T
TalentNation-Net
As a student of other languages besides English, I continually encounter the
need for a resource that is a consolidation of all that my databases makes
use of, namely, a multi-lingual dictionary, thesaurus, grammar, and
references for real-world usage, idioms, and colloquialisms. It sounds a lot
more complicated that what it really is. Because Access is not my strength
(writing and illustrating are) I fear that I may confuse things if I talk
much about my approach to structuring the tables and relationships.
Functionality-wise, what I want to do IS simple. Picture four column
headings for English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French. Under each heading is
a list of words. Click any word anywhere in these lists to jump the whole
database to that word. In other words, clicking any word in the lists changes
the values of all of the controls accordingly.
I'm doing this database myself because nothing else like it exists. I really
hope you're willing to help me put it together! I'm willing to help you or
anyone else who reads this post and has the skills to deliver. I've got
backing if necessary. I'm done trying to hack it out on my own. I'm looking
for the help I must have to make this "consolidated languages reference
library" a reality.
A screen shot of the interface mock-up is available to begin to understand my
goal. Starting at the top and moving down, the mock-up really captures the
end result of the intent of this design:
- At the very top, lettered buttons allow the user to jump to words beginning
with the same letters on the buttons
- Just below the lettered buttons, the user clicks "Eng," "Esp," "Por," or
"Fra" to sort the parallel word lists alphabetically by English, Spanish,
Portuguese, or French respectively.
- Below the four column headings "Eng," "Esp," "Por," and "Fra" are the
parallel word lists for English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French. Click any
word in these lists to jump the whole database to that word. In other words,
clicking any word in the lists changes the values of all of the controls
accordingly.
- Under the the word lists are (scrollable) lists of synonyms and then
antonyms in each of the four languages.
- Under the antonyms, from left to right are a parts-of-speech (POS) combo
box, a categories (CAT) combo box ("bod" for body, "tec" for technology,
"num" for numbers, etc.), then a varies-by-gender (GNDR) text box (yes, no,
na), and finally a varies-by-number (NMBR) text box (yes, no, na). Regarding
the parts-of-speech combo box and categories combo box, change the value of
either to filter the word lists accordingly. For example, change the value of
the parts-of-speech combo box to "bod" to limit the word lists to only words
whose parts-of-speech field is "bod."
- Beneath the combo boxes/text boxes is a text area for traditional
dictionary definitions
- Under the definitions text area is a text area for examples as follows:
real-world examples taken from actual discussion or readings, followed by the
English interpretation in parenthesis; idioms; and the availability of
providing a word that could be clicked to launch a sound file providing
pronunciation.
- Under the examples text area is a text area for rules to address target
word -relevant "gotchas" like false cognates or fussy grammar. In the case of
a verb, this field will cite a model verb in the form of a link. Clicking the
model verb link will jump the whole database to that word. The rule field of
the model verb itself will provide text detailing the full conjugation of the
verb.
need for a resource that is a consolidation of all that my databases makes
use of, namely, a multi-lingual dictionary, thesaurus, grammar, and
references for real-world usage, idioms, and colloquialisms. It sounds a lot
more complicated that what it really is. Because Access is not my strength
(writing and illustrating are) I fear that I may confuse things if I talk
much about my approach to structuring the tables and relationships.
Functionality-wise, what I want to do IS simple. Picture four column
headings for English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French. Under each heading is
a list of words. Click any word anywhere in these lists to jump the whole
database to that word. In other words, clicking any word in the lists changes
the values of all of the controls accordingly.
I'm doing this database myself because nothing else like it exists. I really
hope you're willing to help me put it together! I'm willing to help you or
anyone else who reads this post and has the skills to deliver. I've got
backing if necessary. I'm done trying to hack it out on my own. I'm looking
for the help I must have to make this "consolidated languages reference
library" a reality.
A screen shot of the interface mock-up is available to begin to understand my
goal. Starting at the top and moving down, the mock-up really captures the
end result of the intent of this design:
- At the very top, lettered buttons allow the user to jump to words beginning
with the same letters on the buttons
- Just below the lettered buttons, the user clicks "Eng," "Esp," "Por," or
"Fra" to sort the parallel word lists alphabetically by English, Spanish,
Portuguese, or French respectively.
- Below the four column headings "Eng," "Esp," "Por," and "Fra" are the
parallel word lists for English, Spanish, Portuguese, and French. Click any
word in these lists to jump the whole database to that word. In other words,
clicking any word in the lists changes the values of all of the controls
accordingly.
- Under the the word lists are (scrollable) lists of synonyms and then
antonyms in each of the four languages.
- Under the antonyms, from left to right are a parts-of-speech (POS) combo
box, a categories (CAT) combo box ("bod" for body, "tec" for technology,
"num" for numbers, etc.), then a varies-by-gender (GNDR) text box (yes, no,
na), and finally a varies-by-number (NMBR) text box (yes, no, na). Regarding
the parts-of-speech combo box and categories combo box, change the value of
either to filter the word lists accordingly. For example, change the value of
the parts-of-speech combo box to "bod" to limit the word lists to only words
whose parts-of-speech field is "bod."
- Beneath the combo boxes/text boxes is a text area for traditional
dictionary definitions
- Under the definitions text area is a text area for examples as follows:
real-world examples taken from actual discussion or readings, followed by the
English interpretation in parenthesis; idioms; and the availability of
providing a word that could be clicked to launch a sound file providing
pronunciation.
- Under the examples text area is a text area for rules to address target
word -relevant "gotchas" like false cognates or fussy grammar. In the case of
a verb, this field will cite a model verb in the form of a link. Clicking the
model verb link will jump the whole database to that word. The rule field of
the model verb itself will provide text detailing the full conjugation of the
verb.