From a newbie: Mule-UCS installation and configuration

Rodolfo Medina wrote:

> In my `Linux Mandrake 10.1 Community' system I recently installed
> Emacs CVS 21.3.50. I need to input with scim both Simplified
> and Traditional Chinese together with Italian characters 
> (with the accented vocals à, è, ì, etc.).
>
> [...]
>
> In my .emacs now I put the following lines:
>
>	(utf-translate-cjk-load-tables)
>	(set-language-environment 'chinese-big5)
>
> [...]
>
> I started Emacs with `$ LC_CTYPE=zh_CN.UTF-8 emacs,
> then activated scim with C-space


Kenichi Handa wrote:

> If you want to make utf-8 the default coding system for
> file, try this sequence:
>
> (set-language-environment 'chinese-big5)
> (utf-translate-cjk-load-tables)
> (set-language-environment 'utf-8)
>
> The first and second make Unicode characters translated
> mainly to Big5. The third line makes many coding systems
> default to utf-8.
>
> By the way, it seems that you are using a SCIM's input
> method that produces simplified chinese. Why did you choose
> chinese-big5 instead of chinese-gb?


I want the possibility to produce both simplified and traditional 
chinese in one file.


Kenichi:

> By the way, have you tried any of Emacs' one chinese input
> methods? I thought the reason you are
> going to use SCIM for inputting Chinese in Emacs is that you
> thought SCIM is more convenient than Emacs' input methods.


As far as I know, Emacs' chinese input methods don't allow to write
and save both simplified and traditional chinese in one file,
whereas SCIM does; secondly, I want to input and read chinese 
also within other applications, in particular a web browser while
navigating in internet.


Rodolfo:

> But now, one more problem.
> I want to use gnus as my mail agent and mozilla as web browser.
> Now, I did experiments and noticed that the two are apparently
> 'inconsistent'. I.e.:
>
> 1) I can properly send and receive mails 
>    (containing chinese characters input via scim) using gnus;
> 2) I can properly input and read chinese characters in web browser mozilla
>    once I've started mozilla with: '$ mozilla' and selected 
>    View > Character Encoding > Unicode (UTF-8);
>
> but:
>
> 1) if I compose and send to myself an e-mail via web browser mozilla
>    and collect it with gnus I can't read chinese characters;
> 2) vice versa, if I compose and send an e-mail via gnus 
>    and try to read it within Internet with web browser mozilla I can't read 
>    chinese characters.
>
> Any idea about this problem?
> The same happens if I select *any* other chinese encoding system featured by 
> mozilla. Besides,
>
> 1) if I compose and send to myself an e-mail via web browser mozilla
>    and collect it with MicroSoft Outlook I can't read chinese characters;
> 2) if I compose and send an e-mail via gnus 
>    and try to read it with MS Outlook I *can* properly read chinese characters.
>
> So, the following interactions work fine:
> gnus -> gnus; web browser mozilla -> web browser mozilla; gnus -> MS Outlook,
> whereas the following do not properly work:
> gnus -> web browser mozilla; web browser mozilla -> gnus; web browser mozilla -> MS Outlook.
> But I'm not interested in using MS Outlook, I just did a trial with it.
> I'm interested in using gnus and web browser mozilla, or, in place of mozilla,
> some linux web browser that `agrees' with gnus in displaying chinese characters
> input via SCIM.
> Is the inconsistence normal or there's a way
> to work it out, and how?


Kenichi:

> I'm sorry but I'm leaving for abroad quite soon and don't
> have to investigate the problem at the moment.  I'll be back
> to Japan at the end of next week.


I hope you will provide help about this, because no help came from
SCIM mailing list up to now.

Thanks indeed, 
regards,
Rodolfo