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Thread: Rosetta Stone

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Winston-Salem

    Rosetta Stone

    Anyone tried it? If so, were you successful? How long did it take to become fluent?

    I just got it, and plan on learning Spanish.

    Wish me luck!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    Undisclosed
    Quote Originally Posted by mattman91 View Post
    Anyone tried it? If so, were you successful? How long did it take to become fluent?

    I just got it, and plan on learning Spanish.

    Wish me luck!
    Buena suerte!

    (That means "Go to Hell, Carolina" in Spanish. I think)

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Washington, DC
    I used it occasionally to brush up on my Spanish, but I wouldn't use it to get fluent. Too many holes that it doesn't fill in as far as learning the language. It is great to go from zero to a nice base, however, so definitely use it every day. I would also practice with a fluent/native speaker as well, watch Univision/Telemundo or watch some soccer in Spanish. That will help you get used to the numerous accents, which in my mind is the toughest thing to crack when trying to speak Spanish among locals. The accents in Mexico are much different from Spain which is much different from Latin America which is different from South America, etc.
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  4. #4
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Winston-Salem
    Quote Originally Posted by OldPhiKap View Post
    Buena suerte!

    (That means "Go to Hell, Carolina" in Spanish. I think)
    That's all I really needed to know. Thanks OPK

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Winston-Salem
    Quote Originally Posted by blazindw View Post
    I used it occasionally to brush up on my Spanish, but I wouldn't use it to get fluent. Too many holes that it doesn't fill in as far as learning the language. It is great to go from zero to a nice base, however, so definitely use it every day. I would also practice with a fluent/native speaker as well, watch Univision/Telemundo or watch some soccer in Spanish. That will help you get used to the numerous accents, which in my mind is the toughest thing to crack when trying to speak Spanish among locals. The accents in Mexico are much different from Spain which is much different from Latin America which is different from South America, etc.
    Thanks for the advice!

    The main objective is to be able to hold simple conversations at work. I work in sales, so it will obviously give me a huge advantage. I hate having people walk out the door because I can't help them. That is money out of my pocket!

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Washington, DC
    Quote Originally Posted by mattman91 View Post
    Thanks for the advice!

    The main objective is to be able to hold simple conversations at work. I work in sales, so it will obviously give me a huge advantage. I hate having people walk out the door because I can't help them. That is money out of my pocket!
    And that will definitely help with simple conversations. You'll probably have to branch out from there to do more complex conversations, particularly with answering typical sales questions.
    Check out the Duke Basketball Roundup!

    2003-2004 HLM
    Duke | Mirecourt | Detroit| The U | USA

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jun 2008
    Location
    Asheville, NC

    Not going to get you fluent

    Rosetta Stone will give you a good base of Spanish, but definitely won't get you speaking fluently. I've used it for a few months, on and off. It definitely works better if you can spend some time with it on a regular basis, maybe a half hour or more every day. I used to do it pretty regularly but not much any more. If not, you tend to lose what you've learned (at least for me anyways) pretty quick.
    To speak fluently, I think the best way to learn would be immerse yourself as much as possible. Try to listen to the language as much as possible. There is a really good (free) podcast on iTunes called News in Slow Spanish. I think it's awesome, because I like current events and it's slow enough I can understand a fair amount. I've also made some flash cards of verbs and nouns, which will definitely help reading comprehension.

    Overall, I think Rosetta Stone is a very good program, but not one that will get you speaking to your Spanish friends fluently by itself.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Cincinnati, Ohio

    Not going to get you fluent

    My experience with Rosetta Stone was very much like the previous comments - it just didn't seem like something that was going to help make me fluent. In my case I bought it to supplement the Portuguese skills I already had. Having worked in Brasil off and on over twenty years, I was fine with common bar and restaurant exchanges - but I just wasn't getting conversational. Of course it didn't help that so many people I worked with could speak English.

    Then I got an assignment that was going to keep me in Brasil for about two months continuously, and maybe another three months off and on for a year. It was at that time that I bought Rosetta Stone since I knew I would be working with a lot of non-English speakers - and I figured I'd been lazy long enough and it was finally time to improve my skills.

    During that period I was pretty diligent about doing the Rosetta Stone training, and at the end of the year, I finally was reasonably conversational. But I never felt like the Rosetta Stone material was helping all that much. I think the two things that helped the most during that period were the fact that 1) I made myself expand my vocabulary every day, and 2) one of the guys I worked with was really very good at knowing how to speak to a non-native speaker.

    I've gotten really sensitive to the "non-native speaker" thing. I've done a fair amount of work overseas (Brasil, Russia, Finland, Germany, France and Poland) - and I've noticed that a lot of my American co-workers are HORRIBLE about how they speak to our foreign counterparts who have English as their second language.

    So do whatever you can to expand your vocabulary and take a shot with any opportunities you get to speak Spanish. When you interact with someone who knows how to slow and properly phrase their statements - you'll make some progress, and they'll appreciate it. And if they just rapidly rip off four paragraphs of speech throwing in every idiom they know - well you tried

  9. #9
    As others have said, Stone isn't going to make you fluent. It is nice to have to build a base of vocabulary, practice pronunciation, learn some grammar, etc. That said, there are many cheaper and/or free programs that can help with this. I haven't used Rosetta Stone for a few years though, so I don't know what kind of improvements they have added.

    You will want someone you can practice conversations with in person. Personally, I found that Colombians have the "cleanest" easiest to understand Spanish, but its very helpful to learn from someone who represents the populations you will be dealing with. El Salvador? Mexico? Puerto Rica? Cuban? Venezuelan? Do not get discouraged when people do not understand what you are saying when you start, due to accent/pacing etc.

    Maybe I am an oldschool learner, but buy a Spanish grammar book, and a specialized Spanish book for business situations. It is a nice reference when you have a specific question and don't want to sift through digital exercises to find what you need. Read the news, lots of news on the internet. Also, think local, I am sure there is a free local Spanish newspaper...these will often have advertisements, sports, business terms that you wont necessarily see in Rosetta as a beginner. Plus, it will cue you in on local events where you could meet Spanish speakers. Even if you are not religious, consider approaching a nearby church that offers Spanish masses. Ask the priest or someone in church administration if they know someone in the community who could help tutor or set you up with a conversation partner.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Asheville
    Hey mattman, go to the Papas and Beer on Tunnel Road a lot and practice speaking with the employees. After one Original Cadillac Margarita, however, it will no longer matter if you are getting better at your Spanish or not. It will also help you to deal with the sales you may have lost.

    ricks

  11. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by ricks68 View Post
    Hey mattman, go to the Papas and Beer on Tunnel Road a lot and practice speaking with the employees. After one Original Cadillac Margarita, however, it will no longer matter if you are getting better at your Spanish or not. It will also help you to deal with the sales you may have lost.

    ricks
    Christ, I forgot Mattman was here. If I still have my Spanish books here, I would be more than willing to give them to you, Matt.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Apr 2010
    Location
    Winston-Salem
    Quote Originally Posted by ricks68 View Post
    Hey mattman, go to the Papas and Beer on Tunnel Road a lot and practice speaking with the employees. After one Original Cadillac Margarita, however, it will no longer matter if you are getting better at your Spanish or not. It will also help you to deal with the sales you may have lost.

    ricks
    I was just having at Margarita at that exact Papas and Beer the other day!

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Feb 2007
    Location
    Richmond, Va
    "That's all I really needed to know. Thanks OPK"

    Really, what about "Dame cervezas!"

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