Introduction to Lexpanse and LexpansePro applications for Android devices

The main purpose of Lexpanse and LexpansePro applications is to make possible for its users to expand their vocabulary and learn new words in 50 languages!
You can download basic dictionaries for free in 50 languages in both directions which means altogether 2450 dictionaries are there at your disposal!

Lexpanse and LexpansePro also have the in-built dictionary Wordnet, the biggest English language free dictionary and use the resources of Wikipedia and Wiktionary.

What's more, Lexpanse and LexpansePro can be easily expanded with new dictionaries compiled in StarDict format. There are lots of dictionaries available in this format on the Internet.

The main features of Lexpanse and LexpansePro:

• 2450 basic dictionaries downloadable for free;
• selected full dictionaries available as in-app purchase option;
• fast search and instant display of words + fragments of definitions;
• implements WordNet 3.1, the biggest English language dictionary;
• works offline and online;
• displays full web sites in the inbuilt browser;
• zoom in and out displayed sites;
• sel-learning module in the form of flashcards;
• easy and fast navigation between displayed sites with forward and backward buttons;
• searches Wikipedia and Wiktionary for the word and displays the results in the inbuilt browser;
• implements text-to-speech;
• reads out text selection;
• voice search with the implemented Google(TM) Speech-To-Text;
• saves search history;
• sorts search history alphabetically, according to date or ticks;
• multilanguage user interface (supports English, French, German, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish);
• implements StarDict format of the dictionaries;
• easily lexpandable with new dictionaries;
• provides phonetic transcription of the words (Wordnet dictionary);
• includes synonyms and antonyms (Wordnet dictionary);
• includes example sentences (Wordnet dictionary);

The differences between Lexpanse and LexpansePro:

Brief tutorial on Lexpanse and LexpansePro

• Search List screen

  Search results with their translations or definitions fragments are instantly displayed on the main screen.
  The "plus" button on the right makes possible adding the given word to the flashcards.
  
  
  


• The buttons in the upper bar make possible the following operations (left to right):
  1. Activating Google(TM) Speech-To-Text mechanism. After saying the phrase, the list of the first 10 relevant results (in case your pronunciation is not perfect :) are displayed on the main screen.
  2. Activating search for the word written in the edit box (the search can be also activated by clicking the word froma the displayed list with the search results).
  3. Activating Text-To-Speech engine, system default in case of Lexpanse, selected by the user in case of LexpansePro. If there is no text selected, it will read out the phrase from the edit box, otherwise the text selection is read out.




• Search Results screen

  After clicking the search button or one of the items displayed on the front page, you will be taken to the second screen (the browser) displaying full definitions of the word found in the selected dictionary (Lexpanse) or in all active dicitonaries (LexpansePro). You can click the "speaker" button to listen to the word written in the edit box or to the selected text if there is any.
  
  
  The buttons displayed at the bottom of the browser perform the following operations (left to right):
  1. Go back one page in the browser;
  2. Go forward one page in the browser;
  3. Go to the first page (home page) in the current search;
  4. Refresh the displaying page;
  5. Hide/Show this buttons bar;




• Flashcards screen

  In the flashcards screen, the upper bar gives some information about the flashcard, for example when the flashcard was added, how many times the definition or translation has been viewed and how many times the flashcard has been ticked (check marked).
  The bottom bar makes possible navigation between the cards, check marking and removing them.
  
  
  




• History List screen

  In the "History List" screen you are presented with the history of your searches. You can arrange this history alphabetically, according to the search time or the number of ticks (clicks) for the terms.
  
  
  




• Settings screen

  The "Settings" screen is available through the application menu button.
  The settings available in Lexpanse are:
  • "Dictionary font size" - although the font size can be changed through zooming in and out, sometimes it doesn't work, especially in older versions of Android (2.x) when the website uses fixed font size.
  • Selecting the way the flashcards are displayed (eg. randomly, alphabetically, according to the number of displays etc.).
  • "Clear history" - makes possible to clear the search history including items from the "History List" screen.
  The settings available in LexpansePro, besides the three above, are:
  • Setting Speech-To-Text language.
  • Setting Text-To-Speech engine.
  • Setting Text-To-Speech language.
  • Setting Wikipedia/Wiktionary languages.
  
  
  

  Settings (LexpansePro)

  Selecting Wikipedia and Wiktionary languages (LexpansePro)