The problem/question is that I would like to just start studying say the top 500 characters in trad, but isnt it the case that if i change my settings but I still have some parts of new words remaining to add in to my words then the system will also try to add these as trad.

So for example, I added a new word (that i dont want to study the traditional form of) just before I change my settings to studying both T and S, but because skritter just adds the writing part first and waits a while to add the other parts it might end up adding the traditional pinyin/reading part of that particular word.

Hope that's clear :S

If this is the case then is there any way round it other than making sure that all the parts of old words have been added (I'm not even sure how I would be able to find this out without going through all the lists one by one)

Skritter adds all parts of the word at once, it just waits before giving them all to you. So if you add a simplified word, then switch on traditional adding, you're not going to get the traditional form of that word added.

So if you wanted to study the top 500 traditional characters, here's what you would do:

1) Switch your account settings to "Both"
2) Reset the top 500 character list to the beginning
3) Study the top 500 character list by itself to add through it
When you want to review:
4) Either set adding to manual or switch back to simplified only
5) Study All My Lists to do your reviews
6) Re-enable adding or traditional and repeat 3-6 until you're done
7) Switch to "Simplified and previously added traditional'

Does this make sense?

Ok cool, thanks Nick! I was just worried I was going to end up studying words in trad that I didn't want to study.

i just have two further quick questions.

1. some words appear to be identical but have both separate simplified and traditional versions...is this due to some difference in the definition part between mainland China and Taiwan usage?

For example 了，面 and 制 all have two entries but look (to me) identical.

2. Also, at point 4 on your list can I just change the settings to Simplified and previously added traditional instead of simplified only and do all the reviews (without adding new traditional characters)? (why wait till point 7 to do that, in other words)

For a couple hundred characters where there are more than one traditional character mapped to the same simplified character, we have three (or more) related entries in the system: one simplified, and two or more traditional, one of which is often the same writing as the simplified (but only contains the radical meaning). Here's an example

Simplified:
网 - wang3 - net; network (Kangxi radical 122)

Traditional:
网 - wang3 - net; network (Kangxi radical 122)
網 - wang3 - net; network

So it's a limitation of the system. The characters in this case are the same, but because of this weird traditional variant thing with the radical, it marks the second one as traditional when you study that one. Sometimes the readings or definitions are more different between different traditional variants.

Yes, you can use "Simplified and previously added traditional" in Step 4. I realize now that you have to pause adding (using manual adding only or temporary parts study) when doing your reviews in Step 4, because otherwise you might automatically add and advance a section on your 500 character list. So I would just pause adding and not change the style setting there.

@Antimacassar - to expand on Nick's answer: many pairs of traditional characters like　麵 and 面, 了 and 瞭, and 制　and 製 were combined during simplification. Whenever that's the case, you will probably see that the simplified version has a broader definition and/or an alternate reading. For example, in a simplified context 面　can mean "flour; noodles" but in traditional 麵 should be used for that meaning.

James

@jww1066: ok cheers, very useful. Coming from just having studied simplified it's all a bit of a mystery to me.

@Nick: Thanks, very helpful (as always), just want to check a couple more things :P

"I realize now that you have to pause adding (using manual adding only or temporary parts study) when doing your reviews in Step 4, because otherwise you might automatically add and advance a section on your 500 character list. So I would just pause adding and not change the style setting there."

Couldn't I just stop adding words from the 500 character when doing reviews?

Also, when I change the settings to simplified and previously added traditional all my lists contain both versions, regardless of whether I have studied the traditional version or not. I take it that those unstudied traditional characters wont be added though (even when reviewing), and that only the ones that I have studied will be reviewed?

Yeah, you have to stop all adding somehow while doing reviews, otherwise you'll get traditional characters added from your other lists when Skritter thinks you're about done with your reviews and need some more words.

Right, it doesn't automatically add all the traditional versions when you change the setting--they are added in gradually if you have traditional adding on, and not at all if you have it set to reviewing.