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Azhagi+

Azhagi+ is a new form of Azhagi (easy.azhagi.com), with additional features and advantages. Azhagi+ is also 100% free. When compared to Azhagi, Azhagi+ is greatly trimmed-down, since many of the special tools of Azhagi (e.g. Auto transliterator, Reverse transliterator, Dual-Screen transliterator, SAT transliterator, etc.) do not find a place in it. Azhagi+ is small and sleek. And, portable too.

Sleek

Portable

Unique

As of now, the main focus of Azhagi+ is on 'direct typing' in all windows applications in different combinations of languages/font-encodings/keyboard-layouts. However, Azhagi+ possesses many interesting features and certain distinct benefits over 'Azhagi'. A tabulated list of differences is also listed here.

Key Features

Small, Sleek and Portable.
Unique Tamil transliteration scheme - natural, intuitive, flexible and user-friendly - enabling you to type more in less time (easy and fast).
A clear-cut, standard and uniform transliteration scheme, for all other Indian languages.
Direct typing/transliteration in ANY Windows application in Tamil, Hindi, Sanskrit, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati, Bengali, Punjabi, Oriya and Assamese.
Typing in Indian languages in MS-Word (and MS-Powerpoint) in Windows XP even without enabling Unicode fully (i.e. even without enabling the option "Install files for complex script ..." in the control panel applet 'Regional and Language Options'). As of now, this is a unique capability of Azhagi+.
'See-As-You-Type' dynamic help for all key mappings. As such, for all LFKs.
Two useful and powerful features:

Change existing key mappings.

Create your own keyboard layout.

Yes, the facility to modify key mappings for ANY language in ANY way. 'Modify' means all four of 'add', 'change', 'delete' and 'customize'.

And, the facility to create your own keyboard layout - that is, an entirely new keyboard layout consisting entirely of your own key mappings.
System tray icon to indicate the language in which you are typing.
Option to set your own separate hotkey for each 'Language+Font+KeyboardLayout' (LFK) combination.
Option to set your own global hotkey for all combinations of 'Language+Font+KeyboardLayout' combination.
Various other options to customize your experience of operating Azhagi+.
Note: You may perhaps find the facility of having both a global hotkey and also a specific hotkey for each LFK (language+font+keyboard-layout combination) quite unique to Azhagi+. So too the facility to have not only individual function keys as hotkeys but any combination of Alt+Ctrl+Win+Shift (with enough no. of modifier suffixes) as hotkeys.

How to operate?

Please visit oper-plus.html for step-by-step instructions on how to install Azhagi+, how to operate it and for many other important info.
For answers to certain specific questions/doubts, kindly visit helptips.html and support.html

Benefits [when compared to Azhagi]

Small size
Extremely small download size (only 350kb - the whole of Azhagi+ zipped, as of now). Though this is only of academic interest in these days of high speed internet connection, it might be of help still, in certain areas and certain circumstances. Also, it might be a matter of certain interest for tech'people, as well as certain users.
Portable*

No setup.exe needed. Extract and Run. That is all to it. This means, Azhagi+ can be run even from your pen-drive (and kind) and carried with you wherever you want. Hence, hereafter, one can use 'Azhagi' (i.e. Azhagi+) in such office environments too where executing 'setup.exe' of any extraneous application is not allowed.
Any hotkey can be set
User can set any hotkey (e.g. Alt+1, Win+F10, Ctrl+Shift+3, etc.) and press the same to put Azhagi+ in 'Direct Typing' mode. Hotkey is not limited to 'F10' (F11 and F12) any more. So, problem with F10 (F11 and F12) hotkey becos of 'Fn' key in laptops is solved for ever.
No need to enable Unicode
With Azhagi, in WinXP (or Win2003) alone, you have to enable unicode fully in order to type in Unicode Tamil in MS-Word/Powerpoint. This is not required in Azhagi+.
Note: In case (and only in case) of the 'portable' version of Azhagi+, in WinXP systems, you cannot type in MS-Word/Powerpoint alone (i.e. in all other applications, you CAN type), if not Unicode is already enabled fully in those systems.
No need to add any keyboard layout
With Azhagi, in Win XP/2003, you have to add an additional keyboard layout in order to type in Tamil and other Indian languages in MS-Word/Powerpoint. This is not required in Azhagi+.
Alt+Shift not needed
With Azhagi, in Win XP/2K3, you have to press 'Alt+Shift' (to change keyboard layout to Tamil) before starting to type in Unicode Tamil in MS-Word/Powerpoint. No need for that in Azhagi+.
(*)
1. If you are not conversant with 'PORTABLE' softwares and wish to know more about them, kindly please click here.

