MindDate Software

 

Stackz

Flashcard Organizer

7.0

 

 

User Manual

V 1.0


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MindDate Software
www.stackz.com
info@stackz.com

About this Document

What is Stackz?

The Stackz flashcard visualization concept helps to keep the overview over a large amount of words to be learned by representing your current proficiency state with one intuitive view using piles of colored flashcards. The cards are distributed according to the 'mastery level' and colored according to the 'date of the last mastery' - they become darker over time. This system allows distinguishing easy cards from difficult ones immediately, and simultaneously seeing which cards must be refreshed because they have not been reviewed for a long time.

Integrated dictionaries for Japanese and Chinese simplify the process of generating new wordlists from scratch, or automatically from web pages. The dictionaries are also directly available for looking up information during the process of learning words of any of these languages.

Stackz supports any other Unicode language of the Widows operating system as well. The constantly growing online wordlist archive currently contains over 200 wordlists for Japanese, Chinese, Korean or Thai.

A Pocket PC version of Stackz is also available, bringing the Stackz flashcard system to virtually any place. The wordlist files can be directly downloaded to the Pocket PC, which guarantees seamless synchronization of the learning status between the platforms.

What’s new in version 7?

Stackz 7 is a major upgrade from earlier releases. It features a completely new user interface with new icons and dockable windows.

A new tool called Retention Manager was introduced to simplify the handling of the most frequent tasks.


Table of Content

About this Document_ 3

What is Stackz?. 3

What’s new in version 7?. 3

Table of Content_ 4

1.  Conceptual Background_ 7

1.1.    The Stackz Color Concept.. 7

1.2.    The Study Process. 8

1.2.1. study_48 The Learn Process. 8

1.2.2. graduation_48 The Test Process. 9

1.2.3. The Role of the Computer in the Study Process. 10

1.3.    Study Set.. 11

1.4.    teacher_48 Retention Manager.. 11

1.4.1. Purpose. 11

1.4.2. The Study Tasks. 12

1.4.3. Expanding the Retention Manager Dialog. 13

1.5.    colors_48 Representing Card Characteristics with Colors. 15

1.6.    neurology_48 Handling Different Skills. 15

1.7.    Using Handheld devices. 16

1.8.    Studying with Stackz: Best Practices. 16

2.  The Stackz Computer Representation_ 18

2.1.    The Data Visualization.. 18

2.1.1. The Lessons. 18

2.1.2. The Stacks. 19

2.1.3. Working with Lessons and stacks. 19

2.2.    The Study Dialogs. 20

2.2.1. graduation_48 The Test Dialog. 20

2.2.2. study_48 The Learn Dialog. 23

2.2.3. objects_48 The Match Dialog. 26

2.3.    The Stack Edit Dialog.. 27

2.3.1. Introduction. 27

2.3.2. Adding new entries manually. 29

2.3.3. Adding new entries automatically. 30

3.  colors_48 ColorModes_ 31

3.1.    The different ColorModes. 31

3.2.    The ColorBand.. 31

3.3.    Masking Cards. 31

3.4.    Details of the ColorModes. 31

3.4.1. ColorMode 1: RepeatAdvisor. 32

3.4.2. ColorMode 2: RefreshDate. 32

3.4.3. ColorMode 3: SuccessRatio. 33

3.4.4. ColorMode 4: FailureCount 33

3.4.5. ColorMode 5: SuccessCount 34

3.4.6. ColorMode 6: DefinedOrder. 34

4.  neurology_48 Skills_ 35

4.1.    What is a "Skill" in Stackz?. 35

4.2.    Skill Setup. 37

5.  Importing and exporting lists_ 38

5.1.    Exporting Lists. 38

5.2.    Importing Lists. 38

5.3.    AutoImport Lesson(s) 39

5.4.    writer_32 List Import Wizard.. 39

5.4.1. Function. 39

5.4.2. Tutorial 40

6.  Stackz Options_ 45

6.1.    Languages. 45

6.2.    General Options. 46

7.  document_2_config_32 File options_ 47

7.1.    Entries. 47

7.2.    Promotion System... 48

7.3.    colors_48 ColorModes Options. 49

7.4.    Skills Options. 51

7.5.    Test Dialog Options. 52

7.6.    Learn Dialog Options. 53

7.7.    Match Dialog Options. 54

8.  Languages_ 55

9.  Entering Text_ 56

9.1.    Asian Language Input.. 56

9.2.    Other edit control specific issues. 57

Appendix I   The Menus_ 58

I.A     File.. 58

I.B     Options. 58

I.C     Tools. 58

I.D     Wordlists. 58

I.E     Dictionaries. 58

I.F     Window... 59

I.G     Help. 59

Appendix II The Context Menus_ 60

II.A   Stack Context Menu.. 60

II.B   Stack Edit Context Menu.. 60

Appendix III    The Toolbars_ 61

III.A File.. 61

III.B Edit.. 61

III.C Actions. 61

III.D Stackz Language.. 61

III.E  Wordlist Content.. 61

III.F  Wordlist Structure.. 62

III.G Dictionaries (dictionary edition only) 62

III.H GUI Themes. 62

Appendix IV    Index_ 63

Appendix V Figures_ 65

 

1.   Conceptual Background

1.1.           The Stackz Color Concept

Stackz helps to control large set of items that must be learned. To get an immediate overview over all the included material, the observed entries are classified according to two fundamental aspects:

 

StackzSystemColor

Fig. 1: The Stackz Concept

The Mastering Level is a widely used technique in the traditional flashcard approach (Sebastian Leitner system) where paper flashcards are moved up and down the levels in the box. The Stackz visualization system goes one step further by also showing additional information of the cards using colors.

The colors can show which cards have not been repeated for a long time or other relevant characteristics. This aspect is crucial to keep the overview over the content if the amount of entries is considerable, or if there are long breaks between the learning sessions.

This integrated representation uncovers the entire proficiency state at a glance. After detecting one's weak spots, reducing them is immediate: Unknown cards (left side) must be learned in any way, and thereafter be promoted to higher levels with the integrated Test Dialog. Mastered but old cards (right side, dark color[1]) must be refreshed with the Test Dialog.

1.2.          The Study Process

How can a computer help in the learning process? After all, learning is hard brain work which can’t be delegated to a machine. The distinction between learn and test is crucial to understand how the computer can be used to improve learning efficiency.

1.2.1.         study_48 The Learn Process 

The term “learn” refers to the process of assimilating information in the brain. Information is passing from immediate memory to working memory, and finally entering long term memory. Learning requires a fresh mind; best results are achieved with short and frequent learning sessions covering the critical items.

Learning is hard work that can’t be delegated to a computer – but the computer can identify the critical items.

Stackz supports this process by easily identifying the cards that are not yet mastered (i.e. must be learned), and offering tools to start working on the said content: Learn Dialog, Match Dialog, or even print as list or paper flashcards.

Stackz intends to track the proficiency state, which is only indirectly linked to the learning process itself. For that reason, the Stackz tools do not aim to track the learning effort, and the offered tools try to avoid altering the proficiency state.

Learning is recommended to take place in as many different situations as possible (class, reading, listening to tapes, watching TV, conversation etc). One very efficient way is using PocketStackz, which allows to automatically filling short learning sessions with the most relevant content (i.e. the currently unknown words) into one’s daily life anytime, anyplace.

1.2.2.        graduation_48 The Test Process

The cards are classified by testing, an activity that differs a lot from learning. A positive test moves the card to a higher proficiency level, and a negative test has the opposite effect[2]. The card also changes color according to its characteristics after the test.

Testing itself does not improve proficiency. It merely assesses the proficiency state, which is a prerequisite for efficient learning.

Testing is used to assess the proficiency state of the entries. Because it obviously does not make sense to base the proficiency state assessment on short time memory, new words should not be tested (i.e. assessed) directly after learning them. Re-testing the same words quickly should be avoided too.

1.2.3.        The Role of the Computer in the Study Process

As introduced above, the Learn and Test processes complement each other. The computer is used differently in both processes, according to its strengths:

Computers are good at laborious, repetitive and memory intensive tasks; humans are good at creative, inter-personal and tasks requiring broad knowledge, common sense and judgment.

