All New kind of Kanji Dictionary

miz ducky · Post by **miz ducky** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 10:50 am

I really think this is probably the best thing they ever came up with (for this sort of thing).

http://www.amazon.com/Kanji-Dictionary- ... B000O2S9VQ

To take advantage of the portability of the Nintendo DS as well as the touch screen to enter unknown characters was a really great idea.

I'll be starting Beginning Japanese I in July, and plan to follow the course as long as I can, so I will definitely be taking advantage of this little program.

Cool? Unnecessary? What do you think? Are you going to buy one now?

Grico · Post by **Grico** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 12:57 pm

That does sound pretty cool.

Olivier · Post by **Olivier** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 4:47 pm

I don't use this dictionary, but I baught the following game to learn how to read and write kanji (I play it for about 30 minutes a day). This software is fun to use and efficient: you will learn fast with it ! A must-buy if you own a DS and want to improve your japanese:

http://www.play-asia.com/paOS-13-71-9g- ... -241b.html

duotrouble · Post by **duotrouble** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 7:47 pm

Nah, it wouldn't get much use at my house. How many times have I opened my Spanish to English dictionary? Rarely. How many times have I opened my English dictionary? Rarely. I'm just not a dictionary person. Now, I'd buy this if it were for beginners.

http://www.amazon.com/Kanji-Test-Practi ... 26-6773662

miz ducky · Post by **miz ducky** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 8:58 pm

duotrouble wrote:Nah, it wouldn't get much use at my house. How many times have I opened my Spanish to English dictionary? Rarely. How many times have I opened my English dictionary? Rarely. I'm just not a dictionary person. Now, I'd buy this if it were for beginners.

http://www.amazon.com/Kanji-Test-Practi ... 26-6773662

haha At least with English and Spanish, they have an alphabet that is familiar enough that you can sound it out.

I agree that all the games appear to be for people who already have a solid understanding of the writing. Like the one above, you need to already know stoke order, but doesn't teach it in the game.

The one that Olivier linked to, also looks like it's not very good for beginners.
I think I would need the dictionary in one DS and be playing the game with the other! ahahhahah

kathpatty · Post by **kathpatty** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:04 pm

I don't use this dictionary, but I baught the following game to learn how to read and write kanji (I play it for about 30 minutes a day). This software is fun to use and efficient: you will learn fast with it ! A must-buy if you own a DS and want to improve your japanese:

q

My son also swears by this. He plays it and loves it. I bought an eletronic english/Japanese dictionary that I could write what the symbol is and they translate it to english.
It is easier to learn the language, as I have picked up quite alot watching Japanese dramas....love them.

Olivier · Post by **Olivier** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 3:30 am

miz ducky wrote:The one that Olivier linked to, also looks like it's not very good for beginners.

You definitely need to know hiragana and katakana to play, but beginners can have fun too. The game is divided into 10 difficulty levels. The easiest one is just based on a few simple kanji, then as the difficulty increases new kanji are introduced. There is also a kanji dictionary with readings and stroke orders.
I am playing at level 7, almost have enough points to pass and continue to level 6. To give you an idea of my level, I took JLPT level 2 last year, and failed it with 52% good answers (60% required to pass).