ABC Trainer

ABC Trainer, Version 1.0

Interactive Exercises for Learning the Alphabet

ABC Trainer is a specialized program designed to help users learn the letters of the alphabet through four interactive exercises. The design is clean and simple, with no distracting elements. The goal of each exercise is to press the correct keys (A-Z) on your keyboard.

Exercises:

Mixed - Type letters in the alphabet (A-Z) unordered.

A-Z - Type all letters (A-Z) in alphabetical order.

Words - Type words. 

Unique - Find the unique letter, only occurring once. Type that letter.

Launching an Exercise

An exercise window is started by clicking on one of the four buttons presented on the main menu, as displayed in the first screenshot.

Window Resize

Window resize is done by either changing the width and height in the settings or by dragging (edge or corner) with your mouse. You can also choose to use the full screen option in the settings.

Exit an Exercise

To exit or interrupt an exercise, you can either press the "Esc" key on your keyboard or click the arrow located in the upper left corner. Alternatively, you may also choose to close the window by clicking the "X" button located in the upper right corner of the screen.

Personalize Your Experience with Customizable Settings in the File Menu

Customize your experience from the settings menu, accessed by clicking on 'File' in the menu bar. Settings such as audio volume, letter case, language, and color scheme can be adjusted here. Click OK to save the changes.

Text-to-Speech Instructions and Feedback

Instructions and feedback are spoken aloud using included Text-to-Speech. Note that Internet connection is required to download the TTS audio. The program works well with English and Swedish. Although many languages have been added, not all of them function satisfactorily.

Python-Powered Program with PySide6 Menu and PyGame Exercises

The program is made in Python. Pyside6 is used for the menu (seen in the first two screenshots) and PyGame used for the games/exercises. Input used are keyboard and mouse. The program is driven by user input.

Tips and trix

The program allows you to access the text file that contains the words used in the Words exercise by selecting the "Open" option under "File". There is a separate text file for each language. Moreover, you have the option to customize the default words within the text files.

You can add and use more fonts by adding them to the fonts folder. They need to be in the same format (ttf).

Contents of ABC_Trainer.zip

Folders:

words (.txt files)

audio (.mp3 files)

fonts (.ttf files)

img (.png files)

settings (.json files)

Executable (the program):

ABC_Trainer.exe

Bat file which starts ABC_Trainer.exe and prints to logfile (used for debugging):

ABC_Trainer_Log.bat

All folders provided are required to be in the same folder as ABC_Trainer.exe. Start the program by double clicking on ABC_Trainer.exe.

Automatic file management within included folders

The program ensures the presence of essential .mp3 files in the audio folder, generating them as needed. An active internet connection is required for this to work.

For image customization, the program dynamically adjusts in the img folder for changes to "letter case" and colors.

Files (.json) in the included settings folder are updated when clicking OK in the settings window.

System requirements

Recommended: A basic but modern PC running Windows 10. 

After launching the program, it consumes minimal system resources because it relies solely on user input and waits for further commands.

Support Ongoing Development

This program is free to use and offered to users without any cost. However, donations are greatly appreciated as they support ongoing development efforts.

Installation

Instructions, short version:

Download ABC_Trainer.zip.

Extract the contents of the .zip file.

Run the executable file, ABC_Trainer.exe.

Instructions, long version:

Download ABC_Trainer.zip.

Optionally, move the downloaded .zip file to a folder of your choice.

To proceed, you will need to extract the contents of the .zip file. If you are not familiar with this process, you can follow the instructions below under "How to extract the contents of a .zip file"

Double-click on ABC_Trainer.exe inside the folder you just created. Note that startup may take a few seconds.

If Microsoft Defender SmartScreen or a similar program blocks the program,   you'll need to allow it. In SmartScreen click on "more information" and then "run anyway" to proceed.

Once the program has launched, the graphical user interface will be displayed, allowing you to start various exercises.

How to extract the contents of a .zip file

Locate the .zip file you want to extract.

Right-click on the file and select "Extract All" from the drop-down menu.

A new window will appear, asking you to choose where you want to save the extracted files. You can either choose a pre-existing folder or create a new one.

Once you have chosen the destination folder, click on "Extract" to start the extraction process.

Wait for the extraction to complete. This may take a few seconds or longer depending on the size of the .zip file and the speed of your computer.

After the extraction is finished, the contents of the .zip file will be available in the destination folder you specified

You can also double click the .zip file to view the contents.