Release Notes

New Things:

• Landing page got a fresh new look - premium light theme with our real story front and center
• Custom lessons now show up in Daily Tasks with top priority so you never miss them
• Writing practice text expands when you go fullscreen - so much easier to read!
• The app now detects your browser language automatically
• Cleaned up how completed unit tests look on the home screen

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed video clipping issues for YouTube playback in the culture feed
• Better Thai word counting for more accurate writing progress
• Cleaned up the immersive video player - lyrics sync better and less clutter

New Things:

• Units 4 and 5 are done! Full translations through lesson 5.13 - that's advanced Thai territory
• Unit 6 started with lessons 6.0-6.3 featuring fresh original vocabulary
• Replaced 100+ duplicate vocabulary words in Units 4-6 for more variety
• Immersive Video got cleaner - removed uploader name clutter and fixed lyrics sync for music videos
• Sentence generation no longer freezes the screen and works better for menu ordering practice
• Everything feels snappier thanks to our new faster response engine

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed loading issues for French and other localized lessons
• Squashed some translation file bugs
• Points now save properly when watching culture content

New Things:

• Units 4 and 5 are here! 28 new lessons covering complex grammar, specialized vocab, and real-world scenarios
• New About Us page - learn the story behind the app
• Resources section with articles on Thai learning tips and cultural insights
• All lessons now fully translated in French, Portuguese, and Traditional Chinese
• Individual URLs for About, Resources, and articles - easier to share and find
• Tables in cultural notes now look way nicer

Issues/Fixes:

• Bonus points claim button no longer reappears after you reload the page
• Added Terms of Service page

New Things:

• Landing page now detects your browser language automatically and displays content in your preferred language
• Added language switcher dropdown to easily change language from the landing page navigation
• Unit 3 lessons now available - continue your Thai learning journey with advanced content

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed brief flash of onboarding screen for logged-in users on app load
• Fixed Material Symbols icon loading delay - icons now appear instantly
• Improved Firestore error handling for offline and permission scenarios

New Things:

• Conversation practice now adapts to your CEFR level - AI adjusts vocabulary and sentence complexity based on your proficiency (A0-C2)
• Improved roleplay instructions - AI now stays in character and no longer asks confusing questions

New Things:

• Upgraded intelligent background processing system: 71.6% average latency reduction for video uploads, news fetching, speaking analysis, and handwriting analysis

New Things:

• Zhuyin support out of beta! Zhuyinization for vocab will now be correct every time
• All 4 translations updated with ~140+ new strings each, no more English text
• Refactored todays plan component to be more intelligent and responsive
• Unit 2 lessons are now complete. Lessons 2.5 - 3.2 were added
• Search service updated to include more types of results

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed issue with flashcard progress tracking. System is now centralized, efficient and powerful
• Fixed issues that caused vocab to recycle excessively in review
• Fixed bug with the 'delete all points' feature that accidentally deleted your all-time points

New Things:

• Improved backend security
• New system for tracking errors in production
• Updates to privacy policy and terms of service
• Fun Christmas surprise!

New Things:

• Improved custom word processing - now preserves your romanization as you typed it (what you actually heard)
• Translations now give one best definition instead of multiple synonyms

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed image loading issues

New Things:

• 82% faster loading times for slow connections and mobile devices
• Light mode now available
• Improvements to word adding UI
• You can now add custom words from pictures!
• Improved logic for daily tasks now persists across devices
• Added unit tests and better logic surrounding lesson progression

Issues/Fixes:

• More fixes for audio not playing on Safari/iOS devices
• Removed several unnecessary cloud functions and simplified backend logic
• Solved bug causing passwords to appear for text inputs

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed bug on iOS causing audio not to play on tests
• Fixed bug with v2.0 launch screen
• Comprehensive fix to daily tasks component
• Added clear time-based tracking for tasks and validation check to prevent cheating
• Fixed bug with image icon loading that affected the loading page, leaderboard, and shame wall
• Added translation strings for several components hardcoded to English

New Things:

