 |  |
 | |
Devices |
Apps |
Docs/Text | Support | Factfile |
About Us |
Home
| |
 | |
| ||||||
|
Huge discounts: iTravl, only $299.95 + $10 rebate + free gifts | 900-series, only $319.95 + free gifts |
| Erase Language Barriers with a Pocket-sized Electronic Translator |
|
Glossary of terms used for electronic dictionaries and translators
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Irregular verbs | General: These are verbs that fall outside the standard patterns of conjugation. The number varies by language. In English, for example, there are 283. In Italian, there are "over 400" with only 110 being considered common. Spanish has only 46. Several languages have only 1. For more information, see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irregular_verb. As implemented by Ectaco: One of the 6 icons on the translator desktop is "irregular verbs." This brings up a list of irregular verbs in English. If your unit has a dual interface (available for a handful of languages, such as Spanish and Russian), this will still be in English. Tap the irregular verb of your choice, and you get its equivalent in the target language (per linguistic conventions, for highest accuracy). You will see not just the translated word, but also:
If dictionary voice is available for that particular language, the unit will also pronounce the translated variations if you tap the speaker icon or push the speaker button. |
| Media Player | This is a program that allows you to play various files, such as MP3 and WAV. Most people use this to play music. But you can also use it to play audio books or other recorded items. |
| Morpho Finder |
The MorphoFinder™ function helps you find source words for English past participles, gerunds and plural forms. For example, if you enter "distributes" you will get "distribute" as there is no translation or explanation for "distributes" because it is a form of "distribute." |
| MultiMedia Card (MMC) | For older translators, the MMC is the removable storage medium. Newer ones use an SD card. You'll find a similar memory card on all kinds of devices, such as digital cameras and Mobile PCs. With a card reader, you can move information back and forth between your device and your Windows computer. Using Windows Explorer, you just drag and drop. |
| PC Connection | This is a special port that allows you to exchange data between your translator and a PC. For example, you might want to make a backup of your organizer. On older translators, the PC Connection requires an additional cable. The newer ones have a USB port. |
| Phonetic transcription | This is an English dictionary feature that provides a visual representation of how the English word sounds. It is not a phonetic output of the translation. It probably won't be useful to you as an English speaker, but the other person may find it quite handy. |
| Phrase | A combination of words to convey an idea. Traditionally, it meant doing so without forming a complete sentence. Today, complete sentences are the norm in phrasebooks. Phrases greatly aid the speed of the user and of the device itself |
| Phrase book | Think of this as a dictionary of phrases. The phrase book is separate from the main dictionary. In some translators, the phrase book may have voice recognition while the main unit does not. Additionally, it may have a language or voice the main dictionary does not. |
| Pockets | This is a traditional game targeting in-depth word learning. In this game, the same cards as those used in the Flash Cards game are divided into 4 groups (4 pockets). At the beginning of the game all cards are located in the first pocket. You turn the cards one by one and, if you know the hidden source word, put the card in the second pocket. Keep browsing until all the cards from the first pocket are moved to the second pocket. At the second stage, you move the cards to the third pocket and, again, if you know the hidden source word, put the card in the next pocket. If you cannot recall the hidden source word, move the card back to the first pocket. The goal is to move all cards to the fourth pocket. You will aim most of your efforts at learning difficult words, while simple words will shortly jump to the fourth pocket. The game statistics is stored in the device memory so you can resume playing from where you left off. |
| Secure Digital Card (SD) | This is another removable storage medium. They are generally interchangeable with MMCs. SD cards cost more and are higher-performance than MMCs. |
| Slang lock | This allows you to "lock out" slang terms or to allow them. |
| Software Offer | You do not need any additional software to run your translator. The software offer is a promotional item that you can run separately on your PC. |
| Speech recognition | Just as we don't yet have starships with transporters beaming people up, we don't yet have pocket devices that translate free-form spoken input. And for pretty much the same reasons. See this article. This feature is just an additional way to access the phrasebook. All iTravl units and 900-series translators have speech recognition in English, many have it in the target language also. |
| Spell-checker Vector Ultima™ | When you are unsure of a word's spelling, Vector Ultima™ allows you to enter the word as you hear it and choose a spelling version from the list. For example, you can type the word "board" asyou hear it: "bord." Follow that by tapping the down arrow icon (or the SHIFT key plus either up or down arrow on the keyboard). A list of suggested similar words will appear on the screen. Select the word "board" to see its translations. The multilingual spell-checker Vector Ultima™ is one of the most advanced on the market. It's helpful if you are listening to another person in a language you don't understand. But an even better approach is to change the translation direction (simple icon tap) and let that person select a word from the dictionary. You just tap the "Translate" icon or the Enter button to see the English translation. |
| "Spell It" game | In this game, special attention is paid to the correct spelling of words. The program displays the cards one by one with the source word hidden. This game is similar to Flash Cards, but this time you should type the source word yourself. As in all other games, you can view the source word at any time. The game statistics is stored in the device memory so you can resume playing from where you left off. |
| TOEFL | Teaching Of English as a Foreign Language. |
| Translation | A conversion of an idea, word, sentence, or meaning from one language to another. See "transliteration," below. |
| "Translation Test" game | In this game, you should choose a source word which best corresponds to the given description. You will be offered four choices, and you should select the correct one. If your choice is incorrect, you will be prompted to answer the given question later. The game statistics is stored in the device memory so you can resume playing from where you left off. |
| Translation direction toggle | This
helps two people of different languages communicate with one device.
Just tap the language pair text in the toolbar to switch between languages.
Please note that this has nothing to do with dual interface. Dual interface exists on some translators, but not on the iTravl. This feature toggles the entire interface between English and the target language. This allows the other person to operate the unit completely in his/her own language--settings and everything. Without this feature, you can still toggle the translation direction back and forth with a simple icon click. |
| Transliteration | A conversion of the exact text from one language to another. This does not necessarily mean a translation. See Transliteration and Electronic Translators for more information |
| Vocabulary | The number of words in the dictionary. |
| Voice output | See this article. |
| Easytranslators.com is a subsidiary of Mindconnection, LLC. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please view the about us pages, or write to sales @ mindconnection.com. We do want your business. |