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Kuji’s Krazy Log II | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| iguanamon Pentaglot Senior Member Virgin Islands Speaks: Ladino Joined 5040 days ago 2237 posts - 6731 votes  Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Creole (French) | Message 329 of 706 28 November 2013 at 1:26pm | IP Logged |
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A used Kindle Keyboard 3G can be had for around $40 off ebay in the US. A lot of people freak out because the thought is that "oh boy, now I'm tied to Amazon forever". That's not true if you download the free e-book managing software, Calibre and print to pdf from your pc. (To me a kindle is just a device I use to load text onto. I rarely visit the Amazon store to buy books.) You can then convert the simply formatted pdf to mobi format. Load the mobi file onto your Kindle (or other e-reader). With an integrated dictionary- monolingual or bilingual, reading is a snap. Notes can be made, words highlighted and reviewed later. It sounds like a long process but it only takes a little time, usually under a minute or two (depending on file size) to print to pdf, upload to Calibre, convert to mobi file format and send to my Kindle.
The tablet is great for scanned pdf's like the DLI courses. You can set up the audio and read along as it plays with no effort involved. It also works well for Listening and Reading to pdf books. Tablets are not as effective outdoors or in cramped quarters, like a train, a plane or a bus. Eyestrain can be a problem with a lit screen tablet. Given the low cost now of basic tablets and used e-readers, there is less reason to have to choose between them. It doesn't have to be either-or. A basic android tablet with 8 GB rom (expandable with sd card) can be had for about $100 on ebay. Both have their advantages so why not get both? I strictly use my tablet for pdf's and audio. That's it! No apps at all. I have an HP Touchpad, a dinosaur of a tablet discontinued by HP two years ago. No apps are even available for it anymore and it doesn't really matter to me. I'm in front of a computer almost all day for my work anyway and I have a smart phone. I may get a next tablet soon, after the holidays, because mine is starting to loose "touch" at the bottom 15% of the screen and it's starting to get very annoying. When I do, I'll get a very basic no-name android tablet which will suit my purposes just fine. Having both a tablet and an e-reader has made my language-learning exponentially more efficient. I can't imagine language-learning without them. It's the best money I ever spent on language-learning. Edited by iguanamon on 28 November 2013 at 2:19pm 3 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Expugnator Hexaglot Senior Member Brazil Joined 4944 days ago 3335 posts - 4349 votes Speaks: Portuguese*, Norwegian, French, English, Italian, Papiamento Studies: Mandarin, Georgian, Russian | Message 330 of 706 28 November 2013 at 3:26pm | IP Logged |
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Same here iguanamon. I can't sense language learning without my tablet. In fact, I use
both computer and tablet most of the time, as I open the same file in one language at the tablet and in another at the PC. Sometimes I also listen to videos while using Anki etc. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Serpent Octoglot Senior Member Russian Federation serpent-849.livejour Joined 6375 days ago 9753 posts - 15779 votes 4 sounds Speaks: Russian*, English, FinnishC1, Latin, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese Studies: Danish, Romanian, Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Slovenian, Catalan, Czech, Galician, Dutch, Swedish | Message 331 of 706 28 November 2013 at 5:52pm | IP Logged |
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I hate tablets :P
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| kujichagulia Senior Member Japan Joined 4625 days ago 1031 posts - 1571 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Japanese, Portuguese | Message 332 of 706 29 November 2013 at 1:18pm | IP Logged |
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Sometimes I think, "Wow, (something) is fantastic!" And the next day, something happens that makes me completely reverse my opinion (because I am easily swayed). That is how I feel about my earlier comments about paper.
