Epub dictionaries

[Polyglot27]

A lot depends on how easy it is to access the dictionary. If it is only a matter of highlighting the word and pressing a button, I am sure most people would look up words more often. I am saying this because I bought a C-Pen a few years ago and became addicted to it. It is a device the size of a large flat marker with a 4 line LCD display on the flat side. All I have to do is to swipe the pen over the word and the definition is displayed. The dictionaries are good ones too, lots of bilingual and monolingual dictionaries from Oxford University Press and other reliable publishers. As it is so small, using it when reading foreign language books in bed became a real pleasure.

[Verencat]

Dictionaries are the main reason for me to (eventually) get a reader. I study translation, and I currently have to commute with fifty pounds of dictionaries on my shoulders, since computers are not aloud in class. A light weight, portable assortment of dictionaries would change my life!

[JSWolf]

I have created a new poll what removes want from the equation and only talks about need. This (IMHO) is a more accurate poll as to the need for a dictionary.

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47255

[Format C:]

Originally Posted by Polyglot27

A lot depends on how easy it is to access the dictionary. If it is only a matter of highlighting the word and pressing a button, I am sure most people would look up words more often. I am saying this because I bought a C-Pen a few years ago and became addicted to it. It is a device the size of a large flat marker with a 4 line LCD display on the flat side. All I have to do is to swipe the pen over the word and the definition is displayed. The dictionaries are good ones too, lots of bilingual and monolingual dictionaries from Oxford University Press and other reliable publishers. As it is so small, using it when reading foreign language books in bed became a real pleasure.

Cool.
Does it work on an E-Ink display?

[kazbates]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I have created a new poll what removes want from the equation and only talks about need. This (IMHO) is a more accurate poll as to the need for a dictionary.

https://www.mobileread.com/forums/showthread.php?t=47255

Need and want are fairly closely linked in most people's minds. I think it would be difficult to separate them. In my case, I don't actually NEED a dictionary, I have several here that I could use to look up an unfamiliar word ore refresh my memory with a definition. However, I would tell you that I need a dictionary look-up option with my reader primarily because I WANT one to save me the hassle of physically finding the word in a dictionary. Therefore, in my (convoluted, I will admit ) mind, I NEED dictionary support for my reader.

[pking36330]

Originally Posted by Nate the great

I want to move from Mobipocket to Epub. The main reason I haven't is the lack of features like dictionary support. No Epub reader software supports it (aside from maybe FBReader).

I was just exchanging emails with someone at Adobe, and I was told that while it's a neat feature, most people don't use it. Let's see if that is true.

This poll is open to everyone who reads ebooks, not just Epub users.

Are you aware that JSWolf is actively working to subvert your poll since he doesn't like the potential outcome and ramifications of proving to Adobe execs that dictuionary support is a desired feature in their reader products?

View here: Do you actually NEED a dictionary

[kazbates]

Originally Posted by rowjimmy

nay, never, nix, not, by no means, negative, no way, not at all, not by any means, uh uh, nope . . .

No, not a dictionary - a thesaurus maybe.

I also stay away from dictionaries when reading in a foreign language. Guessing at the word through context and studying the endings to determine the word's place in a sentence seem to work best for me. The word can be jotted down to check it's meaning later so that the story isn't interrupted (barge in, interject, disturb, intrude, interpose, intersect, interfere, cut in on).

As a teacher, I commend your ingenuity in determining the meaning of an unknown word from context clues. I have to wonder, however, how often you actually follow through with checking in a dictionary. As Marc stated in his post, many words have multiple meanings and the subtlety with which those meanings can change based on the way the word is used can alter the text dramatically. As I do not know any language other than English and the American version, at that, I can't state as fact that this is true in other languages, but for English, you would be doing yourself a disservice by not double checking an assumed definition. Before I had my ebw1150, which has dictionary look-up, I frequently thought to myself, "I'll look that up later," but would only rarely do so, even though I have many dictionaries that are conveniently located.

As an educator, I can think of nothing better to improve our vocabularies than to have a dictionary always available at the click of a button.

[Daithi]

I'd actually prefer a built in encyclopedia -- it would lookup words just like the dictionary but give a short encyclopedia entry.

When it comes to a single word in a sentence I can almost always figure out the meaning of the word by context, and I really don't want to interupt the flow of the story. However, sometimes I'm not very familiar with a subject and would like a quick refresher. For example, I read The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova and she mentions the Carpathians a couple of times, and it would have been nice to have viewed a short encyclopedia entry on them just to refresh my memory as to who they were. (Note: The Kindle has access to wikipedia but I would prefer something that works like the built in dictionary.)

[GeoffC]

Dictionary/thesaurus look-ups are a good idea .... but, perhaps, not essential...

[Archergal5219]

I've spent many years building my English vocabulary. Even when I was in high school, those little notebook dictionaries didn't have the words I needed to look up.

Unless they're making an unabridged dictionary available, I wouldn't use one in an ereader, unless I was reading in another language. In fact, the only dictionary I ever bothered to buy and use is the French-English dictionary that I used with some Mobipocket French language books. THAT was quite nice to have.

But English? No.

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by pking36330

Are you aware that JSWolf is actively working to subvert your poll since he doesn't like the potential outcome and ramifications of proving to Adobe execs that dictuionary support is a desired feature in their reader products?

View here: Do you actually NEED a dictionary

I'm not trying to prove that dictionary support is not wanted. I'm just trying to get people to realize that not buying an ePub enabled device because of lack of dictionary support is bad. We need more ePub enabled devices to sell. We want ePub to be the eBook format. I do think Adobe adding dictionary support to ADE would be a good thing.

[GeoffC]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

I'm not trying to prove that dictionary support is not wanted. I'm just trying to get people to realize that not buying an ePub enabled device because of lack of dictionary support is bad. We need more ePub enabled devices to sell. We want ePub to be the eBook format. I do think Adobe adding dictionary support to ADE would be a good thing.

Okay - stupid question ....

What is stopping ePub from having dictionary support in the same was as mobi ?

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by GeoffC

Okay - stupid question ....

What is stopping ePub from having dictionary support in the same was as mobi ?

Epub doesn't have any support for tags like Mobipocket's reference book tags (which a Mobi dictionary uses).

[GeoffC]

Originally Posted by Nate the great

Epub doesn't have any support for tags like Mobipocket's reference book tags (which a Mobi dictionary uses).

Okay, but that doesn't stop said tags being introduced?

After all if we want ePub as the standard, it has to replace those that already offer dictionary support ?

Anything is possible, surely ?

[Nate the great]

Originally Posted by GeoffC

Okay, but that doesn't stop said tags being introduced?

After all if we want ePub as the standard, it has to replace those that already offer dictionary support ?

Anything is possible, surely ?

Yes. I'm working on a set of tags to propose. I'll post them here on Friday.