The FirstVoices development team has been working hard on the new FirstVoices release. All new updates have been prompted by the hard-working Language Teams and community members, whose valuable feedback, ideas and suggestions have been crucial in making FirstVoices a better platform.
If you have questions about any of the updates listed below, or have ideas for ways to improve FirstVoices, please contact us at: hello@firstvoices.com
What’s new? 🌄
Publishing new sites
The new FirstVoices can now publish new language sites, with the usual members-only or public options. If you have a site that is ready to publish, please contact us at: hello@firstvoices.com
New site for ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ
The newest FirstVoices site, published in June, is the ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ site! It’s public, no membership required. Congratulationsto the ƛaʔuukʷiʔatḥ team on your hard work and beautiful language site!
Alternate Spellings
Alternate spellings are now displayed on dictionary entry pages on the new FirstVoices.
All alternate spellings from the old site have been migrated, and any new ones that have been entered on the new FirstVoices will also show up. This is one way to organize different spellings for the same word. Some teams create separate dictionary entries for each spelling instead. As always, it is up to you.
What’s improved? 🐞
Dashboard improvements
The edit forms no longer reset themselves after you start editing! This was happening for some people and seemed to depend on what kind of internet connection people were working with. We apologize for this frustrating glitch and we are glad to announce that it is fixed.
Editors have access to edit media. Oops, when we launched media editing we mistakenly restricted it to Language Admins only. We have restored access for Editors, the way it worked on the old platform.
Dictionary entries with embedded Youtube and Vimeo videos now show in the “has video” report.
Performance improvements
The main FirstVoices homepage is now better compressed and loads faster, especially on slow connections! It also uses less data on mobile.
Retrieving data got an overall speed boost. It affects some pages more than others, but overall the increase is about 5%.
Knowledge Base updates
Updated batch spreadsheet instructions ✨ Prepare batch upload spreadsheets for words and phrases
FirstVoices data schemas for developers ✨ FirstVoices dictionary data schemas
What’s next? 👀
New FirstVoices mobile app (PWA) – beta testing for this will open soon!
Batch uploads
Got feedback? 🗣️
For feedback, suggestions, or tech support, contact the FirstVoices team at hello@firstvoices.com.
The new FirstVoices is in its infancy and we rely on your feedback to continue to improve it. We love to hear about how you use FirstVoices, and we welcome your thoughts!
The FirstVoices keyboards project team has been working hard on this FirstVoices release. All new updates have been prompted by hard-working Language Teams and community members, whose valuable feedback, ideas and suggestions have been crucial in making FirstVoices a better platform.
If you have questions about any of the updates listed below, or have ideas for ways to improve FirstVoices, please contact us at: hello@firstvoices.com
New FirstVoices Keyboards
Over the past 18 months, the FirstVoices Keyboards team has been working hard on consulting with BC First Nation communities to improve and add to our library of FirstVoices keyboards. The keyboards are open source and available to anyone to type their language.
All FirstVoices keyboards have small or large improvements, thanks to the valuable feedback of everyone who got in touch with us. Ha’miyaa ‘nuu’m ahl walḵ'a ‘nisi’m!
For information about installing FirstVoices keyboards for mobile or desktop, check out:
FirstVoices Keyboards do NOT view, track, or store any of your personal data (such as passwords, credit card info, etc) and are safe to use. However, many installers will prompt you about data security before installing any software that affects your keyboard.
New keyboards available for all platforms (desktop/mobile)
Now available on desktop
Improvements made to other keyboards
Many keyboards have received updates to fix the available special characters or make improvements to the layout for a better typing experience. We appreciate the feedback from individuals who use the keyboards regularly, who made this possible.
Improved help documentation. When looking up the rules for typing in your new keyboard, we hope they are easier to scan and read.
Combining diacritics can’t be repeated indefinitely. The keyboards should automatically prevent accidents like this:
á́́m̓̓̓x̱̱̱Visual improvements on mobile keyboards. They just look nicer!
Updated special character shortcuts that will work when typing in e.g. Google Docs.
Got feedback? 🗣️
For feedback, suggestions, or technical support, contact the FirstVoices team at hello@firstvoices.com.
All FirstVoices software relies on your feedback to continue to improve it. We love to hear about how you use FirstVoices Keyboards, and we welcome your suggestions!
If you have questions about any of the updates listed below, or have ideas for ways to improve FirstVoices, please contact us at: hello@firstvoices.com
Chromebook extension will no longer be available
July 15, 2024: We updated this section to add the no-install and Keyman Bookmarklet options.
In mid-July 2024, the FirstVoices Keyboards Chromebook extension will stop being available from the Chrome web store. If you are still using the Chromebook extension, it is time to switch to another option.
All touchscreen Chromebooks produced since the beginning of 2019 support the FirstVoices Keyboards Android app, and earlier Chromebooks that have a tablet mode also support it. This app provides a touch keyboard on the screen, and it can be installed from the Google Play Store (aka the Android App Store): https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.firstvoices.keyboards&hl=en_CA
Online, no-install versions of the FirstVoices desktop keyboards are available in web browsers for Chromebooks and many other devices. No-install keyboards allow you to type into a web browser using your physical keyboard or clicking an on-screen keyboard. To use the online no-install keyboard, visit the desktop installation page for your language keyboard on http://Keyman.com and click "Use keyboard online". To find this page for your language, check our reference page: Find FirstVoices keyboards for your language
Keyman Bookmarklets are available for all FirstVoices desktop keyboards, and are supported in web browsers on Chromebooks and other devices. These provide a more portable version of the no-install keyboard that can be used in any web browser. Get a bookmarklet by searching for your language/keyboard here: https://keyman.com/bookmarklet/
For help finding the right keyboard for your language and device, as well as links to all our keyboard apps, see our guide: Using FirstVoices Keyboards
If you need help switching or have any questions, please contact us at: hello@firstvoices.com
If you want to install the Chromebook extension before it becomes unavailable, you can get it from the Chrome Web Store: https://chromewebstore.google.com/detail/firstvoices-keyboards/ppigcpccijoepnmjfhjkaohkcnonapdl
In Memoriam: The FirstVoices Keyboards Chrome extension
Before 2019, some Chromebooks supported the FirstVoices Keyboards app and some didn’t. We developed a separate Chromebook extension to provide keyboard support on all Chromebook devices. It had keyboards for 3 languages, and was missing many of the shortcuts and combination keys that are available in the FirstVoices Keyboards apps that are built on the Keyman platform.
The Chromebook extension was last updated in 2021.
Got feedback? 🗣️
For feedback, suggestions, or tech support, contact the FirstVoices team at hello@firstvoices.com.
The new FirstVoices is in its infancy and we rely on your feedback to continue to improve it. We love to hear about how you use FirstVoices, and we welcome your thoughts!