Pleco for iPhone Demo - Part 1

[plecosoft]

Where were you led to believe that our handwriting system was free? It certainly isn't our intent to suggest that, but if there's something in our app description or website that suggests otherwise then we want to correct it- our basic software is free and ad-free, we gain absolutely nothing by tricking people into downloading it.

For what it's worth, you can enable the free built-in iOS Chinese handwriting input through the Settings app / General / Keyboard / International Keyboards / Add New.

[SarahECSmithington]

@plecosoft I don't quite understand--is it possible to enable the handwriting system in the free version or not? I enable the free built-in iOS Chinese handwriting input you wrote about above, but can't find where I can actually use it to put in characters by "drawing" them with my fingers on the screen within the free app.

[plecosoft]

@SarahECSmithington You do it through the regular iOS keyboard - tap on the key with a globe icon on it (next to the space bar) to switch into handwriting mode.

[SarahECSmithington]

@SarahECSmithington never mind, i figured it out. For anyone else reading this: return to the main menu of the ditionary, press key, and tap the globe button that appears left of the space bar. Unfortunately it doesn't recognize the characters i write (after 3 years of Chinese studying) as well as my pocket dictionary, but it's not bad either for a free app! Would the full screen handwriting add on more easily recognize my handwriting?

[RustiFilm]

getting instantly frustrated with Pleco because what you download is nothing like what they show you in the demo. ie: there is no Handwriting recognition button like this demo shows even though it says it comes with the free main ware. Also, in the Settings - there is no "manual" option like it says, instead, it is a "Read+Help" button.

[RustiFilm]

is this handwriting recognition an add on?

[beingbanana]

does this do traditional and simplified characters?

[plecosoft]

@beingbanana Yes, it supports both simplified and traditional.

[jiangkaiwen2]

I use pleco for my Chinese homework! One question, do you have all the radicals?

[plecosoft]

@jiangkaiwen2 Our radical table includes them all, yes; if you want a radical dictionary there's a free user-created add-on one (with accompanying flashcard list) available in the "Flashcard Exchange" forum on plecoforums dotcom.

[jtesnani]

we write chinese characters just like people write english letters/words. we don't draw chinese characters

[plecosoft]

@jtesnani True, but "writing" is very ambiguous - typing out characters in Pinyin on a keyboard might still be called "writing" - so it was clearer to describe it as "drawing" in this case.

[Blahah404]

@plecosoft This software is becoming famous among Japanese learners as the tool we're missing out on. I strongly urge you to at least research the possibility of making a Japanese equivalent. There are many excellent freely licensed data sources you could draw on. Depending on how you designed the current software, it could be very easy for you to adapt it to Japanese and even a little market penetration would justify the little extra work.

[plecosoft]

Which part of Pleco is drawing so much interest from Japanese learners? Is it fullscreen handwriting input specifically or is it something else like the document reader? (or a combination of things)

It seems like between codefromtokyo et al the basic well-designed-Japanese-diction­ary-with-cross-referencing market is already pretty well covered, so I'm still trying to understand why a company with no name recognition / history in the Japanese market like us should be getting into it.

[Blahah404]

Do you have an email address? my comments don't fit in the box!

[Blahah404]

scrap that, submitted a feedback form on your website continuing the discussion.

[iebnn]

@plecosoft Japanese learners have a difficult time looking up kanji when they don't know the reading of that kanji - so being able to hand draw it like in your app would help a lot. Seriously, your kanji input is amazing to me as a student of Japanese, and I'm very familiar with what's already out there. As for dictionaries, codefromtokyo only uses EDICT which is junk - you'd want to support EPWING. You can contact me if you have any questions - captlou_gmail

[geekly]

That looks spectacular. I'd love to have a Japanese version.

[stisev]

Mike,

If you release Pleco for Japanese, I will be first in line to pay.

[tzadd]

brilliant .. well worth waiting for.

thanks michael  :~)

[Tobberoth]

Apple should buy your writing recognizion system, it looks very effective. And a Japanese version should be made, including kana. And, like everyone else has said, a Japanese dictionary like this would be very nice.

[benjn00]

Would love it for Japanese...

... on Android please. :)

[thurd82]

Please make a Japanese version and hopefully for the Android too!!!

[1ArtistatLarge]

This is awesome! Please Please Please make one for Japanese!!!!

[ridgeracer1983]

when is the Japanese version coming out?

[plecosoft]

We have no immediate plans for a Japanese version, though we certainly might consider one if our Chinese software does well on iPhone / iPod.

[ridgeracer1983]

well, I'll be looking forward to a Japanese one if you decide to make it ;)

[Jarvik7]

@plecosoft

That doesn't make much sense. If lots of Chinese students buy the software then you'll release software for Japanese students? They aren't the same market, so why think of one as a followup to the other? That's like saying you'll start making microwaves if your line of clothing becomes popular.

[plecosoft]

Yes, but in our 9+ years in business we've only ever made Chinese software, not Japanese. So adding Japanese support would be a very big step - we've accumulated a lot of code / licenses for Chinese that we'd have to replicate for Japanese - and given the much greater competition in Japanese software we'd really need to be confident that people would find the finished product superior to everything else out there. Continued success with our Chinese software would help reassure us of that.

[plecosoft]

Coming out this Friday, 12/18 - it'll be listed as "Pleco Chinese Dictionary" in App Store.

[toshaugh77]

This looks great!! I just went out and got an Iphone which have been resisting just for this. When does it come out??!!

[zsemle]

That looks absolutely great! Also for me its the only program that keeps me using WM.

[cacahahacaca]

Port it to Android and I'll pay plenty for it :)

[stisev]

Great job. I hope Pleco gets ported to all phones. It is the program that keeps me on WM

[crow610]

being it on! this is really nice!

[plecosoft]

Thanks! That's one of the benefits of being in the mobile Chinese software business for so long - our database engine was designed in 2004 to run well on Palms from 2001, so put it on an iPhone (this demo was done on a 3G, incidentally, not a 3GS) and it absolutely screams - our software spends more time drawing entries on the screen than it does searching for them in / retrieving them from the database.

[GaryTaipei]

I've been waiting years for Pleco to arrive on the iphone, but it looks like it has been worth the wait. I have 5 Chinese dictionaries that I'm going to delete as soon as this is released. The speed of the database looks remarkable.