Spanish-Kit..it's here (almost)
- Jeff Tirey
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Spanish-Kit..it's here (almost)
Hi Everyone,
It's still very beta. I'm finalizing the site copy and getting some additional readers in place. In the next few weeks I'll get a Spanish Forum running. A long-term project is to find/develop free Spanish audio content. Oh, and I need to build some more Spanish vocabulary courses. At the top of my list is irregular verb forms.
One new and different feature is that there's an online Spanish grammar. It's online so that visitors can add their own comments about a specific grammar topic. Think of it as a grammar blog.
Anyone who's interested in learning Spanish should check it out. I'm learning Spanish myself.
http://www.spanish-kit.net/
thanks,
Jeff
It's still very beta. I'm finalizing the site copy and getting some additional readers in place. In the next few weeks I'll get a Spanish Forum running. A long-term project is to find/develop free Spanish audio content. Oh, and I need to build some more Spanish vocabulary courses. At the top of my list is irregular verb forms.
One new and different feature is that there's an online Spanish grammar. It's online so that visitors can add their own comments about a specific grammar topic. Think of it as a grammar blog.
Anyone who's interested in learning Spanish should check it out. I'm learning Spanish myself.
http://www.spanish-kit.net/
thanks,
Jeff
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*applause* Good luck, it looks like a neat project (one which I suspect will become greater than Textkit). If/when I get serious about Spanish, I may join.
*grinds teeth* Microsoft is a megolmaniac monopoly devoted to expanding its empire. Textkit is a labor of love, offered for free, which aims to help people, but does not make any attempt to drive other language-help websites and resources out of the net. I certainly do not hope that Textkit becomes like Microsoft, and I do not believe it will. I beseech you to find another comparison.Textkit will soon be the Microsoft of the noble pursuit of linguistic self-education!
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Jeff, how does the commenting work?
Would this be usable here for, say, a precis of Greek grammar?
Would this be usable here for, say, a precis of Greek grammar?
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/ — http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
- Jeff Tirey
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The comments feature I hope will take off.
It's simple how it works...
Anyone can post a comment to a particular page about content on that page. An admin email is sent to me for review, if I like it I click on a link to approve the posting to run live.
I WOULD like to try it for both Greek and Latin here. The problem is getting a Greek and Latin grammar keyed in. Latin would not be as bad, but Greek would be a significant amount of work.
Jeff
It's simple how it works...
Anyone can post a comment to a particular page about content on that page. An admin email is sent to me for review, if I like it I click on a link to approve the posting to run live.
I WOULD like to try it for both Greek and Latin here. The problem is getting a Greek and Latin grammar keyed in. Latin would not be as bad, but Greek would be a significant amount of work.
Jeff
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Why more for Greek?jeff wrote:I WOULD like to try it for both Greek and Latin here. The problem is getting a Greek and Latin grammar keyed in. Latin would not be as bad, but Greek would be a significant amount of work.
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/ — http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
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Hmm. Finally time for unicode?Emma_85 wrote:maybe because of the font
We should get on it, then.and the fact that there is so much?
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/ — http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
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On the subject of classicists learning spanish, this seems appropriate.
- Jeff Tirey
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It's harder to key in - don't you think? All the extra aspirations and accent marks. It's a bit more work.annis wrote:Why more for Greek?jeff wrote:I WOULD like to try it for both Greek and Latin here. The problem is getting a Greek and Latin grammar keyed in. Latin would not be as bad, but Greek would be a significant amount of work.
We SHOULD get on it though. Maybe it could be a distributive project.
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I apologize for my metaphor, which was only intended to be interpreted at the basest of levels. Obviously I underestimated the critical eye of one particular Textkit member.GlottalGreekGeek wrote:*grinds teeth* Microsoft is a megolmaniac monopoly devoted to expanding its empire. Textkit is a labor of love, offered for free, which aims to help people, but does not make any attempt to drive other language-help websites and resources out of the net. I certainly do not hope that Textkit becomes like Microsoft, and I do not believe it will. I beseech you to find another comparison.
I don't even have the will to liken Textkit to something more appropriate after your post.
