Hello everyone, and the skritter team,

I have two suggestions, I'd like to know what others think about them:

1- Have a "list" to study words added yourself.
By this I mean, when adding a word from MDBG for example, which list does it enter besides the general queue? When I go to the practice page, I'd like to study only these words added manually sometimes. Is this doable?

2- "Add Simplified/Traditional" variant.
I sometimes would like to learn the traditional variant of a character but not an entire section or list. Let's say I am practicing 写, if there could be an "Add SIMP/TRAD" button on the side, it'd be very convenient.

Opinions, anyone?

I think one is a great idea, make it easy to keep track of what you have added.

Two im not so much a fan of, im not quite sure I see the point of only learning some of the traditional characters.

(deleted)

I would especially want to study the words I added myself only. And perhaps remove some.

I guess a work around for #2 is to add the traditionals via mdbg and in options chose "Simplified with previously added traditonal" ?

Great suggestions, helixness.

Re # 1 I had been meaning to ask about this. (I actually had the same question as balsa) I would like it if words I added from a source like MDBG got dumped into their own bucket. Ideally I could create other lists and drag and drop the words from the catch-all bucket into the more refined categories. That's how I have been using ChinesPod's vocabulary function; add words to a master list and then tag them with one or more category names.

Re # 2, maybe its just me, but since I have a vague recollection from having learned some traditional characters and radicals a long time ago I sometimes wish I could see the traditional variant in Skritter with one click (or maybe even no click -- just have it off in a corner of the screen.) Pleco makes this fairly easy in toggling between simplified or traditional.

@podster
When I click on the little magnifying glass, I see both the simplified and the traditional variant, if there is one.

I do have simplified and traditional enabled though, so maybe it works differently depending on your settings.

They're planning on making a "queue" list of sorts in one of their overhauls I think.

As it presently stands, I wouldn't want a MDBG list. I use this all the time, and to having to keep on adding the list back to my study when it's automatically removed after all the words are complete would be a massive irritant. Queue's fine as it is. If it was done other way - sure, maybe.

Gregshap
Well, color me embarassed; I guess it was there all along. My magnifying glass does the same.

Byzanti,
If an external source (e.g. MDBG) character goes into the queue wouldn't it still be automatically removed? Or if you opt to "study everything" then even if MDBG characters are segregated out you will still get them in your study session, no? I think the optimal solution is to have a personalized Skritter setting, something like "When items are imported: a) add them to my queue, or b) put them in my imported items list.

Has anybody tried the remix list function? I have not, but I wonder if it would be a workaround to tagging words from the big bucket of words collected in a "lookup" list.

Scott's got an idea for having multiple queue-type lists so that your MDBG words can go in one of them, and they'd work as you'd hope. It's still vague at this moment, but he's going to be getting to his queue rewrite after one or two more things.

We may be able to give finer control over which parts and styles (simp vs. trad) are added in a beefed up magnifying glass lookup menu that we're going to make. Not sure of its design yet.

Well my basic idea wasn't to make an MDBG list etc etc... But simply a "queue" list so that one can study words added externally, be it MDBG or not.

The way I came think about this is, the only way to study words I externally added is to study "Everything", which isn't what I want all the time.

Yeah, that's what I'll be building.

With the new queue system, you'll be able to study things added to your queue separately and browse through all added words, just like a list. And we'll have separate queues for different outside sources, so you'll be able to browse and study words added from MDBG or any other site or piece of software that uses this system.

Can you scoop up all the words we've added to the queue in the past into a catch-all so they're also available? I assume everything in my overall vocabulary list that has no source identified would go in that bucket. Is there a member of your large and capable staff in your spacious, well-appointed offices that is free for such a task? We users seem to have no end of ideas to employ that staff.

Yes, when I did the necessary backend changes for the new practice nav, I made it so that if there was no list associated with an item, it was tagged as having been added to the queue. So once the queue has been added to the practice nav, you'll be able to study/remove all those as a single list.