• NEW: Culture Tab - Learn Thai from Trends, music videos, and movie/TV clips with analyzed vocabulary
• Upload your own Trends (max 3 min) with automatic transcription, translation, and vocabulary extraction
• Add music videos and movie clips from YouTube with scene-specific vocabulary
• Personalized difficulty ratings based on your vocabulary level for all culture content
• Culture flashcards to practice vocabulary from videos you've watched
• NEW: Stories Feature - Create personalized Thai stories from 80+ scenarios (beginner, intermediate, advanced)
• Custom stories with illustrations, comprehension quizzes, and adjustable difficulty
• Lesson-locked stories that use vocabulary from specific lessons you've completed
• Bangkok Post news integration - read real Thai news articles with full vocabulary support
• Expanded story scenario library tailored to your level
• Reading statistics tracking: hours of input, words read, stories completed, news articles read
• On-demand audio for stories with local caching for offline playback
• NEW: Global Search - Find anything instantly with powerful search
• Desktop: Permanent search bar with Cmd/Ctrl+K shortcut
• Mobile: Pull-down gesture from top of screen activates full-screen search
• Voice search with transcription in both Thai and your native language
• Search vocabulary, lessons, culture content, stories, speeches, and settings
• Smart search finds results even with partial or misspelled searches
• NEW: My Dictionary - Your personal Thai vocabulary collection
• Automatic tracking of all words you've encountered across lessons, culture, and stories
• Mastery levels: Learning (0 correct), Familiar (1-2 correct), Mastered (3+ correct)
• Export your vocabulary in CSV, JSON, PDF, or TXT formats
• Search, filter by mastery level, sort by mastery/alphabetical/lesson source
• See which lesson or content each word came from
• NEW: Alphabet Practice - Master Thai script with guided handwriting practice
• Practice all 44 consonants grouped by class (high, mid, low)
• Long and short vowel practice with proper positioning
• Thai numbers (0-9) and tone marks practice
• NEW: NSSC Cafe menus added to writing practice for real-world Thai reading
• Advanced canvas with pressure sensitivity for natural handwriting
• Detailed feedback on your handwriting with specific improvement tips
• NEW: Review Lesson - Dynamic lesson combining vocabulary from all completed lessons
• Smart spaced repetition pulls words you need to review
• Worksheet exercises built from your vocabulary history
• Essential for long-term retention and mastery
• NEW: Proficiency Analysis - Track your Thai proficiency across all skills
• CEFR level estimation (A0 through C2) based on your activity
• Vocabulary knowledge tracking with estimated word count
• Reading, writing, speaking, listening skill assessments
• Used throughout app to personalize content difficulty and recommendations
• NEW: 6 Additional Lessons - Lesson 1.21 and Unit 2 Lessons 2.0-2.4
• Unit 2 introduces intermediate concepts building on Unit 1 foundations
• Total curriculum now: 26 lessons in Unit 1, 5 lessons in Unit 2
• NEW: Mobile App Completely Redesigned - Native mobile experience with bottom navigation
• Mobile-specific gestures and components throughout the app for intuitive navigation
• Optimized touch targets and interactions for one-handed use
• NEW: Daily Plan Component - Beautiful new interface showing your personalized daily learning goals
• Smart recommendations for what to practice based on your progress and schedule
• Visual progress tracking for daily, weekly, and monthly goals
• NEW: Conversation Complete Redesign - Fresh modern UI with improved layout
• Pre-conversation preparation screen with context, vocabulary, tips, and conversation strategies
• Live conversation now faster and more responsive with smarter context awareness
• Better conversation flow with improved turn-taking and natural responses
• NEW: Writing Practice Redesigned - Modern interface with enhanced functionality
• Word selector to choose which vocabulary to practice writing
• Thai script hints toggle to show/hide reference while practicing
• "Write Anything" mode - practice any Thai text and get detailed feedback
• NEW: Speech Practice Improvements - More specific and actionable feedback
• Scrolling view for speech text makes longer speeches easier to read while recording
• Better pronunciation analysis with word-level feedback
• NEW: Leaderboard Completely Redesigned - Beautiful new visual design
• Share Progress feature - create beautiful graphics to share your achievements
• NEW: Streak Freeze - Keep your streak even if you miss a day (earned through consistent practice)
• Shame Wall redesigned with improved visual hierarchy and aesthetics
• Community Chat improvements with bug fixes and better message threading
• NEW: Data & Privacy Controls - Clear privacy policy easily accessible in app
• Export all your data in multiple formats (CSV, JSON)
• Delete account option with complete data removal
• Enhanced handwriting engine with much better pressure sensitivity for tablets
• Improved canvas rendering performance for smooth drawing experience
• Pull-down search gesture on mobile with smooth animations
• Back navigation now maintains full history for easy navigation
• Story illustrations included for visual learning
• Audio caching prevents re-downloading audio files
• Trend deduplication prevents uploading the same video twice (file hash checking)
• Culture content admin tools for moderating uploaded content
• Search and filter culture content by difficulty, type, or recency
• Sort culture content by newest, most viewed, or best match for your level
• NEW: Custom word creation - add vocabulary not in curriculum
• NEW: Custom story scenarios - create your own story prompts
• Zhuyin support improvements for Mandarin speakers
• Better error handling and retry logic throughout app

