Rashi Script in Google Docs!!!!

Rashi Script for Google Docs

Forgive the overuse of exclamation points, but GOOGLE DOCS HAS RASHI SCRIPT!!!

This is huge!

This was perhaps the last reason I continued to prepare worksheets in Word, and now Google has Rashi script. This is certainly a game-changer for teachers of Jewish texts.

How To Get It

The font (Noto Rashi Hebrew) can be loaded through the Google Docs Add-On Extensis Fonts.

See this previous post to learn how to add it to your Google Docs toolkit.

Hebrew Fonts in Extensis Add-On

Once you have added Extensis to your Add-Ons,  type or paste some text into Google Docs. I have grabbed the first Rashi on Chumash from Sefaria.

Highlight the text.

Go to Add-Ons in the Google Doc Menu bar and choose Extensis Fonts. Click Start.

Scroll down to Noto Rashi Hebrew. Click on it.

Your text should now be in Rashi script. 

The new font, Noto Rashi Hebrew, should now appear in your font list, ready to use whenever you need it.

Two caveats: The tzadi is oddly stylized. Stop kvetching. I am sure with enough exposure, we can all get used to it. [UPDATE: I discovered over shabbat that this is Steinsaltz's Rashi script.]

The Tzere Workaround

The second caveat is, as mentioned in the comments, that the tzere is really unrecognizable.

The workaround (admittedly a bit of a pain, but a worthwhile trade-off in my opinion if you need to use Google Docs with Rashi and nequdot) is as follows:

In Hebrew typing mode, place your cursor after the offending tzere, and hit backspace. This will delete the vowel. 

Go to the font list in the menu bar and change the font to one of the following (other fonts may work too; this is the result of my own experimenting):

Miriam Libre

Courier New

Tahoma.

Type the tzere (older PCs: Caps Lock, Shift+5; Chromebooks and some newer PCs, AltGr+M)

Repeat as necessary.

For more information on Hebrew and Google Docs, see my other posts:

Setting Hebrew on a Chromebook

Hebrew Fonts in Google Docs

Hebrew Vowels (Niqud) for Chromebooks

Right to Left Non-Printing Character for Docs

Also search the tag "Hebrew" on this blog.

Some nice Hebrew fonts for Google Docs

It's always nice to play with typography to make our Google Docs stand out.

The Extensis add-on to Google Docs can give you access to hundreds of new fonts.

(In any Google Doc, go to Add-ons, click "Get Add-ons", and search for Extensis. Select it, choose your account and click Allow.)

So how many of those fancy fonts work for Hebrew? About 15 - 20. (and no Rashi yet)

Check them out here. The page will show you what they look like.
(Here is a partial screenshot)

Or just search in Extensis for the following fonts:
Alef, Amatic SC, Arimo, Assistant, Bellefair, Cousine, David Libre, Frank Ruhl Libre, Heebo, Miriam Libre, Rubik, Secular One, Suez One, Tinos, Varela Round

[Cousine has weird spacing issues with the letter ו"ו, and Secular One and Suez One are bold poster-like fonts.]

To the above list I will also mention Cardo and Tahoma, which can be found in Extensis as well.

If you know of any more, please let me know in the comments.

Supercharge your Google Apps with Add-ons and Chrome with Extensions

ICYMI - From today's Mimi Charnoff Professional Development Day, my list of my go-to Add-ons for Google Apps (Docs, Forms, Slides) and my favorites extensions for Chrome.

REMINDER: Extensions only work in Chrome on a Chromebook, a PC or a Mac. They do NOT work on Chrome on a phone or tablet (iPad, etc.) as they are not true Chrome browsers.

Google Doc Add-ons
Change Case	For those typing mistakes - ALL CAPS all gone
Extensis Fonts	Find precisely the right font
Kaizena	Add voice comments to a shared doc thru Google Classroom
Highlight Tool	Share labeled highlighter categories
Sefaria	Add Jewish texts directly to docs
In an open Google Doc, go to Add-ons.

Google Form Add-ons
123RF Stock Photos	Free photos to insert into Forms
All Questions Required?	For Quizzes - Click when finished
CheckItOut	For keeping track of inventory
Form Publisher	Convert to Doc, Slide, Sheet
Form Limiter	Limit time or number of responses
PaperScorer	Create bubble sheet from form - scan w/ phone to score

Google Slides Add-Ons - NEW!
AdobeStock	Free photos to insert into Slides
ShutterStock
Unsplash Photos
Pear Deck	Create formative assessments and interactive slides
Slides Toolbox	One-click for repeated tasks

Supercharge Chrome with Extensions
Office Editing for Docs, Sheets and Slides	Edit Microsoft Office files with converting to Docs, etc.
Save to Pocket	Save articles to read later
AdBlock	Blocks ads online
Convert web page Adobe PDF	Does what it says
Share to Classroom	Post or push site to Google Classroom
Send from Gmail	Click and e-mail webpage
Google Keep Extension	Save directly to Keep
Mercury Reader	Declutters distracting pages
Readability Redux	Declutter and open multi-page articles
ShoutKey	Create a temp, real-word URL shortcut
Empty New Tab Page	New tabs open blank
Google Dictionary	Double-click on a word for its definition
OneTab	Turn all your tabs into 1 link page
Google Input Tool	Translate, transliterate into other languages
G Suite Training	On-screen tutorials within Google Apps
Accent Grid	If you need to insert foreign accents
Alice Keeler Gradebook Split	Opens Rediker in parallel window from Classroom
Drive20	Opens up to 20 docs in separate tabs

Hebrew Fonts in Google Docs

As you may have noticed, there aren't a lot of choices for Hebrew fonts in Google Docs. Right now, Rashi script is one of the only features keeping me attached to Microsoft Word.

Here's how to find the available Hebrew fonts in Google Docs.

Click on File > Language

Scroll past the Latin-alphabet languages until you find עברית. (This does not change the language of the toolbar or the left-to-right orientation of the page.)

When you select עברית, the following fonts will appear in the font section on the toolbar up top. The highlighted fonts work in Hebrew.

When the language selection is English, the only fonts available that will look different in Hebrew are Arial, Courier New (if you miss your old typewriter) and Times New Roman. All other fonts will leave Hebrew in Times New Roman.

There is one other choice (if you find more, please let me know!) - if you go to the bottom of the font list (when the language selection is English) and click "More fonts" - you can search for and choose Tahoma, which is a different type of sans serif font, and might be fun to use on occasion.

Finding & Installing Hebrew Fonts on a PC

New classroom this year, which means I need to install, once again, some useful fonts on my computer (especially Rashi).

Downloading

The best place for free Hebrew fonts (and more than you can ever want or use) is The Open Siddur Project.

Download the fonts-master.zip file (I have a Fonts folder in my Download folder) and right-click it and choose Unzip. The Rashi font is called Mekorot Rashi.

For a look at all the fonts, open this .pdf

Installing

Once the fonts are unzipped, just right-click the font you want to install and choose INSTALL.

Or you can drag the fonts from their folders in Windows Explorer into the Fonts folder and Windows will install the fonts..
(Open up the fonts folder from the Control Panel or Search for Fonts in the search box when you click on the start menu [the little Windows symbol in the bottom left of your screen])

If you can't find the font you saw on the comparison chart (link above) just search the folder in which you opened the file.