Free foreign language learning tips, English lessons and software

Today’s review is Rocket Spanish.

Listen to our short audio review:

What do I get in this system? (It has various ‘components’)

• 31 interactive audio lessons (25 minutes each, 14 hours total)
• 31 illustrated grammar lessons (follows the Audio Course)
• “MegaVocab” Rocket Spanish Word Building Game
• “MegaAudio” language software game
• “MegaVerbs” Grammar Software Game
• Your own Spanish teacher, “on call” 24 hours a day.

My impressions:

I spent a few days trialling Rocket Spanish after using Rocket Japanese, so I was very familiar with the learning process. I used the audio component while traveling to work and during the everyday chores. While at home in the evenings, I used the Rocket Spanish games.

As with the other Rocket products, this program is very thorough. The approach is very oral giving the student a lot of opportunity to listen and repeat in a very active learning environment. It is very up to date, easy and fun. In comparison to Visual Link Spanish, it doesn’t have the online resources but is very good for active learning “while on the run”. The audio is well structured putting the listener in many realistic situations. The member forum is always available for extra support.

Current price as at - Jan 1st 2007 is $99us, neck and neck with Visual Link Spanish.

Which to choose? If you want to take your audio with you and have access to a thriving community of Spanish learners, then Rocket Spanish has the edge.

If you are interested in learning more about Spanish then click to Rocket Spanish

Cheers and good luck,
Tristan

Return to menu

Hola!

Today’s Spanish review is Visual Link Spanish.

Listen to our short audio review:

Listen to our short audio review:

What do I get in this system?

• Learn over 700 vocabulary words
• Master 11 challenging grammar concepts
• Learn to understand native speech with 12 comprehension lessons
• Quiz yourself in all major verb conjugations in Spanish
• Learn the 5 most commonly mispronounced Spanish sounds
• Learn 40 essential culture topics
• Gain access to Spanish newspapers and an online Spanish-English dictionary

My impressions:

I have had a subscription to this program over the last few days. The program is run online, it has a very simple interface listing the topics available. You can easily navigate through the topics to find your area of interest. Each topic has many games and learning resources with clear audio and fun images.

I headed straight to the comprehension section, I was able to learn basic introductions quickly. With the help of the user friendly interface I could slow down the conversation examples and repeat them without using English, there is the possibility to translate the difficult parts if needed.

The Culture section is particularly interesting, offering a variety of useful tips when in Latin America or dealing with Spanish:

“If you sneeze once, Latin people say ‘Health!’ If you sneeze a second time, they say ‘Money!’ and a third sneeze in a row brings ‘love!’”

To conclude, this is a very thorough, informative and fun program. There are literally hundreds of resources to use, but make sure you follow the structure to get the full benefit.

Update: I believe it is currently selling for $99us, making this a very competitive choice next to Rocket Spanish

Cheers,
Tristan

Return to menu

Guten Tag!

Rocket German is produced in my homeland New Zealand! However, it is the performance of this Rocket German package that is important.

Listen to our short audio review:

What do I get in this system? (It has various ‘components’)

• 31 interactive audio lessons (25 minutes each, 14 hours total)
• 31 illustrated grammar lessons (follows the Audio Course)
• “MegaVocab” Rocket German Word Building Game
• “MegaAudio” language software game
• “MegaVerbs” Grammar Software Game
• Your own German teacher, “on call” 24 hours a day.

My impressions:

I took the program for a test drive over a period of two weeks, I used the audio component during the day while traveling to work and in my lunch breaks. In the evenings I spent time on each of the Rocket German games.

This program is very thorough. In comparison to some of the other Audio and program methods (pimsleur method, Rosetta Stone) this is a very refreshing, easy, fun and up to date system. I found myself playing the games a lot more than I should have. The audio is well structured and puts the listener in many realistic situations. The member forum is a real added bonus.

If you are interested in a little “Deutsch Sprache” then click to Rocket German for more information!

Cheers and good luck,
Tristan

Return to menu

Today’s German review is Magnum German.

What do I get in this system?

(please note: Magnum German is only available as a shipped product)

• 1 Software CD ROM
• 1 Audio CD
• 1 Story/Quick Reference book
• 30 Levels of grammar
• 28 levels of vocabulary
• Over 100 hours of instruction
• Talking Dictionary
• Voice Recognition
• Auto Learn with progress tracking
• 3 Learning modes to choose from

My impressions:

This review is almost identical to the other MLS software as they use the same software, just focused at another language.

As with the other MLS software, the installation is simple and once installed, using the program is just as easy. the user interface is straight forward and simple to navigate. The Auto Learn feature tracked my progress and I was able to see a graph of my performance by clicking on the Monitor Progress button.

I worked on the speech recognition, learning comprehension, reading, writing, vocabulary and grammar skills sections. This program is thorough and follows a methodical structure for learning.

On a negative note, people who want online learning are not catered for as the program is only available on CD.

In conclusion, if you enjoy sitting at your computer to learn a language and don’t mind waiting for your software to arrive, then this package is worth considering. If price is an issue, It is cost effective at only half what most German packages cost BUT it has much less functionally than the others have…

Update: There are two versions, the reviewed above includes a headset and booklet.

If you would like to know more then click to Magnum German.

Cheers,
Tristan

Return to menu

Bonjour!

Today’s French review is Magnum French.

What do I get in this system?

(please note: Magnum French is only available as a shipped product)

• 1 Software CD ROM
• 1 Audio CD
• 1 Story/Quick Reference book
• 30 Levels of grammar
• 28 levels of vocabulary
• Over 100 hours of instruction
• Talking Dictionary
• Voice Recognition
• Auto Learn with progress tracking
• 3 Learning modes to choose from

My impressions:

My time with this program was limited as it is solely computer based.

The installation is simple and once installed, using the program is just as easy. the user interface is straight forward and simple to navigate. The Auto Learn feature tracked my progress and I was able to see a graph of my performance by clicking on the Monitor Progress button.

I worked on the speech recognition, learning comprehension, reading, writing, vocabulary and grammar skills sections. This program is thorough and follows a methodical structure for learning.

On a negative note, people who want online learning are not catered for as the program is only available on CD.

In conclusion, if you enjoy sitting at your computer to learn a language and don’t mind waiting for your software to arrive, then this package is worth considering. If price is an issue, It is cost effective at only half what most French packages cost BUT it has much less functionally that the others have…

Update: There are two versions, the reviewed above includes a headset and booklet.

If you would like to know more the click to Magnum French.

Cheers,
Tristan

Return to menu

Today’s review is another product from Magnum.

What do I get in this system?

(please note: Magnum Spanish is only available as a shipped product)

• 1 Software CD ROM
• 1 Audio CD
• 1 Story/Quick Reference book
• 30 Levels of grammar
• 28 levels of vocabulary
• Over 100 hours of instruction
• Talking Dictionary
• Voice Recognition
• Auto Learn with progress tracking
• 3 Learning modes to choose from

My impressions:

Firstly, a company that doesn’t offer their software products downloadable online, faces some strong competition.

To get an overall view of this product, please visit the Magnum French section as this product is exactly the same, only differing in the language.

Update: There are two versions, the reviewed above includes a headset and booklet. Prices range from $49-$59us.

What to choose? For a more complete system and much more value for money it is better to spend the extra $40 and go with either Rocket Spanish or Visual Link Spanish.

If you would like to know more the click to Magnum Spanish

Cheers,
Tristan

Return to menu