Kanji Sketch Pad

Kanji Sketch Pad is a software application developed from the ground-up as an educational kanji drawing tool. This drawing pad converts mouse strokes into Japanese characters while allowing you to view the correct kanji shape and useful hints.

Since this is a portable utility, it is important to mention that it doesn't leave any traces in the Windows registry. You can copy it on any USB flash drive or other devices, and take it with you whenever you need to learn how to draw the Japanese characters.

It sports a clean layout where all of the program’s functions can be accessed from additional panels, so the primary window lets you focus solely on the drawing mode.

You can rely on the built-in descriptions in order to understand the role of each dedicated parameter. Plus, there are also several video tutorials on how to make the best out of this tool.

Kanji Sketch Pad’s smart detection system notifies you if you have drawn the correct or wrong kanji strokes. Plus, you can perform double-click operations outside the drawing area, more specifically on the so-called “Hot-zones” for redoing the items, checking hints, jumping to the next item, as well as giving up on drawing the current character.

The Tip panel provides information about each character that you are drawing, and lets you view suggestive images, enter your own personal study notes, as well as change the keyword or English definition for the current item.

One of the best features bundled in this app is an advanced searching system which enables you to search for kanji words in different ways: by simply typing in English words, looking up for radical roots, or manually drawing a symbol.

The tool automatically displays possible matches and lets you click on the desired word for introducing it in your further studies. You may use a built-in text editor, show single-stroke kanji items, check a list with examples, view the radical composition, as well as practice on drawing the current word.

Kanji Sketch Pad keeps track of your progress with the aid of graphs, and allows you to access a list with vocabulary entries, import data to the vocabulary list, insert useful links for your kanji study, and check the built-in reader for getting used to a Japanese text and play its audio transcription while drawing.

Last but not least, you can access the “Usage” panel for getting an idea about the use of kanji in real words, tweak several configuration settings related to the strictness of the drawing mode (speedy, easy, medium, difficult), and switch to an advanced testing mode where a list of Japanese words is available to you except for the kanji being tested that is masked by an asterix.

Kanji Sketch Pad comes bundled with a decent feature pack for helping you practice and improve you kanji drawing skills. Since it offers support for a wide range of educational tools, you need to take some and experiment with all the built-in functions.