by John Fotheringham

Just as the printing press democratized access to the written word, ebooks are again revolutionizing how information is produced, distributed and consumed. Even successful authors, whose very livelihoods have depended on the sale of dead-tree books (e.g. Timothy Ferriss, author of The 4-Hour Workweek and The Four-Hour Body, and Seth Godin, author of Tribes, Permission Marketing, and All Marketers are Liars) have seen the writing on the literary wall, and agree that “print is dead”, or at least “dying fast”…

Here are a few reasons why the ebook is beating print books to a “pulp” (pun intended):

• Lower Production & Distribution Costs: This allows for lower retail prices, putting books in the hands of more and more readers. And many ebooks are available at no cost at all, including literary classics no longer covered by copyright (e.g. Project Gutenberg) and new works that are free by choice (this is one of the common “freemium” strategies where an ebook is used for free marketing to promote other paid content or services.)
• Read Anytime, Anywhere: You can literally carry thousands of ebooks with you on your mobile device or ebook reader. Language learning is then just a click away whether you are on the bus, a plane, or bored to tears in a meeting. And if you forgot to download books at home, you can always download more on the go via WiFi or even 3G networks.
• More Time Efficient: Many ebook readers allow you to easily cut and paste words and even look up unknown terms using built in dictionaries. This can save the learner hours and hours, especially in ideographic languages that usually require looking up characters by strokes, radicals, or handwritten input.

So now that I’ve made the case for ebooks, let’s look at my two favorite weapons of choice for using ebooks in foreign language learning:

Best Ebook Readers

There are heaps of ebook reader devices on the market today (the Amazon Kindle, the iPad, the Sony PRS series, the Barnes & Noble Nook, etc.), as well as numerous ebook reader apps available for Android devices, iPhones, iPads, iPod touches, Blackberry devices, PCs and Macs.  After trying out hundreds of different devices at last year’s CES and stealing…I mean “borrowing”…a few of my friend’s devices for further testing, here are my two finalists:

1st Place: The Amazon Kindle 3G

Price:

• Kindle 3G: $189 USD
• Kindle (WiFi version): $139 USD

Where to get ‘em: Available from Amazon.com

While I am a full-fledged Apple fanboy, I must give Amazon credit where credit is due. Despite serious competition from the Apple iPad, Sony’s various ebook readers, and myriad other me-too products, the Kindle remains a hot seller, and my humble opinion, the world’s best ebook reader.

Here’s what I love most about the Kindle:

1) E ink is easy on the eyes and your battery. Unlike the pixels used on computers and smartphones (which can wreak havoc on your eyes and zap your battery), the Kindle’s use of E Ink creates a reading experience pretty darn close to physical books, all while consuming very little battery life. They accomplish this amazing feat by employing millions of itsy-bitsy, electronically charged “microcapsules”, within which there are tons of little black pigment pieces and white (or rather, light gray) pigment pieces. Text is produced by causing the black pigments to run to the top of specific microcapsules, while the background is created when the gray pigment is forced to the top. The Kindle display is also much easier to read outside in the sun, while most other devices (including the iPad, iPhone, and iPod touch) suffer from serious glare problems.

2) Direct access to the world’s largest book store pretty much anywhere in the world. Users can wirelessly access over 750,000 ebooks, plus heaps of audiobooks, newspapers, magazines and blogs, in over 100 countries worldwide. And unlike the iPad, the 3G wireless connectivity is provided free of charge.

3) Great Apple and Android apps. If you don’t want to fork over the funds for a Kindle, or you already own one but don’t feel like lugging it around all the time, you can always just download the Kindle app.

Download the free Kindle app (Android, Apple iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Blackberry, PC, or Mac)

2nd Place: iBooks on the Apple iPad, iPhone & iPod touch

Prices:

• iBooks: free download in iTunes
• iPod touch: $229 USD (8GB), $299 (32GB), and $399 (64GB)
• iPad (WiFi): $499 USD (16GB), $599 USD (32GB), and $699 USD (64GB)
• iPad (3G): $629 USD (16GB), $729 USD (32GB), and $829 USD (64GB)

Where to get ‘em: Apple retail stores, the Apple Online Store, Amazon, Target, WallMart, AT&T Stores, Verizon Stores (iPad is available now; iPhones will allegedly be available through Verizon in early 2011…).

