Vocab: An online dictionary integration to the command line

Re:Vocab: An online dictionary integration to the command line by edlinfan on Tuesday February 19, 2019 @01:19AM (#19197014)

Came here to say this! This program would be even cooler if it supported the dict protocol in addition to scraping OED.

The dict protocol and CLI tool [1] were invented to solve the exact problem of browsing dictionaries without a bloaty web browser. You may wish to check them out.

On debian, sudo apt-get install dict, and you're off and running.

The most popular dict server may also be queried via a web UI [2] if you'd like to try it out before installing any software. It queries a few public-domain dictionaries, WordNet, plus some fun stuff like the Jargon File.

This being an open standard, you may also run your own dict server if you wish. It's pretty cool. dict has become a vital part of my CLI workflow since I discovered it many years ago. Its only downside is that it's blocked by some corporate firewalls =(

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DICT

[2] http://www.dict.org/bin/Dict

[ Parent | on HN ]

Re:Vocab: An online dictionary integration to the command line by Mckinsey666 on Tuesday February 19, 2019 @04:02AM (#19197607)

Thanks for the feedback! I will definitely check them out. The problem you pointed out (firing up a bloaty browser) is exactly the problem I am facing, hence the birth of Vocab. I am not a native speaker, so one of my goals is also to add some supporting features to help people learn English.

[ Parent | on HN ]