Today on the train ride home, I tried to read a photocopy of the reading from Chapter 13 of IAIJ. The train was particularly crowded, and I had to stand and hold on to a handle. It's hard to read from a piece of paper, highlight unknown words, then look up those words in a dictionary or device, all with one hand. Actually... it's impossible. I let go of the handle once because I just had to highlight one unknown word to look up later. Then the train hit a curve, and I almost fell on top of an old lady. I quickly said すみません and all was well, but it was very 恥ずかしい (embarrassing). From that, I realize that I'm pretty lucky to have an Android Walkman. I can read the PDFs, copy and paste unknown words to a dictionary app, or to a note-taking app like Google Keep for looking up later. Instead of writing notes in the margins on a piece of paper, I can write notes in an app, and just switch back and forth between the PDF and the note app as needed. It's not as aesthetically pleasing as paper, but... wait for it... I can do it with ONE HAND! Excellent for those troublesome train commutes. And it seems troublesome, but copy-and-pasting, even on a small Android device, may be faster than writing and highlighting on a piece of paper - especially where Japanese is concerned. I think my comments about paper stem from the fact that I have an image of smart people working with paper. Working with paper certainly makes me feel smarter, and Lord knows I need that sometimes. :) 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| kujichagulia Senior Member Japan Joined 4625 days ago 1031 posts - 1571 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Japanese, Portuguese | Message 333 of 706 30 November 2013 at 1:25pm | IP Logged |
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WANDERLUST
Ugh... been really attacked by the wanderlust bug lately. With a trip to London, Madrid and Barcelona coming up in one month, I'm really, REALLY having to fight the urge to study Spanish up until the trip. I'm very interested in learning the language one day. But I have two languages on my plate right now, and that is quite a load for me already. I can't add Spanish to that mix. There's no way I'm putting Japanese on hold. As for Portuguese, it would be a shame for me to put that on hold for a month, considering how far I've come in the language. So I'm in attack mode. I'm like Zelda or the guy in Metroid, fending off enemies with my sword. In my case, the enemy is Spanish wanderlust. Spanish, your time will come. Don't worry. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| g-bod Diglot Senior Member United KingdomRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 5760 days ago 1485 posts - 2002 votes Speaks: English*, Japanese Studies: French, German | Message 334 of 706 30 November 2013 at 2:45pm | IP Logged |
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Well...to a certain extent you've got a very genuine reason to flirt with Spanish for a few
weeks. A trip to the country is the perfect reason to learn a language. Just keep it in context, limit your expectations to stuff that will be genuinely useful for your trip, and have fun! 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| iguanamon Pentaglot Senior Member Virgin Islands Speaks: Ladino Joined 5040 days ago 2237 posts - 6731 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Creole (French) | Message 335 of 706 30 November 2013 at 3:32pm | IP Logged |
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Nothing wrong with trying some basic phrases. The mistake I see that a lot of people make with learning for traveling is trying to learn the whole language, starting at the beginning. That's a recipe for ending up with 10 languages under your name as "studies" and none under "speaks" except for English.
You're already above beginner level in Portuguese. I think you may be surprised by how many Spanish people will understand a lot of what you'll say when you speak it. You will also be surprised at how much you will be able to understand yourself. Add in a few short phrases- ordering in a restaurant, asking directions, you pretty much already know how to count in Spanish, some basic greetings and thanking, where's the bathroom, etc- all of which you can do a few days before you go, or even on the plane on the way over. A few hours of familiarizing yourself with the language will go a long way. Even if you don't bother to do that, speaking Portuguese, people may even think you're Brazilian, instead of just another gringo! It's not that big a leap from "café com leite" to "café con leche", "sem" to "sin", "sim" to "sí", "não" to "no", "sou" to "soy", "cerveja" to "cerveza". On the other hand, "frango" to "pollo", "peixe" to "pescado", "jantar" to "cenar", "café da manhã" to "desayuno" and "gosto de algo" to "me gusta algo" is a bigger leap and part of why they are two separate, though similar, languages. Let me know if I can help you out for your trip. Edited by iguanamon on 01 December 2013 at 12:02pm 5 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Serpent Octoglot Senior Member Russian Federation serpent-849.livejour Joined 6375 days ago 9753 posts - 15779 votes 4 sounds Speaks: Russian*, English, FinnishC1, Latin, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese Studies: Danish, Romanian, Polish, Belarusian, Ukrainian, Croatian, Slovenian, Catalan, Czech, Galician, Dutch, Swedish | Message 336 of 706 30 November 2013 at 4:45pm | IP Logged |
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Great post as always :)
I love how Barry Farber put it: in neurosurgery there's no difference between knowing nothing and knowing a little. In languages it's a huge difference. 2 persons have voted this message useful |
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