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*hesitantly* Red Cross? Maybe not. It had the tainted blood scandal. How about Mother Theresa?Brinestorm wrote:I apologize for my metaphor, which was only intended to be interpreted at the basest of levels. Obviously I underestimated the critical eye of one particular Textkit member.GlottalGreekGeek wrote:*grinds teeth* Microsoft is a megolmaniac monopoly devoted to expanding its empire. Textkit is a labor of love, offered for free, which aims to help people, but does not make any attempt to drive other language-help websites and resources out of the net. I certainly do not hope that Textkit becomes like Microsoft, and I do not believe it will. I beseech you to find another comparison.
I don't even have the will to liken Textkit to something more appropriate after your post.
In a few years we won't be needing this discussion. Textkit will be household name like -United Nations- and -General Motors-.
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Magnificent!
Wonderful! You know, I never have come acrossd a freely downloadable Spanish grammar before, and I have looked. So the one you have provided is a great thing all by itself. I'm looking forward to the audio files! The grammar comments are a wonderful idea.
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We'll need both. Ideally, I would even want some identical readings in both South American and Castillian so that a learner can hear the differences.chrisb wrote:Great site! I shall re-learn a mostly forgotten language with it. Thank you.
Btw, will the audio files give a Castillian or a South American pronunciation of Spanish?
chrisb
I'm not yet sure how to get the audio files produced. I'm banging around a lot of different ideas.
jeff
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Very interesting read–thanks for the link. I can attest to the quality of Bodmer's The Loom of Language recommended at the start of the article.Turpissimus wrote:On the subject of classicists learning spanish, this seems appropriate.
William
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Yeah, I've got that book too. Alongside A Mouthful of Air by Anthony Burgess, it has to be one of the most interesting beginners' books ever written on languages.Very interesting read–thanks for the link. I can attest to the quality of Bodmer's The Loom of Language recommended at the start of the article.
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I bet the father of Nadsat has some interesting things to say on language. I ought to add it to my to-read list, ut it's already teeming with books I won't read for another decade.Turpissimus wrote:Alongside A Mouthful of Air by Anthony Burgess, it has to be one of the most interesting beginners' books ever written on languages.
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- Jeff Tirey
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The readers are just about ready. I'll be posting 5 very soon. 3 of them are 'ok'. Very basic readings that is constructed and mechanical. But one of the readers is pretty good and another is excellent.tdominus wrote:Excellent work. I can't wait 'til the reader texts are available. I hope there will be vocabulary and grammar automatic mailing lists too. (I could help with this)
Do you plan to have material to attract native speakers of Spanish?
I'll be adding more vocabulary courses as time permits. At the top of my list will be an irregular verbs list.
It would be nice to get some native Spanish speakers to the site, but I'm no sure how? Perhaps I could find some advanced Spanish literature to post to attract them.
Jeff
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Thank you for all your efforts, Jeff!
I just started learning Spanish this semester. My class is using the book, Sabias que...? 4th ed. by VanPatten.
If you decide to have some sort of book give-away (similar to the Ides of March contest), I would be more than happy to donate some books. Perhaps a handy dictionary & 501 Spanish verbs.
I just started learning Spanish this semester. My class is using the book, Sabias que...? 4th ed. by VanPatten.
If you decide to have some sort of book give-away (similar to the Ides of March contest), I would be more than happy to donate some books. Perhaps a handy dictionary & 501 Spanish verbs.
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Hi, Jeff. I´m not the greatest bard in the world, but I can offer you some audio recordings of poetry (not my poetry, don´t worry). My repertoire includes Boscán, Garcilaso, Quevedo, Góngora, Unamuno, Machado, Borges...
"in both South American and Castillian" (Jeff)
Castilian is both a noun and an adjective. As a noun, it is a PC sinonym of Spanish, so you can say that Mexicans, Chileans and Spaniards speak Castilian. As an adjective, it is an accent, so you can say that Mexicans speak Castilian with a Mexican accent, Chileans speak Castilian with a Chilean accent, and Spaniards speak Castilian with a Galician, Catalan, Andalucian, Aragonian, (...) or Castilian accent. (I myself speak with a Castilian accent with a touch of Catalan accent.)
