{"id":934,"date":"2026-05-08T16:00:16","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T20:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/primerprep\/?p=934"},"modified":"2026-05-08T16:00:16","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T20:00:16","slug":"new-major-release-of-primerprep-version-4-00","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/software.sil.org\/primerprep\/new-major-release-of-primerprep-version-4-00\/","title":{"rendered":"New major release of PrimerPrep \u2013 version 4.00"},"content":{"rendered":"

This new version of PrimerPrep represents a significant step forward in exploring your data for primer design. This release introduces lexicon import, intelligent filtering of example words, and new syllable-position analysis tools that greatly expand the possibilities for teaching order development, while still maintaining the ease of use that users appreciate.<\/p>\n

Bring your lexicon into the workflow<\/h3>\n

You can now import a lexicon directly into PrimerPrep, either in LIFT<\/strong> (from FieldWorks and similar tools) or SFM<\/strong> format. During import, PrimerPrep will guide you through resolving ambiguities\u2014such as selecting the writing system or identifying which field contains part of speech information\u2014so the program knows how to use your data correctly. Once imported, your lexeme list and part of speech information become part of your working dataset, expanding the range of words available for analysis and enabling grammatical filtering.<\/p>\n

Intelligent filtering of example words<\/h3>\n

The Teaching Order<\/strong> page now includes powerful new filtering options.<\/p>\n

Using imported lexical data, you can now filter example words by part of speech<\/strong>\u2014for example, showing only nouns or verbs, or excluding proper names. This helps you focus on the kinds of words that are most productive for developing early reading materials.<\/p>\n

You can also now filter example words by letter position<\/strong>\u2014based on where the focus grapheme appears in the syllable (initial, medial, final) or in the word (initial, medial, final). For example, if your methodology teaches syllable-initial uses of a grapheme separately from syllable-final uses, you can now display those word sets independently with just a few clicks.<\/p>\n

\"\"[Screenshot: Filter dialog with part of speech and letter position options]<\/strong><\/p>\n

To support syllable-position filtering, PrimerPrep now analyzes the syllable structure of words behind the scenes. The program makes a good initial guess at which letters function as vowels, but you can review and adjust the vowel definitions in the filter settings if needed. You can also choose whether doubled vowels<\/strong> or doubled consonants<\/strong> should be treated as single units during the syllable analysis.<\/p>\n

When a restricted syllable-position filter is active, the example words are displayed with periods indicating the syllable breaks:<\/p>\n

\"\"[Screenshot: Teaching Order showing syllable breaks and syllable-initial filtering]<\/strong><\/p>\n

As with any automatic syllabification process, the results may not always be perfect. (There is, after all, an entire program, Asheninka, whose sole purpose is breaking words into syllables\u2026) Feel free to send us feedback<\/strong> on your experiences and suggestions for additional syllable processing options that might be helpful.<\/p>\n

Small improvements that smooth your workflow<\/h3>\n

A few smaller updates also make day-to-day use of PrimerPrep more efficient:<\/p>\n