The computer builds its proficiency representation based on the test results. It then uses its strengths to quickly sort and visualize the proficiency state. Several aspects can be examined in order to find one’s weak spots.

However, the computer does not decide what actions need to be taken to improve the situation. The user is in a much better position to decide on his next steps, based not only on the proficiency state indicated by the system, but also on additional information like available time, required grade in the next test, estimation what content is more important, and many other things. After all, the student should decide himself where he wants to put his effort in. Merely satisfying the computer’s requests leads to a too passive student behavior. In any case, the visual representation of the proficiency state is a very important motivation to learn the words!

Fig 2: Visualization of the Proficiency State

1.3.           Study Set

The Stackz study processes work on a subset (the “study set”) of the entries in the currently active Stackz Document. All selected entries (i.e. the entries of the selected stacks) except the masked ones (cf. 3.3) are included in the study set.

Since the entries are processed in the order defined by the current ColorMode (cf. 3), the ColorMode has an important impact on the usage of the study set.

1.4.           teacher_48 Retention Manager

1.4.1.        Purpose

Stackz is a very flexible tool. Its basic elements can be combined in many ways, allowing determining the study set in many different ways. This flexibility introduces the drawback that new users may find it confusing to choose the best elements for their individual learning task, and experienced users may find it inconvenient to repeatedly manipulate the elements manually.

The Retention Manager lowers the entrance barrier into the Stackz system by automating the definition a study set for three frequent tasks and presenting an easy way to launch a study tool.

Fig 3: Retention Manager – collapsed state

The Learning Task buttons on the left side prepare the study set in the active document, which will include the number of entries shown parenthesis. The buttons on the right side allow launching the desired tool to work on the prepared study set.

1.4.2.       The Study Tasks

The three study tasks are described in detail below.

1) Introduce New Cards

This learning task concentrates on entries that have never been positively tested before. This button switches to the SuccessCount ColorMode and masks all cards that have been positively tested before (i.e. the non-grey ones).

If the student has never been exposed to these entries, the most appropriate study tool is the Learn Dialog or also the Match Dialog. If the entries may be known by the student (e.g. content introduced at school) the Test Dialog can be used as well for an initial classification.

2) Examine Expired Cards

As memory research indicates, the optimal delay until a card is presented again depends on its difficulty for the student (“spaced repetition”). Stackz handles this requirement with a special ColorMode called “RepeatAdvisor”, which highlights all expired cards with an orange color for easy identification (c.f. 3.4.1).

Therefore, the learning task “Examine Expired Cards” switches to the RepeatAdvisor ColorMode and masks all non-orange (i.e. non-expired) cards.

The ideal study tool for this learning task is the Test Dialog. The Learn Dialog may be appropriate if the expired cards are likely to be forgotten so that they must be learned again.

3) Bulk Refresh Cards

This Learning Tasks refreshes all cards that have been declared as known previously. It switches to the RefreshDate ColorMode and masks all cards that have never been known.

The typical study tool for this learning task is the Test Dialog.

1.4.3.        Expanding the Retention Manager Dialog

The Retention Manager Dialog can be switched to an expanded mode with the button in its bottom right corner (cf. Fig 4). In this mode the internals of the automatically selected study set become visible, including a graphical representation of the number of included cards of a certain characteristic (color) above a ColorBand with masking sliders.

The masking sliders of the Retention Manager ColorBand work in the same way as the masking sliders of the main ColorBand on the upper edge of the active Stackz Document. Moving a slider in either of the ColorBands also moves the slider in the other ColorBand, and the masked entries are displayed with a light color in the Stackz document.

Only the ColorBand in the extended mode of the Retention Manager directly shows the amount of entries that correspond to a certain position on the ColorBand.

Fig 4: Retention Manager – expanded state

Fig. 5: Study Set "Introduce New Cards"

Fig. 6: Study Set "Examine Expired Cards"

Fig. 7: Study Set "Bulk Refresh Cards"

1.5.            colors_48 Representing Card Characteristics with Colors

It’s in the nature of the human brain to forget things that are rarely used. Even items that used to be known well can be forgotten after a certain time. This is most relevant for all content that is not naturally refreshed in everyday situations, such as vocabulary of a foreign language, or even more importantly the writing characters of a foreign writing system. Quickly reviewing the content is often enough to bring the memory back.

The following Color Modes can be used to identify the cards of a particular characteristic and then review the content.

ColorMode

Represented Characteristic

Date of the last successful test

Recommendation to refresh (depends on date and difficulty)

Percentage of Successes

Number of Failures

Number of Successes

Sequence of the Words

Please refer to chapter 3 for more details about the different ColorModes.

1.6.           neurology_48 Handling Different Skills

Stackz does not ask the student to actively enter data when testing the proficiency. Instead, it displays one attribute after the other and lets the student decide whether he would have known the correct answer.

Stackz can be navigated with one hand, leaving one hand free for practice writing. This pen and paper approach is especially useful when training a foreign writing system because any other way would not improve the natural writing skill.

The needed attributes and their sequence depend on the trained skill. Any given attribute sequence corresponds to a specific skill. To train the Japanese Speaking Skill for instance, the attributes “English” and “Japanese Pronunciation”(i.e. Hiragana) are needed, but not the Japanese Characters (Kanji). These are needed when training the writing system – as first attribute when training reading, as last attribute when training the writing skill.

The skills are defined in the Stackz document. Any of the defined skills can be selected anytime. The selected skill is used with all subsequent study actions.

Please refer to chapter 4 for more details about the different Skills.

1.7.           Using Handheld devices

Part of the Stackz vision is the support for frequent but short learning sessions using handheld devices, including the synchronization of the test results back to the desktop application. Currently Pocket PC and Palm OS are supported mobile platforms.

Synchronizing lists between Stackz and PocketStackz is as simple as synchronizing a file between the PC and the Pocket PC, exactly in the same way an Excel file is synchronized between Excel and Pocket Excel. In the case of Palm OS, the file must be converted to the Palm pdb format before downloading.

1.8.          Studying with Stackz: Best Practices

Stackz is a very flexible tool that can be used in many ways. Instead of imposing a learning process on you, it allows you to take the control over your learning actions. Here is a list of recommendations about how to use Stackz most efficiently.

1) Use “Test” and “Learn” wisely: Learn Often, Test Regularly

Learning is best done in short but frequent units. The Pocket PC version of Stackz (PocketStackz) is the perfect tool to integrate such quick learning sessions into your daily life. Any other method without Computer is fine as well, e.g. paper flashcards of the hard words printed with Stackz, or any other method. Testing the words means assessing your proficiency, which is not necessary to be done often for the well known words.

2)    “Test” before you “Learn”

The test process is assessing your proficiency. In order to avoid too optimistic test results this should not be done directly after learning the words to be tested. If you want to work on a certain lesson and you intend to use both Test and Learn Dialog, start with the Test Dialog. This gets you a realistic picture of your proficiency, and the Learn Dialog can then be efficiently used to work on the failed ones.

3)    Avoid consecutive test sessions with the same words.

Testing corresponds to a proficiency assessment, which should not be based on short time memory. After testing, the failed words must be learned, and not tested again.

4)    Combine Stackz with other methods.

Stackz separates the words you know from the words you just don't know, and from the ones in between. It also shows you when it's time to go through the list with known words again. To keep this source of information up to date, testing must be done regularly with Stackz.  But learning can be done in thousands of other ways - by reading and understanding through context, by writing and making errors and getting it explained, by listening and getting exposed to the expressions in new contexts, by speaking and doing errors, followed by discussions explaining the issues, and so on. All these activities help to retain the learned issues, and increase the chance that the next Stackz testing session will be successful. Stackz adds the systematic part, making sure that 100% of the words on your list is treated. But learning them may be more efficient in the real world than with Stackz.

5)    Combine Stackz with PocketStackz or PalmStackz.

One method of learning words is using PocketStackz or PalmStackz, one of the mobile versions of Stackz. They both allow spending a few minutes updating the proficiency state or learning difficult words anytime, at any place.

2.    The Stackz Computer Representation

2.1.          The Data Visualization

The Stackz color concept is visualized on the computer screen as shown in the picture below.