Analogy: Texans speak English with a Texan accent, Australians speak English with an Australian accent, Welshmen speak English with a Welsh accent, and Englishmen speak English with an English accent.
"in both South American and Castillian" (Jeff)
Castilian is both a noun and an adjective. As a noun, it is a PC sinonym of Spanish, so you can say that Mexicans, Chileans and Spaniards speak Castilian. As an adjective, it is an accent, so you can say that Mexicans speak Castilian with a Mexican accent, Chileans speak Castilian with a Chilean accent, and Spaniards speak Castilian with a Galician, Catalan, Andalucian, Aragonian, (...) or Castilian accent. (I myself speak with a Castilian accent with a touch of Catalan accent.)
Analogy: Texans speak English with a Texan accent, Australians speak English with an Australian accent, Welshmen speak English with a Welsh accent, and Englishmen speak English with an English accent.
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Hi to the boards. I looked at Spanish Kit the other day and have been having lots of fun brushing up my spanish with Worman's First Reader. The subject matter and attitude at times lends a curious wonder for me as though reading in a dead language. My usual spanish dictionary lacks such useful words as hat-maker and Prussia, but I'm coping well enough so far.
It really is sparking up my spanish a little, and I'm truly grateful for the extra confidence here as this will plough back nicely into my limited latin and greek. The Worman has inadvertently made me laugh out loud on several occasions, mostly for when the content is most at variance with the attitudes of today. At the next moment, often after something funny, one is then plunged into paragraphs of fathomless obscurity, which again are rather perversely amusing to persevere through.
Roll on Worman Book Two! And congratulations on the site so far.
It really is sparking up my spanish a little, and I'm truly grateful for the extra confidence here as this will plough back nicely into my limited latin and greek. The Worman has inadvertently made me laugh out loud on several occasions, mostly for when the content is most at variance with the attitudes of today. At the next moment, often after something funny, one is then plunged into paragraphs of fathomless obscurity, which again are rather perversely amusing to persevere through.
Roll on Worman Book Two! And congratulations on the site so far.
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Hi Phoebus,
I'm glad you like it. In some strange way I like Worman's too. Without question is has many outdated beliefs and attitudes. Some of them about race and gender really bother me but I don't edit the book because it is what it is and on the whole it is still quite useful.
Still, its approach really does work. One thing that's neat is that there is absolutley no English in the book other than the author's introduction. With the help of the images, a reader really can make their way through the book without having to look words up.
My only complaint is that the subject matter is very basic and the sentences are a mechanical.
Have you tried yet, Elementary Spanish Reader?
http://www.spanish-kit.net/details-esh_ ... reader.php
This reader is excellent. The stories are fun and each lesson does a good job of advancing particular grammar topics.
I'm glad you like it. In some strange way I like Worman's too. Without question is has many outdated beliefs and attitudes. Some of them about race and gender really bother me but I don't edit the book because it is what it is and on the whole it is still quite useful.
Still, its approach really does work. One thing that's neat is that there is absolutley no English in the book other than the author's introduction. With the help of the images, a reader really can make their way through the book without having to look words up.
My only complaint is that the subject matter is very basic and the sentences are a mechanical.
Have you tried yet, Elementary Spanish Reader?
http://www.spanish-kit.net/details-esh_ ... reader.php
This reader is excellent. The stories are fun and each lesson does a good job of advancing particular grammar topics.
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A friend of mine found an English-French phrasebook from the late 1800s. It is also a fascinating historical document. The "Steam Liner" section has sentences like "his presence is a burden to me."phoebus wrote:Hi to the boards. I looked at Spanish Kit the other day and have been having lots of fun brushing up my spanish with Worman's First Reader. The subject matter and attitude at times lends a curious wonder for me as though reading in a dead language. My usual spanish dictionary lacks such useful words as hat-maker and Prussia, but I'm coping well enough so far.
William S. Annis — http://www.aoidoi.org/ — http://www.scholiastae.org/
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;
τίς πατέρ' αἰνήσει εἰ μὴ κακοδαίμονες υἱοί;