AN ONLINE TOOL has tipped up that allows Arabic speakers to write Arabic using the English alphabet.

Language Analytics LLC, said its Yamli.com enables Arabic speakers to more easily access the Interweb.

The outfit has initially delivered two web-based tools. Both allow users to type phonetic Arabic using the English-language keyboard. Yamli Search enables Arabic searching with Google. Yamli Editor allows users to write Arabic text that can be copied into any electronic document.

It seems that although Arabic keyboards are available, most Arabic-speaking surfers use an English keyboard. They often resort to spelling Arabic words out phonetically using English characters. Yamli converts these transliterations into into Arabic words.

Language Analytics' Habib Haddad said, like millions of users, "I could easily express my Arabic words using English letters, but I had difficulty typing them in Arabic. "

Co-founder Imad Jureidini reckons, "the Arabic web will truly take off when people can do two things easily: find and write Arabic content. While there are many applications for our technology, we sought to address these two fundamental needs immediately." µ

L'INQ
www.yamli.com