Ectaco Partner P900 User manual

ECTACO®Partner®P900
Hand-held Electronic Language Teacher®,
Full Text Translation System, Talking Dictionary, Translator, and
Audio PhraseBook™
USER MANUAL

ECTACO®Partner®P900 User Manual
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Partner®, iTRAVL®, jetBook®, LingvoSoft®, Language Teacher®, Lingvobit®,
LingvoCompass®, Audio PhraseBook™, Vector Ultima™, U-Learn™, and
MorphoFinder™ are trademarks of ECTACO, Inc.
© 1990–2010 ECTACO, Inc., New York, USA.
All rights reserved.
Windows is a registered trademark of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and
other countries.
WordNet. WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University.
The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks
of their respective owners.
ECTACO, Inc. assumes no responsibility for any damage or loss resulting from the use of
this manual.
ECTACO, Inc. assumes no responsibility for any loss or claims by third parties which may
arise through the use of this product.
ECTACO, Inc. assumes no responsibility for any damage or loss caused by deletion of
data as a result of malfunction, repairs, or battery replacement. Be sure to back up all
important data on other media to avoid data loss.
The contents of this manual as well as software functionality are subject to change
without prior notice.
No part of this manual shall be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by
any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without
permission from ECTACO, Inc.

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FCC Statement
This device complies with Part 15 of the FCC Rules. Operation is subject to the following
two conditions: (1) This device may not cause harmful interference, and (2) This device
must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired
operation.
Warning: Changes or modifications to this unit not expressly approved by the party
responsible for compliance could void the user's authority to operate the equipment.
Note: This equipment has been tested and found to comply with the limits for a Class B
digital device, pursuant to Part 15 of the FCC Rules. These limits are designed to provide
reasonable protection against harmful interference in a residential installation. This
equipment generates, uses and can radiate radio frequency energy and, if not installed
and used in accordance with the instructions, may cause harmful interference to radio
communications.
However, there is no guarantee that interference will not occur in a particular installation.
If this equipment does cause harmful interference to radio or television reception, which
can be determined by turning the equipment off and on, the user is encouraged to try to
correct the interference by one or more of the following measures:
•Reorient or relocate the receiving antenna.
•Increase the separation between the equipment and receiver.
•Connect the equipment into an outlet on a circuit different from that to which the
receiver is connected.
•Consult the dealer or an experienced radio/TV technician for help.

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CONTENTS
GENERAL DESCRIPTION.................................................................................. 6
Introduction ........................................................................................................ 6
General View ..................................................................................................... 7
Power Supply..................................................................................................... 8
SD Card ............................................................................................................. 8
PC Communication............................................................................................ 8
Initialization ........................................................................................................ 9
Keyboard............................................................................................................ 9
Display and Main Menu ................................................................................... 10
Sidebar............................................................................................................. 12
On-screen Keyboard........................................................................................ 13
ECTACO®C-Pen® ........................................................................................... 13
Windows .......................................................................................................... 14
Pop-up Toolbar ................................................................................................ 15
Pop-up Menus.................................................................................................. 16
Parts of Speech, Gender Labels, Abbreviations.............................................. 17
Pronunciation of Words and Sentences .......................................................... 18
DICTIONARIES & TOOLS ................................................................................ 18
Dictionary ......................................................................................................... 18
English Dictionary ............................................................................................ 20
Pictured Dictionary........................................................................................... 21
Text Translation ............................................................................................... 22
Audio PhraseBook™ ....................................................................................... 23
Usage of Audio PhraseBook for Foreign Language Studies........................... 24
Irregular Verbs ................................................................................................. 25
Idioms .............................................................................................................. 26
SAT 200 ........................................................................................................... 26
SAT 5000 ......................................................................................................... 27
LANGUAGE STUDIES...................................................................................... 27
Language Teacher®......................................................................................... 27
U-Learn™ ........................................................................................................ 28

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English Grammar ............................................................................................. 29
Linguistic Crossword........................................................................................ 29
Pockets ............................................................................................................ 30
Translation Test ............................................................................................... 30
Spell-It-Right .................................................................................................... 31
FlashCards....................................................................................................... 32
Hangman ......................................................................................................... 32
EXTRAS ............................................................................................................ 33
jetBook®Reader .............................................................................................. 33
Video Player..................................................................................................... 34
Audio Player..................................................................................................... 35
Voice Recorder ................................................................................................ 36
FM Radio ......................................................................................................... 36
USA Interview .................................................................................................. 37
Universal Translator......................................................................................... 38
Calculator......................................................................................................... 38
Navigation System ........................................................................................... 38
HELP & SETTINGS........................................................................................... 42
Settings ............................................................................................................ 42
Help.................................................................................................................. 44
Learning Settings ............................................................................................. 45
Size Equivalents .............................................................................................. 45
World Time....................................................................................................... 46
Modern Arabic Traditions................................................................................. 46
Metric Conversion ............................................................................................ 46

