Hi, I'm a newbie here, did a search but couldnt find the answer to my question.

How come there are some differences between the actual RTK book kanji strokes and those on this site?

In the ones I've learnt so far, 刃 (blade) and 墨 (black ink) stick out for me, though there are probably a lot. On Yamasa when i check stroke orders, the kanji they list is different to the actual animated drawing.

http://www.yamasa.cc/members/ocjs/kanjid...enDocument

Are these just personal differences? are they acceptable?

am a bit confused.

[Katsuo]

Yamasa shows three different fonts:
Left: a Mincho font. These are often used in newspapers.
Middle: a Kyokasho font. Often used in school textbooks.
Right: a handwriting font. Similar to normal handwriting (but neater than most).

What you are seeing on this site, however, depends on the font your browser is set to. (And if the version of 刃 you are seeing has the "drop" to the left of the "dagger" rather than cutting through it, then you are probably using a Chinese font instead of Japanese.)

You shouldn't worry too much about "correct" stroke order: what is important is that you're able to write as comfortably and efficiently as you can. Most of the stroke orders are designed so that the character can be finished quickly, using the least bit of movement required, and end in a place where the next character can be drawn readily.

However, what is an "official" stroke order is quite subjective. In more adept calligraphy, the historical stroke orders of Imperial China tend to be used, but there are variations of the stroke orders depending upon what style you're writing with, as well as multiple 'official' ways to write a single character. There are also differences in stroke order between Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan, as they each evolved slightly differently. Even among those main branches, the stroke order can vary based upon region, and generation, as stroke orders change through time.

Also, stroke orders were designed by people, and some of them are consequently flawed in regards to efficiency of movement and speed. I think I've used this example here before, but the "official" stroke order of 龜 isn't the quickest, and often for situations like that, where the "official" one isn't the best, people go with what feels more natural and is faster.

I think it's important for everyone to develop their own personal style in the end. Stroke orders may be important when first learning, but as you grasp the basic rules, etc, I think it can be helpful to edit the stroke orders to what is easiest and feels most comfortable to you. Variations in stroke order add flavor to the language, I personally think. It'd be rather monochromatic if everyone in Japan, Taiwan, China, etc, all used the same exact stroke order.

We're human beings, not robots sometimes life is prettier when we color outside the lines.

Ok, thanks for the advice and detailed explanation =)

I was viewing this site in Unicode which displays the characters slightly differently i think. I'll make sure to follow the stroke examples from the book as a basis then. Good to hear that there is some flexibility/personalisation allowed in stroke order.