I've exported User Dictionary from iPad to iPhone, but iPhone flashcards don't "see" imports

[lostinasia]

I'm trying to figure out how to regularly get my iPhone's flashcards for User Dictionary entries to match what I have on my iPad. I know syncing isn't available (yet?), but how can I export to my iPhone and then get the flashcards to see those user dictionary entries?

Context: I mainly use my iPad for "at home" studying, which often involves making new User Dictionary entries, and then adding those user dictionary entries to flashcards. Studying those on the iPad is no problem at all. But when I'm out and about I like to study flashcards on my iPhone. The flashcards that link to downloaded dictionaries sync no problem, but the User Dictionary entries, unsurprisingly, aren't there.

What I try to do: from the iPad, I export a txt file, and then I download those to my iPhone as "User[current date]". And that's all fine when I'm using the dictionary. But when I study flashcards, I get the prompt "The dictionary or entry that this card links to appears to be missing or unavailable". I can "Change dictionary entry" to find the newer version of the User Dictionary, but if I do that, that seems to break the link for synced card back on the iPad. I guess I want to somehow remap the links on the iPhone that are still looking for the old User Dictionary to the new User Dictionary, without also remapping the links on the iPad.

What may be messing me up: at some point in the past I deleted the User Dictionary from the iPhone, because the way I'd imported had led to five or six duplicate entries. I had all that data elsewhere so perhaps I was too cavalier about deleting it, but I guess the Pleco flashcards lost the "links".

I'm guessing there's an easier way to do this.

Thanks for any help you can offer!

 

[mikelove]

You want to back up the actual user dictionary database instead - Settings / Manage Dictionaries / choose your dictionary / Backup, then Restore it via the "Add New" command also in Manage Dictionaries (after deleting the old version). That way, the entry IDs will match up and the flashcards should link to the new dictionary quite happily.

Eventually, editable user dictionaries will be stored within your flashcard database (if you want to create a separate / shareable user dictionary you'll do it by dumping to a static file) which will take care of the sync problem nicely

 

[lostinasia]

You want to back up the actual user dictionary database instead - Settings / Manage Dictionaries / choose your dictionary / Backup, then Restore it via the "Add New" command also in Manage Dictionaries (after deleting the old version). That way, the entry IDs will match up and the flashcards should link to the new dictionary quite happily.

Thank you! That seems to have worked for me.

Minor amendment to the above: what I needed to do in the receiving iPhone device was go to Settings / Manage Dictionaries / Add User, then "Load Existing" - and choose the file that I'd already imported from the iPad. At first I tried "Add User" and "Create New", but that didn't seem to let me import the database file I'd earlier exported.

 

[mikelove]

Ah, yes, 'load existing' is indeed what you'd want to pick there