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GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Introduction
Congratulations on your purchase of the high-end class Hand-held Electronic Language
Teacher®, Full Text Translation System, Talking Dictionary, Translator, and Audio
PhraseBook™! The product you have purchased is the result of the combined efforts of
the ECTACO team of linguists, engineers, and programmers. You are now the owner of
one of the most advanced electronic devices ever produced for translation purposes and
language studies.
Note: This versatile device has the production name of P900. The model name depends
on the languages included.
ECTACO®Partner®P900 features:
Talking dictionary of 200,000 to 5,000,000 (depends on a language pair) general,
medical, technical, legal, and slang words and expressions with transcriptions,
usage examples and part-of-speech labels. It speaks translations out loud with a
real human voice.
WordNet Dictionary – 70,000-word English explanatory dictionary.
Pictured Dictionary – displays pictures of related words and provides translations
and human voice pronunciation in 39 languages.
Full Text Translation System – provides effective translation of any texts. Once
translated, the text can then be spoken aloud using the latest TTS (Text-to-Speech)
voice synthesis technology. Compatible with ECTACO®/C-Pen®scanner.
Audio PhraseBook™ – features advanced speech recognition and crystal-clear
output of native-speaker voice narration for 14,000 phrases per language pair.
English irregular verbs and popular idioms.
SAT 200 and SAT 5000 – short and advanced versions of the SAT Reasoning Test
vocabulary.
Language Teacher®– a complete system that will teach you step by step like a
personal tutor.
U-Learn™ – a hands-free and eyes-free speech recognition and speech analysis
system to learn words, phrases and grammar. It even includes "sleep mode" for
studies while you sleep!
English Grammar – concise reference guide to English grammar for ESL students.
Language Infotainment: Linguistic Crossword, Pockets Game, Translation Test,
Spell-It-Right Tutor, FlashCards Memorizer, Hangman Linguistic Game.
jetBook®Reader – read your favorite electronic books.

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Car Navigation System (software and GPS receiver sold separately)
Voice Recorder – record conversations on-the-go and then translate them at the
luxury of home or office.
USA Citizenship Exam, Audio Player with mp3 support, FM Radio, World Time,
Metric Conversion, Talking Calculator and more...
The functionality of a particular model depends on the set of languages included, and it
may partially differ from the device description in this manual. For more information about
a particular model, please visit our Web site at www.ectaco.com.
Device is powered by AC/DC adapter (Travel Charger) and rechargeable battery (all
included in the standard package).
Note: Always use the original accessories manufactured by ECTACO, Inc.
The ECTACO®Partner®P900 standard package includes the following items: ECTACO®
Partner®P900 unit, rechargeable battery (inside the unit), pouch, USB cable, SD card,
AC/DC adapter, user manual, bonus CD.
General View
The general view and essential features of ECTACO®Partner®P900 are shown below.

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Power Supply
ECTACO®Partner®P900 is powered by a special Li-Polymer rechargeable battery. When
the battery becomes weak, the red LED signal starts blinking. To restore full functionality
of the device, recharge the battery as soon as possible.
The battery compartment is located on the back of the device and is covered with a
plastic cover.
To open the battery compartment, unscrew two screws, holding the battery compartment
cover.
How to Recharge the Battery
Note: Only a special rechargeable battery, special charger, and special USB cable may
be used with your ECTACO®Partner®P900. Use of an inappropriate external power
supply may cause failure of the device and will void the warranty.
•Connect the AC/DC adapter to your device via the mini-USB port (see General View),
or connect your device to your PC using the special USB cable. The red LED signal
shows that the battery is recharging.
LED status: blinking blue – recording is in progress or data being transferred; blinking red
– the battery is critically low.
Note: Charge the battery overnight prior to the first use of the device.
SD Card
Before you start using your ECTACO®Partner®P900, please make sure the SD card
(included in the standard package) is installed into the SD slot of the device. If the card is
not installed, slide it into the slot located on the right-hand edge of the device – the label
of the card face up, contacts face down. Push the card gently until it clicks into place. To
eject the card, just push it in slightly.
ECTACO®Partner®P900 supports SD and SDHC cards.
PC Communication
The PC Communication function allows you to manage files and folders stored on the SD
card. For example, you may wish to add books and music files.
•Ensure the SD card is installed into the device.
•Turn the device on.
•Connect the device to your PC using the special USB cable and the mini-USB port
located on the device (see General View). Shielded cables must be used with this
device to ensure compliance with the class B FCC limits.

