Usage Examples

When you first try the Sketch Pad, you may be disappointed not to see usage examples with each kanji. Don't worry, they'll appear at an appropriate time. Users of the full version can see the usage when the kanji first appears by pressing the speech bubble.

There is a reason this information does not pop-up automatically when you first meet the kanji, and that is that the program is waiting for you to become familiar with this kanji before overloading you with extra information. Associating unfamiliar syllables of Japanese with unfamiliar stroke combinations is famously difficult and prone to causing cognitive overload.

As you get to know the kanji better, usage examples will pop-up for you to inspect and, if you want, import to your vocab list. You can also configure the program to show you more usage information earlier. You can even specify whether you want to see compounds of 2, 3 or more kanji, and whether you want to be exposed to compounds that feature unknown kanji, or just ones you already know. This is all covered in more detail in Part 7 of the tutorial.


Version 2.6 will have a nicer welcome screen that lets you specifiy your usage preferences before you even start drawing.