TextFugu Blog

Rough Timetable Of Updates To Come

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 23:43:00 -0400

Before popping off to Japan, I mentioned that after coming back (and, it turns out, after catching up on things), I would be primarily spending my time on TextFugu. Something nice like 60-70%. That time started about a week and a half ago, and I think I have a better idea of what’s going on and when it will go on. Keep in mind, this is a super rough estimate, so be nice.

Right now: Right now I’m working on the backend of things. It’s not going to be the complete rewrite from scratch I was hoping to do, but it is a huge improvement. There’ll be a new payment system, which if you’ve run into certain problems with certain payment thing (as a decent of you have), you’ll agree there needs to be improvement. Also being added is the ability to keep track of your lessons. If you stop in the middle of the lesson it will know where you stopped, and there will be quizzes as well (don’t worry, the quizzes will be great). Anyways, there’s a lot that’s getting upgraded on the backend that will affect the front end, which comes next.

Soon: After the backend changes, there will probably be some front-end design updates as well. Mainly to make room for a lot of the backend additions, but also to make room for new lesson types.

Next: After the backend is done, and after the frontend is done, it’ll be time to push the update. During all this backend / frontend / middle-end, there will be advanced lessons being worked on. When I push the update out I want to also include these. I’m hoping 20 or so lessons geared towards intermediate to advanced self-study. Maybe more, maybe less, but that’s the goal.

After: After this update goes up, then it’s time to go back to the main lessons again. The current lessons won’t work with the new fancier lessons, so things will be converted over. Right around here my vision becomes hazy, so I’ll stop there.

Things may get switched around a bit, and things may change, but that should give you an idea of where I’m headed with things. Maybe the backend / frontend changes will go live before the lessons. Maybe something else will happen before all that. The future is hard to predict, so more updates to come soon, maybe with hawt pics.

TextFugu While We're In Japan

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 16:10:00 -0500

Most of us will be in Japan all of February (plus some), so I wanted to take this opportunity to let you know how support will go during that month as well as update you on the next version + edition of TextFugu.

Let’s start with the next TextFugu Version / Edition. They’re actually two separate things.

Next Version

The next version of TextFugu will be an updated design. I’m making things a bit cleaner and easier to read. I’ll also be including a few new features that you’ve been asking for. Here’s a couple of spoilers:

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Cleaner for reading (better on mobile too)

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Viewing history (so you can remember where you are)

I think there will be one or two other things as well, including a non-Paypal payment option as well as things like quizzes to make sure you understand what you just read about. This is actually pretty close to being finished, though I want to wait for certain content changes before putting it up, since the content updates will make more sense with the updated design.

Next Edition (v3)

This is the content side of things. It is also where things get more complicated. With each edition I learn a lot about how you use TextFugu. I figure out the things you like and don’t like and then keep them in the back of my mind. Eventually, there gets to be so many of them that I decide it’s time to start revisions. Usually it happens more often than everyone likes (sorry!).

I’ve actually gotten a decent way into this revision but would like to get a bit more before posting it up. Most likely, similar to last time, I’ll have both the old version and the new version up at the same time for a while. This time it’s especially important because of the number of changes there will be. Don’t worry, the lessons will be fairly similar so you can still go through the current ones quite nicely (I wouldn’t recommend waiting for me, basically), but the way in which the lessons will be displayed and formatted will be quite different. The planned changes are:

A lot more focus on practice: “Practice” pages were added in the previous edition. Now I want to make them a lot better, as in make them approximately half of each lesson. This sometimes means shortening lessons (and having more of them). It also means adding more practice. One thing that self-learners need to be able to do is practice, and so I want to focus on that quite a bit more with each lesson so that I’m not just telling you what to learn and when.
Revising kanji order: I’ve learned a ton about kanji learning/teaching by working on WaniKani. It is all kanji after all. I want to wrap back around and apply a lot of the knowledge from that over here. I want to make it so the kanji you learn on TextFugu correlates with each lesson a lot better (i.e. you’ll be using the kanji you learn right away). Also, I want the kanji on TextFugu to work with Wanikani more effectively so that if you’re using both they’ll compliment each other better. And, lastly, I’ll be moving over a lot of the mnemonics, definitions, and audio from WaniKani over to TextFugu. Right now there’s a lot of differences. I want you to be able to study both of them together or separately without as much pain as there is right now.
Self-Study section: This was supposed to happen with the last revision, but other things got in the way. This section will actually be happening with this update. It’s nice and all to be able to go through lessons, but it’s better to be able to apply it. More on this in the coming months, but I’m planning to gather lots of “study material” while in Japan in February. Also looking to make some connections and talk to people who could be able to assist with this and help to make it happen.
Anki: Anki is up to 2.0, so I’ll be updating the decks so they work better with 2.0. They work the way they are, but they could work better. Vocab items will be getting new / better audio (the audio used on WaniKani).
Regular Revisions To Lessons: Of course, there will be regular revisions to the lessons as well. I keep track of what is giving people trouble the most, so I’ll be looking at those lessons and updating them.

I’m sure there are other things as well, but those are the big ones. So, when is this all happening? There’s good news and there’s bad news. First the bad news: Since I’ll be in Japan all of February, it’s definitely not going to happen before March. Here’s the good news: When I get back in March, TextFugu will get my full attention. The last couple months has been WaniKani, and I’m actually pretty close to “finishing” up on the main content for it which means I can circle back to TextFugu. I’ll still be working on it, but it will be more like 70% TextFugu and 30% WaniKani instead of the other way around.

So, you should start to see some of these updates in March. I think it’s going to be much closer to my vision on how I wanted TextFugu to be and I think it will become a better resource for self learners because of it. Thank you all for your patience, too. I know I have a lot on my plate and that gets frustrating for people who want updates, but hopefully March and beyond will be a great year for you :)

P.S. A Note On Support While Gone

While we’re in Japan support should be running pretty normally, though possibly on a different time zone. We have just recently put all our support into one box, though, which means if you email hello@textfugu.com four or five eyes will have the chance to see it instead of just one. You can still of course email me directly at koichi@textfugu.com. Anyways, support shouldn’t change much. We’ll be available to fix things even when traveling, just email the “hello@textfugu.com” email for the fastest response!

"Audio for the Season 8 Lessons are up for all of you who have Japanese language listening fetishes..."

Fri, 02 Nov 2012 16:04:22 -0400

“Audio for the Season 8 Lessons are up for all of you who have Japanese language listening fetishes (or for those of you who just want to study Japanese better). The practice story at the end of Season 8 is coming up next, just need to wrap up a few things then get it recorded for listening pleasures.”

Season Number 8

Fri, 26 Oct 2012 21:02:42 -0400

Happy Friday, TextFugu-ers! Season 8 is here, and it’s (amazingly) all about time. Here’s what happened:

First, I wanted to make a chapter about time. Then, I realized how large the subject was, so I thought… “okay, I’ll do a few chapters on it.” Then, I realized how large the subject was, so I thought… “okay, this is pretty much an entire season worth of lessons here.”

The thing is, most Japanese students spend years not feeling comfortable with the basics of time. Why? Probably because they don’t spend a lot of time on it and they take it all at once. I think I’ve figured out a nice way to break it down so that each chapter helps with the previous one, meaning the more you learn the more solid your previous knowledge will get. I didn’t want to do all this in a couple of chapters only to have you struggling with time for years (no pun intended) to come. Spend some time on it, it’s important. Time’s one of those things we use all the… time?

Season 8 is 11 chapters long and covers all the basics of time. It also has a practice page for each lesson, kanji, radicals, and vocab. At the very end you start out with your first work story. The idea of these is to begin transition you into the “real world.” Most chapters from here on out will end with a story you read that uses the grammar you learned that chapter. It will contain some things you know and some things you won’t know. This is to help push you towards being able to do the research on your own in order to learn certain things. I don’t want you to be helpless when I shove you mercilessly out of the nest, so to speak.

There is one problem, though! :(

The audio got corrupted and I can’t save it. So, besides some of the vocab words (which I already had audio for), the audio isn’t ready yet. I’m getting it redone next week. Also, the work-story at the end of Season 8 is still a work in progress. It’s going to happen after the audio is recorded for the regular lessons and practice (because Emi is going to record the story as well, and I need her to do the other audio first!). So, I’m sorry about the delay on the audio and the season end boss. You should be seeing both of those things next week, though.