1) More than JUST an ebook reader. My only gripe with the Kindle is that it is only an ebook reader. With the iPad, iPhone, or iPod touch, on the other hand, your device is only limited by the apps you download to it. I currently have about 100 hundred apps on my iPod touch, including Skype for calling tutors and language partners, Evernote for keeping notes of new words and phrases, iLingQ, ChinesePod, SpanishPod, and on, and on, and on…

2) Sexy, intuitive user interface. The Kindle interface isn’t bad by any measure, but it pales in comparison to the rich, elegant design of Apple iBooks. The new “retina display”, available on the iPhone 4, iPod touches (4th gen), and likely  the next vesion of the iPad, creates extremely crisp, vivid images, and makes reading text far easier than on lower resolution devices.

3) Excellent built in dictionary, bookmarks, highlighting and search features. iBook’s built in dictionary, bookmarks and highlighting tools are a thing of beauty. To look up a term, you need simply tap the word and then click “Dictionary” from the pop-up menu. To highlight, you again just tap a word and then drag the handles to the left or right to select the words or sentences you want. Bookmarking requires just a quick tap in the upper right corner. Best of all, you can then quickly go back to your saved highlights or bookmarks using the table of contents tab. Also, you can use the search feature to quickly find all instances of a particular word (a very useful feature for language learners as it allows you to quickly see how a particular word is used in context.)

Getting the Most Out of Ebook Readers

As we’ve seen, ebooks and ebook readers are wonderful language learning tools indeed. But as ESLpod’s Dr. Jeff McQuillan puts it, “A fool with a tool is still a fool.” Here then, are some tips on how to best apply these amazing new tools.

1) Don’t fall into the trap of reading more than you listen. Reading is an important part of language acquisition, and is an essential component of learning how to write well in a foreign language. But remember that listening and speaking should be the focus of language study, especially in the early stages of learning. It is all too easy to spend too more time with your nose in a book than listening to and communicating with native speakers, especially for introverts and those who have been studying for too long with traditional, grammar and translation based approaches.

2) Read an entire page before looking up unknown words. Lest you get distracted and lost in the details, I suggest making at least one full pass through each page in your ebook before looking up unfamiliar words.

3) Choose books that are just a tad beyond your comprehension level. By “comprehensible” I mean that you can understand about 70 to 85% of the text. Too far above or below this and you will quickly get bored and likely give up.

4) Use the Kindle’s Text-to-Speech Tool. The Kindle and Kindle 3G can literally read English-language content out loud to you. Use this feature when you are doing other tasks that require your vision but not your ears, and as a way of building your listening comprehension. I suggest listening to a passage first and then reading to back up your comprehension.

5) Get audio book versions of ebooks you read. While the Kindle’s text-to-speech tool works well, it can get a bit monotonous with its robotic pronunciation. For longer books, I suggest buying the audio book version the book, which tend to be read by professional voice actors, and are therefore far easier to listen to… Audio books are available from Audible, iTunes, and countless other site, and make sure to check out the free Audiobooks app for the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch.

This tome of language awesomeness contains over 500 pages of language learning advice, tips, and success stories, with contributions from 43 authors, including Moses McCormick, Steve Kaufmann, Benny Lewis, Stuart Jay Raj, and countless others language heroes.

The book is the brainchild of Claude Cartaginese of Syzygy on Languages, who also edited the work. In his own words, The Polyglot Project is:

“…a book written entirely by YouTube Polyglots and language learners. In it, they explain their foreign language learning methodologies. It is motivating, informative and (dare one say) almost encyclopedic in its scope. There is nothing else like it.”

And here is an entertaining video announcement about the book’s release from Claude:

Buy “The Polyglot Project” on Amazon

Download a free PDF of “The Polyglot Project”

Download my chapter of the “The Polyglot Project” (I fixed some typos that made it into the book…)

Busuu.com is a fast growing online language learning community with over a million users as of early October 2010. The site is named after a Cameroon language of the same name, which according to their website, is now spoken by only 8 living people!

All in all, the site is very similar (in a good way) to LiveMocha (read my review of LiveMocha here). Both use a “freemium” model, offering both free and premium services, which is great for new users who want to get their language learning feet wet before committing to a monthly credit card charge. Both are social networks, relying upon and benefiting from crowd sourcing to correct user writing samples, provide conversation practice, etc. There are, however, many subtle differences between the two sites; some good, some bad…

The Good

1) Excellent User Interface.

I love Busuu’s Language Garden visual shown on your personalized landing page (you’ll see it once you have registered). It’s attractive, intuitive and a pleasant departure from other sites that just show a boring table or list.

