Introduction

Sorted!Text is a program which presents texts in a de-sequenced form so that the user can sort them back into the correct order.

The game can be played:

The program provides a number of texts to start you off. As you will see, they show the huge range of writing which can be used. From nursery rhymes to sonnets, simple stories to dialogues in French! You can add your own texts (see: Projects and Tasks) and give them whatever title you like.

When a collection of Tasks has been solved, you are rewarded with a pop bottle animation – which will fill your glass according to how well you did.

Classroom uses for Sorted!Text

There are innumerable ways Sorted!Text can be used at all ages and abilities. For example:

Getting started

The program starts with a display of folders (green bars) and Projects (cream bars). Folders can contain Projects focusing on specific topics or Projects belonging to a named teacher.

Clicking a Project moves you to the next screen.

The Set-up screen

If you are working on a whiteboard and find the cursor intrusive, press CONTROL + F5.

There are a few simple choices on the set up menu.

Show right places

When you click on the Smiley button, yellow Smilies will show those lines which are in the correct place.

Show good friends

When you click on the Smiley button, bracket to the left of the text will show those lines which are in the correct relationship to each other.

You can also choose between working against the clock or taking as much time as you like.

The text screen

Projects can hold a number of Tasks which can be presented in random or sequential order and the screen displays the de-sequenced text. On the right are a number of segmented roundels which show the score; their number will depend on how many Tasks are in the current Project. The Smiley button is used to check your progress.

The score-card roundels work as follows:

When you think you have the correct sequence or you need help, click the Smiley at the bottom. You will then see how well you are doing (see right places and good friends, above). If you’re wrong, you lose one of the six wedges for that Task.

This example shows that lundi, mardi and mercredi are in the right places and that vendredi, samedi and dimanche are in the correct relationship to each other but in the wrong place. You can drag and drop any bracketed text and the lines will be inserted where the floating pointer indicates. Any number of items may be bracketed in this way.

You can group items together by clicking in the left margin against a line and dragging your mouse up or down. A grouping bracket will be created. Click on the selected text and drag to a new location.

If you are using a font which is displayed from left to right – Arabic, Urdu or Hebrew, for example – the roundels and brackets are shown down the right-hand side of the screen.

If you fail to solve the Task after six clicks of the OK button, the button turns brown and the program shows the correct order through an animated sequence of moves.

Once this has happened, or you have solved the Task, a next button appears at the bottom of the screen. Click this to go on to the next Task.

The ESCAPE key will always take you back and the ENTER key will take you on.

Racing the clock

If you decided to complete the Task with the timer, a line will gradually fill a box across the top of the screen as time goes by. The more text in the Task, the slower the box fills. When the line reaches the right hand side of the box, the program will check how you are doing and show right places/good friends if they have been selected. If all is correct, you move in the normal way. If incorrect, a wedge is removed and the timer starts again.

Using the Sorted! Text Editor

The Sorted! Text Editor lets you change settings and Projects. Start the Editor by either pressing CONTROL + F2 on the Title page or selecting Editor from Start > All Programs > Resource > Sorted! Text.

Please note that all files are common to all users: any changes to settings in Language folders or Options will affect everybody using Sorted! Text.

Click the + next to a folder name to open the folder. Click any of the file names to open the file in the right-hand pane for editing.

You will be told if any file is being edited by another user; such a file can be opened for viewing but not changed and the word will be greyed. You can copy all the words in a file being edited by another person, create a new file and paste the list in the new file.

The Languages folder

About language files

When you install Sorted! Text, British English is always the default language and the program uses data found in the uk folder for the Title screen and the Editor. You cannot rename this folder.

You can set up a completely new Language yourself.

Language folders are labelled with Language Identifiers which are used by the Projects. Where possible, we’ve used international internet country suffixes as Language Identifiers, but you can use any name that you find suitable; this is the name that is used in the drop-down list when editing Projects. The form of the Language Indicator is not critical, but the reference in the Projects must be identical to the title of the Language folder.

de: German

fr: French

it: Italian

la: Latin

scg: Ghàidhlig (Scottish Gaelic)

uk: British English

Each language folder holds:

Right-click the Languages folder to:

You can right-click any language folder to:

Font

Information added after the equals signs (=) is used by Sorted! Text. You must not change any text up to and including the = sign.

       [FontA]

Do not change this header: it’s required by the program.

       Name=verdana

We use Verdana as a default because it is bold and clear on the screen and contains the characters required in most alphabets. Some languages may require specialised fonts. If such a font has been installed on your computer, you can make Sorted! Text use this font when a language needs it. Type in the name of the font as it appears in font selection lists.

The font setting in the uk folder will be used in all references to that Language Identifier: the main title and folders on the Title screen. Similarly, the names of the Projects on the Title screen will use the font specified in the language of that Project: Projects in Urdu will display in the Urdu font on the text screen. The Editor will also use this font for Projects being edited.

       RightToLeft=0

If you create a new Language folder that uses an alphabet that is written from right to left, set this to 1 and Sorted! Text will display text in this language correctly.

You should switch your keyboard layout to match the language.

Language

This can be used to modify screen messages. Translations added after the equals signs (=) will appear on the screen to replace the English that appears before the =. You must not change any text up to and including the = sign.

The important student message areas are:

       Would you like to close Sorted! Text now?=

This message only appears if ALT + F4 is pressed at any time. If you press ESCAPE while on this page, you will be returned to the Title screen.

       Sorted! Text=

       Would you like to close Sorted! Text now?=

       Yes=

       No=

       You have had 6 tries.=

       Would you like to see the answer?=

This is shown when all six wedges have been lost.

       Show right places=

       Show good friends=

       Race the clock=

       Take your time=

This is the text on the Set-up screen.

Projects and Tasks

You can right-click on the Projects folder to create a New folder, make a New Project or Import a Project created an another computer and prepared for Export (see below).

Right click a single Project folder to:

Right-click a single Project to Delete, Rename, Hide or Export.

Folders can be given suitable names – Class 4, Year 7 German, Mrs Jones – to identify the content; this is the title displayed in the green bars on the Title screen.

Title

You can’t use accented characters in file names in older versions of Windows. This can be a limitation if the language in your project has accents, so Sorted! Text distinguishes between the file name – which is stored on the computer – and the Project title – which is stored inside the file. You can call a new file anything you like – the filename can only be seen in the Editor – but it should be something that has meaning for you that isn’t going to confuse the operating system.

The Project Title is shown in a cream bar on the Title screen. It can have any character except ‘¬’. Long names will be cut short on the Title screen menu.

Language

The program needs to link each Project to a Language: the drop-down list contains the names of all installed language resources.

Project

Tasks can be typed or pasted into the text area. If your Project has more than one Task, you must separate the Tasks with an asterisk. There are upper limits of 30 Tasks of up to20 lines each. Text is reduced in size to make the best fit on the screen; large amounts of text in a Task may become unreadable and may be skipped by the program.

Tasks can be presented in Sequenced or Random order:

Projects shown sequentially will use only the first eight Tasks.

Sorted! Text will select a maximum of eight Tasks from a Project if they are to be shown randomly.

If you close the Editor or choose another Project, you will be asked if you want to save.

Options

Full screen

Sorted! Text runs in a fixed-size window of 800 x 600 pixels. If Full screen is on, the computer's monitor is reset to this size and Sorted! Text – and any other open program and window – will also be showing at this size.

If Full screen is off, Sorted! Text will run in an 800 x 600 window with the Desktop showing behind.

Border

If Full screen is off, you can mask the Desktop with a border. You can still use ALT-TAB to switch to another program.

Sound

Clear the tick box to turn all sound off.