Not sure what I'll do about browsing those items, though. We don't have information on when items were added to the queue, but I might be able to set something up so you can browse through items previously added from the queue in some sensible order.

Absolutely awesome. I am looking forward to this very much!

Keep up the great work guys!

I use my own lists all the time, maybe I don´t understand your question. Maybe someone can explain?

I study a textbook, and every time I start new chapter I go to MDBG, look the words up and send them to Skritter. Then I go to the queue, cut the words out and make a new word list for each new chapter.

Go to the practice page.
There are many lists for each textbooks / sections you are studying. But there is no "externally added words" list, to study words I added from mdbg/other sources.

@Tove

You are right that you can view your queue before you study them and then copy and paste into another list. But if you study the words they disappear from the queue, and by having a list that contained all the words permanently people who didn't want to make a new list but just one general "added from MDBG" or "added from bookmarklet" or whatever wouldn't have to take those extra steps that you do. Good workaround though.

Re: learning both traditional and simplified characters, one suggestion that may be easier to implement would be simply displaying the alternate version with the definition of the character. (Pleco does this and I find it helpful.)

So, once I finish writing a simplified character and the definition displays, the traditional version (if different) could just display along with it.

For me, this is more practical at the moment than simply adding both sets of characters to my lists--effectively doubling the number of characters to learn how to write slows me down considerably. Being able to simply look at the traditional when I need to (within the normal interface) would be helpful.

I advocate ehundman's post.

@ehundman: I am studying both simplified and traditional, and I would definitely *not* want to see the traditional when I finish the simplified, because that would tell me how to write it when it came up next! If the traditional variant came up quickly, the image would be fresh in my memory.

This is the same reason Skritter doesn't display the definition on reading prompts when the definition is going to be prompted soon after.

James

I am currently by far most interested in the custom definitions coming down the pike. With that said, however, ehundman's idea does sound really good. I am only interested in learning how to read the traditional versions. I have absolutely no interest in learning how to write them. This would help tons towards that goal. I would hate to slow down the implementation of custom definitions, but if this could be implemented after-wards then it would be great.

And on that note, Nick - any idea when we might be getting custom definitions in? This is the one I'm really looking forward to...

Same time as the decomps, mnemonics, starred words, and maybe one other secret big feature. (The first two are the hardest and are working right now--just need to implement a nice-looking design. And test, I guess.) So I'm getting close.

Oh wait, first I gotta make it so that Skritter has kung fu integration and matches your calligraphy style to your power animal!

So if it matches my animal power, does that mean I can eat Byzanti or will this purely be a cosmetic change? :)

Shit. Depends. If this secret feature Nick is talking about is bombs and dragons, you'll have no chance -_-.

Sorry Byzanti, if he's using the latest dev build of Chrome, you're out of luck. One of the new features in HTML5 will let me write some JavaScript that actually makes west316 eat you in real life.

By the way, the design for the mnemonics is looking totally sweet so far.

Okay, who wants to help us alpha test the decomps, mnemonics, custom definitions, and starred words? I'll put your name on a list, do an upload, and then they'll show up.

As long as it doesn't completely erase my SRS history and leave me with 中 and 你好 where 牛逼 and 落花流水 once were, then sign me up!

@nick Please count me in!

I want to try it too!

Sounds good! (: How do you want feedback, by forum or email?

Okay, you guys are in. Thanks! Look for bugs, unintuitive places, places where it could work better. Send screenshots of stuff that breaks. Try making some custom definitions and mnemonics.

For the starred words system, we don't quite yet have a way to see or study your starred words until later this week, but the stars will save, so you can start starring them.

Let's skip the tantalization and just do email for now.

Foiled again by Chinese timezone :)

I mean I guess my move back to Guangdong from Sanya over the last few days left me with 900+ reviews to do so I can survive with mneumonics and decompositions for the next few days... hopefully it will only be a few more days... *wink*

@Nick, count me in for the decomps. Thanks :)

Y'all are in! Get those feedback torrents ready.

@ Nick

If you want one more for custom definitions then count me in.

I really don't use mnemonics, though. For that part I am of little use.