Fig. 8: Stackz Data Visualization

2.1.1.        The Lessons

A lesson is represented by a horizontal graphical element with a name on the left side and five levels as a horizontal row of stacks. The height of a stack indicates the number of entries in the corresponding level, and the colors of the entries are set accordingly to the current ColorMode. This representation gives a quick overview over the proficiency state. The entries on the left side are unknown and the ones on the right side are known, and the dark entries are "bad" in the sense of the currently set ColorMode.

2.1.2.       The Stacks

The entries in a stack are sorted according to the current ColorMode. The dark entries (i.e. "bad" in the sense of the current ColorMode) are placed on top. This shows the order in which the cards will be processed: The study tools process the cards in the order of decreasing difficulty, by picking the cards from top of the stack.

Note: The file options allow configuring the study tools to process the cards in random order, ignoring the difficulty of a card. With this setting, the entries in the stacks are displayed as unsorted, as shown in the image below.

UnsortedStacks

Fig. 9: Unsorted Stacks

2.1.3.        Working with Lessons and stacks

When a new lesson is initially attacked, all entries are still at the initial level, typically the neutral level. The Test Dialog can then be used to do a first separation of the words that are already known from the unknown ones. After that, the content of the color-stacks on the left side must be learned. The Learn Dialog is ideal for this purpose. There is a third dialog, called Match Dialog. It is a form of quiz that offers a different approach to the vocabulary content. All of these dialogs potentially declare a card as known (move to the right) or as unknown (move to the left).

A single stack can be selected by clicking with the left mouse button, and its context menu (right mouse button click) allows opening any of the tools dialogs (cf. appendix II.A).

Multiple stacks can be selected individually by holding the ctrl-key during the selection of stacks, or moving the mouse over the stacks with the left mouse pressed.

Entire rows and columns can be selected by clicking on the header of the row or the column, holding the ctrl-key allows the selection of multiple rows and columns. When opening any of the tools dialogs with multiple stacks selected, the entries of all selected stacks are treated.

Holding down the control key when a tool window is opened hides the Stackz main screen.

The StackzFileBtn button allows to select the entire file and to open any tool dialog with one single menu command.

2.2.          The Study Dialogs

Stackz offers three study dialogs, which are described in this section.

2.2.1.        graduation_48 The Test Dialog

Fig. 10: Test Dialog

The Test Dialog is used in the Test Process: It assesses the proficiency of the entries by separating the known from the unknown ones.

·         Known entries are moved to the stack on the right and their color is changed to the color of "zero days since last positive test", i.e. the color of today.

·         Unknown entries are moved to the stack on the left and the color is not changed.

StackLessonArrows

2.2.1.1.  Test Dialog Controls

The Test Dialog is controlled with the following elements:

Toolbar Icon

Function

Shortcut

Explanation

help_32

Quick Help

 

Open Quick Help Window

graduation_config_32

Test Dialog options

 

Open the Options Dialog with the Test Dialog page.

neurology_32

Skill Selection

 

Open a popup menu to select a different Skill for testing.

write_32

Edit current entry

 

Edit the attributes of the current entry.

loop_32

Undo

 

Undo last move: put the current card back to its original stack and bring the previously moved card back to the dialog by undoing all statistical records of the move. Unlimited undo levels.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c3

Declare as known

Arrow right; NumPad 6

Moves the selected entry to the stack on the right.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c1

Declare as unknown

Arrow left;
NumPad 4

Move the current entry one level to the left (Stackz mode) or to the leftmost column (Leitner mode).

07-ArrowButton_4-HARD_r1_c2_r1_c2

Put selection back on stack

Arrow up; NumPad 8

Replace the selected entry with the next one. No change in the statistical records of the selected entry.

07-ArrowButton_4-HARD_r1_c2_r2_c2

Step through attributes

Space; NumPad 5
(default

selection)

Present next attribute according to the current skill.

2.2.1.2. Using the Test Dialog

 The typical steps of using the Test Dialog are as follows:

1. Display Attribute after Attribute of the current entry.

The prediction can be done in the head, where the correct answer is imagined. If the correct spelling is to be verified, it may be a good idea to write the answer with pen and paper before showing the solution.

The round green button shows the next attribute according to the active skill.

2. Compare the result with your expectations.

Depending on the result, use one of the following buttons:

Button

Function

Condition

Consequence

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c3

Declare as known

The attributes match your expectations. You are the judge!

The card is moved one level to the right, and the color reflects the new TestState according to the current ColorMode.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c1

Declare as unknown

The attributes do not match your expectations. You are the judge!

The card is moved one level to the left (Stackz mode) or to the leftmost column (Leitner mode). The color reflects the new TestState according to the current ColorMode.

07-ArrowButton_4-HARD_r1_c2_r1_c2

Put back on same stack

You are not sure, or you don't want to make any decision.

The card is moved back to the same stack without changing its state in any way.

2.2.1.3.  Arrow Buttons and Arrow Keys

Long sessions are much more convenient using the keyboard instead of the mouse! This allows you to manipulate the Computer with your left hand, which keeps your right hand free for writing your anticipated response using pencil and paper.

The four arrow buttons of the Test Dialog correspond to the four keyboard arrow buttons. Alternatively, the NumPad arrow keys can be used.

Dialog arrow buttons

Keyboard arrow keys

Keyboard NumPad

07-ArrowButton_4-HARD-transparent

ArrowKeys

ArrowKeysNumPad4

Note that the keyboard arrow keys only have an influence on the dialog arrow buttons if one of the dialog arrow buttons has the focus.

 

2.2.2.         study_48 The Learn Dialog

Fig. 11: Learn Dialog

The Learn Dialog is used in the Learn Process: It represents one way of becoming familiar with new material.

The Learn Dialog's main idea is to represent a short list of new words (local stack), and expose the user repeatedly with them one after the other. The small amount of words and the heavy repetition gives the user a chance to keep all the new words simultaneously in memory, which ensures an intensive short term memory awareness of the words being learned. Once a word is known for the moment, it is replaced with a new one. The easier words leave the loop quickly, the hard ones stay for a longer time.

During learning, entries are generally not moved between stacks, but rather put back on the same stack after the learning activity. This is to avoid overly optimistic classifications based on short term memory.

2.2.2.1. Learn Dialog Controls

The Learn Dialog is controlled with the following elements:

Icon

Purpose

Shortcut

Explanation

help_32

Quick help

 

Open Quick Help window.

study_config_32

Learn Dialog options

 

Open the Options Dialog with the Learn Dialog page.

appointment_scheduler_add_32

Gradual initialization mode

 

Add the items gradually when using the learn dialog.

appointment_scheduler_down_32

Direct initialization mode

 

Add the items directly when using the Learn Dialog.

appointment_scheduler_zoom_32

Detailed local stack

 

Toggle local stack detail mode. In Detail mode, an attribute is displayed instead of the number. The displayed attribute can be selected with the buttons on the bottom of the local stack.

neurology_32

Skill Selection

 

Open a popup menu to select a different Skill for learning.

write_32

Edit current entry

 

Edit the attributes of the current entry.

loop_32

Undo

 

Undo last move: put the current card back to its original stack and bring the previously moved card back to the dialog by undoing all statistical records of the move. Unlimited undo levels.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c3

Declare as known

Arrow right; NumPad 6

Moves the selected entry to the stack on the right.
Note: It is not common to declare an entry as known in the Learn Dialog because classification should not be based on short term memory. Therefore, declaring as known is only permitted If the entry is selected for the first time.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c1

Declare as unknown

Arrow left;
NumPad 4

Move the current entry one level to the left (Stackz mode) or to the leftmost column (Leitner mode).
Note: It is not common to declare an entry as unknown in the Learn Dialog. If an entry is unknown it stays in the local stack until it is known for the moment.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r1_c2

Put selection back on stack

Arrow up; NumPad 8

Replace the selected entry with the next one. No change in the statistical records of the selected entry.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r3_c2

Step through attributes

Space; NumPad 5
(default

selection)

Present next attribute according to the current skill. If all attributes are visible, randomly select a different entry and present its first attribute.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r4_c2

Add entry

Arrow down;
NumPad 2

Adds new entry to the local stack.

