I'm trying it out to learn Arabic, Italian, and German and was wondering if any of you guys have experience with it.

Did one of the Spanish units. Worked pretty good, wish I could have stuck with it. I know a guy who is learning Gaelic for some damn reason and he claims to be having good results.

I used it for Spanish before I went to study the language. It was a good primer. Nothing can replace practical exchange/immersion training...but Rosetta Stone is as close as it gets IMO.

I tried an Arabic lesson first - holy crap. I have to click the repeat button like 10-20 times per word to hear the pronunciation. Even though it puts the text in front of you, I can't read their alphabet! And reading right to left is certainly something I don't have much practice with.

I tried an Italian lesson next and it was MUCH much easier. Not only are some of the words similar to Spanish, but the grammar seems a bit simpler and they use the same letters that we do, so I can actually read the words on the screen.

At least you can go at your own pace.

It doesn't get much easier than Italian.

Wish I had the time and patience to learn one of the money languages (russian, arabic, or chinese)

[This message has been edited by Jock 07 (edited 7/9/2010 5:32p).]

I took 4 years of Spanish and lived in South Texas and when I went to Italy a few years ago it was pretty easy to get around and figure stuff out.

In my last Iraq deployment, I worked hard on the Tagalog module in order to try to impress my wife's (she was my fiancee back then) extended family. It worked pretty well.

I've done a little bit of Russian on Pimsleur. Had a secretary from the Ukraine several years ago and she said she was impressed with my ability to pronounce the few words and phrases I know.

I think if you are going to do it yourself, you need a combination of methods. Pimsleur is great for hearing and trying to mimic native speakers, but does nothing for the written word.

I used it for Chinese...very good program. Not designed to attain fluency, but will teach you the basics.

Dave, did you use it as part of a CGSC elective (1st half, I think) or on your own?

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Even though it puts the text in front of you, I can't read their alphabet!

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Come on now, you have to try a little! It only takes a little while to learn the alphabet!

I'm conversant in Arabic and Persian-Farsi, and I don't recommend RS if you want to get proficient. There's no substitute for hard work, memorization, and constant practice and review. The skills are very perishable!

http://www.shariahprogram.ca/Arabic-alphabet.shtml