I have some exciting news. My good friend and fellow Japanologist Rens, who builds apps for a living, has created a Bunsuke app. As of this moment, you can download the app for iPhone and Android through the respective app stores. On the app, you can read the newsletter and build your vocabulary, all from your phone.
Here are some of the features:
Learn more efficiently by swiping between original text, vocabulary, and translation.
Find the excerpt or word you’re looking for via the search function.
Save your favorite excerpts with the bookmark function.
Completely FREE of charge and advertisement.
We’ll also be adding other features over time. A lot of effort and resources have gone into building the app, so I hope that it will enable you to enjoy studying Japanese language even more.
Thank you, the app is quite nice! I only miss the Amazon link that's usually available in the newsletter as it's quite useful to me. Also, something I always do before reading the email of the day is looking up the author on Wikipedia (if I don't know them) to get a bit of context and see what other works they have, etc. If you're considering new features for the app, maybe you could add a way to browse entries by author, and perhaps even add a little bit of info about them or your recommended works for each, more or like how you talked about your favorite authors on that post from early April. Just a thought, of course. :) Thank you for your hard work!
Hi Sythr, thanks for these great suggestions. I think the app already allows for search by author if you simply enter a name into the search bar, but in time it might be nice to create a menu from which you can select an author you want to read. I'll ask my friend if we can add the Amazon link as well, though this might take a bit of time.
This app is great!! Thank you so much for all the effort put into it! Being a beginner I still have some trouble reading kanji, I would love a furigana option just for the sake of reading out loud. Still, thank you so much for this, I will continue studying hard and hopefully also contribute to this amazing app! おつかれさまでした！
Hi Rosma! Thanks for your kind comment! It's great that you're already pushing yourself to read literature in Japanese. Thanks, also, for your suggestion…perhaps we can implement this in the future. Keep me up to date on your progress and feel free to get in touch if you run into trouble.
Congratulations with the wonderful app. I just downloaded the app and I'm really happy. I like the way it is kept simple and I agree with you when you say better not to incorporate to many functions where you can "cheat"; this keeps the brain up and running.
The app looks great and I love that everything is sectioned in order to avoid cheating. One really super useful thing I would love to see added is the ability to copy text if at all possible. It would make ankisentence mining all the more easier.
I tried it yesterday as soon as I read the email, and I like it. It is simple and I can go thro it while offline too, thanks for making it, it is smoother than reading on email or here so it goes to my keeping list of apps for sure
Thank you the app is amazing! I love the elegant & simple design, it's making it very easy to focus 100% on the text without being distracted by random features or being too tempted to peek at the translation straight away.
Hi Camille, thanks so much. Yes, we wanted it to reflect the simplicity of the newsletter, but with a few added features. Hope the app will help you with your studies!
Hello Bunsuke - I love the app! Very streamlined and professional. Great idea! It will definitely make it easier to make sure I keep up with these daily. One suggestion: you could include an 'open in app' link in the email - it would both advertise the app, and make it easier to get the best of both worlds.
Incidentally as you know I am the founder of Kanshudo, a Japanese learning system. Looking at your app has given me what I think is a great idea for a collaboration with you. What I have in mind would be almost no work for you, and could bring you many new readers. If you're interested let's connect and discuss!
Hi Jonathan, thanks for this suggestion! I'll find out how to do this and maybe add it to the end of the letter.
And sure, I'm curious to hear what kind of possibilties you see for this. Feel free to get in touch by replying to any of the emails you've received from me.
Thank you so much for everything! My suggestion is having the comments on a different tab- I find distracting having them below everything and being careful not to scroll too much
Congratulations! This makes it easier to catch up on the newsletters I had missed before I subscribed. Thank you for your amazing service for Japanese learners.
Thanks, Robert! I want to keep most of my content free and available to everyone, though I might ask for some support in the near future to keep the platform and any additional learning materials sustainable long term. Glad you're enjoying the newsletter and hope the app will help your studies :)
I’m a fan of Satori Reader where one can click on the word and see a pop up with the reading/translation of the word and at the end of the sentence one can click to see a pop up with the translation of the sentence. There are also pop up annotations about usage/grammar for underlined words/expressions. It’s way faster for the user, but maybe too much work for the developer (or not - I don’t know). What can I say?! I’m lazy 🤷♀️
Didn't know about this reader. It looks great, but I'm hesitant to incorporate the same functions. Though I think it's useful to have all that information at your fingertips, I also feel it might result in complacency or laziness in the long term. It's just too tempting to sneak a peek at the right answer instead of struggling and wrestling with the text a bit. That feeling of struggle is a good thing, in my view, because that's when you force yourself to really engage with the material. But I'll definitely keep this in mind and see if we can incorporate selected elements if they turn out to be useful...Thanks!
Just tried it and it is very well done and certainly more convenient that navigating through all the emails. I liked the possibilty of having the vocabulary list and the text on the same page though.
I think it would be absolutely perfect if you could integrate a way to export quickly to SRS for vocabulary and grammar points/sentences.
Thanks so much Lemouette! Yes, the SRS function you mentioned is one of the elements we want to add over time...so that is something to look forward to ;)
Thank you, the app is quite nice! I only miss the Amazon link that's usually available in the newsletter as it's quite useful to me. Also, something I always do before reading the email of the day is looking up the author on Wikipedia (if I don't know them) to get a bit of context and see what other works they have, etc. If you're considering new features for the app, maybe you could add a way to browse entries by author, and perhaps even add a little bit of info about them or your recommended works for each, more or like how you talked about your favorite authors on that post from early April. Just a thought, of course. :) Thank you for your hard work!