2.2.2.2. Using the Learn Dialog

The typical steps of using the Learn Dialog are as follows:

1. Screen the Content by Repeated Exposure

When the Learn Dialog is opened, only one word is in the local stack. Use the round green button to iterate through the attributes according to the active skill. Since there is only one entry in the local stack, its attributes are redisplayed again and again, so quickly proceed to step 2.

2. Add an Additional Entry

If you feel comfortable with the content, press the “arrow down” button to add another entry to the local stack and continue with step 1. With every additional entry, step 1 becomes more challenging.

3. Replace entry

If you end up mastering a certain entry in the local stack, you can replace it with a new one by pressing the “arrow up” button. This will put the card back on the same stack without altering its statistics. Hopefully you will remember it next time when you use the Test Dialog!

Notes:

·         Declaring an item as known (arrow right) should not be based on short term memory, therefore the corresponding button is normally disabled. It is only enabled at the first selection - this is to allow declaring previously mastered words as known.

·         Declaring a word as unknown (arrow left) is unusual since the entries are supposed to stay in the local stack until they are no longer unknown (for the moment).

2.2.2.3. Arrow Buttons and Arrow Keys

The buttons and keyboard arrow keys behave in the same way as in the Test Dialog.

Dialog arrow buttons

Keyboard arrow keys

Keyboard NumPad

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3-transparent

ArrowKeysSpace

ArrowKeysNumPad


2.2.3.        objects_48 The Match Dialog

The Match Dialog is a quiz type of tool. It can be used as an alternative to the Learn Dialog in the Learn Process to become familiar with new words, or to the Test Dialog in the Test Process repeat known words in a different way. Its focus does not lie directly in efficient learning activity, but rather in "playing" with the words in a relaxed way. The approach to the vocabulary is much broader than in the other dialogs because all attributes of several words are present simultaneously.

Fig. 12: Match Dialog

The Match Dialog is controlled with the following elements:

Icon

Purpose

Shortcut

Explanation

help_32

Quick help

 

Open Quick Help window.

objects_config_32

Match Dialog options

 

Open the Options Dialog with the Match Dialog page.

polygon_32

Include First Attribute

 

Attributes can be excluded from the match process.

sphere_32

Include Second Attribute

 

square_32

Include Third Attribute

 


 

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c3

Declare as known

Arrow right; NumPad 6

Moves the selected entry to the stack on the right.
Note: It is not common to declare an entry as known in the Match Dialog because classification should not be based on auxiliary help of the match dialog. Therefore, declaring as known is only permitted If all attributes are selected for the first time.

07-ArrowButton_5b-HARD-3_r2_c1_r2_c1

Declare as unknown

Arrow left;
NumPad 4

Move the current entry one level to the left (Stackz mode) or to the leftmost column (Leitner mode).
Note: It is not common to declare an entry as unknown in the Match Dialog. If an entry is unknown it stays in the Dialog until it is known for the moment.

07-ArrowButton_4-HARD_r1_c2_r1_c2

Put selection back on stack

Arrow up; NumPad 8

Replace the selected entry with the next one. No change in the statistical records of the selected entry.

07-ArrowButton_4-HARD_r1_c2_r2_c2

Shuffle

Space; NumPad 5
(default

selection)

Shuffles all attributes.

2.2.3.1.  Using the Match Dialog

The Match Dialog presents a short list of words with the attributes in arbitrary order. The goal is to select the three attributes that belong together. If the selection is correct, the color of the selection markers changes from red to green. It is then possible to replace the identified word with the next one in the selected stacks by using one of the arrow buttons.

Note: Putting the entry back on the same stack is the preferred action. Declaring an item as known should not be based on the short term memory, therefore the corresponding button is only enabled if an entry is selected for the first time. Declaring an item as unknown is not used normally since the purpose of the Match Dialog is to play with the words and not to classify them.

2.3.          The Stack Edit Dialog

2.3.1.        Introduction

The entries in the stacks can be conveniently edited with the Stack Edit Dialog.

Clicking on a selected text field, or pressing F2 activates the in place edit mode (cf. Fig. 13).

Fig. 13: Stack Edit Dialog

The Stack Edit Dialog is controlled with the following icons:

Icon

Purpose

Shortcut

Explanation

diskette_16

Save

 

Saves the file

report_16

Insert Entry

INS

Inserts a new entry

report_close_16

Delete

DEL

Deletes all selected entries

write_16

Edit

F2, left click

Enter in-place edit mode

searchDuplicatesA

Duplicates

 

Is enabled if the selected column contains duplicates. If then clicked, brings duplicates on top of the list.

Copy of searchTextA

Search

 

Open search field

DefinedOrder

Defined Order

 

Open  menu with items

·   Define entries order: Adopt current sorting

·   Show defined order: Revert to defined order

moveEntryUp2

Move up

 

Move entry up in list (if defined order is shown)

moveEntryUp

Move down

 

Move entry down in list (if defined order is shown)

Dictionary Edition only

dict

Query

F6

Run a dictionary query with the selected text

analyze

Analyze

Ctrl+F6

Run a query with the “analyze” checkbox ticked

kanjiInfo

Kanji info

F8

Show kanji info (Japanese only)

kanjiSelect

Select kanji

F7

Select matching kanji (Japanese only)

notePad

Add to textpad

F9

Add selected text to textpad

scissor_16

Cut

Ctrl+x

Cut entry to clipboard

copy_16

Copy

Ctrl+c

Copy entry to clipboard

paste_16

Paste

Ctrl+v

Paste entry from clipboard

A

Latin characters

Ctrl+SPACE

Switch off built in Hiragana IME

あ

Hiragana IME

Ctrl+SPACE

Switch on built in Hiragana IME

 

A context menu (cf. appendix II.B) with the same commands opens when clicking the right mouse button on an entry in the dialog.

A click on the header control of the columns sorts the entries according to the attribute texts in the corresponding column. There are five sorting states:

Click No.

Icon

Explanation

1

ico_sort1

Alphabetic, ascending

2

ico_sort2

Alphabetic, descending

3

ico_sort3

Length, shortest first

4

ico_sort4

Length, longest first

5

 

Default sorting

2.3.2.       Adding new entries manually

Pressing INS on the keyboard adds a new empty line and places the cursor on the first attribute. The typical keyboard sequence to add a new entry manually is

If a Japanese IME is installed on western Windows, Japanese characters can be directly entered. The keyboard (IME) that is assigned to the language of the edited test is automatically activated when entering an edit field. This simplifies entering words whose attributes require constant switching of the keyboard (see also 6.1, Keyboard/Assign).

If more than one stack is edited simultaneously, the target stack of the new line is determined with the automatically opening select target stack dialog. Checking the "default stack" checkbox before committing adds all consecutive new entries to this stack and suppresses the dialog.

Fig. 14: Insert entry - select target stack

2.3.3.        Adding new entries automatically

The integrated dictionary can be used to add items automatically. Any word retrieved in the dictionary can be added to a stack by selecting the Add to Selected Stack action in the dictionary window.

Note: This dictionary function does not require the edit dialog to be open - however it requires exactly one stack to be selected.

 

3.    colors_48 ColorModes

3.1.           The different ColorModes

In addition to the refresh date, Stackz allows to use colors to represent different entry attributes, such as the test success ratio or the number of test failures. The ColorMode are directly accessible with the popup menu that appears by clicking on the ColorBand.

Selecting a given ColorMode not only visualizes the test state of the entries, it also defines the learning emphasis of all tool dialogs - the words always appear in the order of their difficulty as defined by the current ColorMode.

3.2.          The ColorBand

The ColorBand on top of the Stackz document acts as a legend, explaining the meaning of the colors.

3.3.           Masking Cards

The thumbs of the ColorBand allow masking entries corresponding to a range of statistical properties. Masked cards are displayed with a cross-hatched, pale color; they are not included in the study set even though their stack is selected.

3.4.          Details of the ColorModes

All ColorModes are explained in detail below. For each ColorMode, the same entries with the same test state are shown. Note how the brightness of a given entry depends on the current ColorMode - this visualizes the proficiency specific to this mode. Spot the entries that would be processed first, given the "dark-to-bright" processing order.


