Katahira teaches Japanese Katakana and Hiragana. Instead of making and carrying around stacks of index cards, you now have a dedicated program to learn, read, and write Japanese. Beyond just carrying around a stack of index cards, it is a great program with many features which make it easy for even a beginner to learn Katakana and Hiragana painlessly. The designer says "Katahira is my good idea for what students really want as beginners of Japanese. Having learned Japanese myself the hard way (as an American) I recognized what is really needed for Japanese learning. Thus was realized this fun tool to learn Katakana and Hiragana. This software is also fun to use. I wish I had it myself as a Japanese beginner." The Learn screen is where you learn the kana. The Read screen is where you practice reading. The Write screen is where you practice writing. The software is true shareware, when you are happy with it please register. The commercial version has no "Try" button.