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Please wait while your PC detects the device.
•In the menu that appears on the device screen, select the desired connection mode:
battery charging or data transfer.
•Navigate to the newly detected removable disk on your PC to browse through the files
stored on the SD card.
Note: Do not modify the content of the system folder. Do not delete system files.
•Copy your files to the respective folders. For example, copy your books to the My
books folder.
Note: Always back up your important data! Neither the manufacturer nor the dealers
assume any responsibility for lost or corrupted data.
Initialization
In the rare event that the data on the screen is corrupted or a program is not responding
properly, you will need to perform a reset.
The Reset button is located on the back of the device.
•Press the Reset button with the tip of the stylus. Never use a needle or a pin since it
can damage the device.
On completion of the reboot, you will see the calibration screen with five targets,
appearing one after another as you tap them with the stylus.
Electrostatic discharge may cause failure of the device. Please use the Reset button to
restore full functionality of the device.
Keyboard
The American standard QWERTY keyboard allows you to enter any word just in seconds.
Each set of national characters is linked to its language input mode.
The function and control keys are described below.
Note: Key1+Key2 here and further on signifies the combination of keys to use – first
press and hold Key1, then press and release Key2.
Key Function(s)
Turn the device on or off
Reset Re-initialize system
Use speech recognition (where available)
Show or hide the pop-up toolbar

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or
+
Listen to the pronunciation of the translation or source item
(where available)
Close active window / Cancel
Delete character to the left of cursor
+key Press and hold this key down to type in uppercase / Enter
additional letters or symbols
+ , Launch spell-checker
+
Switch keyboard layouts.
Russian phonetic keyboard layout (for respective models): a-а,
b-б, c-ц/ч, d-д, e-е/э, f-ф, g-г/ж, h-х, i-и, j-й, k-к, l-л, m-м, n-н,
o-о, p-п, q-я, r-р, s-с, t-т, u-у/ю, v-в, w-ш/щ, x-ь/ъ, y-ы, z-з.
Press to enter letters shown after the slash (/).
+key Enter additional letters, if applicable
+ +key Enter additional letters in uppercase, if applicable
Switch language or translation direction
Switch to the Main Menu
+numeric key Enter digits
+ +numeric
key Enter additional symbols
Execute
, , , Move cursor or highlight / Scroll lines
, Page Up / Page Down / Switch Main Menu sections
Enter space
Display and Main Menu
ECTACO®Partner®P900 features a touch screen (320 x 240 pixels) with a windows-
driven graphical interface. The Main Menu consists of four sections, which visually
organize access to the ECTACO®Partner®P900 applications.

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Note: Tapping screen items is preferably done with the supplied pointing device known
as a stylus, which, when not in use, is kept in a special slot at the side of the device's
back panel (see General View).
Main Menu
•To display the Main Menu, turn the device on, and/or exit the currently running
application. Alternatively, press on the keyboard. The Main Menu consists of the
following sections: Dictionaries & Tools, Language Studies,Extras,Help &
Settings.
At the top of the screen, you will see the battery life indicator.
The Main Menu sections are described below. The contents of the Main Menu depend on
product model.
•Use the Dictionaries & Tools section to access Dictionary, English Dictionary,
Pictured Dictionary, Text Translation, Audio PhraseBook™, Irregular Verbs, Idioms,
SAT 200, and SAT 5000.
•Use the Language Studies section to access Language Teacher®, U-Learn™,
English Grammar, Linguistic Crossword, Pockets, Translation Test, Spell-It-Right,
FlashCards, and Hangman.
•Use the Extras section to access jetBook®Reader, Video Player, Audio Player, Voice
Recorder, FM Radio, USA Interview, Universal Translator, Calculator, and Navigation
System.
•Use the Help & Settings section to access Settings, Help, About, Learning Settings,
Size Equivalents1, World Time, and Metric Conversion.
•To switch between sections, press the / keys, or tap / on the sidebar.
•When in a section, tap the desired application name. Alternatively, highlight it and
then press . Or, press the numeric key that corresponds to the application
number.
The application will then open.
•To close an application, tap at the upper right of the screen, or just press .
1In the Arabic and Persian (Farsi) models, Size Equivalents is replaced with Modern
Arabic Traditions.