That’s all the news for now. Hope you all have a nice… Day? Week? Year? Second? Minute?

——-

Photo by LOLren

Season 8 On October 26

Wed, 17 Oct 2012 15:57:50 -0400

I’m getting to the point with Season 8 where I can estimate a “release” date. I think I’ll be done with it this week, and then next week I’ll be able to add the kanji and such being used for the S8 lessons as well as contract and add audio for the practice sentences and examples. So, Season 8 is looking like a October 26 thing, give or take a few days.

I wanted to try doing a whole season at once for this one. I think it helped to give the whole season a more connected feel since I had to plan everything out first. Also I could write the sections out of order, which I think had an affect on the chapters. I’m not sure if I’ll do it this way for Season 9, but we’ll see when we get there.

Just wanted to let you all know that the Season is coming, as I know you’ve been waiting very patiently for me to plug away at this (like you always do, thank you!).

I have some other pretty neat things going on with TextFugu right now as well, but I’ll save those things for a later day. All I can say is… can’t wait to build the backend of TextFugu from scratch so I can *finally* do the things I have envisioned for TextFugu, but never could because we were on Wordpress. More later! See you on the flip side of Season 8!

Meandering Into Season 8

Thu, 30 Aug 2012 19:38:33 -0400

So things are moving into Season 8. That’s a nice lucky number if you ask me. In terms of what it is, I’ve been thinking about that for a bit. Season 8 is going to be a season about filling in the little holes and then putting them together. It will also be about covering the things that will eventually make you sound more fluent. It’s basically the start of the slope that will lead you to an “advanced level.” The content will still be intermediate level, technically, but this is where the climb begins.

I think when you begin to get to a higher level, too, the important stuff gets smaller. You’re not looking to bust down the piñata anymore, you’ve already done that. Now you’re picking up the candy. Once you have enough candy you can eat it (and it’ll be delicious as long as you didn’t pick up any Tootsie Rolls). The “eating” part is what I’d call “advanced.” Right now your hands are starting to get full, but there’s enough room for a little more.

Anyways, that’s what I think in my mind right now.

Also, over the next couple months as I work on Season 8 I’ll feed you little scraps and hints of the new TextFugu. I’m learning to code as I go along, so it’s nice and slow going, but it will be a much better platform, and many of the feature requests you folks ask for will also be there. Right now things are pretty limited, but I’m starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. Hopefully by the end of the year you’ll beging seeing the first screenshots and lessons. It should be pretty cool. I’m pretty excited about it.

So, that’s all for now. TL;dr → Season 8 lessons are going to start coming out in the next week or two and you’ll start to see whispers of a new TextFugu in the coming months, unless things go wrong, which they almsot always do ;)

"Chapter 10 of Season 7 is now available on the lessons menu. It continues where the previous chapter..."

Mon, 13 Aug 2012 14:16:56 -0400

“Chapter 10 of Season 7 is now available on the lessons menu. It continues where the previous chapter left off, taking “giving and receiving” and making it into “giving and receiving actions.””

"Just Added: audio for the most recent lesson as well as the Kanji Vocab 8-3 Anki deck (also includes..."

Tue, 31 Jul 2012 15:06:23 -0400

“Just Added: audio for the most recent lesson as well as the Kanji Vocab 8-3 Anki deck (also includes audio).”

"Lesson portion of “Giving & Receiving” is up in Season 7. Will be adding audio into..."

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 19:29:54 -0400

“Lesson portion of “Giving & Receiving” is up in Season 7. Will be adding audio into it as well as the vocab deck for kanji 8.3 (also part of the lesson) in the near future. Just waiting on the audio now, should be soon!”

Kanji 8-3 Available Now

Tue, 10 Jul 2012 14:39:37 -0400

I’m still working on the vocab portion of Kanji 8-3, but the kanji itself (as well as one more new radical, “Spicy”) is available on the Kanji page. The Anki deck for just the kanji and kanji reading portion is available on the downloads page. For the radical I’d recommend just adding it to your Level 8 Radicals tag manually, since it’s only one. For kanji you can just import and have fun.

