PHASE TWO
The textual tradition of the Tibetans suffered enormously at the hands of the Communist Chinese invasion. Many texts were lost irretrievably. Furthermore, as the principal libraries were destroyed many of the better editions of texts were also destroyed, leaving illegible or poorly scribed copies with many errors as the only extant editions of texts. In addition to this, it has been a feature of Buddhist scholarship from the time of the Buddha onwards, that the words of learning, which includes whole texts, would be committed to memory. The result has been that the actual texts are not the primary source of reliance for the contents; rather, it is the memories of the learned that is the primary source of reliance and that the texts are secondary to that. In a stable Buddhist culture, this learning is kept intact from one generation to the next and, if there is a need to re-furbish a written collection, the memories of the old and great scholars is highly relied on. At the DKHP we also have to follow the same process simply because the memory of the learned individuals is often more reliable than the actual contents of a text. However, Tibet's stable Buddhist culture has been destroyed and the number of old scholars who really knew the entire Drukpa Kagyu tradition can literally be counted on one hand. Since these scholars are old and really will pass away shortly, there is very little time within which the work can be successfully completed. Thus, although there was from the beginning the choice of doing the work by traditional Tibetan methods, i.e., either carving wood-blocks and printing the texts from those or hand-writing copies, one at a time, they were not considered as options because of the time constraint involved.
Fortunately, during the 1980's Tibetan word-processing software had been developed and by 1990, although not really up to the standard needed for the reality of this kind of work, the software was a better option than the traditional methods as a means for accomplishing the work. As karma would have it, Mr. Tony Duff, who had been a translator for many years had developed the best of the four available Tibetan word-processing software packages for personal computers at that time. Thus the decision was made not only to use word-processing as the means of actually preserving the texts but to use the word-processing package called "Tibetan!" that Mr. Duff had made.
The project started by using the Tibetan! software package of that time (version 3.5). However, it soon became apparent that the software was not really good enough for the magnitude of the task at hand. Accordingly, Mr. Duff re-wrote the whole package so in the first year of the project into software that really was workable for use by Tibetans in a project of such large scope. The new software was now Tibetan! version 4.
Additionally it became clear that the Tibetan fonts in the software at the time of beginning the project could be improved. So, with the help of several teachers, and especially Chogyal Rinpoche, a great meditation master and artist of the Drukpa Kagyu tradition, a new font was designed by Mr. Duff specifically for the publication of native Tibetan works.
The software package and the new fonts contributed greatly to the success of the new project. In the first year about twelve volumes of texts were input using the Tibetan! software. In the next two years a further 120 volumes of texts were input. At the same time correction work was done and a few texts were published.
The apparent success of the Drukpa Kagyu Heritage project meant that many other Tibetans came seeking help with the work of preserving the writings of their own traditions. Over a period of years, DKHP become well-known as the central resource of software and help for text- preservation projects run by Tibetans. The list of people that we have helped is extensive and includes all four major traditions of the Tibetan Buddhist culture. We have also had enquiries from the Bon-po tradition seeking help. Additionally, the DKHP has been very pleased to help Mr. Peter Jilks to establish the Gomang Parkhang (Gomang Publishing House) in Kathmandu. His office is the first commercial Tibetan publishing office and has very successfully been helping commercial and religious interests to do their Tibetan publishing. The first long-term Tibetan newspaper, called Nyen Chen Thang Lha, started up here in Kathmandu using the Tibetan! software and assistance from Gomang Parkhang and DKHP.
The first collection of Tibetan works to be published using word- processing methods was the bka' 'bum (Collected Works) of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. The thirty-odd volume collection was the result of years of labour by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche's translator Matthieu Ricard. In the first two years of the DKHP work, Mr. Duff gave Matthieu all of the technical assistance needed to do the work and even produced a special font for the publication of the Collected Works which was called Tibetan Mangala. With the exception of the project being run by Nitartha International in Bauddha, all of the projects for Tibetan text preservation on the Indian Sub-continent are using the software and special fonts created by Mr. Duff for use in the DKHP office.
Now in 1998, because the software is so suitable to the task and because the fonts are regarded as the most beautiful Tibetan fonts in the world, the software has become the most popular Tibetan word-processing software in the world. For example, recently the Bhutanese Government signed an agreement for the software to be used throughout Bhutan. The software and fonts in use by the project are sold under the Tibetan Computer Company name though the income from the sales is used directly and completely to cover the running expenses of the project.
Altogether from 1993 to 1998 we have typed over 150 volumes of texts into the computers at the DKHP office and most of the typing work is now done. Continues 
