Filed under: Software, Odds and ends, Leopard, Deals
Jisho updated again, and discounted for TUAW readers
We've covered Jisho, the Japanese to English dictionary for OS X, a few times in the past, so I'm pretty sure that everyone who wants to translate Japanese to English and reads our site has probably seen it already. But just in case you've been waiting on a decision to buy it, wait no more-- not only has James, the creator, recently updated the app to version 2.2 (with Leopard compatibility, results sorting, and a greatly enhanced zooming function), but he's also putting it on sale for TUAW readers: between now and Sunday, December 9th, use the code "TUAWFTW" during checkout, and get the $15 app for 20% off.Newly updated software and a discount just for you readers? Kirei desu! Sore kudasai!*
*Note: The author of this post does not know Japanese and does not own Jisho. For all he knows, he just said that "You have a nice chicken."
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
ms said 3:11PM on 12-06-2007
One of the big features of Leopard is the included (and fairly decent) EJ, JE, and Japanese language dictionaries built-in to the OS (which means they can be accessed with cmd-ctrl-d). Also, other EDICT dictionaries can be had for free. What did this guy do to get so much free publicity from you guys?
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hi said 3:26PM on 12-06-2007
it says: "that's pretty. Please give me that."
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Michael Rose said 5:09PM on 12-06-2007
Wow. Mike S got pretty close for someone who doesn't speak Japanese.
Andrew said 6:49PM on 12-07-2007
Jisho is nice, but, j-talk.com/nihongo does the exact same thing (with more options) for free. I don't own the site, but I've been using it for a long time and I love it.
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no love lost said 9:18PM on 12-06-2007
Or you can use this equally useful (and FREE) dictionary online:
http://www.df.lth.se/cgi-bin/j-e/sjis/tty/nihongo-de/dict
I've been using this jisho since high school Japanese (and that was 7 years ago!).
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kil said 12:20AM on 12-07-2007
No offense, but honestly, I can't fathom why you would pay for this. The built-in dictionary in leopard (one of my favorite new features) I like a great deal more than EDICT-- EDICT always seemed a little rough to me for some reason.
And if I were going to pay for an EDICT reader, I'd buy JEdict (is that it? I may have the name wrong). It's got a dated interface and is bloated, but the kanji search features are great (search by stroke order, radical, etc) and it has many more features, too.
I still say if you're a serious student of Japanese, you're best off saving up for an electronic dictionary, especially one of the new ones that supports handwriting recognition (the seiko ones are great, and the handwriting recognition is amazingly forgiving). I know, I know, they're expensive, but if you get a good one with all you need (a Seiko w/ handwriting recognition for me) and take care of it, it'll last years.
Having said that, it'd be nice to have a good program for my computer when I don't have my electronic dictionary around... but again, there's no reason to pay for this, especially if you have Leopard. Put in some real, unique, killer-app features (i.e. at least have features comparable to JEDict) and then I'd be more than happy to buy a copy.
P.S.: For websites/online translations, I'm personally partial to Reading Tutor:
http://language.tiu.ac.jp/tools_e.html
It works well in Safari, too.
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James Van Dyne said 4:58AM on 12-08-2007
kil - No offense taken. Being a student of Japanese, the author of Jisho, and a leopard user, I agree with a lot of your comment. Having said that - I believe Apple's target with the JE dictionary in leopard is not students of Japanese but native speakers. I say this because when I search for Japanese in Leopard using the built in dictionary - most of the result is in Japanese. While useful if you can read a lot of kanji - I think it is quite intimidating for beginning and intermediate students of Japanese.
With that - Jisho doesn't replace a good electronic dictionary. I've got two myself. However for the quick lookup - especially when you are near your computer - it is my preferred tool.
Thank you (and all of the other tuaw readers that have commented or sent me emails) for your valuable input. I will continue to work hard and make Jisho an even better resource for students of Japanese.
James Van Dyne
Sugoi Software
Niels K. said 3:35AM on 12-07-2007
JEDict is great and I have also to say that if you are a serious student of Japanese you can't only rely on EDict-clients but should buy a modern electronic dictionary and have a look on sites like http://www.alc.co.jp
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Niels K. said 4:08AM on 12-07-2007
JEDict is great and I have also to say that if you are a serious student of Japanese you can't only rely on EDict-clients but should buy a modern electronic dictionary and have a look on sites like http://www.alc.co.jp
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