Busuu also uses high-quality stock photography that does a good job of creating a clear visual context. Rosetta Stone and LiveMocha also use a similar approach, but I find that they often use unclear pictures, leaving the learner a little confused about what concept, idea, or vocabulary item they are trying to impart. From what I have seen, this doesn’t seem to be as much of a problem on Busuu.

One of my favorite little features is the blinking icon effect showing which section of the lesson is next (the system will keep track of which sections you have already completed and then show you what to do next.)

2) Conversational beginner materials.

From the very first lesson, you will be hearing and reading natural (albeit simple) phrases like “How’s it going?”, “Where are you from?”, and “I’m sorry, I didn’t know she was your sister!” Okay, I made up the last one…

This is in contrast to LiveMocha, which starts off with a number of simple, declarative sentences to demonstrate certain simple adjectives, pronouns, etc. (e.g. He is tall. She is short. The man is fat. The girl is thin.) The idea of course is to get you used to how the language works and introduce basic vocabulary within a sentence. The problem is that most beginning language learners want to learn some useful phrases as well so they can actually say something once they arrive in the foreign country. You are fat probably won’t get you very far at a bar…

3) Great iPhone / iPod touch app.

The Busuu apps are extremely well designed, and as far as I can tell, include nearly all the content available on the website. As is often the case, I actually prefer using the app version over the website equivalent as it is more tactile and their are fewer visual distractions (less screen real-estate forces the designers to only include what is absolutely necessary.) And best of all, the apps are free!

The Bad

1) Annoying AdSense advertisements.

I completely understand the need to monetize the website, but random, third-party banners are not the answer. I, like many people in my generation, instinctively tune such ads out and will NEVER click them no matter how many times they flash in my face. I think Busuu would be better off placing more ads for their premium offerings as LiveMocha does.

2) Annoying comprehension questions.

Some comprehension questions ask information about specific people mentioned in the dialogue. I would much prefer exercises that reinforced the vocabulary and grammatical structures, not specific biographical information about characters. Better yet, they could present a number of dialogues using different characters and content information, but based around the same phrases and structures. Called “narrow listening”, this approach would help improve intake and retention, while also reducing the monotony involved in listening to the same piece of audio again and again.

3) A few too many bad apples…

On multiple occasions, users who agreed to “correct” my writing samples would simply copy what I wrote and paste it in the comments with no changes or comments whatsoever. I assume they did this in an effort to quickly earn “Busuu Berries”, points that can be exchanged for otherwise pay-only services on the site. Busuu needs to figure out a better way to patrol feedback. My suggestion is that they only assign points after the author of the writing sample has thumbed up the feedback.

My Verdict

If you are looking for a good free language learning solution online and are not learning a less common language (at the time of writing, Busuu only offers materials for a handful of major languages), then I definitely suggest checking out Busuu.com Now if they only offered the Busuu language itself… It would be great to become the 9th speaker!

I am a big fan of the Get-it-done Guy podcast and have applied his tips to great success in business, relationships, and yes, language learning. Stever Robbins, the man behind the Get-it-done Guy persona, has now combined his best tips on productivity into a new book titled 9 Steps to Work Less and Do More (available on September 14, 2010).

Stever sent me a PDF version of the book’s first chapter (download it here for free), and it promises to be a wonderful tool for language learning. The most commonly cited reason for not learning a foreign language is, “I don’t have the time”, and the book’s 9 steps each provide practical, no BS ways to not only free up extra time, but fill the new time with meaningful, goal-based pursuits, not just more busyness.

The 9 Steps

Alcoholics have a 12-step approach to overcoming their addiction. Stever, in typical fashion, has provided us with an even more streamlined approach to fight our addiction to unproductive busyness:

• STEP 1: Live on Purpose.
• STEP 2: Stop Procrastinating.
• STEP 3: Conquer Technology.
• STEP 4: Beat Distractions to Cultivate Focus.
• STEP 5: Stay Organized.
• STEP 6: Stop Wasting Time.
• STEP 7: Optimize.
• STEP 8: Build Stronger Relationships.
• STEP 9: Leverage.

I have read chapter one, and can’t wait to get the book on Wednesday and read the rest of the steps! For those of you who end up reading it, please leave comments below about how you have applied Stever’s tips for language learning.

A Note to English Language Learners

The Get-it-done Guy podcast, along with the other programs in the “Quick and Dirty Tips” network, are wonderful resources for English language learners as each podcast episode includes a free transcript. This not only provides two channels of input, but also makes it easier to look up and save unknown words.

