Chicory
Languages and libraries
language learning
SHOW HN2014
76points
56comments
#397of 2,272 in 2014
Top 18%of 2014 by points
How HN took it
DebatedReal support and real criticism
6 positive, 7 neutral or asking, 5 mixed, 6 critical, out of 24 comments about the project. Thread score -0.08.
Idea: 4 for, 4 againstDesign: 0 for, 2 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Interface looks fantastic
From 1 comment
I'm really interested in learning chinese, and the interface here is fantastic, well done. But a project like this really lives and dies on the quality of the content, I think -…
kevinqi on HN
Approach far superior to flashcard apps
From 1 comment
I've spent a huge portion of my life learning how humans learn languages and how to teach them better. I spent my early adulthood in Taiwan where I became fluent speaker and…
xiaoma on HN
Objections
Ah Q novel too difficult and outdated for beginners
From 3 comments
I studied Chinese for 2 years, and I've been searching for something like this for a while. However I think that this novel (Ah Q) is too difficult for a beginner. I installed…
alexgolive on HNThe novel used in the sample is a very bad choice. The author has his special style, hopelessly outdated. Chinese novels are not easy for beginners, my suggestion is to go with…
chj on HN"Ah Q"? It's by Lu Xun, you know what? Even native Chinese high school students fear writings by Lu Xun, mostly due to the difficulty level.
edwinyzh on HN
Needs more popular, engaging content
From 3 comments
I'm really interested in learning chinese, and the interface here is fantastic, well done. But a project like this really lives and dies on the quality of the content, I think -…
kevinqi on HNI agree with other commenters, this is genius idea but all depends on the available content. Looking at the story, it's not interesting to me, so it'll not keep me occupied and…
SimpleMinds on HNAbout a month ago I posted about a great science fiction book that was recently translated from Mandarin to English (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8607914). It would be…
mojoe on HN
Too advanced without intermediate level
From 2 comments
This is amazing, although it looks too advanced without at least intermediate proficiency in Chinese. Would love a few different difficulty levels. Does anyone know a Spanish…
soroushjp on HNSuper interesting. I'd love to learn Chinese and be able to do this one day:…
roncohen on HN
Requests
More novels and content
From 2 comments
This is a really great concept. I hope you'll be adding a whole range of other books in the future for learners of all level.
tabrischen on HNAbout a month ago I posted about a great science fiction book that was recently translated from Mandarin to English (https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8607914). It would be…
mojoe on HN
Traditional Chinese option
From 2 comments
I've done my own manual version of this kind of service to learn Chinese. Would definitely pay for something like this! The biggest problem for me is the availability of Chinese…
jliechti1 on HNCome on, where is the option to choose traditional chinese? :P
pencilcheck on HN
PayPal payment option
From 1 comment
Nice work! I'm thinking about buying the novel but I would like to be able to use Paypal.
nathanathan on HN
Multiple difficulty levels
From 1 comment
This is amazing, although it looks too advanced without at least intermediate proficiency in Chinese. Would love a few different difficulty levels. Does anyone know a Spanish…
soroushjp on HN
Questions
Why is the logo a katakana chi character
From 2 comments
Just curious, but why is the symbol for this a Japanese katakana チ (chi)? I assume it goes with "chicory," but it's Japanese...
sdrothrock on HN看起来不错。有一个小问题：favicon不是一个正式的汉字，只是一个偏旁部首。
laowushi on HN
Alternatives named
Popup Chinese
From 1 comment
Worth mentioning that Popup Chinese has an extensive archive of short stories, with full contextualized (i.e. not dictionary) definitions and accompanying audio recordings:…
trevelyan on HN
LingQ
From 2 comments
Seems to be like: http://www.lingq.com/
aquarin on HNNice app. I would also suggest http://lingq.com, it is similar but with a huge amount of content for every level. It has text for something like 10 languages, chinese included.…
n3on_net on HN
Pleco with text reader
From 1 comment
I've been using Pleco with the text reader plugin on my mobile with great success. You can load any text file and read and bookmark like a regular book reading app. You can tap…
colordrops on HN
Chinese Breeze readers
From 1 comment
I agree with other commenters, this is genius idea but all depends on the available content. Looking at the story, it's not interesting to me, so it'll not keep me occupied and…
SimpleMinds on HN