Questions from a newb

Open Forum
1

After a 4 year absence, I’m considering using lingq (Japanese, Mandarin, French & Russian) again, so here are some questions.

  1. Where can I go to get some good info on how to use this site?

  2. Is my profile the only place with statistics?

  3. Are there still bugs for Japanese, or any of my languages, and if so, what are they?

  4. I’m thinking of using this at work on some sort of mobile device. Can someone tell me what the limitations are on the app?

Thanks

2

Hi there!

I encourage you to spend some time poking around the site to get a feel for it yourself. You may want to take a look at the Help section (Help) to get an overview of the site as well.

For instructions on how to study with LingQ, just open up a lesson and click “Tutorial View” at the top. You’ll find a step-by-step guide showing you what to do.

The Progress Snapshot is shown both on your profile and on the Lessons page, so you can see your stats whenever you visit either of these pages.

For the most part Japanese works quite well, but there may be the occasional word that is split incorrectly. Other than that, bugs pop up every once in a while but we do our best to make sure things are working properly.

The site isn’t optimized for mobile browsers, but you can use the iLingQ app to review your lessons. It’s free to download, so give it a whirl. :slight_smile:

3

Thanks Alex,

I’ve been poking around quite a bit, and think I have a better handle on things now.

“you can use the iLingQ app to review your lessons” - does that mean the mouse-over doesn’t work, and I can’t make lingqs with the app? I don’t have a mobile device yet - is there a summary of what the app does somewhere?

In the demo lesson there was an english translation. Is there always an english translation, and if so, how can I find it?

Are there any other bugs with my languages (Japanese, Mandarin, French & Russian) that I should know about?

4

@leosmith.

About The ilingq app. It’s only meant for review. Soo you can read lessons , you can click saved words, you can review flash cards and change word status and you can listen to audio. You cannot create lingqs in the app
HOWEVER You might be able to use lingq on a tablet or phone internet browser However its slow and doesnt work quite right. Depends on the device but generally speaking it probably wont work. Better not waste your time =p.

Not all lessons have translations available. Depends on the lesson provider. Some will have multiple language translations , others wont…

5

Here’s a video of what the app can do: Introducing iLingQ 2.0 - YouTube
A few enhancements have been made since this video, but it’ll give you an overall idea.

Translations are available for some lessons, but most will not have them. We certainly welcome providers to upload translations, but at the same time we encourage learners not to rely on translations when studying, as they can often become a crutch.

So long as we continue to make enhancements, there will be bugs :slight_smile: However, we do our best to address bugs when they pop up. In any case, there’s nothing mission critical as far as I know. It’s probably best if you give the system a thorough once over to get a full picture of what’s available on LingQ. If you find anything not working properly, let us know!

6

I’m very confused and upset by this program which I paid for. I have no idea how to use it and quite frankly I don’t have the luxury of simply “poking around”. Looking at a couple of lessons makes no sense since there are no translations and I don’t have a clue what I am saying. Obviously this works for some, but I still can’t figure out how

7
  1. Have you tried following the Tutorial View on your lesson page? It takes you through the learning process step by step.
  2. Go to the Library and set the level to Beginner 1 (see “shelves” on the left hand side).
  3. There is a series of lesson collections that have translation. These are “Greetings and Goodbyes”, “Who is She” and “Eating Out”. “Who is She” exists in two versions, Latin American and Spanish from Spain. Both have translations. The one from Spain may be a little clearer and has been rated higher. There is enough material there to keep you busy for quite a while.
  4. Most content is provided by our members. You will see lots of other beginner materials. If you like a particular provider you may want to stay with their content. For example, if you study the Who is She from Spain you will see the name of the provider, and even a little introductory video by the creator of the lesson. You may want to choose more material from any provider whose material you enjoy.
  5. Translations help at the beginning, but are not necessary as you progress. As someone who has learned many languages, I think it is better to translate individual words and try to make sense of the text. This may mean listening many times, and reading many times and reviewing the words many times, especially at the beginning. Gradually you will acquire a feeling for the language.
  6. The first task is to understand the language. You need not worry about saying anything until you are able to understand what you hear and read, or at least a fair amount of it. That is your first goal. Give yourself a month or two with our beginner content and you will see a big difference.