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Using the Voice Commands
Voice commands are always available when the Interface language is set to English.
They might be unavailable for certain languages.
•When in the Main Menu, press and hold the key. You will see a dialog with two
buttons: (Correct) and (Wrong).
•Say the name of the desired section or application and then release the key. The
section or application will then open.
Learning Words
When starting an application, you will see the Memorize splash screen with a useful word
or phrase, its translation and corresponding picture. This is an excellent way to broaden
your vocabulary and master your foreign language!
Sidebar
Twelve items of ECTACO®Partner®P900 have their permanent touch-sensitive shortcut
buttons on the Sidebar to the right and left of the screen.

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Dictionary
Menu
Audio Phrasebook™ Say
Audio Player Record
Calculator
Volume and
Speech Speed Controls
Settings On-screen Keyboard
Back Forward
On-screen Keyboard
The on-screen keyboard is a set of virtual keys displayed on the screen. This set of keys
simulates the conventional physical keyboard or part of it.
•In applications featuring text input, tap on the sidebar to activate the on-screen
keyboard.
•To hide it, tap once again.
ECTACO®C-Pen® 2
With ECTACO®C-Pen®you can acquire and then translate words or text portions from
paper media. It is capable of recognizing texts in languages based on Latin, Cyrillic or
Greek character set.
•Connect ECTACO®C-Pen®to your device. Make sure the device is turned on.
Note: You can recharge the battery while using ECTACO®C-Pen®– just use a special
USB twin cable (available separately) to connect ECTACO®C-Pen®to the device and
2Optional accessory. Included in the ECTACO®Partner®P900 Deluxe package.

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power supply. The device is capable of working continuously, as long as ECTACO®
C-Pen®is connected to a power supply.
•Press the Function key on ECTACO®C-Pen®. You will see the C-Pen ready dialog.
•Select the desired language and application.
•Place the tip of ECTACO®C-Pen®before the first character of your text. The leg with
the touch trigger should be below the text line and the other leg above the text line.
•Keep the touch trigger pressed onto the surface and move ECTACO®C-Pen®over
the line of text. You can move ECTACO®C-Pen®either left-to-right or right-to-left over
the text.
•Lift your ECTACO®C-Pen®.
•In the C-Pen ready dialog, tap OK.
The text will be transferred to the selected application.
Windows
Every application, pop-up menu, or dialog box used in ECTACO®Partner®P900 appears
in its own window. A window is displayed as a framed screen area with two main
elements: the title bar and the close button ( or ).
The scroll bar is shown when the contents do not all fit on the screen. The slider shows
the position of the displayed contents relative to the rest of data.
On the scroll bar:
•tap a scroll arrow ( or ) to advance or go back one line;
•tap and drag the slider to browse information;
•tap the scroll bar below or above the slider to jump to the corresponding portion of
text.

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Pop-up Toolbar
A toolbar is a set of horizontally arranged buttons shown at the bottom of the relevant
window.
•To activate the pop-up toolbar, press .
•To perform an action, just tap the corresponding icon. Alternatively, select it by using
or and then press .
Toolbar buttons have the following functions:
Activate spell-checker
Display History
Select options
Switch language
Add to FlashCards
Find in the English Dictionary
Display Help
Search
Show topics (available in U-Learn™)
Translate in Dictionary
Delete/Clear

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Reset statistics
Start new game
Rescan SD card / Restart
Hide
Edit
Activate Sleep Mode
Disable Sleep Mode
Turn the sound off
Turn the sound on
Volume control
Specify frequency (available in FM Radio)
Save (available in FM Radio)
Open file (available in jetBook®Reader)
Switch to full-screen mode (available in jetBook®Reader)
Exit full-screen mode (available in jetBook®Reader)
Show bookmarks, textmarks, and table of contents (available in jetBook®Reader)
The contents of the toolbar depend on the current application.
Pop-up Menus
With the help of pop-up menus, you can quickly choose an action to perform on the
selected item. For example, you can copy a text onto the clipboard. To paste the text you
have copied, place the cursor in a text input field and then select Paste in the pop-up
menu.
Note: Pop-up menus may vary from application to application.
•To activate a pop-up menu, highlight the desired item and hold the stylus down on it
for a second.