2. Strictly speaking, Azhagi+ is not portable, as it has certain 'file dependencies'. But, these 'dependency files' get installed automatically along with the installation of the OS in all Windows operating systems, to this date (including Windows7). So, eventually, Azhagi+ is portable, as such. It may or may not be the case with Windows8 (supposedly the name for the next Windows OS) where these 'dependency files' may not get installed automatically during OS installation. In such cases, you can use the setup.exe version of Azhagi+. It is also possible that Azhagi+ will get enhanced by the time Windows8 arrives so that Azhagi+ will remain portable in Windows8 also.

Downloads

AzhagiPlus-Setup.zip
AzhagiPlus-Setup.exe
AzhagiPlus-Portable.zip (only 350 Kb)
Very Important Note on the above downloads:
- Version: 10.15, Release: 22-Mar-2012
- OS requirements: WinXP and above
- If you are using WinXP/2K3 and if you are getting only squares when you type in Unicode in MS-Word, then it means that:
  - You are using the portable version of Azhagi+.
    and
  - Unicode is not enabled fully in your WinXP system.
  In such a case, you have to necessarily download the 'AzhagiPlus-Setup.exe' and run the same. So, in office environments where execution of 'setup.exe' of extraneous applications is not allowed, typing in Unicode Tamil in MS-Word/Powerpoint in WinXP is not possible, unless Unicode is already enabled fully in those systems. To enable Unicode fully in your WinXP system, click here.

Betas and earlier versions

Beta versions of Azhagi+ can be downloaded from here.
Earlier versions of Azhagi+ can be downloaded from here.

Snapshot(s)

Portable Softwares (and their immense benefits)

No installation needed
A software is "PORTABLE" means you need not install the software in your system (by clicking any setup.exe file) - in order to use it. You can straightaway start using it, even without installing it in your system.
Just unzip (extract) and start using
For e.g. "Portable" Azhagi+ means, you can just unzip* the downloaded "AzhagiPlus-Portable.zip" to any directory (say "C:\PortableApplications\AzhagiPlus") and straightaway start using it by clicking "C:\PortableApplications\AzhagiPlus\Azhagi-Plus.exe".
(*) If you are NOT tech-savvy about zip files and the operations of zipping, unzipping (extracting), etc., you can read some tutorials on the same. There are lots of them available on the net. You can read the one which suits you. As for me, I found this tutorial (with screen snapshots) by 'powerzip.biz' on zipping/unzipping to be very lucid and easy. If you wish to use a software for trying out unzipping (extracting), perhaps you can opt to try out 7-zip. It is a 100% free software for one's zipping/unzipping needs.
Use from pen-drive in office environments
Since AzhagiPlus is portable, you can carry it in your pen-drive (or similar device) and straightaway start using it in any system. No installation needed to work with it in any system. This is immensely useful in office environments where execution of 'setup.exe' of extraneous applications is not allowed in employees' systeme. In such cases, one can plug in one's pen-drive into the system and start using Azhagi+ straightaway (if you already have 'AzhagiPlus-Portable.zip' unzipped to some directory in your pen-drive).
Testing out is just a snap
Portable softwares (for e.g. please see portablefreeware.com) have become immensely popular nowadays since they remove the great hassle of installing an application first in order to work with it and then again go through the process of uninstalling it when you do not require the application. In case of a portable software, installing and uninstalling is just a snap. For e.g. if you wanted to uninstall a portable software called 'xyzxyz', you just need to delete it's directory. That is all to it. For e.g. if you unzipped 'xyzxyz' to "C:\PortableApplications\xyzxyz" earlier, in order to uninstall it, you just have to delete the directory 'xyzxyz' (i.e. 'C:\PortableApplications\xyzxyz') under "C:\PortableApplications\".
Same settings - Anywhere Anytime
With portable softwares, the various settings you effect to customise your use of a particular portable software remain the same in whichever system you use that software. That means, you can straightaway start using your portable software with the same settings, in any system. In non-portable softwares, most often this is not the case or most often it is not as straightforward as in the case of portable softwares.
No trace, Increased productivity
Portable softwares do not leave any trace in your system when uninstalled (unlike in the case of the non-portable softwares, some of which may leave traces of them in the system registry and other folders even after uninstalling - which in due course may lead to your system slowing down or your system storing unaccessed/unused files, unnecessarily). Further, if you carry your portable software always in your pen-drive, then any system is not even aware of your software, unless and until you access your software from the pen-drive plugged into that system. Thus, with portable softwares, Everything becomes plug and play, with increased productivity and ease of use.