And don’t miss the best Get-it-done Guy podcast episode of all time ; ) , How to Learn a Language Quickly (featuring tips from yours truly!)

A quick search in the Android Marketplace or Apple App store reveals pages and pages of Chinese dictionaries, including free, ad supported versions, as well as paid apps between $1 and $20 USD. After sampling a number of them, I have settled in on two favorites that seem to be the easiest to use, have the most features, and offer both free and pro versions:

Best Chinese Dictionary App on Android

So far, my favorite Chinese dictionary for Android is Hanping Ch-En. There is a free version and a paid version for £4.99 (about $7.75 USD).

Here is a list of the features I like best (as available on version 2.2.6 Pro):

• Traditional and simplified Chinese characters.
• Search by Chinese characters, Hanyu Pinyin, English terms (install the free “HanWriting IME” app so you can actually write characters by hand like on an iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad).
• Search for characters in the beginning, middle or end of a term (click the little wrench icon to right of the search field to change this setting.)
• Pinyin is shown right below each character on the detail page.
• Chinese count words are shown when appropriate (e.g. 個, 雙, 台, etc.)
• Drill down on individual characters within multiple character words.
• Audio versions of Chinese terms.
• Shortcut to more details, sample sentences, Google dictionary and Wiktionary via the Android browser.
• Shortcut to “save to clipboard” so you can paste into emails, text messages, other dictionaries, etc.

Best Chinese Dictionary App on iOS4

My favorite app for iPod Touches, iPhones and iPads is KTdict C-E. There is a free version and a pro version for $3.99.

Here are the top features as I see it (as available on version 1.6.1 Pro):

• Beautiful UI (user interface) as one would expect on an Apple device.
• Traditional and simplified Chinese characters.
• Search by Chinese characters (which is a breeze with Apple’s handwriting input), Hanyu Pinyin, and English.
• Drill down on individual characters within multiple character words. Each character can then be copied to the clip board, looked up in the dictionary by itself, or searched within Google, Baidu, Wikipedia (English and Chinese versions), Unihan, Wiktionary, and Dictionary.com (this feature alone is well worth the money!)
• Words you search for are automatically added to the history so you can easily review them later.
• The “Trainer” feature quizes you on words you’ve saved as flashcards. You can create flashcards with the search results, from your favorited terms, and from words in your history.

The Polyglot Project

As always, here are the pros and cons of the site as I see them:

The Good

It’s free & easy to sign up: As it stands, the site is completely free and it only requires you to fill in an email, password and your native language. That’s it.

Intuitive, easy to use design: Once you’re logged in, you just pick a book from the library, and begin reading. To look up a word, simply double-click on it and the translation in your native tongue will pop-up briefly.

Navigation shortcuts: Instead of clicking the next or back arrows, you cut just press the “n” or “p” keys for “next” and “previous” respectively.

Simple pop-ups: Many dictionary pop-up systems show too much information, which not only slows down the interface, but also slows down you the learner. There is no chance to get lost or distracted as The Polyglot Project only flashes a single word translation for a short time.

System memory: The system automatically adds any books or languages you’ve browsed to your account dashboard so you can quickly jump back to what you were previously reading. You can of course delete books or languages you no longer wish to view.

The Bad

Limited titles: So far, there are only a few titles available on the site, and they are all literary classics. I like the classics just as much as anyone, but they probably aren’t the best choice for someone just starting out in a language. For starters, they tend to use archaic vocabulary and structures no longer used in the modern language (which is of little use for someone trying to communicate with native speakers. I much prefer getting a firm handle on the modern language before delving into the classics. I hope they will soon add some modern fiction and non-fiction to the mix.

Limited languages: So far, the site only offers four Indo-European languages: German, Spanish, Italian and French. As an Asiaphile, I would greatly like to see Chinese, Japanese, and Korean join the list, as well as other top-ten, must-learn languages like Arabic. I understand, however, that each of these languages poses serious technical challenges: since they don’t naturally include spacing between words, it makes it hard for pop-up dictionaries to parse between different terms.

No way to save vocabulary: In its current design, there is no way to save and then later review words you have looked up. This is my favorite part of using sites like LingQ and I have come to expect it in foreign language reading sites.

