The Official Motion for Introduction of the Epub Dictionary Format

[sony_fox]

Not quite. An epub reader can't use mobi dictionaries, with or without DRM

Wrong.

Chambers has a free non-DRM mobi sample (A- ABi or so) available from some Mobi sites. Download it, use Calibre to convert to epub. And away you go no problems. OK there's no search which is a PITA, but page guessing works well enough.

[Gaurnim]

Originally Posted by sony_fox

Wrong.

Chambers has a free non-DRM mobi sample (A- ABi or so) available from some Mobi sites. Download it, use Calibre to convert to epub. And away you go no problems. OK there's no search which is a PITA, but page guessing works well enough.

There is also the webster 1913 which is available from here in epub and Mobipocket.

But the main interest of having a dictionnary is your liseuse if being able to search for a word. I won't page-guess through an entire dictionnary just to search for a word. I'll just guess the meaning from the context, it's faster.

[Jellby]

Originally Posted by sony_fox

Chambers has a free non-DRM mobi sample (A- ABi or so) available from some Mobi sites. Download it, use Calibre to convert to epub. And away you go no problems. OK there's no search which is a PITA, but page guessing works well enough.

That's not a "mobi dictionary", that's an ePUB conversion of a mobi (sample) dictionary. And the ePUB does not "behave" like a dictionary (you cannot search or view an entry index). That's what we are talking about.

[ahi]

How exactly would searching for a word work on a device with no letter keys?

[nrapallo]

Originally Posted by ahi

How exactly would searching for a word work on a device with no letter keys?

On-screen keyboard, like the iPod Touch, or EBW1150/REB1200. Even the REB1100 had

Originally Posted by MobileRead wiki

Allegra, an input method similar to Palm’s Graffiti, that allows you to enter text by writing characters onto the screen. If you don’t want to learn it, you can simply use an on-screen keyboard, and if you don’t want to use the stylus, the touch screen also reacts to your fingers, albeit a bit sluggishly.

I think, though, a touchscreen interface is almost a must for the proper use of a dictionary.

[mtravellerh]

Stanza does feature a lookup dictionary. Anyone aware how they do things?

[zelda_pinwheel]

the sony 700 also has a soft keyboard which can be used for adding notes and searching the text. it would work perfectly for dictionary lookup. you can also look up a word by selecting the word in the text ; that's how it works on the eb1150.

[kaas]

I second the motion!
A dictionary is a must have for me and my girlfriend- that is why I bought the Cybook for her...

cheers,

kaas

[ahi]

Originally Posted by nrapallo

On-screen keyboard, like the iPod Touch, or EBW1150/REB1200. Even the REB1100 had

I think, though, a touchscreen interface is almost a must for the proper use of a dictionary.

So... it is not something that will be ever implemented for the Sony PRS-505, or the CyBook, or the Cool-er, or the BeBook.

Is this proposal more with next generation devices in mind? Seeing as how Kindles are not likely to support ePub anytime soon.

- Ahi

[zelda_pinwheel]

Originally Posted by ahi

So... it is not something that will be ever implemented for the Sony PRS-505, or the CyBook, or the Cool-er, or the BeBook.

Is this proposal more with next generation devices in mind? Seeing as how Kindles are not likely to support ePub anytime soon.

- Ahi

i would slightly disagree with nick ; a touch-screen interface makes using a dictionary much easier, and it seems crazy to have a touchscreen and *not* integrate dictionary lookup, but it can be done without ; the cybook already has dictionary look up via word selection using the directional pad. no touchscreen, no keyboard. it's possible either way. implementation of it will depend on the software more than the hardware.

[jgray]

Originally Posted by ahi

How exactly would searching for a word work on a device with no letter keys?

The Ebookwise I used to have had a touch screen. You didn't enter a word, you tapped on a word that was already on the screen. My jetBook uses the arrow keys to highlight a word. Press OK and up pops the definition. It works rather well, considering the limited interface.

The problem I have with the jetBook dictionary is that it is somewhat small. Ectaco also stuffed several translation dictionaries into the device, which limits the number of words in the English-English dictionary.

I wish Ectaco would allow the use of mobi dictionaries. This would open the device up to a much better selection of dictionaries. Yes, epub dictionaries would be even better, but we don't have those yet.

[jgray]

Originally Posted by ahi

So... it is not something that will be ever implemented for the Sony PRS-505, or the CyBook, or the Cool-er, or the BeBook.

See my post above. Any reader with navigation keys can do the same. Zelda says the Cybook already does this, so that makes at least two current readers that support dictionaries with this method.

[ahi]

Thanks, Zelda and JGray!

But how practical is it to have every in-dictionary word on a given page highlighted and selectable, without a touch-screen?

There can easily be as many as 200 words (or more) on a 6 inch page. What if I want to look up a word in the middle of that page? Am I to press the left or down button 100 times?

If it is a dictionary for rare and foreign terms, it ought to be more feasible, I suppose. But if it is a foreign language dictionary, or a general one, can it really be made viable without a touch-screen or a physical keyboard?

- Ahi

[nrapallo]

Originally Posted by zelda_pinwheel

i would slightly disagree with nick ; a touch-screen interface makes using a dictionary much easier, and it seems crazy to have a touchscreen and *not* integrate dictionary lookup, but it can be done without ; the cybook already has dictionary look up via word selection using the directional pad. no touchscreen, no keyboard. it's possible either way. implementation of it will depend on the software more than the hardware.

I stand corrected!

[jgray]

Two dimensions, not one. Down to the line you want, over to the word, press OK.