The inception of OpenVanilla stemmed from identified gaps in commercially available software solutions, particularly in the realm of Chinese input methods for Apple's operating systems.
This oversight on Apple's part led to a notable customer base shift towards Microsoft, particularly in Taiwan, where Windows offered the Eten Layout as an optional configuration.
This initiative enabled the development of customized input methods on OS X, with clkao's creation, ChewingOSX, subsequently maintained by gugod (Kang-ming Liu) and zonble (Weizhong Yang) from 2004 onwards.
In October 2004, lukhnos, gugod, zonble, and b6s collaborated to launch OpenVanilla, a new input method framework initially designed for Mac OS X but with broader implementation goals across various operating platforms.
The framework aimed for a minimalist design approach, empowering users to develop custom input methods with minimal C++ expertise, independent of their operating system.
[1] Despite its widespread use, Holo lacks comprehensive support in information processing due to the absence of a fully functional input method from major operating system developers.