SCIM was not included until Slackware version 12.1.

If you don't know how to configure and build software,
you're best just waiting until you upgrade to Slackware-13.0

Dear Bruce Hill

Do you know why I came to Linux and Slackware.
why I do not use Windows, its very easy to install something
when using the so-called illegal windows xp or vista in our country is not illegal. Windows xp or vista cd's price is about 60 cent to 80 cent of the US currency. And every windows sofware is free or at the very cheap price here, all of them are about 50 or 60 cent with the well license. We love the socialism

The reason is:
I want to learn something that is valuable.
You could say why I do not choose another linux distro like ubuntu
it is well config, and we do not to worry anything, just click and click
I had chosen Slackware because I love Patrick's style, unix like, everything must be config on the console or by hand. I want to master the OS, and understand its inside, and I do not want to be the end-user like I do in the windows OS

If I am not wrong, you are one of Slackware developer.
I feel sorry for your attention in the previous post.

anyway, I still want to thank for you kind answers from the begining
I hope that you may still want to guide newbie to linux like me

Your faithfully

Le Hoang Long

Hello Hoanglong1712,

In this post, you seem to be asking how to make SCIM work in Slackware 12.

Bruce and myself have responded to you that SCIM is supported only starting from Slackware 12.1. Basically you are on your own if you want to make SCIM work with Slackware 12.

Bruce suggested that you wait for Slackware 13 which will be released soon. As you are in Slackware 12, you will not be able to easily upgrade as upgrade instructions from Slackware are only valid for an upgrade from the previous version (i.e from 12.2 to 13.0).

So I would also suggest that you wait until Slackware 13.0 and make a clean install (of course, backup your data before). If you can not wait until 13.0, you can just easily make a clean install of Slackware 12.2 which is currently the latest stable release.

To conclude, if you want to learn Slackware, making a clean install of Slackware 12.2 or 13.0 will be a good start and you will have SCIM working as a bonus.

Last advice: please read the README**.TXT, CHANGES_AND_HINTS.TXT files in the installation DVD (or first CD) before you process with the installation because there are precious information there to help you set up Slackware. That's the Slackware way

First, I am not one of the Slackware developers/maintainers/contributors.
I'm just a user like yourself.

Second, you said "I still wait for Slackware 13". Since it will be released
any day now, my advice was/is to wait. Since SCIM works in > 12.0, and it
is much less trouble than compiling everything from source and configuring.

It was a lot of work to build packages for SCIM and several IM-engines.
Then see to it that freetype and x11 got the patches needed for better
CJK font rendering. And then getting an acceptable font, which still
isn't as good as Chinese people require.

So my recommendation is still to wait on Slackware-13.0 You can spend
those few days backing up your config files and important data.

If you don't want to wait, you can search my threads. There is at least
one thread where I posted a HOW-TO about Chinese in Slackware-12.
And if you don't find the information you need there, begin by getting
all the sources we used back then from Alien Bob's repo.

Dear Bruce Hill
Slackware 13 has been released
but I still do not want to upgrade
you said that you had a thread about this problem on slackware 12
should you post that link here
and I want to get all the sources, config you used back then from Alien Bob's repo.

If you don't want to upgrade to 13.0 because of KDE4, you can alternatively install 12.2 which comes with KDE 3.5.10 and will still receive security patches for a long time. In Slackware 12.2, making SCIM work is quite easy if you follow the documentation.

Frankly speaking, I don't see the point of your trying to re-do in Slackware 12.0 the different changes that are part of later versions in order to make SCIM work.

You will have enough of a learning experience installing 12.2.

Now if Bruce Hill is ready to guide you through the ordeal Eric Hameleers and him went through, so be it.

My advice to you is the same as I gave here and here... upgrade to at least Slackware-12.1.

There are new apps, security updates, and more reasons to upgrade to Slackware-13.0,
but this is your choice.

