I'd like a Japanese Learning Software that doesn't suck...
I tried that Rosetta Stone one but I really don't like it, they don't explain anything.
I also tried Power Japanese, it was decent. I'd like something with a little more interactivity and differents games to help you learn. Something fun that teach you the basics because I'm a total beginner at this and the hardest part of learning a language is always the beginning (I learned English as my second language, I'm French Canadian).
I know that I'm probably asking the impossible and that a software like this may not exist, but I could do with 2-3 differents software + some sites that have games on them and little programs.
BTW, any good online Japanese Dictionary? And any awesome translation site? I use Eudict, it's pretty good because it tells you the different meaning of the word instead of just having a dumb translation, but I'm sure there's better sites out there.
I use this one ( http://www.mahou.org/Dict/ ) to look up the strokes of kanji though, because tangorin seems to be missing the vast majority of them. It looks awfully weabooish, but try to get past that.
On that note, anyone else have a good site that they recommend for looking up the strokes of kanji?
And in respones to the OP, the best software for language learning that I've ever found is Anki. Definitely the best SRS program in existence, in my oh so humble opinion. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anki
What the hell do Chinese people do if there's a word they can't write? In Korean, you can just use hangul, and in Japanese you can use hiragana/katakana.
Do people use other hanzi with the same pronounciation or something, or do they just not write it at all?
and by the way, i've never really thought of this before, because it's never caught my interest. but japanese looks GOD awful.. stick to either 漢字 or the other feudal crap that's in use in japan.
>>44
Seriously. Written japanese is ugly as fuck. Even 简体字 look much better, in my opinion, even though there are many debate about simplified vs traditional.
>>48
A Korean with an inferiority complex and a white learner of Mandarin Chinese discuss various things while I'm trying to tell them that this is a Japanese thread.
>>46
No. Hiragana may look strange, but katakana is the coolest writing system ever!
inferiority complex? you're the one who's learning another language simply to conform to modern day western culture (copying Asia), you're the one copying an American trend. You, have an issue, why not stay out of the loop? do your own thing.
plus; you can't claim one writing system is better than another(or looks cooler, when it in fact looks like crap ;P).
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Anonymous2009-01-03 14:12
>>51
They're actually derived from Chinese characters, just like bopomofo. Hiragana on the other hand originates from cursive Chinese characters.
The only language I like is Hawaiian. Its phonology is extremely simple (like Japanese with pure l's and without any voiced consonants and chsh-like sounds), and thus it looks surprisingly well being written in Latin alphabet.
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Anonymous2009-01-03 18:19
>>52
While that is very likely for the faggot you're replying, it doesn't change the fact that I share his observation as a non-westerner who has nothing against Koreans that it is so fucking obvious that you're a butthurt loser with a severe inferiority complex. Seriously, every post you make in every thread here causes grotesque pollution in this board. I hope Kim Jong Il re-unites Korea so that you could be sent to a re-education camp.
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Anonymous2009-01-03 18:20
>>56
Why would Kim send him a camp? He's uniting against the Japanese devils. Odds are KJI would strongly approve of his actions.
But Japanese is my thing! 日本大好きですから～ Sure, at first, in 2005 when I started studying Japanese I did it out of peer pressure, but since then I've grown to love the language itself.
Besides, isn't Mandarin Chinese the new "Japanese" now?? It's gotten more and more popular each year... I bet that in the 2010s the classrooms that are full of pimple faced teens will be the ones where Chinese classes take place.....
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Anonymous2009-01-03 20:27
>>57
But is he uniting them under the banner of the glorious JUCHE ideology? Noo...
i've never studied chinese in school. only hanja. i'm just interested how it changes between dialects etc. :)
>>61
lol@주체, they have the right idea, but like communism, it never works quite right. i'll find a way :)
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Anonymous2009-01-03 22:55
>>62
No, unlike Communism, it can't work due to its fallacious nature, and reliance on peptalk instead of science - also, hereditary leadership? What the fuck?
If people didn't fuck up Marxism to apply it on the third world every day and night, there wouldn't be all the "it doesn't work" chatter.
Anyways, what was I saying... Korean Peninsula looks like a small penis protruding from east asia. Then again every peninsula does, maybe that's why they called them peninsulas.
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Anonymous2009-01-03 22:56
>>60
Sort of. But even at my very typical university, the Japanese department is much larger than the Chinese. But you're right, there are a bunch of Indian economics major faggots in my class. I don't mind if you learn Japanese if you really like Japanese, but if you learn a language for business reasons you should probably shoot yourself.
>>60
If there's one language justified as being #1 taught, isn't it Chinese? Longest history of a modern language, largest population of speakers,
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Anonymous2009-01-04 4:00
This thread makes me want to start learning Chinese once again. Last time I abandoned it due to my weeaboo friend who told me that Japanese is much better.
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Anonymous2009-01-04 4:28
>>67
Are you really weak willed enough that you let weeaboos convince you that Japanese is superior? You are weak. Or should I say, you were weak! Adopt Chinese as your master. Beg his forgiveness for your past transgressions Make no mistake, he is a cruel and swift teacher, but he is fair, and he will eradicate your weak past in brilliant fires, and replace it with a strong, glorious future! Do it faggot.
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Anonymous2009-01-04 21:40
I used this program called Human Japanese, I never finished it though so all I know is hiragana.
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Anonymous2009-01-08 15:08
Ok what about ebooks? I find them really usefull, I'm actually trying to learn it with "Genki" for the basics and using the internet to learn Kanji's, but when I'm done with Genki is there another book as useful but more advanced? (in b4 Genki II)
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!3YPENISDAY2009-01-08 18:15
>>3
agree whole-heartedly about Anki. It's just plain awesome.
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Anonymous2009-01-09 8:15
>>70
I reckon you should go through both Genkis and just consume material. If you really need to look grammar up go for Tae-Kim.
皆の日本語 might also do good for you.
I also would suppose that you give Remembering the Kanji a try, since it probably improve your ability to recognise and process kanji by leaps and bounds.