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Rosetta Stone VS Pimsleur,Which is better?

by house5180
4 replies
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I have decided to move forward with one of my long-term goals, learning a foreign language. I decided on Spanish, because the words seem easier for me to say, like it's natural for me.

To accomplish this goal I have decided to team up with (read: buy their software offering ) Rosetta Stone.

Has anyone bought them on hotdvdshop and if you have, how did you fair with such? Which is better?
#rosetta stone
  • Profile picture of the author KenThompson
    I've used both of them. RS for Latin and French, and Pimsleur for Russian. RS
    has more built-in learning aids and is more robust, in my opinion. I think you'll
    learn better with RS.

    But be aware that it's against RS TOS to re-sell their s/w after you're done
    with it, or whatever. From what I've read, they manage to enforce it pretty
    well. Just as an FYI.

    Since you're in CA, one thing I'd recommend is to use RS, and then go talk
    to native Spanish speakers. You'll learn much faster, and you'll also learn
    idiomatic expressions most likely not found in any s/w.
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  • Profile picture of the author seasoned
    BE CAREFUL with idiomatic expressions. Some have different meanings in different areas.

    The problem with pimsleur is that it is treated as a sort of magic trick. Will it teach you the language? A bit! Is it easy? YEP! The problem? They try to allow you to get by, somewhat. I don't even know if I would really call it a course.

    But that IS why it is so easy. Frankly, I think Rosetta stone is kind of a polar opposite, harder, more boring, but it DOES cover a LOT more.

    Steve
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  • Profile picture of the author Lawrh
    Another thing to consider is that Pimsleur is purely spoken. No writing at all.
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    “Strategy without action is a day-dream; action without strategy is a nightmare.” – Old Japanese proverb -

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  • Profile picture of the author jerichox
    Pimsleur over Rosetta any day! Rosetta is a big marketing machine nothing more. If you don't believe me, check out what linguistic experts have to say on how-to-learn-any-language.com's forums. It's not pretty.

    Pimsleur is a great product (buy from itunes store it's so much easier!) and a very good methodology developed by one of the most respected and accomplished American applied linguists of the past 40 years.

    But it all depends what you want. If you are at a stage where you can already construct sentences on your own, Rosetta will be a decent tool (though far cheaper alternatives exist like BYKI) and help you buid your vocabulary knowledge. However, if you are a beginner, Pimsleur will give you a command of the language in the shortest amount of time.

    Pimsleur does not teach writing but does teach understanding, speaking, and reading.
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