do a "word count", it only finds one long word, no matter how many words you type. (The problem only occurs in several continuous lines of Greek text-not in single words, or lines of poetry broken by a carriage return.)
HOW TO FIX IT: Use the "Replace" command (on the "Edit" menu) in the following steps: 1. Select and "copy" (control-c) one space from the Greek text; 2. Select the "Replace" command (on the "Edit" menu); 3. In "Replace," put the cursor in the "Find what" box and paste in control-v) the space from Athenian (it will appear as a box); 4. Then move the cursor to the "Replace with" box, and choose "format" below (to make this option appear you may need to select the box marked "More" on the right); Under the "format" menu, select "font"; 5. When the list of fonts appears, select a standard Windows system font (like Times New Roman or Arial), then click "ok" to close the window; 6. In the "Replace with" box, type a single space; 7. The replace-window should now look like this:
8. Press "Replace All". When this operation is completed, the Greek text should have returned to normal word-spacing and line-breaks.
TRANSFERRING GREEK TEXT INTO OFFICE 97 FROM EARLIER VERSIONS: I have found that it is best to convert text in GreekKeys fronts into WORD 97 by first putting it into WORD 95; if you try to convert directly from (for example) Macintosh WORD into WORD 97, the result may be gibberish. (But using WORD 97 as an intermediate stage works without problems.)
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tech support questions to: Jeffrey Rusten, Cornell University (jsr5@cornell.edu)
ordering questions to the American Philological Association: (apaclassics@sas.upenn.edu)
This page last updated December 15, 2001