3.4.1.        ColorMode 1: RepeatAdvisor

The darker the Color the Bigger the Recommendation to Refresh.

Use this mode to repeat the difficult words more often than the easy ones. stzColorModeRepeatAdvisorS

This is the most powerful mode in Stackz, where all the entries that are recommended for refreshing are highlighted. The only difference to the ColorMode "RefreshDate" (cf. below) lies in the fact that the refresh interval depends on the difficulty of the entry: it is shorter for difficult words and longer for easier ones.

The "difficulty" of an entry can be based on its SuccessRatio or on its current promotion level (column). This and the corresponding refresh intervals can be custimized in the file options.

 

3.4.2.       ColorMode 2: RefreshDate

The darker the Color, the Older the Entry.

Use this mode to keep all your vocabulary up to date.
stzColorModeRefreshDateS

This is the Stackz classic mode. The color indicates when the last positive test occurred, regardless of the difficulty of the word.

 

3.4.3.         ColorMode 3: SuccessRatio

The darker the color, the harder the word.

Use this mode to attack the difficult words, regardless of their last positive test date.
stzColorModeSuccessRatioS

The color indicates the ratio of positive/negative tests of that word. If there are some failures, many successful tests are needed to bring it to a bright color again.

 

 

3.4.4.       ColorMode 4: FailureCount

The darker the color, the bigger the (past?) problems.

Use this mode to track your progress by revisiting your (hopefully) old weak spots.
stzColorModeFailureCountS

The color indicates the total amount of failures, so here the "problem words" are spotted. Maybe such a problem-word is mastered in the meantime, but this was a hard piece of work!

 

 

3.4.5.       ColorMode 5: SuccessCount

The darker the color, the fewer successes.

Use this mode to find the entries with few positive tests.
stzColorModeSuccessCountS

The color indicates the total amount of successful tests.

 

 

3.4.6.        ColorMode 6: DefinedOrder

The darker the color, the earlier the word.

Use this mode to attack the words in the defined order.
stzColorModeDefinedOrderS

The color indicates the order of the card as defined in the StackEditDialog.

4.   neurology_48 Skills

4.1.          What is a "Skill" in Stackz?

To learn a foreign language is a tough job. Several skills are necessary to build up the proficiency. For example, the translation direction is essential - translating a word from one's native language to the foreign language is very different from translating it in the other direction. Speaking the foreign language is also a very different skill than passive understanding. Further, orthography is added when it comes to textual representation of the language.

With Asian languages such as Japanese and Chinese the difference between the skills is quite dramatic: Proficiency in written text has little to do with mastering spoken conversation, writing Japanese text is much more difficult than reading it, and so on. Although the skills are fundamentally different, they nevertheless mutually help each other to progress. The overall situation is rather complex and there is no step-by-step proceeding that optimizes the learning progress.

To cope with these difficulties, the Test- and Learn Dialog of Stackz can be configured to focus on the current skill of interest by choosing the attributes to be displayed along with their appearance order. The attributes that are less relevant for the current task are not presented, and the appearance order of the important ones emphasizes the current skill.

Skill: Name for a set of attributes with a defined order of appearance.

The skills can be conveniently switched during testing or learning with the  neurology_48 dropdown menu.

Fig 1: Skill menu in Learn Dialog

So if the focus of the student is to progress the skill of grasping the kanji meaning without caring too much about the pronunciation, he would pick the 'Kanji meaning skill'. Then only the two attributes 'kanji' and 'translation' are presented, in this order. Likewise, to improve the speaking abilities, the student might select 'Japanese speaking skill', which only presents the two attributes 'translation' and 'reading', in this order. Anything else is not necessary for speaking the language!

The skills are stored in the document, along with the proficiency statistics. They can be freely changed and renamed. The predefined default skills are displayed in the table below.

Skill name

Attribute Appearance Order

Lang.

Comment

Standard Test

1)    Kanji , Comment

2)    Reading

3)    Translation

ALL

This is the normal Stackz skill, interpreting the 4th attribute as comment which is displayed at the beginning.

Uncommented Test

1)    Kanji

2)    Reading

3)    Translation

ALL

Same as Standard test, but not showing the 4th attribute, which is the comment by default.

Familiarize with Entry

1)    Kanji

2)    Reading, Translation, Comment

ALL

Useful for initial exposure to new words

Kanji meaning skill

1)    Kanji

2)    Translation

Jpn, Cn

Check if the meaning of a kanji is mastered, ignoring the pronunciation.

Kanji reading skill

1)    Kanji

2)    Reading

Jpn, Cn

Check if the pronunciation of a kanji is mastered, ignoring the meaning.

Kanji writing skill

1)    Reading, Translation

2)    Kanji

Jpn, Cn

Check if the kanji can be written correctly. Best used with pencil in the right hand, trying to write the kanji on paper, and controlling the tool with the left hand on the keyboard.

Japanese speaking skill

1)    Translation

2)    Reading

Jpn, Cn

Check if the word can be translated into Japanese. Ideal to train conversation situations.

Japanese comprehension

4)    Reading

5)    Translation

Jpn, Cn

Check if the meaning of a certain word is known if only the pronunciation is available.

NOTE: Skill names for Japanese lists are shown. For Chinese Lists, "Hanzi" is used instead of "Kanji", and "Chinese" replaces "Japanese".

4.2.          Skill Setup

Stackz allows selecting the skill for the Test Dialog and the Learn Dialog individually. Please refer to the file options for further information related to setting up the skills in a Stackz document.

5.   Importing and exporting lists

Stackz uses a proprietary format to save the wordlists together with the test statistics. A Stackz document includes several lessons with five stacks of words each, where every word has the test state assigned. Stackz documents are opened and saved as in any standard multiple document interface Windows application, with the menu commands ‘File-Open’ and ‘File-Save’.

In order to exchange lists with other tools however, Stackz can read and write other formats as well. In this case, a stack of words is converted to or from a standard text format where the lesson/stack structure do not exist, and the test state and the comment field are not present. The import/export functions are located in the menu ‘Tools-Import from file’ and ‘Tools-Export to file’.

Importing is also possible in a more flexible way with the ListImportWizard.

5.1.           Exporting Lists

Tools | Export to file writes the content of the selected stack(s) to a file. Files of the following formats can be written:

Format

Explanation

[Unicode UTF8] <TAB> separated

Export the attributes separated by TAB in Unicode UTF8 encoding.

[Ansi] <TAB> separated

Same as above, but in appropriate ANSI encoding.
NOTE: If possible, the text [ANSI] is replaced with the name of the used Ansi encoding character set (e.g. Shift-JIS).

[EUC] <TAB> separated

Same as above, but in EUC encoding.

[EUC] JFC vocabulary cards

Export the attributes in JFC readable format.

[EUC] EDICT formatted text

Export the attributes in the EDICT format.

5.2.          Importing Lists

When importing existing lists, it is a good idea to create a new Stackz document per group of lists and insert a lesson for each list. The menu command ‘Tools-Import from file’ reads the content of the specified file to the selected stack. Files of the following formats can be read:

Format

Explanation

[Unicode UTF8] <TAB> separated

Export the attributes separated by TAB in Unicode UTF8 encoding.

[Ansi] <TAB> separated

Same as above, but in appropriate ANSI encoding.
NOTE: If possible, the text [ANSI] is replaced with the name of the used Ansi encoding character set (e.g. Shift-JIS).

[EUC] <TAB> separated

Same as above, but in EUC encoding.

[EUC] EDICT formatted text

Export the attributes in the EDICT format.

Importing is also possible in a more flexible way with the List Import Wizard.

5.3.           AutoImport Lesson(s)

If dozens of files with existing lists exist must be imported, the proceeding described above is tedious. The menu entry ‘Wordlists-AutoImport Lessons(s)’ allows selecting multiple import-files and automatically creates a lesson for each file.

Note: since the ‘AutoImport Lesson(s)’ command refers to the whole Stackz document, it is located in the Wordlists menu and not in the Tools menu as the other Import/Export functions.

