Wishlist for 1.04

[flameproof]

After a few weeks of use, it's a great tool. Here a few improvements I would love to see for the flashcard function:

1. Make the entries sortable (by character)
That will make it easier to find double entries.

2. Have the OPTION to include RANKS in the Export function
That will make it easier to sort out and learn characters away from the PDA.

3. Have an "Export to ZDT" function
OK, that would be obsolete once ZDT has a Pleco Import Function.

 

[mikelove]

Thanks for the suggestions. On #1, are you referring to custom dictionary entries or entries in the rest of the software? For the latter, if you check the "Sort / cleanup multi-char results" option in Preferences, that will sort the results by character.

For #2 and #3, this is all getting heavily overhauled in 2.0 - whether or not the new replacement for "ranks" will even be something that could be conveniently exported remains to be seen, but the format in general should be a lot more robust and easier for a ZDT importer to work with. It's doubtful that we'd create a ZDT converter on our end, though, since at some point in '07 we should finally be releasing our long-awaited desktop version and one of its biggest selling points will be its close integration with the PDA software

 

[hairyleprechaun]

Hello Mike,

I have been meaning to ask you. In 2.0 will will be able to add English>Chinese dictionary entries and flashcards, or will we still be stuck only being able to create Chinese > English dictionary entries and flashcards?

Sure would love to create English > Chinese dictionary entries and flashcards for the translations I learn every day but that do not show up in PlecoDict's dictionaries. (Especially regarding Geographic Place Names, Foods, Fruits and Vegetable Names, etc...)

 

[flameproof]

On #1, are you referring to custom dictionary entries or entries in the rest of the software?

Maybe a misunderstanding. I just talk about the flashcard function.

The dictionary is not too different from my Ectaco one (however, I much prefer the ABC one). But I use Pleco more as a learning tool rather then just a dictionary.


I also read somewhere that the Flashcard function will be simplified - I hope not! I love the current repetition spacing options. But I suggest that YOU write beside a technical user guide also a PRACTICAL user guide. All those options are great, but easily confusing.

 

[mikelove]

We're certainly not planning to make the flashcard system less powerful, just easier to use - we're still going back and forth on how to do this, the low-level flashcard stuff is done and looking good but the interface is still very much up in the air which is why my answers on this tend to be fairly vague. The best idea so far is to have a series of easy-to-configure "presets" with only 2 or 3 variable options, but allow advanced users to tweak the algorithms behind those presets in more detail.

And yeah, we definitely need better documentation on the flashcard system regardless of what exactly it looks like.

 

[hairyleprechaun]

Hello Mike,

Do you have an answer for my above mentioned question? "Will we finally be able to create Flashcards and Custom Dictionary entries in English?"

 

[mikelove]

Oops, sorry, didn't notice that part for some reason. It's very likely that it will be possible to create English-language flashcards and custom dictionary entries, but we're not 100% sure about that yet since as I said we're still nailing down some of the details of the flashcard interface.

 

[hairyleprechaun]

Okay. Thanks for the reply. I sure hope you can manage to make it work somehow. I cannot begin to tell you how many times, after finally finding the translation of an English word, that I wish I could enter it and its translation into my custom dictionary.

 

[caesartg]

Yes, I second that.

 

[mikelove]

Well we'll certainly try, though personally I'm not a big fan of the idea from a pedagogical standpoint; I tend to think that a Chinese-to-English approach to vocabulary study is better, since it forces you to think of words in Chinese as the unique / distinct entities they are rather than as translations of specific English words - you get a more nuanced sense of things from focusing on the Chinese.

It's similar to the arguments for ZhuYin/BoPoMoFo over Pinyin; using the Latin alphabet to represent sounds that don't really have any exact equivalent in English can make it harder for some people to remember / master those sounds.

But if I insisted on imposing my views on Chinese learning on everyone PlecoDict would have half of the features and 1/4 of the customers it does now, so E-C flashcards / custom entries will still almost certainly be in the finished version 2.0.

 

[caesartg]

I see your point and from the stand-point of learning Chinese, completely agree with you.

However, in interpretation the interpreter must best be aware of the subtleties from English to Chinese as well as Chinese to English. A Chinese word may have many meanings which we need to be aware of, just as an English word does and interpreters need to be aware of these and very quickly (without thinking too much) come up with suitable Chinese and English without committing a faux pas. This kind of vocabulary building process is different from just someone who wishes to learn Chinese for non-interpretative purposes.

In my course, we do translation both ways with some interpretation. Although I hope in the real world I'll be dealing mainly with C-E translations, bearing in mind the experiences of my classmates who already graduated and work in China, I think that will probably be wishful thinking.

As I say, Plecodict is a tool for the whole range of Chinese language study applications and this feature would certainly enhance that. If you're worried about it from the pedagogical POV, why not by default hide the feature but still provide it as an option for those who desire it?

Cheers

Ben

 

[mikelove]

That makes sense, yes - plenty of the people using our software aren't language students, and certainly for interpretation having some sort of explanation of how to translate a particular word into Chinese could be helpful. Thanks for the follow-up.