Selecting User dictionaries

[dcarpent]

Is there any way to select which user dictionary is used when you convert a flashcard to a user dictionary entry? I saw the post about locking user dictionaries and placement of the one you want to use high in the dictionary list. But if I have two user dictionaries that I add entries to regularly and I want to chose between them when I create new entries from Flashcards, is there a way to select one over the other as I'm creating the entry (as opposed to locking all but one prior to creating it)?

Also, is it impossible to create a user dictionary called "User"? When I try to create one with that name it seems that nothing happens.

 

[mikelove]

No way to do that at the moment - if you don't mind my asking, why are you maintaining two different user dictionaries? (given our plans to merge most user dictionary functionality into custom flashcards I'm trying to make sure we've got all of the edge cases covered)

I just tried creating a dictionary named "User" and it worked fine - does it work if you call it, say, "User1"? (you can rename it after that on its detail screen - tap on the label you want to change)

 

[dcarpent]

I want to maintain custom dictionaries for different areas, e.g., one for Mandarin, one for classical, and one for specifically Buddhist usages. But I guess that is not supported.

If I try to create a new users dictionary called "User" on my iPad it doesn't work. But I tried to do the same thing on my iPhone and it did! As you suggested, if I try to create "User1" on my iPad it works. Some the issue has to do with the name "User" specifically on my iPad. It is not a serious problem, but it is weird.

Another related question. Is there any efficient way to keep two user dictionaries, one on your phone and one on your ipad, synced?

 

[mikelove]

Not so much that it's explicitly not supported as that it's not something we've designed for or optimized around. But why are you adding built-in dictionary entries for words to a user dictionary database? Are you modifying them in some way, or are you adding them so that you can then do filtered searches on them?

If you simply want to add usage notes you don't need to go through the whole create card + convert card process for that, just tap on the edit button at the top of the entry and it'll be pre-populated with the characters / pinyin; you can fill in your usage note (and even pick which dictionary to store it in) and then you'll have that extra data integrated into that definition screen whenever you look at it.

Very weird issue with "User" naming, yes - might be some sort of conflict in our internal database naming system.

No support for user dictionary iCloud sync at the moment, this is another thing that'll be part of our move from separate user dictionaries to searchable custom flashcards.

 

[dcarpent]

When I am reading a text in Pleco and come across a word, often a technical term, that doesn't show up in any of the dictionaries, if I hit the + to create a flashcard the characters and pinyin are automatically entered and all I have to do is type in a definition and I have a flashcard which I can then convert to a new entry in my user dictionary. This allows me to build up a glossary of technical terms and expressions characteristic of a particular author or genre.

The method that you recommend works well if there is already an entry for the word, but often the "word" is an expression that no dictionary has, so I can't add it directly using this faster method. As far as I can see I have to go through the process of creating a new flashcard first then converting it.

I have a question about this method. When I hit edit for an entry, I seem to get one of two different screens: either an "Edit Entry" screen with "Delete Entry" and "New Entry" buttons at the bottom, or a "New Entry" screen with a "Switch Language" and "Dictionary" button at the bottom. The former screen preserves the definition, and latter screen deletes it. I can't figure out what determines which of these two screens I get. i hit the same edit button in either case. Why the different behavior?

If I am on the "New Entry" screen I can choose which dictionary I want to save the new entry in. If I am on the "Edit Entry" screen and make a change, where is this alternated entry saved?

Finally, where can I read about your plans for the new flashcard system as it relates to user dictionaries? I think I missed that.

 

[mikelove]

Go into Settings / Popup Definition and set "Unknown flashcard" to "Custom Dict Entry" - that will let you create dictionary entries directly (and choose the dictionary they go to when you do so).

The edit button shows you a definition if there's already a user dictionary entry for this word, though that's probably something that we should make more obvious in the UI (status update like the flashcards button). Changes in that case will go to whatever dictionary the word is already in.

Haven't written anything up in detail about plans for user dictionaries yet, I've just alluded a few times to the general idea that we want to do everything in the flashcard database and relegate separate 'user dictionaries' mostly to static / redistributed databases like MoEDict.

 

[dcarpent]

Perfect! This is exactly what I wanted to do. Thanks so much.

As regards the future of user dictionaries, do you advise against maintaining different user dictionaries as I described? Would those eventually become unusable?

 

[mikelove]

The plan is to offer a migration option of some sort - bring entries from a user dictionary back into your flashcard database and assign them to a new category so you still find / filter on them easily.