5.4.           writer_32 List Import Wizard 

5.4.1.       Function

The List Import Wizard allows importing data from lists in any regular format with the following three simple steps:

Step 1 – Enter Source Data

Enter the source text and verify the correct display of Japanese text. Entering the text is possible in the following ways:

·         Copied text: paste to edit control with the 'paste' menu item of the edit control's context menu

·         Copied HTML table: paste to edit control with the button 'Paste HTML Columns'

·         Text file: open with the 'Open file...' button above the edit control.

Step 2 – Define Mapping

In this step, the source text is split into consecutive elements (tokens), which are then assigned to the desired Stackz attributes.

Step3 – Preview and Import

Preview the result. If it is not satisfactory, go back to Step 2 to change the mapping, or even back to Step 1 to correct small formatting errors of the input text. If everything is OK, Import the content.

5.4.2.       Tutorial

Goal: Import this tab-separated list into Stackz:

 

Tutorial Step 1 – Enter Source Data

Open the List Import Wizard. On the first page, bring the content of the HTML table into the big edit control by first copying it to the clipboard, and then selecting 'Paste HTML Columns'. This function analyzes the copied HTML formatted table, and places a TAB between the columns.

 

Fig. 15: List Import Wizard (1/3)

Once the table is readable in this first wizard step, click the 'Next' button.

Tutorial Step 2 – Define Mapping

In this step, the source table must be split into tokens (left side of the dialog), and the tokens must be assigned to the Stackz attributes (right side of the dialog). On the top of the dialog, creation of multiple lessons can be specified.

(1) Specify Lessons

A line starting with the Lesson Prefix (“—“) is interpreted as lesson name. All consecutive entries are added to a new lesson with this name.

(2) Cut Source into Tokens

(3) Map Tokens To Stackz Attributes

The input table is read line by line and 'cut' into words (the 'tokens') by applying the cutting pattern repeatedly.

In the example below, the incoming text is repeatedly cut into tokens 1, 2, and 3 with the specific end-markers (tab, linefeed) until all text is processed.

The 4 lines on the right side of the dialog represent the 4 Stackz attributes. The settings of the dialog below means that text token #1 is used for the first Stackz attribute, it is called 'Entry' and the language is Japanese.

Tokens #2 and #3 are similar.

Fig. 16: List Import Wizard (2/3)

With this system, virtually any existing formatted wordlist can be imported - the token end-markers can be freely defined, and the assignment to Stackz attributes can be arbitrarily chosen. Splitting into several lessons can be conveniently adjusted as well.

If you agree with this mapping, click 'Next' for the third and last Wizard page.

Tutorial Step 3 – Preview and Import

This is the preview page of the import process. If you want to change the order of the columns or the name of a column, press the 'Back' button to change your mapping there.

You might also detect lines that are not mapped correctly due to errors in the original source table. Here this could happen for example if one of the column-entries does contain a TAB character, which would lead to an erroneous 'Split into Tokens'. In this case, you can go back to the first step of the Wizard, manually correct the issue (change the tab to something else) and verify the result again by clicking 'Next' twice.

Fig. 17: List Import Wizard (3/3)

If you are satisfied with the preview page, the prepared data can be imported to Stackz.

Option

Explanation

Create new document

The new lesson is inserted into a new Stackz document.

Add lessons to existing document

The new lesson is appended to the currently active Stackz document.

Add to selected lesson

The entries are added to the currently selected lesson.

Lesson name

The name of the new lesson which will contain the imported entries (disabled for multiple lesson generation)

Import and Restart Wizard

The same behavior as 'Finish', but does not close the wizard (preserves the mapping in step 2). This is useful if several lessons must be imported in several copy/paste steps.

Restart by showing the Source Window to copy next lot

To be used in combination with the button above. Minimizes this wizard dialog window, which shows the previous window, which is (probably) the one with the source data. After copying some text to the clipboard, the wizard dialog reappears and automatically progresses to step 3.

Finish

Performs the import step.

Note: With a Stackz evaluation license, you can evaluate the functionality of the List Import Wizard. The generated file has the same state as a list from the online archive: it cannot be saved to disk without a full Stackz license.

 

6.  Stackz Options

The options described in this chapter are global, i.e. they are not related to a document. The Stackz Options dialog is opened with the menu command ‘Options–Stackz Options’.

6.1.          Languages

Every attribute language has a font assigned. The “Language” tab of the Stackz Options Dialog defines the available languages and assigns a font to it. Please see chapter 8 for more information about the concept of languages in Stackz.

Fig. 18: Stackz Options – Languages

Add: Adds a new Language name and then automatically prompts for a font using the font selection dialog.

Remove: Removes the selected language from the list. Built-in languages (Chinese simplified, Chinese traditional, English, Japanese and Korean) cannot be removed.

Font/Script/Select: Allows modifying the font assigned to a language.

Keyboard/Assign: An input keyboard (IME) can be assigned to every language. Stackz then automatically activates the assigned keyboard when text of this language is edited. This is extremely handy when entering entries whose attributes require specific keyboards. Reset removes the assigned keyboard.

Reset Languages restores the factory settings.

Download Font… opens an explorer with links to font collections.

6.2.          General Options

A number of other options can be set in the “General Options” tab.

Fig. 19: Stackz Options - General Options

Always Show Full Menus avoids menu collapsing.

Show Menu Shadows adds a menu shadow.

The Menu Animation dropdown list box allows selecting a menu animation.

Note: Switching off menu shadows and menu animations may improve the perceived performance of Stackz.

7.    document_2_config_32 File options 

The menu ‘File-File options...’ opens the options dialog for the currently active Stackz document. Things like fonts and names of the attributes, the color scheme of the stacks, and some settings of the test- and learn-dialogs such as skills can be set for each Stackz document individually.

The file options of the active document can be set to all other currently open documents with the ‘Propagate File Options’ command from the ‘Options’ Menu.

7.1.           Entries

Fig. 20: File Options - Entries

The options of the tab ‘Entries’ are listed below.

Attribute Names­: Default attribute names in new lessons are Entry, Reading, Translation and Comment. Here they can be redefined if needed.

Attribute Languages: Attributes in the Stackz documents are not directly mapped to fonts. They are rather assigned to languages, which then in turn are mapped to a certain font in the Stackz Options.

File Language: One of the Attribute languages can be declared as the “File Language”. See chapter 8 for more information about the Stackz language concept.

7.2.           Promotion System

The desired promotion system can be chosen here.

Fig. 21: File Options - Promotion System

Stackz Classic System: The cards begin in the center column (neutral position), positive test promote them one level to the right and negative tests demote them one level to the left. 'Reset entire file' puts the cards in the center column.

Leitner Flashcard System: The cards are initially in the first column. Positive tests promote them one level to the right. Negative tests, and 'reset entire file', put the cards back to the first column.

7.3.            colors_48 ColorModes Options

The ColorModes are defined in this screen.

Fig. 22: File Options - ColorModes

ColorMode Dropdown list box: Selects the current ColorMode.

Highlight Entries worse than: All entries "worse" than the specified value are displayed with the specified color. "Worse" depends on the current ColorMode:

ColorMode

"worse" means

RepeatAdvisor

n/a

RefreshDate

older than ... days

SuccessRatio

less than ... % success

FailureCount

more than ... failures

SuccessCount

less than ... successes

 

Untested entries on top: If ticked, untested entries are placed on top and thus presented before the tested entries.

Sorted stacks: If ticked, the stacks are sorted according the current ColorMode.

Worst Entries Color, Best Entries Color, and Highlight Color: Definition of the color scheme of the current ColorMode.

Advanced: There are advanced options for the ColorModes RefreshDate and RepeatAdvisor.

RefreshDate Advanced Options: The display of the ColorBand reference can be set to relative date (e.g. "refreshed 20 days ago") or to the absolute date. Also, marking of uninitialized entries can be switched off to see the date color even if the positive test count is zero. This is useful when files of Stackz file formats older than 2.0 are opened, which do not have any test counters.

Fig. 23: RefreshDate Details

RepeatAdvisor Advanced Options: This ColorMode highlights items that are recommended for refreshing. The more difficult the entry is classified, the shorter the repetition interval. The exact definition of the highlighting rule can be defined in the advanced options.

