From lojbab@xxxxxx.xxxx Sun May 30 08:32:19 1999 X-Digest-Num: 153 Message-ID: <44114.153.912.959273824@eGroups.com> Date: Sun, 30 May 1999 11:32:19 -0400 From: Bob LeChevalier-Logical Language Group From: WorldMaker > >Hello, I'm new here and really intrigued by Lojban. It seems to me that >the major problem is the lack of a sufficient vocabulary... Has anyone >thought about going through Abridged/Pocket Dictionary and making a list >of needed words? We actually have some better standards for "needed words" based on word frequency lists. But wordmaking is a major time consuming job, and there is no one-to-one correspondence of English and Lojban words, so that you cannot simply look at an English word, pick a Lojban word, and be done with it. But the real backlog is in analyzing the resulting words and determining their place structures (and then ideally getting someone else to independently check this partially subjective process). We have at least a couple thousand words that have actually been used in Lojban text, but never had a place structure analysis, and the latter would be needed to include them in a dictionary for someone else to use them. >What about embarking on larger translation works, for >instance an H. G. Wells or Jules Verne novel? (Both of which should be >public domain). I have been working )very occasionally) for almost 10 years now on the first story of the Burton version of Thousand Nights and a Night (Arabian Nights - this is the Scheherezade story), and on the first chapter of Heinlein's Moon is a Harsh Mistress (which mentions Loglan in the text). I know of others working on their own translations. But this again is time consuming and we get words used, but not defined as a result. But feel free to start translating yourself. Don't wait for us. lojbab ---- lojbab ***NOTE NEW ADDRESS*** lojbab@lojban.org Bob LeChevalier, President, The Logical Language Group, Inc. 2904 Beau Lane, Fairfax VA 22031-1303 USA 703-385-0273 Artificial language Loglan/Lojban: see Lojban WWW Server: href=" http://xiron.pc.helsinki.fi/lojban/ " Order _The Complete Lojban Language_ - see our Web pages or ask me.