Also, I said for you to search for my threads. Did you? Here is the post that
was titled HOW-TO setup Chinese font display and input in Slackware-12.0,
and Alien Bob's Slackware Asian Support.

Perhaps you can understand that this was hard work, recompiling X and so
many packages. The support back then was nothing compared with today.

If you insist on rebuilding Slackware-12.0 rather than upgrading, understand
that I don't have the time to revisit history and help you. I've put my time
into this and Slackware now has good CJK support. Time to move on...

Dear Bruce Hill, gegechris99 and everyone
Thanks for your great help and kind attention,
You are right, we don't have to dig up the tomb of time.
and time to move on..
I had download slackware 13
I love KDE and I see that KDE4 is beautiful although it is more complicated than its brother. there is no reason that I hate kde4 or the new version
i only want to fulfill my desire in studying. As I had said before , I came to slackware linux to master my PC not to be an windows-like end-user.
I hope that the new version 13 would solve my problem in scim.
I shall install it in the next sunday.
from now to that time,I shall try to solve the slackware 12 following your tutorial
The thing I need is experience and ability. To make scim work well with koffice, kdeapp might be give me a lot of valuable things.

I had made it run well with gtk app like firefox, openoffice pidgin..etc...
but I can not do the same thing with qt app like koffice or kde app

Once again, I thank for your kind help,
if I fall in making scim run well in slackware 12, I shall install 13 version next sunday, if it won't run scim well, I hope that you should help me
thank you for everythings

Dear Bruce Hill, gegechris99 and everyone
I had install a fresh Slackware 13 today on my hard driver as you suggested
I can not make the scim run as I watn
I installed full
and had run scim
but the language panel doesn't appear
it is a pain
what should I do

Hello Hoanglong1712,

Did you follow the instructions that I mentioned in this previous post? Even though my post referred to instructions for 12.1, you will find the same instructions on 13.0.

Dear Bruce Hill
I have followed your instructions and
scim worked well with most of Kde app
but there is a problem with Kword
It require me to type the all letter of word before i can see that word on the screen
for example :
I want to type in Vi-telex this word :
tôi

this word means "I" in English
I must type like this : tooi and press space key
the word "tôi" only appears after I type space key or else it only apears "t"

Is it a bug of kword or due to the config
I don't meet any thing like that in Kate,Kwrite or konqueror
Did you meet any problem like that in your language typing

Hey hoanglong1712,

I am glad to see you upgraded to Slackware-13.0.

This is first time I hear of Vi-telex. I try to download and build Slackware package:
I am not going to signup and become a member. If you send me the source code I will
build a Slackware package and try SCIM and Chinese input with vi-telex.

I can not read Vietnamese language. Does this help you?

Since I do not read Vietnamese, I do not use that language.

I use Chinese, but not KWord. I use OpenOffice. To help I just launched KWord and typed:
That is: wo shi mei guo ren.

It worked okay for me.

Sometimes when I am using SCIM, my Chinese input stops working. For instance, I am using
irssi and Chinese input was working, but now it stopped. The only way I know for it to
work is to restart X.

I am sorry I can not be of more help to you.

Did you install vietnamese font in Kword?

I'm asking because I had a similar problem in Kword with Korean input and this behaviour was corrected when I used a Korean font.

Dear Bruce Hill
Thanks for you great help
If you want to try vi-telex,it is in m17n package in slackware disk
I can also type Chinese very well in kword
may be it is due to the bug of kword


sometimes my scim stop to work, I stop the application which is using scim and start it again, everything is solved. I do not need to restart X

Dear gegechris99
In Vietnam, we have our own fonts, but most of our do not use these fonts
we use times new roman instead
I did not meet any problem while typing Korean words in slackware 13 or maybe I do not know enough Korean words to test

but there is a problem
whatever type of unicode font that I try
there is a same result
for example :
I type "khế" : starfruit
in kwrite or kate
"kh" is in the font type that I chose
but "ế" always in "courier new" font type