Why can I not type characters used in older Gurmukhi (for example, the SGGS) using Unicode?
At present, Unicode Gurmukhi is geared at typing modern Punjabi. It has not been implemented with archaic forms of Gurmukhi in mind. Older and Sanskritised forms of Gurmukhi break with some modern Gurmukhi conventions which makes implementing them particularly troublesome because Unicode rendering engines heavily enforce rules on Indian scripts. Such rules that are troublesome are: • Allowing only one vowel sign to be attached to a consonant. e.g. Hora and Onkar can be used on one consonant. • Preventing adaptation of independent vowels. e.g. Onkar on ਓ to represent the independent form of Hora and Onkar. • Allowing only one form of a conjunct. e.g. Pari Haha and Udaat usage as alternative forms of Haha. These rules do not conflict with modern Gurmukhi – in fact, they complement modern Gurmukhi – but they cause huge difficulties when a user wishes to enter text in a form that breaks with convention. Many of the problems can be overcome with sporadic use of ZWS (Zero Width Space), ZWJ (
