Thai on Computers
Screenshots are forthcoming. If you have any experience with getting Thai to
work on other versions of Windows or Macintosh or other platforms, please let
me know.
Windows XP
- Click on Start.
- Next, click on Control Panel.
- Go to Regional and Language Options.
- Select Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options.
- Click on either Add other languages or Regional and
Language Options.
- If it isn't already selected, click on the Languages tab in
the dialog box that appears (it's the middle of the three tabs).
- Click in the "Install files for complex script and right-to-left
languages (including Thai)" checkbox.
- A box titled "Install Supplemental Language Support" will pop up. It
reads: "You chose to install the Arabic, Armenian, Georgian, Hebrew, Indic,
Thai and Vietnamese language files. This will require 10 MB or more of
available disk space. The files will be installed after you click OK or
Apply on the Regional and Language Options dialog box."
- Click the Apply button in the lower-right corner of the dialog
box. You may need to put in your Windows XP CD if it asks for it.
- Once that's done, make sure you're still in the Regional and Language
Options dialog. Click on the Details button under Text
services and input languages.
- Under Installed services, click on the Add
button.
- The Add Input Language dialog will appear. Select Thai from
the input language textbox.
- Click OK. (You don't need to change the keyboard
layout.)
- Everything's set now. To switch back and forth between the English and
Thai keyboard layouts, hit Left Alt-Shift. (Alternatively, you can click
on the EN and TH buttons in the taskbar.)
- Windows will install a handful of Thai fonts by default, including
Angsana New, Angsana UPC, Browallia UPC, Cordia New, Cordia UPC, Dillennia
UPC, Eucrosia UPC, Jasmine UPC, Kodchiang UPC, and Lily UPC. Links to font
sites with more fonts will be forthcoming.
Mac OS X
- Click on the Finder apple in the upper left corner.
- Click on System Preferences.
- Under the Personal section, select International.
- There are three tabs here. The first is Language.
- If Thai isn't listed in the list of languages on the left, click on
Edit and find it, then click Okay.
- Optional: Click on Thai in the list and drag it up so that it's
second, right after English.
- Click on the third tab, Input Menu.
- Scroll down the long list and select Thai. It's under
the Unicode script section. Don't select Thai-PattaChote.
- Close System Preferences.
- You'll see a small U.S. flag in the upper right -- this is the
International input menu. Click on it. You'll see "U.S." and "Thai" and
whatever else you selected.
- To switch to Thai, hit Command-Space. You'll see a Thai flag replace
the U.S. flag at the top of the screen. Command-Space again will go back
to English.
