22

As an avid Japanese learner, I always wanted there to be a simple online trainer for learning kana, kanji and vocabulary by JLPT level. The app serves as a simpler alternative to Chase Colburn’s Kanji Study app, because Kanji Study was pretty complicated for me to use as a beginner and didn’t have a more streamlined way of learning kanji through simple, continuous repetition and rote memorization (also, Kanji Study requires you to pay to unlock its full content library).

So, I started working on a brand new, completely free and fully open-source app in recent months. It’s very new and still in its infant stages, but here are the features so far:

  • Full JLPT vocabulary and kanji coverage, with more than 1000+ levels for you to play
  • More than 25+ different fonts and font styles
  • More than 100+ different color themes, with the ability to add and upload your own custom backgrounds
  • 100% free and open-source, forever
  • All learning materials 100% AI-free, sourced from reputable sources and available for full download and inspection

If that sounds interesting to you, you’re welcome to try it out and provide some feedback: https://kanadojo.com/

GitHub just in case: https://github.com/lingdojo/kana-dojo

ありがとうございます!

521
submitted 2 weeks ago* (last edited 2 weeks ago) by tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz to c/opensource@lemmy.ml

As someone who loves both coding and language learning (I'm learning Japanese right now), I always wished there was a free, open-source tool for learning Japanese, just like Monkeytype in the typing community.

Here's the best part: I added a gazillion different color themes, fonts and other crazy customization options, inspired directly by Monkeytype. Also, I made the app resemble Duolingo, as that's what I'm using to learn Japanese at the moment and it's what a lot of language learners are already familiar with.

Miraculously, people loved the idea, and the project even managed to somehow hit 1k stars on GitHub now. Now, I'm looking to continue working on the project to see where I can take it next.

Back in January, I even applied to Vercel's open-source software sponsorship program as a joke. I didn't seriously expect to win, and did it more out of curiosity, fully expecting to lose.

Lo and behold, yesterday I woke up to an email saying the app has been accepted into Vercel's Winter cohort. Crazy!
GitHub: https://github.com/lingdojo/kana-dojo
Live demo: https://kanadojo.com/

Anyway. Why am I doing all this? Because I'm a filthy weeb.

どうもありがとうございます!

24

As a long time Japanese learner, I always wanted there to be a simple online trainer for learning kana, Kanji and vocabulary - no ads, no account sign-ups, nothing. Originally, I created the website for personal use simply as a better alternative to kana pro and realkana, and as an alternative to Chase Colburn’s Kanji Study app, because Kanji Study was pretty complicated for me to use as a beginner and didn’t have a simpler way of just grinding Kanji like you can grind the kana on kana pro.

I’m doing this because I grew tired of all the subscriptions and paywalls. I want to make the most user-friendly, customizable, aesthetic and fun platform for learning Japanese currently available. Accessible to all, fully open-source and free forever - and driven not by profit, but made by the community, for the community.

We already have more than 30+ active contributors from all over the world, and we really want to make the first definitive 100% free, open-source platform for learning Japanese - in contrast to most other apps for learning Japanese, which are often paid and monetized aggressively.

Live demo: https://kanadojo.com/ ^ ^

GitHub if you’re a dev and interested in contributing: https://github.com/lingdojo/kana-dojo

The app is still in its early alpha stages - but with your help, we can make it even better and give the Japanese learning community its first completely free, open-source and community-driven learning platform! どうもありがとうございます!

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 3 points 4 months ago

Unfortunately, adding your own fonts would be impossible by definition, but creating your own custom themes is something that's definitely coming down the line! ^^

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 18 points 4 months ago

I was always thinking of creating a Chinese fork once this is polished enough! I'm learning Chinese too at the moment

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 3 points 4 months ago

It could also be that Vercel automatically blocks certain IPs for whatever reason. Even had that happen to me a couple times, and as far as I'm aware, I don't seem to be living in Iran, Russia or China lol

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 4 points 4 months ago

noooo, I can't let that happen! if you want, you can privately message me on discord or email me with your browser, OS and all other relevant info so we can fix it ASAP (it might be just Vercel's anti-bot mode though)

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 11 points 4 months ago

Don't worry, not in this case! Generally speaking, cookies first collect data on the client and then send it over to the server. But in our case, there is no server (backend) - it's just a client-side Next.js application sent over to the client (your browser), and the local storage that stores progress and preferences data in the app just lives locally and never actually leaves the browser! We (well, me) have no idea what progress data our users have, because nothing is sent over from the app (you can see for yourself by checking your browser's Network tab!)

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 4 points 4 months ago

Hahaha, finally someone noticed

[-] tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz 10 points 4 months ago

We're using local storage that lives in your browser instance and doesn't sync between devices, so no cookies involved! ^^

177

As someone who loves both coding and learning Japanese, I’ve always wished there was an open-source, truly free tool for learning Japanese, kind of like what Monkeytype is in the typing community (fun fact: we actually have 2 Monkeytype devs on board with us now!)

Unfortunately, most language learning apps these days are either paid or closed-source, and the few free ones that are still out there haven’t really been kept up to date. I felt like that left a gap for people who just want a straightforward, open-source, high-quality learning tool that isn’t trying to milk them and/or sell them something.

That being said, I didn’t want to just make another “me too” language app just for the sake of creating one. There needed to be something special about it. That’s when I thought: why not truly hit it home and do something no other language learning app has done by adding tons of color themes, fonts and an extremely fun and customizable experience, as a little tribute to the vibe that inspired me in the first place, Monkeytype.

So, that’s what I’m doing now. We’ve already hit half a thousand stars on GitHub and reached thousands of Japanese learners worldwide, and we’re looking to grow our forever free, open-source platform even more.

Why? Because Japanese learners and weebs deserve a free and genuinely fun learning experience too.

Live demo: https://kanadojo.com/

If you wanna make our day by dropping us a star or even contributing, then you can do so here --> https://github.com/lingdojo/kana-dojo ^^

どもありがとうございます!

355
submitted 4 months ago by tentoumushi@sopuli.xyz to c/opensource@lemmy.ml

As someone who loves both coding and learning Japanese, I’ve always wished there was an open-source, truly free tool for learning Japanese, kind of like what Monkeytype is in the typing community (fun fact: we actually have 2 Monkeytype devs on board with us now!)

Unfortunately, most language learning apps these days are either paid or closed-source, and the few free ones that are still out there haven’t really been kept up to date. I felt like that left a gap for people who just want a straightforward, open-source, high-quality learning tool that isn’t trying to milk them and/or sell them something.

That being said, I didn’t want to just make another “me too” language app just for the sake of creating one. There needed to be something special about it. That’s when I thought: why not truly hit it home and do something no other language learning app has done by adding tons of color themes, fonts and an extremely fun and customizable experience, as a little tribute to the vibe that inspired me in the first place, Monkeytype.

So, that’s what I’m doing now. We've already hit half a thousand stars on GitHub and reached thousands of Japanese learners worldwide, and we're looking to grow our forever free, open-source platform even more.

Why? Because Japanese learners and weebs deserve a free and genuinely fun learning experience too.

Live demo: https://kanadojo.com/

If you wanna make our day by dropping us a star or even contributing, then you can do so here --> https://github.com/lingdojo/kana-dojo ^^

どもありがとうございます!

tentoumushi

joined 4 months ago