Fig. 24: RepeatAdvisor Details

7.4.           neurology_48 Skills Options

The skills, i.e. named attribute sequences, are defined in this screen.

Fig. 25: File Options – Skills

In the upper part of the dialog, the appearance order is selected. A defined sequence can be stored along with a name using the Add Skill button. The button Remove Skill removes the selected skill. If the checkbox Align attributes with sequence is ticked, the attributes are appearing from top to bottom in the study dialogs instead of their default position.

7.5.           graduation_48 Test Dialog Options

Fig. 26: File Options – Test Dialog

Textsize: size of the displayed attribute according the table below.

Setting

Meaning

Text visibility

Text size changed

fit whole text in control

The font is resized to fit the text in the current size of the textbox.

Full text always visible, no scrollbars

On every text change. It may become very big or small.

show x line(s) in control

The font is automatically chosen such that x lines can be displayed in the textbox.

Always x lines visible, scrollbars

Only on resizing the textbox.

defined attribute size

The attribute size is always used.

scrollbars

never

Sequence: The order of appearance of the attributes in the test dialog. This is only enabled for <Custom Skill>.

Align Attributes with Sequence: if checked, the attributes are placed according to the Skill appearance sequence in the Test Dialog. If not checked, the attributes are placed in the same order as listed in the Entries tab of the file options dialog.

Skill: The currently selected Skill. If set to <Custom Test Skill>, a specific sequence can be defined in the Test Dialog using the sequence controls above.

7.6.           study_48 Learn Dialog Options

Fig. 27: File Options - LearnDialog

Automatic Text size, Sequence, Align attributes with sequence, Skill: cf. Test Dialog Options (7.5).

Local stack text size: Size of the text in the local stack.

Setting

Meaning

Line visibility

Text size changed

fit to listbox size

The font is resized to fit in the size of the listbox.

All lines are always visible

On resizing listbox and on changing number of entries in the list.

defined attribute size

The attribute size is always used.

might be necessary to use scrollbars

never

Local stack elements: The number of items in the local stack can be set here. The best number depends on the difficulty of the new words. The bigger the number, the more difficult the learn task of this reduced list becomes.

7.7.             Match Dialog Options

Match list size: The number of items in the match dialog can be set here. The best number depends on the difficulty of the new words. The bigger the number, the more difficult the learn task becomes.

8.     Languages

In order to supporting different platforms with different font systems, the attributes in the Stackz documents can’t be mapped directly to fonts. They are rather assigned to a language, which then in turn is mapped to a font on the platform.

The following terms are needed to describe this system.

Font: platform specific means to display the text. The font must contain the characters being displayed, i.e. must be able to display the given language.

Language: Stackz concept used for grouping together text elements using the same font and the same dictionaries. Every language has a font assigned; all dictionaries are linked to one of the defined languages.

File Language: The “main” language of a Stackz document. Any of the attribute languages can be set as file language in the File Options.

Stackz Language: The current language of the Stackz application. Defines what dictionaries are visible, and the initial language of all attributes in new Stackz documents. Can be selected manually with the ‘Options’ menu or with the ‘Stackz Language’ Toolbar.

When a Stackz document is activated (i.e. opened or selected), Stackz is set to adopt the language of this document for the visible dictionaries and for the attribute language of new files.

 

 

9.  Entering Text

9.1.          Asian Language Input

Asian languages can directly be entered with the Microsoft IME on Western Windows XP or Vista. Please check the links section of the MindDate site for more information about installing the correct IME for your language and your Windows version.

If the IME is not installed on your system, you can still enter Japanese hiragana and katakana characters. To toggle between rooma-ji mode and the built-in kana-mode, either press F2 or Ctrl+SPACE, or click on the toolbar icon for rooma-ji and for hiragana input mode. In kana-mode, the caps lock key on the keyboard determines whether hiragana or katakana characters are inserted.

If the IME is not installed on your system, you can enter Japanese kanji by converting the selected text to the corresponding kanji by pressing F5. The selected text can be hiragana, katakana or even English text, the candidate list includes results all dictionary exact matches. For this conversion, kanjidic as well as all currently selected EDICT files are consulted. For information about installing dictionary files, please refer to the Dictionary Configuration section.

Combinations of vowels and tone numbers are automatically converted into the appropriate pinyin character during typing. For accentuated characters (e.g. ü), use the colon (u1:) or the v character (v1) . Make sure that a font with the script CHINESE_GB2312 is used, and that the Mandarin IME is disabled for entering pinyin.

Korean text is entered with the Korean IME, which relies on a Korean keyboard. The table below shows the corresponding keys of an English keyboard.

 KoreanLetters

Fig 28: Korean Letters on an US keyboard

9.2.          Other edit control specific issues

The edit context menu is opened with a right mouse click on the edit control.

Most of the actions described in this section can be started with this menu. If applicable, the shortcuts are listed along with the command in the context menu.

To insert a linefeed, Ctrl+RETURN must be pressed in some contexts.

This applies to all situations where the RETURN key has the special function to finish the edit action as a whole and to launch the default action. In the dictionary tool dialog for example the RETURN key starts the query linefeeds can be entered with Ctrl+RETURN.


Appendix I               The Menus

I.A        File

New

Ctrl+N

Open new file

Open...

Ctrl+O

Open existing file

Close

 

Close active file

Save

Ctrl+S

Save active file

Save As...

 

Save active file under a different name

 

 

 

Print Setup...               

 

Open print setup dialog

 

 

 

<Recent Files>

 

Directly open a recent file

 

 

 

Exit

 

Close Stackz

I.B         Options

Stackz Options...

 

Open the Stackz options dialog

File Options...

 

Open the File Options dialog

Propagate File Options...

 

Apply the file options of the active Stackz document to all other open documents. (The documents must be saved afterwards to keep the new settings)

<Language>

 

Select the Stackz Language

I.C         Tools

Retention Manager

 

Open the Retention Manager Dialog

 

 

 

Learn

F3

Open the Learn Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

Test

F4

Open the Test Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

Match

F5

Open the Match Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

Edit

F2

Open the Stack Edit Dialog

 

 

 

Shuffle

 

Shuffle the selected stacks

Reset entire file

 

Reset the statistics information of the entire file

 

 

 

New Lesson

 

Insert a new lesson

Remove lesson

 

Remove the selected lesson(s)

Move lesson up

 

Move the selected lesson(s) down in list

Move lesson down

 

Move the selected lesson(s) up in list

 

 

 

Cut

Ctrl+X

Cut the selection to the clipboard

Copy

Ctrl+C

Copy the selection to the clipboard

Paste

Ctrl+V

Paste from clipboard

 

 

 

Print

 

 

                        as list

 

Print the selected entries as list

                        as flashcards

 

Print the selected entries as flashcards

I.D        Wordlists

Online Wordlist Archive...

 

Open an explorer window with the online archive

List Import Wizard...

 

Open the List Import Wizard

AutoImport lesson(s)...

 

Import several files into lessons

 

 

 

Import from file...

 

Import a List from a file in the specified format

Export to file...

 

Export selected stacks to a file in the specified format

 

 

 

Find Stackz Wordlists...

 

Search for a specific text in several Stackz wordlist files

I.E         Dictionaries

Dictionary

F6

Open Dictionary tool

Kanji Info

F8

Open Kanji Info tool

Select Kanji

F7

Open Select Kanji tool

Example Sentences

F11

Open Example Sentences tool

Textpad

F9

Open textpad

 

 

 

Setup...

 

Open dictionary setup dialog

I.F         Window

Toolbars...

 

Opens the appropriate toolbar

                        File

 

 

                        Actions

 

 

                        Edit

 

 

                        Wordlist Content

 

 

                        Wordlist Structure

 

 

                        Stackz Language

 

 

                        Dictionaries

 

 

                        GUI Themes

 

 

Reset Panels

 

Reset the layout of the panels to the default place

Status Bar

 

Show or hide the status bar

 

 

 

Cascade

 

Cascade all open Stackz documents

Tile

 

Tile all open Stackz documents

Arrange Icons

 

Arrange the minimized documents

I.G        Help

About

 

About Stackz: Program Version and other Info

Stackz topics

 

Opens the user manual

Language Tools topics

 

Opens the dictionary related user manual

Tutorials

 

Opens the tutorials

 

 

 

Check for update...

