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Tag: Cherokee

  • 2014 Jeep Cherokee? New Model Surprises

    The familiar Jeep Cherokee that has been around for decades has given us some new surprises in its 2014 models. The new look is the first thing you’ll notice, quite different than the Jeep you are used to seeing. It’s been upgraded to look sleeker and more modern – loaded with updated safety features, and much more pleasant to handle on the road.

    It also has the first nine-speed automatic transmission. Using a platform that’s based on cars from Jeep owner Fiat of Italy.

    Cherokee offers safety equipment that’s usually only seen in luxury cars and includes lots of extras such as unique storage nooks, and seats that slide much further forward and back than most other SUVs. The legroom in the back has been enhanced, giving passengers over 40 inches of space.

    The Cherokee, just as before, offers 4×4 off-road options, and is a heavier body than most others in its class. However, it is not standing up to the others in gas mileage.

    The 2014 Jeep Cherokee’s best mileage rating from the federal government is 22 miles per gallon in the city and 31 on the highway with the standard, 184-horsepower, 2.4-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine.

    Cherokee also offers an optional, 271-horsepower, 3.2-liter V-6, with mileage at 19 city and 27 highway.

    The 2014 Cherokee has a starting retail price of $23,990 for a front-wheel drive Sport model with the turbocharged four cylinder and nine-speed automatic. They don’t offer a manual transmission though.

    A 4×4 Cherokee starts at $25,990 with the 4-cylinder engine.

    The lowest retail price for a 2014 Cherokee with the V-6 is $26,985, and this isn’t the 4×4 model. Buyers can step into a four-wheel-drive, V-6 Grand Cherokee for as little as $31,790 with the Laredo trim. Jeep offers the Limited and Summit trim as well; the Overland model is a bit pricier, at $47,190. These starting costs are for standard equipped models.

    The safety additions are awesome. Standard safety equipment on all 2014 Cherokees includes antilock disc brakes, stability and traction control, front and rear seat side airbags, side curtain airbags and front knee airbags. A rearview camera is either standard or optional on all models.

    Trailhawk and Limited models are available with a large option package that includes a forward collision warning system (with automatic brake intervention in potential collision situations), a lane departure warning system that will give the steering wheel a nudge if you veer out of your lane on the highway, and blind-spot and rear cross-traffic alerts.

    See all of the new models at your local Jeep Cherokee dealer – you might just drive off with one.

    Image via YouTube

  • Gmail Launches In Cherokee (GWY)

    Gmail Launches In Cherokee (GWY)

    Today, Google announced the launch of Gmail in its 57th language. In March of last year, Google added Cherokee to the list of languages for search, and now the language, also known as GWY, is available for Gmail. Both include a virtual keyboard.

    Gmail in Cherokee

    Google software engineer Craig Cornelius explains how the addition of the language came to Google products:

    It was just coincidence that I, a Google engineer working on the internationalization of Google products, ended up carpooling back to San Francisco with Vance Blackfox, member of the Cherokee Nation (CN) from an event we’d both attended. But that coincidence kick-started a collaboration that would result in Google Web Search in Cherokee and, starting today, Gmail in Cherokee.

    After a 2002 survey of the Oklahoma Cherokee population found that no one under 40 spoke conversational Cherokee, the Cherokee Nation saw an opportunity to use technology to encourage everyday use of the language among the younger generation. Vance connected me with the language technology department at the Cherokee Nation, and the Gmail team worked closely with their highly organized team of volunteers, which ranged from university students to Durbin Feeling–Cherokee living treasure and author of the Cherokee-English Dictionary. Together, we were able to find and implement the right words for hundreds of Gmail terms, from “inbox” (ᎧᏁᏌᎢᏱ) and “sign in” (ᏕᏣᏙᎥ ᎰᏪᎸᎦ) to “spam” (ᎤᏲᎢ).

    Google does not mention if the language will be coming to other products. Google Translate seems like a no-brainer.

  • Google Adds Cherokee to Search Languages

    Today Google announced that it has added Cherokee to its incredibly large list of search languages.  Like many Native American languages, Cherokee is in danger of becoming extinct.  This partnership between Google and The Cherokee Nation is being hailed as incredibly important by both sides involved.

    Preceding Cherokee on the language list was Elmer Fudd and Klingon.  At least they got to it before they tackled Na’vi.

    You can change the language by clicking the Language Tools page directly to the right of the search box.  Once you select Cherokee as your default language, the Google homepage should look like this:

    Google has also added an on-screen virtual keyboard accessible by clicking the keyboard icon on the right side of the search box.  It looks like this:

    The Google blog post also gives us a brief history lesson about the Cherokee language, showing exactly why it is worth preserving:

    The Cherokee syllabary writing system was developed by Sequoyah in the early 19th century. He realized the power of writing systems, and wanted his people to benefit from that power. Some of the 85 characters he developed for his syllabary were modified from his original handwritten script for a printing press in the 1820s, resulting in characters that resemble Latin and Greek letters. Despite the resemblance, they are pronounced differently. The modified script was quickly adapted for printing Cherokee newspapers, books and pamphlets. The adoption and use of the script enabled the Cherokee people to maintain their language and culture. Today, Cherokee is spoken mostly in the states of Oklahoma and North Carolina.

    Cool.

    The official site for The Cherokee Nation also posted a statement about the new language option.  They think that incorporating their language with the virtual world is a legitimate way to keep it alive.

    “I believe that efforts like those of Google are essential to keeping our language alive,” said Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chad Smith. “We have been working hard to get our young people interested in learning our Native tongue but we cannot be successful unless they can read and write in the medium of their era – all the digital devices that are currently so popular.”