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed canvas performance issues on older devices
• Improved mobile scrolling behavior in story reader
• Fixed search result ordering to prioritize exact matches
• Better error messages when API calls fail
• Fixed audio playback issues on Safari iOS
• Improved memory management for large vocabulary lists
• Fixed timezone issues with streak calculations
• Better handling of network failures with automatic retry
• Fixed duplicate content appearing in culture feed
• Improved Thai text rendering on Windows
• Fixed back button behavior in nested navigation
• Better support for landscape mode on tablets
• Fixed profile picture upload on mobile
• Improved keyboard handling on mobile input fields
• Fixed word wrapping in chat messages

New Things:

• Add custom speeches in any language - automatically translated to Thai, romanized, and back to your native language
• Practice with video recording - get feedback on both audio pronunciation and visual confidence
• Flashcard mode to help memorize speech sections while practicing
• Detailed scoring (1-10) for pronunciation, fluency, tone, confidence, and overall performance
• Track progress with practice history showing all your sessions and best scores
• Earn points: 1 point per 3 seconds of recording + up to 10 bonus points based on your score
• Specific feedback on words you struggled with, including pronunciation tips

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed test scoring bugs: retake detection, point calculations, and leaderboard sync issues

Issues/Fixes:

• Added 267 audio files, improving reading practice
• Fixed bug with shame wall - people who miss a streak are now removed from the wall at midnight
• Lesson 6 added to reading practice
• Optimized audio hosting to prevent data usage

New Things:

• Zhuyin (Bopomofo) conversion system for Thai romanization to help Taiwanese Mandarin speakers
• Interactive educational guide explaining invented Zhuyin symbols for Thai sounds
• Detailed tone mapping system showing how Thai tones correspond to Mandarin tones
• Toggle to enable Zhuyin in flashcards instead of romanization
• Access the new Zhuyin Beta feature from the homepage

New Things:

• New pop-up to celebrate and reward streaks when you return to the home screen after earning points
• Update notifications now automatically let you know when new features are added
• Tests now use a proctoring system that detects unauthorized activity, adds a rules screen, and back button protection to prevent accidental exits
• You can now regrade fill-in-the-blank questions with lenient checking for typos, romanization, and alternative correct answers
• Retake tests for up to 80% score and earn the difference in points for a second chance
• Tests now use more intelligent, contextual questions based on the lesson

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed bug where you could advance through test questions without providing answers
• Issue with profile pictures in the chat was fixed
• New fix for bugs with the anaylisis feedbacks for writing practice
• Added retry logic for 409 errors from Google Cloud
• Block automatic tranlation by web browsers
• Optomized speaking practice to support both open-ended and read prompts
• Issue causing test scores to ba capped at 88/100 was fixed. All users test scores are now displayed correctly. Enjoy the new points!

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed Firestore security rules that prevented donating points

New Things:

• 10 new lessons (1.11-1.20)
• New unit 2 with first lesson (2.0)
• Logarithmic streak bonuses - earn up to 100 bonus points per day for maintaining long streaks

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed color of completed lessons on home page

New Things:

• Conversation progress tracking - see how many times you've practiced each scenario (10 practices per lesson)
• Overall conversation progress bar showing total completion percentage
• Total time spent in conversations displayed at the top of conversation selector

Issues/Fixes:

• Fixed API keys and security rules
• Fixed bug with handwriting analysis

New Things:

• 5 new lessons (1.6-1.10)
• Audio analysis & structured feedback for conversations
• New cultural note added to lesson 1.4 on the verb len
• Back gesture support added on Android and iOS
• Install app from homepage
• New random option for no review cards in lessons
• All new rendering engine for handwriting practice, use on tablets for best results
• New shame wall mercy rule: 2,000+ points/week keeps you off the wall, even if you're in last place
• Added ability to switch between "profile pictures" for other users

Issues/Fixes:

• Flashcard sets now worth 5 points
• Lesson 1.1: "yang" → "not yet" (vocab)
• Lesson 1.4: "nawn" → "non" (romanization)
• Fixed shame wall issue with color tinting
• Solved logic concern that gave people with high streaks too many points

Coming Soon:

• More lessons: 1.11 through 1.20 will be coming in the next few days
• More reading lessons soon also! Very important more reading practice (lessons 6 & 8)
• Bug fix for issue with saved handwiring anaylisis
• Looking ahead to version 2.0: culture lessons, I'm very excited about this! You'll be able to learn vocabulary directly from music videos, movies, Trends, and recent news events! Any ideas on how to implement this are appreciated as I work on how to build out this feature