 

Checks on the internet for a new version

License key...

 

Open

 

Appendix II            The Context Menus

II.A      Stack Context Menu

Learn

F3

Open the Learn Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

Test

F4

Open the Test Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

Match

F5

Open the Match Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

Edit

F2

Open the Stack Edit Dialog

Shuffle

 

Shuffle the selected stacks

 

 

 

Cut

Ctrl+x

Cut the selection to the clipboard

Copy

Ctrl+c

Copy the selection to the clipboard

Paste

Ctrl+v

Paste from clipboard

 

Import from file...

 

Import a List from a file in the specified format

Export to file...

 

Export selected stacks to a file in the specified format

Print

 

 

                        as list

 

Print the selected entries as list

                        as flashcards

 

Print the selected entries as flashcards

Admin

 

 

                        Set to Oldest Date

 

Sets the refresh date of all cards to the oldest date in the document

                        Set to Today’s Date

 

Sets the refresh date of all cards to today’s date

                        Reset Test Counters

 

Reset the statistics information of the entire file

                        Show Statistics

 

Shows statistics dialog (entries count, newest and oldest entry)

                        Revert to Last Test

 

Advances the refresh date of all entries by the period of time passed since the last positive test. This has the effect of bringing the file to the state where it  was left after a pause.

II.B      Stack Edit Context Menu

Search in Dictionary

F6

Runs a query in the dictionary tool

Analyze

Ctrl+F6

Runs a query in the dictionary tool with the “analyze” checkbox ticked

Select Kanji

F7

Selects Kanji

Kanji Info

F8

Shows the Kanji info

Add to Textpad

F9

Adds the selection to the textpad

 

 

 

Edit

F2

Enters the in-place edit mode

Remove

DEL

Removes the selected entries

Insert New

INS

Inserts a new entry

Open Dictionary

F6

Opens and activates the dictionary tool

 

 

 

Cut

Ctrl+x

Cut the selection to the clipboard

Copy

Ctrl+c

Copy the selection to the clipboard

Paste

Ctrl+v

Paste from clipboard

 

 

 

Print

 

 

                        as list

 

Print the selected entries as list

                        as flashcards

 

Print the selected entries as flashcards

Maintenance

 

 

                        Move to Stack…

 

Moves the entry to the specified stack

                        Swap with Column x

 

Swaps the selected attribute with the one of column x

Admin

 

 

                        Set to Oldest Date

 

Sets the refresh date of all cards to the oldest date in the document

                        Set to Today’s Date

 

Sets the refresh date of all cards to today’s date

                        Reset Test Counters

 

Reset the statistics information of the entire file

 

Appendix III        The Toolbars

III.A   File

Icon

Tooltip

Description

document_2_32

New

Open new file

files_32

Open

Open existing file

document_2_save_32

Save

Save file

document_2_config_32

File Options

Open file options dialog

III.B    Edit

Icon

Tooltip

Description

write_32

Edit Selection

Edit the selected text

 

scissor_32

Cut

Cut selection to clipboard

copy_32

Copy

Copy selection to clipboard

paste_32

Paste

Paste from clipboard

III.C    Actions

Icon

Tooltip

Description

study_32

Learn

Open Learn Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

graduation_32

Test

Open Test Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

objects_32

Match

Open Match Dialog

Note: hold down ctrl or shift key while clicking to hide main window

III.D   Stackz Language

Icon

Tooltip

Description

foreign_languaje_32

Stackz Language Settings

Open Stackz Language Settings Dialog

<language>

<dropdown>

Select the Stackz Language

III.E    Wordlist Content

Icon

Tooltip

Description

writer_32

List Import Wizard

Open List Import Wizard

Export_32

Import from File

Import a List from a file in the specified format

Export_32

Export to File

Export selected stacks to a file in the specified format

teacher_32

Retention Manager

Open the Retention Manager Dialog

III.F    Wordlist Structure

Icon

Tooltip

Description

footer_up_32

Move lesson up

Move the selected lesson(s) up in list

header_down_32

Move lesson down

Move the selected lesson(s) down in list

row_add_32

New lesson

Insert new lesson

row_close_32

Remove lesson

Remove the selected lesson(s)

shuflle_32

Shuffle

Shuffle the selected stacks

copy_config_32

Propagate file options

Apply the file options of the active Stackz document to all other open documents. (The documents must be saved afterwards to keep the new settings)

III.G   Dictionaries (dictionary edition only)

Icon

Tooltip

Description

KbrDict_32

Dictionary

Open Dictionary tool

KbrInfo_32

Kanji Info

Open Kanji Info tool

KbrSel_32

Select Kanji

Open Select Kanji tool

KbrRei_32

Example Sentences

Open Example Sentences tool

KbrWri_32

Textpad

Open textpad

III.H   GUI Themes

Available themes

Office 2007 (Release 2) Silver Theme

Office 2007 (Release 2) Obsidian Theme

Office 2007 (Release 2) Luna-Blue Theme

Office 2007 (Release 1) Theme

Native Windows XP Theme

Visual Studio 2005 Theme

Office 2003 Theme (without Windows XP Theme colors)

Office 2003 Theme

Office XP Theme / Visual Studio .NET Theme

Office 2000 Theme

 


Appendix IV        Index


A

Autoimport Lesson(s) · 39

B

Best Practices · 16

C

ColorBand · 31

ColorModes · 15, 31

Computer, Role of · 10

D

DefinedOrder ColorMode · 34

Dialog

Learn · 23

Match · 26

Test · 20

E

Exporting

Lists · 38

F

FailureCount ColorMode · 33

Font · 55

H

Handeld Devices · 16

I

Importing · 39

Lists · 38

L

Language · 55

File · 55

Stackz · 55

Stackz Document · 55

Languages · 45

Lesson · 18

List Import Wizard · 39

M

Masking Entries · 31

Menu Commands · 58

O

Options

File · 47

General · 46

Stackz · 45

P

Process

Learn · 8

Study · 8

Test · 9

Proficiency, Visualization of · 10

R

RefreshDate ColorMode · 32

RepeatAdvisor ColorMode · 32

Retention Manager · 11

S

Skill · 35

Stack · 19

Stackz Options · 45

Study Set · 11

SuccessCount ColorMode · 34

SuccessRatio ColorMode · 33

T

Toolbars · 61


 


Appendix V           Figures

Fig. 1: The Stackz Concept. 7

Fig 2: Visualization of the Proficiency State. 10

Fig 3: Retention Manager – collapsed state. 11

Fig 4: Retention Manager – expanded state. 14

Fig. 5: Study Set "Introduce New Cards". 14

Fig. 6: Study Set "Examine Expired Cards". 14

Fig. 7: Study Set "Bulk Refresh Cards". 15

Fig. 8: Stackz Data Visualization. 18

Fig. 9: Unsorted Stacks. 19

Fig. 10: Test Dialog.. 20

Fig. 11: Learn Dialog.. 23

Fig. 12: Match Dialog.. 26

Fig. 13: Stack Edit Dialog.. 28

Fig. 14: Insert entry - select target stack. 30

Fig. 15: List Import Wizard (1/3). 41

Fig. 16: List Import Wizard (2/3). 42

Fig. 17: List Import Wizard (3/3). 43

Fig. 18: Stackz Options – Languages. 45

Fig. 19: Stackz Options - General Options. 46

Fig. 20: File Options - Entries. 47

Fig. 21: File Options - Promotion System... 48

Fig. 22: File Options - ColorModes. 49

Fig. 23: RefreshDate Details. 50

Fig. 24: RepeatAdvisor Details. 51

Fig. 25: File Options – Skills. 51

Fig. 26: File Options – Test Dialog.. 52

Fig. 27: File Options - LearnDialog.. 53

Fig 28: Korean Letters on an US keyboard.. 57

 



[1] By convention of this text, old dates are represented with dark, new dates with bright colours.

[2] Depending on the Promotion System selected in the file settings, a negative test moves the card one level to the left (Stackz Classic System), or to the leftmost level (Leitner Flashcard System).