Hi Sythr, thanks for these great suggestions. I think the app already allows for search by author if you simply enter a name into the search bar, but in time it might be nice to create a menu from which you can select an author you want to read. I'll ask my friend if we can add the Amazon link as well, though this might take a bit of time.
Happy to see you're enjoying the app!
This app is great!! Thank you so much for all the effort put into it! Being a beginner I still have some trouble reading kanji, I would love a furigana option just for the sake of reading out loud. Still, thank you so much for this, I will continue studying hard and hopefully also contribute to this amazing app! おつかれさまでした！
Hi Rosma! Thanks for your kind comment! It's great that you're already pushing yourself to read literature in Japanese. Thanks, also, for your suggestion…perhaps we can implement this in the future. Keep me up to date on your progress and feel free to get in touch if you run into trouble.
Congratulations with the wonderful app. I just downloaded the app and I'm really happy. I like the way it is kept simple and I agree with you when you say better not to incorporate to many functions where you can "cheat"; this keeps the brain up and running.
Hi Koppa, thanks so much for the compliment! I'm happy to hear you're enjoying the app :)
The app looks great and I love that everything is sectioned in order to avoid cheating. One really super useful thing I would love to see added is the ability to copy text if at all possible. It would make ankisentence mining all the more easier.
Hi Jonathan, thanks for this suggestion. It was actually already on our list of things to add!
Using the app right now and love it! My only suggestion would be a night mode to save your eyes if you're reading late.
That's a great suggestion, I'll see if we can add it at some point! Glad to hear you're enjoying the app :)
I tried it yesterday as soon as I read the email, and I like it. It is simple and I can go thro it while offline too, thanks for making it, it is smoother than reading on email or here so it goes to my keeping list of apps for sure
Hi Austin, really glad to hear you like the app. Hope it helps you study more efficiently!
Great stuff! Maybe you should add notifications when a new post is added :D
Hi Harry, glad you like it :) I'll check with my friend if we can add notifications! Thanks for your feedback.
Thank you the app is amazing! I love the elegant & simple design, it's making it very easy to focus 100% on the text without being distracted by random features or being too tempted to peek at the translation straight away.
Hi Camille, thanks so much. Yes, we wanted it to reflect the simplicity of the newsletter, but with a few added features. Hope the app will help you with your studies!
Thanks a bunch Bunsuke! This will really help me to keep my learning stuff gathered in one place.
Hi Der, really glad you like it! Enjoy :D
Hello Bunsuke - I love the app! Very streamlined and professional. Great idea! It will definitely make it easier to make sure I keep up with these daily. One suggestion: you could include an 'open in app' link in the email - it would both advertise the app, and make it easier to get the best of both worlds.
Incidentally as you know I am the founder of Kanshudo, a Japanese learning system. Looking at your app has given me what I think is a great idea for a collaboration with you. What I have in mind would be almost no work for you, and could bring you many new readers. If you're interested let's connect and discuss!
Hi Jonathan, thanks for this suggestion! I'll find out how to do this and maybe add it to the end of the letter.
And sure, I'm curious to hear what kind of possibilties you see for this. Feel free to get in touch by replying to any of the emails you've received from me.
Really glad to see you're enjoying the app!
Thank you so much for everything! My suggestion is having the comments on a different tab- I find distracting having them below everything and being careful not to scroll too much
Hi Jack, thanks for your suggestion! This might be a good feature to add over time. Great comment!
Great app, one little issue though with printing from the app - cookie notice obscures the text 🥲
Hi Oiskn, glad to see you're enjoying the app. I'll look into the cookie notice!
Congratulations! Simple, beautiful and effective. Like the app very much. Thank you Bunsuke.
Thanks so much Emma! Really glad you like it :)
Congratulations! This makes it easier to catch up on the newsletters I had missed before I subscribed. Thank you for your amazing service for Japanese learners.
Thanks so much, CC GG! Really glad you like the app :)
Amazing~ ありがとうございます。It’s great to see all letters in one place.)
Hi Jul, you're welcome! Enjoy!
Thank you very much
Of course! Hope it's useful to you :)
Wow! All I have to say is thank you! Considering you’re doing all this for free, I can’t say how appreciative I am. Really…
Thanks, Robert! I want to keep most of my content free and available to everyone, though I might ask for some support in the near future to keep the platform and any additional learning materials sustainable long term. Glad you're enjoying the newsletter and hope the app will help your studies :)
I’m a fan of Satori Reader where one can click on the word and see a pop up with the reading/translation of the word and at the end of the sentence one can click to see a pop up with the translation of the sentence. There are also pop up annotations about usage/grammar for underlined words/expressions. It’s way faster for the user, but maybe too much work for the developer (or not - I don’t know). What can I say?! I’m lazy 🤷♀️
Didn't know about this reader. It looks great, but I'm hesitant to incorporate the same functions. Though I think it's useful to have all that information at your fingertips, I also feel it might result in complacency or laziness in the long term. It's just too tempting to sneak a peek at the right answer instead of struggling and wrestling with the text a bit. That feeling of struggle is a good thing, in my view, because that's when you force yourself to really engage with the material. But I'll definitely keep this in mind and see if we can incorporate selected elements if they turn out to be useful...Thanks!
Great stuff, very convenient!
Thanks, Nyan! Glad you like it!
Just tried it and it is very well done and certainly more convenient that navigating through all the emails. I liked the possibilty of having the vocabulary list and the text on the same page though.
I think it would be absolutely perfect if you could integrate a way to export quickly to SRS for vocabulary and grammar points/sentences.
Keep up the great work
Thanks so much Lemouette! Yes, the SRS function you mentioned is one of the elements we want to add over time...so that is something to look forward to ;)
Thanks again!