"Added in audio for lessons 7-5, 7-6, 7-7, and 7-8. Please enjoy it by hearing it and not by smelling..."

Tue, 26 Jun 2012 13:33:16 -0400

“Added in audio for lessons 7-5, 7-6, 7-7, and 7-8. Please enjoy it by hearing it and not by smelling it.”

- Koichi

Three Lessons Added Up To S7

Thu, 21 Jun 2012 19:44:11 -0400

Just an FYI that three new lessons have been added up into Season 7.

Being Progressive With Your Verbs (covers progressive verbs)
From から (covers the first two types of から grammar)
Because から (covers the last type of から grammar)

Audio for these should be here soon along with the audio for the lesson right before these ones.

Coming up next is:

Updated Hiragana Chapter (the one where you learn to read the hiragana)
Next lesson or two in Season 7
Kanji 8.3
A new advanced-section lesson story

See ya on the flip side, Homeslice.

"Added up the last four “Emi” lessons in the “Advanced” section. Next up for..."

Wed, 13 Jun 2012 13:31:00 -0400

“Added up the last four “Emi” lessons in the “Advanced” section. Next up for this section is that piece of fiction…”

Starting To Trickle Out "Advanced"

Tue, 12 Jun 2012 19:04:00 -0400

“Advanced” is a section I’ve always wanted to do, but I have to work on other things (like intermediate, first!).

I’ve found a few people who will contribute to the advanced section, though, so I don’t have to do much except hit the publish button.

There won’t be much hand-holding in the advanced section - it’s more to test your mettle and practice. I’m hoping to get a lot more content up here, making it a good resource for people at a more advanced level to practice with.

I don’t necessarily know where the Advanced section is headed, but it will evolve over time, I’m sure, based on how you use it.

The first three “growing up in Japan” stories are up from Emi now. There are four more being finished up as well, and I hope to add the links up for those by the end of the week for you. After that there’s even some fiction planned, so I’m pretty excited for that.

New Lesson: Want You To Do

Tue, 12 Jun 2012 18:54:25 -0400

You can get your grubby little hands on it here. More on its way soon. Audio for it is in the audio machine known as Emi.

Version 3 → Version 2.5

Tue, 12 Jun 2012 18:43:53 -0400

As I’ve been working on the next versino of TextFugu, I’ve figured out a few things.

A lot of the things I wanted to do were too complicated for WordPress (what TextFugu’s built on).
Just like the reasoning for working on the next version of TextFugu, we should just take it all the way and get it done right. Basically, we should bite the bullet and get off of Wordpress.

But, all the work from the last month isn’t lost - it will definitely be used in the next version. I’ll also be applying a lot of it to the current version of TextFugu. It’ll just continue on the way it’s set up now, though the update will be spread out a bit more. You should be seeing a lot of fixes, updates, and new chapters starting to roll out here pretty soon.

Also, we’ll start working on the next version of TextFugu again. I’m so tired of Wordpress. It doesn’t let you do a lot of the things I want it to be able to do. It also is a terrible way to keep track of things (aka everything is pretty manual when I want to connect one item with another, ex. kanji and their radicals).

We’re going to start out really simple with the (new) TextFugu v3. On launch, I hope to shoot for these features:

Make it work on mobile / tablet (might happen with the v2.5 rollouts as well, we’ll see).
Have it keep track of where you are… no more bookmarking your location in the text over and over again.
Lighter weight. Right now things are pretty heavy.
Simple quizzes of some kind… though the focus will be on making you recall more than traditional quizzes, if that makes sense.

After that I have a huge list of other things that I want tackled (built-in srs not using Anki, finishing the rest of the seasons, better community features… and so many more), but that’s a little farther away.

So, basically, I wanted to apologize about the slowdown on this. You’ll be seeing a good amount of the fruits of labor from this push, but the better stuff will be arriving a little later.

More updates to come very soon.

Moving All TextFugu Updates & Blog Posts Here

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 18:43:35 -0400

This will be a much easier way for me to add updates and let you know of changes, etc. Will be posting up here a lot more in the coming weeks.