Learn German Now! 9.0

by Transparent Language

Product Features

• Over 15,000 Words Hundreds of Useful Phrases Full Motion "Big Picture" Video
• Full Native Speaker Pronunciation SlowSound to Hear Every Nuance Advanced Pronunciation Practice
• Record, Playback and Compare Alphabet Reference & Grammar Tutorial Conversation Practice
• Integrated BYKI Vocabulary Software MP3 Audio for iPods or other players
• Personal BYKI list creation (with sound) from 15,000 words Interactive Games Video Unscramble

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B00005Y3VC
• Item model number: 744573053086
• Date first available at Amazon.com: April 4, 2002
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,898 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)
  • #16 in Software > Education & Reference > Foreign Languages > German
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

With the modern PC having a variety of possibilities of which traditional language-learning methods could only dream--voice recognition, video dialogues, and so on--the past few years have seen an extraordinary boom in language-learning software packages. However, as picking through this surfeit can be tricky, it is important to find a reliable brand, and the Learn Now! series is definitely among the best software packages.

The program comes equipped with 2 CDs, one of which has various key sections--useful "survival phrases", fun activities, conversations, and practicing speech against the voice of a native speaker--while the other has a thorough grammar tutorial. This combination is certainly a valuable one for people who are serious about learning a language, and the product is clear and easy to use: in role-plays, phrases are highlighted in a box and their English translations placed underneath, while the voice recognition software allows you to measure your own voice against that of a native speaker, and the games hone the things that have been learnt. Sections are tailored to various activities, such as getting around, going out, and business situations, while at any point you can call up a grammar tutorial which explains a particular point on which you are unsure.

In addition to these sections, the part on survival phrases will be of much use to those who have already reached a basic level. There are several practice dialogues based around commonplace situations--in the hotel, the bar, the airport, etc. Although some of the advice borders on the infantile ("When you decide to travel outside the USA, you will probably need a passport"), much of it is useful, and rounds out what is a well composed package for someone starting out on the road to using the language overseas. --Toby Green, Amazon.co.uk

Product Description

Learn From Exciting Content and Interactive Activities - Learn German Now! is a revolutionary language-learning tool based on the proven Transparent Method of learning how to use a language in context through rich multimedia activities. Learn German Now! unites industry-leading tools with authentic, native multimedia content to make learning fast, fun, and effective. Big Video Screen - Just select one of the interesting articles or stories and click to explore the German language. View German language videos complete with the sites and sounds of real people speaking and interacting in German. Or jump directly into exciting interactive games, pronunciation-improving practice or invigorating conversations. Determine your own learning pace by deciding when you need translation-and when you don't. All the tools you need to quickly master a language are instantly available in Learn German Now! Interactive Conversational Practice - Practice your lines using the prompts and the integrated speech features, then record your voice and replay the whole conversation with the lines you've recorded. It's a terrific way to get valuable real-world experience using your new language. In no time, you'll be conditioned to respond correctly without thinking about it, just like you do in English. Before You Know It - The revolutionary software that teaches you words and phrases so you know them cold - with Perfect Recall - is now integrated right into Learn German Now! You get: * Quick launch of BYKI from within Learn German Now! * Companion BYKI lists to use with immersion content * Dozens of bonus lists from BYKI Deluxe * The ability to create custom BYKI lists (complete with native speaker sound) from any of the 15,000 words in Learn Language Now! MP3 Learning on Your iPod or Other Player - Learn language Now! comes with dozens of BYKI Pod Audio MP3 files. Now you can practice your language wherever you take your MP3 player.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

61 of 64 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars not for everyone but i thought it was great, January 12, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Learn German Now! 9.0 (CD-ROM)

I have used several LanguageNow courses and I like them. However, reviews for these courses seem to be all over the place, so I thought it might be helpful to describe what they are and what they aren't.

The CD always has at least four parts. 1)The first section teaches common words in sample sentences and dialogues. 2)The second section teaches survival phrases. 3) Other sections are monologues on travel and culture, or are stories full of dialogues. These sections are more difficult than the first two.

Everything you hear is written on the screen. You can stop and start anyplace and at any time. You can listen to one sentence a hundred times if you want. You can listen to a slowed down version. You can click on a word at any time for a translation into English. When ready, you can go to the games section and practice what you have learned. I really like the games section, as it really reinforces what I am learning without wearing me out.

Beware! The courses don't teach grammar, but they still work well if you buy a simple grammar reference. The courses do teach vocabulary, and how to speak and listen. I know several languages and find that I learn more quickly if I focus on communication and just check on a grammar point now and then. This company also has "add-on-titles" which are good if you want to become near fluent even without much real life practice. If you are a complete beginner, you might find these courses frustrating. If you have some background or know a related language, these courses really work well.

73 of 83 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great New Product!, June 1, 2002

By 

E. Mansfield (Carnesville, GA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Learn German Now! 9.0 (CD-ROM)

I received my copy of this new product today. First impression is very positive. I have bought most all the CD-based products for German and this one is way ahead of the rest. For my money, the others are toys with no depth at all. What makes this one effective for language learning is a design and technology that makes use of concurrent inputs: sound,text,and visuals. And these three sensory inputs can be slowed down and/or repeated as desired. It's not perfect, but it is clearly better than the rest.For this reason, I give it a 'relative' rating of 5.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very solid product..., September 6, 2004

By 

wadrad (Land of Bitburger, Bratwurst, und Lederhosen) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Learn German Now! 9.0 (CD-ROM)

I started out with "Learn German Now 9.0" when it was still called "German Now 5.0", and I've purchased various versions with other languages (Dutch 7.0, French 5.0, Latin 8.0, Italian 6.0, Spanish 9.0). I think this product is best suited for someone with some knowledge of the foreign language already (even a very basic knowledge), and/or someone who's already living someplace where the studied language is spoken a fair amount.

This software basically gives you a written passage, story, dialogue or whatever; a means to listen to that passage, story or dialogue spoken by a native (some titles are actually text to a TV show or news program and accompanied by the video of the show); and a translation of each word while identifying what part of speech it is, as well as an overall meaning for each of the sentences. Very nice...

Both the Dutch and German packages helped immensely. Before I started using them, my knowledge of German was decent, and my Dutch was notch or two below that. After buying a few more advanced German modules (you can buy additional titles, stories, etc for each language), I definitely saw an increase in comprehension. The Dutch I ended up using in conjunction with another book, and it did an awesome job at better training my ear. The only language I've started entirely from scratch (hadn't studied it before I got the software) is French. So far, I'm impressed. Of all the other "learn French" books, CDs and software I have, this is definitely the best. Of course living in a French-speaking country has probably given me the impetus to use it more than I would were I still living back in the states (which is where I bought the "French Now" long before I moved back to Europe).

As for the Latin, Italian and Spanish, well, I basically bought them to just learn a bit more about Latin/Romance languages. Really never intended to learn those languages (and therefore haven't really tried) unless of course I move someplace where it would help...

Lastly, if you can find old versions of the software, consider buying it used. There's not a DRASTIC difference between the old and newer versions, and some of the later versions even use the exact same data, sound, and video files.