"You don't like mango?"

[Nico838548]

Again why am i fofced to use the 'okina? Maybe you have to use it with 'a'ole but i dont see why that word should be an exception..

[jdmcowan]

Do you mean why can't you leave it out? Or do you mean why can't you just substitute an apostrophe instead?

[Nico838548]

@jdm I meant why i couldnt leave it out

[jdmcowan]

It is considered an actual letter of the alphabet and not a grammatical mark. Words are considered to be misspelled if you leave out the 'okina, just like if you left out a w.

[Nico838548]

I dont disagree with that but duolingo marks it as just a typo in 95% of the cases meaning theres no consequences if you just always leave it out. But then once in a while they mark the whole sentence wrong and youre forced to redo it with all the 'okina in it which is somewhat annoying

[jdmcowan]

That's true of almost any single letter of the alphabet. It would require pretty extensive reprogramming for them to begin treating the 'okina different than other letters of the alphabet. The 'okina is a unique letter and so there's an argument to be had for doing that reprogramming, but it's not a simple thing.

[Moikeha1]

I believe the 'okina is considered a consonant. Leaving it out is a misspelling.

[Nico838548]

Thats not my issue. The problem is that once a while it isnt marked as just a typo but as the complete sentence being wrong because of it which is rather annoying if the general rule is that you can leave them out

[jdmcowan]

The general rule is that you cannot leave them out and it is wrong without it. Duolingo is supposed to mark it as a typo, but if you have multiple errors or the typo results in another word, it is supposed to be marked wrong. However, the software is not always consistent and variations will happen. In any case, you should not get used to leaving them out as then you are not teaching yourself proper spelling.

[Nico838548]

Well the software being consistent is what im asking for (and perhaps making the rules somewhat transparent).
I still know/learn where the 'okina are but typing them on a phone keyboard is incredibly time consuming. Wouldnt be surprised if i already saved myself an hour by leaving them out :D and besides that even if i didnt learn them it wouldnt matter too much since the chances of me ever using hawaiian outside of this app are about as small as they could be :D

[Moikeha1]

Check: wehewehe.org but don't put the 'okinas in. The dictionary wants to show you where they go.