Rosetta Stone Japanese Explorer

by Fairfield Language Technologies

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00002S9FT
• Date first available at Amazon.com: January 1, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #16,067 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

It is a credit to Fairfield Language Technologies that its Japanese Explorer is one of the best examples of language-learning software--period. If you are used to the old-fashioned but lamentably persistent grammar-translation method of learning languages, Japanese Explorer may surprise you because it involves no overt instruction in grammar or lists of vocabulary with English translations. Instead, it relies on very clever contextualization of Japanese words and structures with photographs so that you never realize you're learning grammar. We literally found ourselves speaking and understanding quite a bit of basic Japanese in about an hour.

Each graduated lesson works like this: First, you learn a new word by seeing a picture of, say, a man. You then read the Japanese word for "man" (at different points, both in Roman letters and in Japanese script) and hear it spoken. After learning a whole set of words this way, you move into self-quizzing mode, where you see just a picture of a man and you have to choose the right word, either from spoken or written cues. This emphasis on listening comprehension is fantastic and is one of the components that sets the software apart, but there are also reading and writing exercises.

So how do they cover grammar? Japanese has a complicated system of counters attached to numbers. Eventually, for instance, you'll see hitotsu under a picture of one man and futatsu under a picture of two men. Later you'll see hippiki under one fish and nihiki under two fish. If you are a grammar guru, you might be able to figure out that humans are counted with hitotsu-futatsu, and small animals are counted with hippiki-nihiki. However, the beauty is you don't have to be a grammar guru at all because the software doesn't expect you to state rules like that; it expects you only to associate a picture of two fish with nihiki instead of futatsu. Eventually, you get into longer phrases that cover verbs, adjectives, and prepositional phrases. It's amazingly effortless, especially so for children as young as 6.

Caveats: The CD-ROM includes both Mac OS and Windows versions. Your installation will include the first-level lessons of a couple dozen other languages for free, too, so you have to know that the Japanese word for "Japanese" is Nihongo in order to select it from the list. Also, remember that software is no replacement for Japanese-speaking people, so take what you learn and use it in the world! --Erik Macki

Amazon.com Product Description

Now you can learn a new language with the award-winning method used by the U.S. State Department to train diplomats. Proven effective by NASA astronauts, Peace Corps volunteers, and millions of students worldwide, the Rosetta Stone Language Library teaches new languages faster and easier than ever before.

We all learn our childhood language by associating new words and phrases with the world around us. The Rosetta Stone method replicates this process by presenting vivid, real-life images to convey the meaning of each new phrase. Instead of translating, memorizing, and studying rules of grammar, you actually learn to think in the new language. Vocabulary and grammar are integrated systematically, leading to everyday proficiency. It's the natural way to learn.

The Rosetta Stone Explorer contains 22 lessons for beginning learners with nearly 900 real-life images and phrases spoken by native speakers. It develops all key language skills--listening comprehension, reading, speaking, and writing--while its systematic structure teaches vocabulary and grammar naturally, without lists and drills. Includes previews, exercises, and tests for every lesson, with automated tutorials throughout the program. (Ages 6 and older)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

83 of 91 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars it is a sampler, really, November 29, 1999

By 

nora (boston, MA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Rosetta Stone Japanese Explorer (CD-ROM)

this is a great product, though it does not turn up on searches of amazon under"rosetta stone," but only under "japanese." also, one should know before ordering that this cd-rom only has 22 of the 92 lessons from the "level one" cd rom. other than that, it is an excellent teaching tool for people who want to try it out before spending the hundred and thirty dollars on level one. enjoy!

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent approach--unlike typical college class, July 7, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Rosetta Stone Japanese Explorer (CD-ROM)

I found this software extremely effective. Granted, it is a very different approach unlike the typical college foreign-language class. If like me you learned foreign languages previously by memorizing charts of verb declensions and things, this software will surprise you--and if you in fact do enjoy the details of grammar, this may not be a product for you. However, if you give this software a chance, it's very effective. You kind of have to suspend belief that it will work, but if you conscienciously use the software through the first 10 lessons, you'll be surprised at what all you can impress your Japanese colleagues or friends with. I was! I very much recommend it. It's not at all conventional, but it totally worked for me.

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Visual Vocabulary, May 26, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Rosetta Stone Japanese Explorer (CD-ROM)

I picked up this product after hearing great things about Rosetta Stone's software. Apparently they meant Rosetta Stone Japanese Personal Edition. (...)
What to expect with this software is pictures, no explanations. This is fine and dandy if you have someone to clarify with. For example understanding that a dog is pronounce inu is one thing, but formulating the sentence of "Who's dog is that?" is another. That entire sentence is an idea, which is very difficult to get into a picture.
The lesson plans are not made like any class I have ever had. They seem to be a random collection of words with now focus on anything specific. Some related words are together, like car and plane, but that's as close as you get. One section seemed to revolve around "families" but it's hard to say with the cluster organization.
The only good thing about this software is that it supports Romania, kana and Kanji. The Romania support is there for people who don't really want to learn Japanese; they just want to speak it. The kana and kanji support is intended to fully saturate you in the language. This way you can learn pronunciation spelling though katakana/hiragana. Then once you know the pronunciation you can identify that sound with the Kanji for that object/thing/idea.
All in all this software is for vocabulary only, and I think the developers are fully aware of it.