How include dictionary's introduction in GoldenDict?

[amosbatto]

We are planning to release dictionaries for native languages whose alphabet is still being debated (Moseten, Takana, Uru, Mapuche, Bolivian Guaraní) and most of the speakers are illiterate in their native language. See: www.illa-a.org/wp/diccionarios For these dictionaries, it is essential that the reader be able to read the introduction to the dictionary which explains the alphabet being used in the dictionary and lists any abreviations used in the dictionary. The question is how to include a dictionary's introduction in GoldenDict. Do any of the formats supported by GoldenDict offer an introduction?

What I would really like to see in GoldenDict is an option to click on the name of the dictionary and be redirected to the introduction of that dictionary. That would really be helpful for people using our dictionaries.

Regards,
Amos Batto

[jennie]

Sorry for the extremely late reply, I hope you get to read this.
In the newest versions of goldendict (1.5), if you add a file named DICTIONARYNAME.ann to the dictionary folder, the information in that file can be seen if you go to Edit->Dictionaries->Dictionaries tab, and then click on the name of the respective dictionary. Of course this is way too complicated.

I can think of two suggestions.
1. If you are going to translate the Goldendict application in these languages, you could add the necessary information to your translation of the Welcome page. You don't even have to translate the whole application. You could translate only the Welcome page.
2. In each dictionary, add an entry called either about or DICTIONARYNAME and add your introduction there. Of course, people would have be to be told to open that entry first, so this wouldn't be very practical.

[amosbatto]

Thanks Jennie for the info about DICTIONARYNAME.ann. It would be nice if a future version of GoldenDict showed this information when somebody clicks on the name of the dictionary above the definition of a word or right clicks on the name of the dictionary in the sidebar.

[jennie]

You said right-click and something clicked in my brain! It turns out that if you right-click on the dictionary icon at the top or on the dictionary name in the sidebar, one of the options is "Dictionary Information". If you open that, you will see the contents of the DICTIONARYNAME.ann file in the Description: section. Again, this is using the early release version, 1.5...

[amosbatto]

Cool. I haven't tried version 1.5, so I will have to check it out. I wonder how many other things GoldenDict 1.5 has added which I have wanted for years (full-text search in definitions, glob style matching search to find roots in agglutinative languages, fuzzy searching to find word even if unsure how to spell the word). StarDict had all those features years ago and they are things that people really need in my opinion.

[sofiazoe]

What I would really like to see in GoldenDict is an option to click on the name of the dictionary and be redirected to the introduction of that dictionary. That would really be helpful for people using our dictionaries.................