Re: [edict-jmdict] Re: Example sentences 例文募集

[Jeroen Hoek <mail@*************>]

On Fri, 2008-06-20 at 08:56 +1000, Jim Breen wrote:
> Before there were P markers a constant complaint from users was that they wanted
> some indication of which words were the more common ones, so I scraped up what
> information I could get. From the feedback I get from all over the place, the
> P markers, warts and all, appear to be useful and appreciated. If I didn't think
> their usefulness outweighed their defects, I'd remove them.
> 

If I understand correctly, currently the P markers are only added based
upon perhaps the recommendation of the submitter and the judgement of
Jim based, partly, on Googits. That is, the set is now more or less
stable and only altered by humans. Is that correct?

In time the P-set should gradually become more and more usable as
amendments get submitted. The current P-set can always be re-evaluated,
and it is most certainly better than nothing. I use them quite heavily.

(and I abhor Japanese television)

> > ...... Example sentences are
> > a complete waste of time.
> 
> Again, there was a stream of requests to have in-context examples of usage
> available associated with the entries. The availability of the Tanaka corpus
> made that possible. For all its flaws, many of which have been corrected
> especially by Paul Blay, I think it is far better to have them than to offer
> nothing at all. And certainly that is the overwhelming message I get in
> feedback.

Presenting words in a usable context is a well-known and well-founded
method of learning a language. I know it helps me enormously when I
encounter a new word if there is a selected sentence that shows it's
most common usage. I think it is something that adds a great deal of
value to the dictionary, and I applaud the effort to find suitable
representable sentences for all common words.

I think that acquiring a language is all about context. Digital
dictionaries are uniquely suited for the task of providing this. Linking
to Japanese Wikipedia pages, kanji information and example sentences all
contribute towards the learner's quest.

~ Jeroen