Chapter 2. Setting up JGloss

Table of Contents

What you need
Running JGloss

What you need

JGloss is a Java application. To run it, you will need a Java implementation that conforms to the Java 7 specification, e. g. Oracle's Java Runtime Environment ( JRE ). The OpenJDK which is installed on many Linux distribution also works.

Your computer system should already be configured to work with Japanese text. You must have a Japanese font installed. Having a Japanese input method installed is not absolutely necessary, but very useful. As a test, if your web browser can display Japanese text, it should be possible to set up Java do do the same.

To use JGloss, you will need some dictionaries. Currently supported dictionary formats are:

EDICT2

EDICT dictionaries are Japanese to English word dictionaries. You can download them from the Monash Nihongo FTP Archive . Each dictionary also needs an index file. If no index file is found, it will be created automatically by JGloss and saved in the dictionary directory. Should the index file creation fail, for example because the directory is write-protected, the dictionary can't be used and an error message is shown.

Wadoku Jiten

The Wadoku Jiten is an extensive Japanese-German dictionary. Current versions of the Wadoku Jiten are available in EDICT2 format from wadoku.de To use it, download the file wadokudict2_201....tar.bz2 from the download page , unpack it and add the unpacked file wadokudict2 to the list of dictionaries used by JGloss in the dictionary dialog.

KANJIDIC

KANJIDIC dictionaries contain information about individual kanji, among other things readings and translations. You can find KANJIDIC dictionaries at the same location as the EDICT dictionaries.