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•When the pop-up menu appears, lift the stylus and then select the desired action. You
can close the pop-up menu by tapping anywhere on the screen, outside of the menu.
Parts of Speech, Gender Labels, Abbreviations
In the Dictionary, translations or definitions of a headword are shown with their parts of
speech:
A– adjective
ABBR – abbreviation
ADV – adverb
ART – article
AUX – auxiliary
CONJ – conjunction
ID – idiom
INTRJ – interjection
N – noun
NPR – proper noun
NUM – numeral
PART – particle
PHR – phrase
PREF – prefix
PREP – preposition
PRON – pronoun
SUFF – suffix
V– verb
Nouns can be marked with gender and number labels:
F– feminine
FPL – feminine plural
M– masculine
MF – common gender
MFPL – masculine or feminine plural
MN – masculine or neuter
MNPL – masculine or neuter plural
MPL – masculine plural
N– neuter
NF – neuter or feminine
NFPL – neuter or feminine plural
NPL – neuter plural
PL – plural

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Certain words and expressions in the Dictionary may be marked with specific
abbreviations.
Pronunciation of Words and Sentences
ECTACO®Partner®P900 speaks dictionary entries out loud with a real human voice in
English and other languages. These entries are marked with a special icon: .
For certain entries pronunciation is provided by the TTS (Text-to-Speech) technology. In
the Arabic model, no pronunciation is provided for about 3 percent of the Arabic entries in
the Dictionary.
In the Text Translation application, the device employs the TTS (Text-to-Speech)
technology which allows you to listen to the pronunciation of text.
•To hear the displayed or highlighted headword pronounced, press the key.
•To hear the translation or definition pronounced, highlight the desired portion of it by
using the stylus, and then press the key.
Note: The Volume options (found in the Settings section) allow you to adjust speech
volume.
DICTIONARIES & TOOLS
Dictionary
ECTACO®Partner®P900 contains the most advanced electronic dictionary available on
the market.
•Open the Dictionaries & Tools section.
•Tap the application name. Alternatively, press the numeric key corresponding to the
application number. The application will then open.
•To translate a word, start entering it from the conventional keyboard. Alternatively,
use the on-screen keyboard.
Note: The MorphoFinder™ function helps you find the source words (headwords) for past
participles, gerunds, plural and adjective forms for English, Spanish, Russian, and Polish
languages. For example, if you enter "distributes" you will get "distribute" as there is no
translation or definition for "distributes" because it is a form of "distribute".

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•When the desired word is displayed, select it (tap the corresponding line) to see its
translation(s). Use the key to activate the pop-up menu for the selected entry in
the list, if applicable.
•Within a translation, where applicable, tap <...> to see the entire text.
•To look up the highlighted English entry in the English Dictionary, select on the
pop-up toolbar.
Spell-checker Vector Ultima™
The spell-checker Vector Ultima™ is one of the most advanced on the market. When you
are unsure of a word's spelling, Vector Ultima™ allows you to enter the word as you hear
it and choose a spelling variation from the list.
•Type the word board as you hear it: bord.
•Activate the pop-up toolbar, and then select . Alternatively, activate the pop-up
menu and tap Spellcheck.
•A list of suggested similar words will appear. If the spell-checker is unable to suggest
any variants, the No variants message will be shown.
•Select the word board to see its translations.
•To reverse translate an entry, simply double-tap it, or hold the stylus down on it and
then select Translate in the pop-up menu.
•To change the translation direction, tap on the pop-up toolbar or press .
•To list the words or phrases you translated, tap on the pop-up toolbar.
Alternatively, select History in the pop-up menu.
•Press +to go back to the last entry you translated.
•Press +to go forward to the last entry you translated.
Adding and Deleting User Entries
ECTACO®Partner®P900 allows you to create your own vocabulary which automatically
links to the Dictionary.
•Hold the stylus down on any dictionary entry in the list and then select User words /
Add in the pop-up menu. You will see the Add user word window.
•Type your word or expression and its translation. Specify the part of speech.

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•Tap Add to save your entry. The entry will be highlighted in red for easy identification.
You might want to delete a user entry.
•Hold the stylus down on your entry in the list and then select User words / Delete in
the pop-up menu.
Adding Entries to FlashCards
You can create your personal sets of entries copied from the Dictionary.
•Press and then tap on the pop-up toolbar. You will see the Add to
FlashCards window.
•Select the desired options.
•Tap Add.
Options
Use Options to hide slang words and phrases in the dictionaries.
•Press and then tap on the pop-up toolbar.
Note: To disable Slang Lock, please use this password: showslan.
•To save changes, tap OK.
English Dictionary
ECTACO®Partner®P900 includes the advanced English explanatory dictionary.
•Open the Dictionaries & Tools section.
•Tap the application name. Alternatively, press the numeric key corresponding to the
application number. The application will then open.
•To define a word, enter it from the keyboard.
Note: When viewing entries in the English Dictionary, tap on the underlined items in blue
to follow the corresponding links.