Mnemonics and sound for individual characters

I notice in the new app that when whole words are reviewed, only the mnemonic for the entire word is shown. Why is this?

In the OG Skritter, tapping on the mnemonics line for each character in a word or phrase opened up the mnemonics for that individual character, allowing one a hint (the whole point of mnemonics) and the ability to edit it if necessary. This is especially critical for the writing component of the exercises.

The new app shows only the mnemonic for the entire word - which, by the way, I have rarely found helpful.

Individual mnemonic-making has been critical, for me at least, in the study of Chinese. If I cannot get a hint, or write in the mnemonic, or edit what I have already written, while I am studying the character within a word, then then the mnemonics feature is pretty much useless to me.

Please assure me that you will continue to provide mnemonics for individual characters within a word in future?

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Yes! There are still many things that we’re working on. We’re curating mnemonics to make sure they’re all high quality. :slight_smile:

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That is a big relief. With all your reassurances, I am persuaded the new app really will go far beyond what the existing app is capable of, without sacrificing elements that already work so well.

I know not everyone uses mnemonics, but it was Skritter that first introduced me to the idea, and I have found them invaluable since. I make my own as vivid and “first impression” as possible - I’ve found they don’t need to make much sense, so long as they generate a vivid image and get you to that first character component right away.

Speaking of mnemonics, a wonderful read is Jonathan Spence’s The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci. He uses aspects of the Chinese mnemonic tradition to introduce each chapter of history. High praise from me, and I’m no big fan of history books!

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