Default Input Method

[russellforrest]

Hey hey everyone! I'm a longtime user of Pleco, but a first time user of this forum.

I have just bought a new full version of Pleco for Android for my Samsung tablet, having used the Windows Mobile version for about 4 years or so. So far the impression is great, but there is one thing that is bugging the hell out of me! When entering a new word I have a choice of input methods, finger writing, radical, keyboard, speech and OCR - (nice ), BUT when clearing the input field to enter a new word, the last used input method is automatically opened :x ! 99% of the time I want the keyboard to come up, and seldom use the other methods. So it becoming a real hassle to close th unwanted input method and reopen with the keyboard or whatever.

Question: Is there a way to set a default input method?

Suggestion: Could one of the five input method selection buttons be highlighted to show which one is active? (Like Windows radio buttons)

Suggestion: Create an option to select a favourite input method that is defaulted to after using other input methods.

Hope this is useful feedback. You are never sure if you are the only one being fussy and wanting a bespoke product, or there are other out there thinking the same thing. In any event, thanks to all at Pleco for creating the World's best Chinese learning tool!

 

[mikelove]

I have just bought a new full version of Pleco for Android for my Samsung tablet, having used the Windows Mobile version for about 4 years or so. So far the impression is great, but there is one thing that is bugging the hell out of me! When entering a new word I have a choice of input methods, finger writing, radical, keyboard, speech and OCR - (nice ), BUT when clearing the input field to enter a new word, the last used input method is automatically opened ! 99% of the time I want the keyboard to come up, and seldom use the other methods. So it becoming a real hassle to close th unwanted input method and reopen with the keyboard or whatever.

You actually don't need to tap the clear button to clear the input field; if you just tap on the keyboard button at the bottom of the screen, it'll highlight all of the text in the field so that it'll be erased as soon as you start typing.

Suggestion: Could one of the five input method selection buttons be highlighted to show which one is active? (Like Windows radio buttons)

Possibly, but I'm not quite sure what the benefit would be - just tells you what you'd get if you tapped on the input field instead of on one of those buttons, but as I said that's not really necessary.

 

[LantauMan]

To be honest, I far prefer the way it works now. I also use keyboard most of the time, but I definitely do not want it to default to keyboard each time I look up a new word. If I'm in handwriting input frame of mind, I am most likely going to look up the next word as handwriting input, and would hate to have it default back to the keyboard each time.

I'm not sure what you mean by having to "close the unwanted input method and reopen with the keyboard". It's a single-click process, very ergonomically designed, I feel, even on my tiny LG Optimus One. You can switch back and forth instantly, even mixing-and-matching, which I often do--handwrite a character, then switch to keyboard and input a second word as pinyin. Totally painless.

I definitely would not support any automatically bouncing back to a default input method, even if the user could specify that default. And the last thing Pleco needs is yet another User Setting to add to the existing jungle of User Settings.

 

[russellforrest]

Hi there, thanks for the quick and detailed response.

I take your point about the already large number of options and bespoke setups. However I do feel that these don't get in the way of regular users, and allow power users to customize their Pleco, thus making the product adaptable and the experience very personal.

Re the 'radio button' idea. I guess I have just gotten used to the WinMob version defaulting to the keyboard, and then selecting other input methods on the rare occasions I want to use them. I suppose I will have to just get used to selecting the input method first, rarther than going straight to the input box, which to my mind is more instinctive.

Thanks for your thoughts and I would invite anyone else out there to share theirs too. It's forums like this that have greatly contributed to the product's usefulness and intuitive function.

 

[mikelove]

Re the 'radio button' idea. I guess I have just gotten used to the WinMob version defaulting to the keyboard, and then selecting other input methods on the rare occasions I want to use them. I suppose I will have to just get used to selecting the input method first, rarther than going straight to the input box, which to my mind is more instinctive.

Sorry about that. The quick input bar was inspired in part by the fact that the "Back" button on most Android devices is also at the bottom of the screen, so if you've gone into a specific definition to view it in more detail, when you return to the main screen your finger is already in the correct position to tap on your chosen input method for a new search, and after doing that, it'll remain in the correct position to interact with the keyboard if that's your method. (also the reason why the keyboard button is positioned in the middle, so it's easily thumb-accessible from either side of the phone) So if you get used to tapping on definitions to view them then invoking the keyboard should flow pretty naturally from there.

FWIW, we actually do have a "Default Input Mode" option in our iOS software (we hadn't come up with the quick input bar idea yet when we designed it, plus on iOS the convention is not to highlight the text in input fields when tapped), so you're certainly not the only person to ask for this.