Reading only: Reading is a wonderful tool for improving your vocabulary and writing skills, but it should take a back seat to (or at least be supplemented by an equal portion of) listening. This is especially true when you just start out in a foreign language. Many language learners spend far too much time reading and not enough time listening, leading to big vocabularies and strong reading and writing skills, but often causing poor listening skills and strange pronunciation patterns (i.e. they say words how they think they are pronounced based on reading, not how native speakers actually pronounce them).

The Verdict

The Polyglot Project is definitely worth checking out, and acts as a good supplement to your other foreign language learning activities. If they are able to expand their library with modern books and additional languages, they will have created a very powerful language tool, and will likely attract a strong following.

Here’s a rundown of the good and the bad of YellowBridge:

The Good

• It’s free! For being so feature-rich, we are lucky to have access to Yellow-Bridge for a grand total of zero dollars.
• Audio recordings: This wonderfully useful feature used to be available only to paid members, but is now free to everyone. Hurray! Just click the speech bubble below each term to hear it pronounced.
• Presentation of both Simplified & Traditional  Chinese Characters: This is a Godsend. While most Chinese learners end up learning “Simplified Characters” (简体字 JiǎnTǐ Zì) since they are what’s used in Mainland China, I highly recommend that you also learn “Traditional Characters” (繁體字 FánTǐ Zì). Not only the traditional forms still used in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and many Chinese communities across the globe, but they give you direct access to ancient Chinese culture. And if you are going to learn both, it is far easier to go “downhill”, that is, starting with the traditional forms and then moving onto their simplified counterparts.
• Multiple search options: You can search from Chinese to English, English to Chinese, and even Pinyin to Chinese.
• Break down of character radicals and components: This is a linguists dream. YellowBridge includes links to the etymological origins of each semantic or phonetic chunk. Be careful though; it is easy to get lost in the details and forget what you originally went there to look up!
• Animated stroke order: This is an amazingly powerful tool that used to available on only the most expensive electronic dictionaries. Now it’s free online. If only I had started learning Chinese characters ten years later…

The Bad

There are few things to complain about with YellowBridge. There are, however, a few things missing that I hope they eventually add to the mix:

• Example sentences: It’s always helpful to see how a given word is used in a sentence, especially when looking up less common words, or terms with multiple meanings.
• Ability to translate entire phrases: As it stands, YellowBridge, like most dictionaries, only translates words and cannot parse complete phrases or sentences as Google Translate does. It would be great if they could someday add this feature, lest otherwise faithful users jump ship and swim toward Googler shores…
• A mobile app: I usually need dictionaries most when I’m out on the go and see something on a sign, in a food menu, or struggle to communicate a particular word with the person across the table at a coffee shop. While you can of course access the dictionary via your mobile device’s web browser, it would make life much easier if they developed a mobile version for iPod Touch/iPhone, Android, etc.

Enjoy!

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This interview was recorded on May 12, 2010. It has been edited for time. Click the red arrow to listen:

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Read

For those of you using these materials as English learning materials, time stamps have been added to make it easier to go back and review certain sections.

With over 5 million registered users spread across 200 countries, LiveMocha is the world’s largest language learning community. And with sufficient venture capital and corporate partners behind them, the Seattle-based start-up firm has the resources to keep expanding their service offering long into the foreseeable future.

The site has been well received by most, and comes strongly recommended by many language bloggers, school teachers, and individual learners.

Steven J. Sacco, a Language Professor at San Diego State University, has this to say about LiveMocha:

“Livemocha is the best online language program I have seen and used—vastly superior to Rosetta Stone in terms of cost and the variety of language functions it offers.”

So how does this blogger feel about LiveMocha? Here’s a quick look at the good and bad as I see it.

The Good

• LiveMocha utilizes the best aspects of social networks: With so many registered users, LiveMocha provides a massive pool of potential tutors and language partners. The best part of this quid pro quo, reciprocity-based system are the corrections provided by native speakers. It’s win-win: they get some “Mocha Points” (exhangeable for otherwise pay-only features on the site) and you get free corrections. Not a bad deal. And you can of course correct the writing and speaking samples of people learning your native tongue. There will be frequent pop-ups asking you to do just that…
• Numerous languages to choose from: LiveMocha currently offers courses in 35 languages making the site quite the polyglot wonderland. The following languages are offered, though not all of them are equally fleshed out: Arabic, Brazilian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Czech, Dutch, Esperanto, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Persian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Spanish (Castellano), Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Urdu. Phew, that’s a lot of “languaging”…
• Lots of free content: It is always a good idea to test drive new materials before opening your wallet or purse. LiveMocha offers 3 units for free, with 5 or so lesson per unit, each including a variety of activities. Which leads to the next good point…
• A wide range of listening, speaking, reading and writing activities: In each lesson, you will receive multiple exposures to target vocabulary and structures, with a good mix of listening and reading input. I especially like the “drag & drop” writing activity as it tests your understanding of basic structures and word order without requiring overt output before learners are ready for free writing exercises.
• Language Specific Pop-up Keyboards: Although most browsers allow you to insert special characters, using LiveMocha’s pop-up keyboards (which are specific to whatever language you are studying at the time) saves you a lot of time over looking for the right accent mark, upsidedown exclamation point, or funky squiggle within the sea of shapes in browser symbol directories.
• Correction by native speakers who are not necessarily trained teachers: Many people would consider this a disadvantage, but in my experience, untrained teachers are often better at identifying what doesn’t sound right and providing simple examples of more natural language. Teachers tend to miss the forest for the trees, and provide prescriptive advice on what one should say, not what real native speakers actually do say. Moreover, most teachers try to “teach” you the language, and as I reiterate time and time again, languages cannot be taught.
• Informal language is presented first: Opinions differ on this issue, but I personally recommend (and much prefer) learning informal language before focusing on more formal equivalents. Why? Because in nearly all cultures, we rarely use formal language. When you start out in a language, it is inefficient to spend your precious time learning infrequent, specialized vocabulary and phrases. “Pardon me, but could I trouble you for dab of Gray Poupon?” can come later… Also, informal language tends to be shorter and therefore easier to learn, and often does a better job of demonstrating the basic structures of the language, where as formal structures are often archaic, semantically opaque constructions. Besides, travelers and new foreign residents will almost always be forgiven for being a tad bit too informal.

The Bad

The good news is that all of the following problems can be overcome or side-stepped based on how you use LiveMocha. And in my opinion, the pros of the site still far outweigh these cons…

• Requires speaking and writing output too soon: When to begin producing output is a highly contested issue, and as of late, there have been some heated arguments on the topic between well-known language bloggers (many of you probably know to whom I refer). In my own experience as a language learner and teacher, I stand firmly in the “later but not too late” camp when it comes to output. Speaking and writing too soon is the single greatest cause of “fossilization” (see The Linguistionary for more on fossilized errors) and often leads learners to develop a fear of speaking the foreign language.
• Too much overt focus on grammar: Grammar study is an equally controversial topic among language teachers, linguists, and polyglots (see this debate between LingQ‘s Steve Kaufmann and Vincent of “Street-Smart Language Learning” for more on the topic). In my experience, a little grammar review from time to time can be useful, but should only take up a small percentage of your time with the language. Lots of input (and eventually,  lots of output) is the key to true fluency, not memorizing complex information about the language that you have virtually no chance of utilizing in real time.
• Reliance on (and a prevalence of) translation: Most language learners rely on—and expect their language products to provide—translations of everything they hear or read. While translation does make the learner feel more comfortable (and a little bit here and there can be helpful), knowing the equivalent of each word or phrase in your native language is certainly not necessary to learn a language. Remember: you learned your native language without translating to or from any language. The key is to create such highly contextualized situations that you don’t need to translate. LiveMocha does a fairly good job of this with their use of annotated pictures, but they could do more to contextualize lessons (especially those for absolute beginners) by adding sound effects and video clips.
• Some bad apples: With such a large community, you are bound to run into a few bad apples who abuse the system. The most common problem I encountered were users who just copied what I had written without adding any suggestions or corrections in an effort, I assume, to quickly earn “Mocha Points”. But as LiveMocha’s VP of Marketing and Product, Clint Schmidt, mentions during our interview (see below), the community will quickly vote down such users and they will be removed from the system if appropriate.

So there you have it. Overall, I think LiveMocha is an excellent language learning site and recommend it as a supplementary material to your other learning tools.

For more information, listen to my interview with LiveMocha VP of Marketing & Product, Clint Schmidt, and watch the following presentation by LiveMocha CEO, Shirish Nadkarni.

Foreign Language Mastery Interview

Click the following link to listen to and/or read my Interview with Clint Schmidt, LiveMocha’s VP of Marketing & Product:

Foreign Language Mastery Podcast: Episode 4 – Interview with LiveMocha VP of Marketing & Product, Clint Schmidt

Presentation by LiveMocha CEO Shirish Nadkarni