JAPANESE COMMERCIAL PROGRAMS

Easy Translator
for web pages, e-mail, memos, $129

Power Japanese   
Beginning, four skills, 10,000-word on-line dictionary, listen/record/compare pronunciation, basic grammar, listening and speaking, hiragana and katakana penmanship,  $159.00.  
Review

Kanji Moments I & II   
Follow-up to Power Japanese, vol 1 covers 200 kanji, vol 2 covers additional 400 in context plus pronunciation, $129.00 for vols I & II.  

Grammar Pro!  

Grammar tutorial with quizes.
 
Easy Translator
for web pages, e-mail, memos, $129 .00.

Kid Speak
Pronunciation, alphabet & word recognition, understanding simple sentences, using plural & singular forms, telling time, matching numbers to written words, simple addition and subtraction. over 700 Words and Expressions in common categories; 12 printable activities and projects.

Transparent Language     
22 Proctor Hill Road     
P.O. Box 575     
Hollis, New Hampshire  03049 

800-752-1767
www.transparent.com
info@transparent.com

TalkNow!
Beginning survival program, tourist-type topics, record, playback & compare pronunciation, on-screen help, picture dictionary, tests & feedback, $49.95.

Software World
P. O. Box 429
Mount Pleasant, SC 29465-0429
1-888-EDUWORLD
sofworld@sofworld.com
Smart Japanese (also known as Triple Play Plus!)
The program is designed for beginning through intermediate learners of Japanese from age 8 to adult. It contains three proficiency levels (Level 1, 2, and 3), three skill areas (listening, reading and speaking) and six topics (food, people, numbers, etc.) to choose from. Vocabulary items used in the program are 1,000 everyday Japanese words, and are displayed in game-like activities. Presented in the manner of a comic strip, 12 conversations are provided at Level 3. Users can record a word or sentence in Japanese and compare their pronunciation with that of a model speaker or get it evaluated from automatic speech recognition. It is also possible to link the program to the Internet. A default is set for the web site of Syracuse Language Systems (SLS), the distributor of this software.   $65.00.

Reviewed by Chorus
Reviewed by School House Review

Reviewed by CALICO

Syracuse Language Systems     
5790 Widewaters Parkway     
Syracuse, NY 13214     
800-797-5264   
International Connections: Japanese
A business Japanese course which uses video to enhance learning. Each unit provides pronunciation, listening and role play practice. There is a tutor mode, in which students can listen to alternative voices. Study is backed up by a self-test section and there is an emphasis on grasping functional language through three modes of study. There are also ample grammar explanations in each unit. A personal learning plan (in book form) ensures that students set themselves realistic study targets. $817.00

Japanese Language Library
This is a complete language learning resource consisting of a multimedia library of over 500 exercises organised at 9 levels of competence from complete beginners to advanced learners. It covers the four skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing. $3,292.00.

Smart Start Japanese
This program contains games, conversations and speech recognition activities allowing users to learn up to 1000 words. Themes include; food, numbers, people & clothing, places & transport and daily activities. Students can choose a game from three levels of language to learn vocabulary, phrases and complete conversations. $38.00.

Talk Now Japanese
The basics of the language through topical vocabulary which includes: first words, phrases, food, shopping, numbers and time. Users can compare their pronunciation with that of native speakers using the record function. There are a number of quizzes. There is also a comprehensive dictionary, which can be printed. $48.00.

Travel Talk: English-Japanese
An interactive phrasebook which includes listening and speaking practice, concentrating on expressions needed for business or travel. Select any sentence under 12 topic headings and see it translated into Japanese: then listen to it spoken and record it yourself. A vocabulary section contains over 500 useful words and expressions listed under 36 headings. A dialogue section contains key languages related to 12 topic areas - General Expressions; Finding your Way; Public Transport; In the Hotel; Times & Dates; Food & Drink; Shopping; Entertainment; Post Office & Phone; Money; Conversation; Emergencies. $31.00.

Talkfast International
London House
243 Lower Mortlake Road
Richmond, Surrey
Tw9 2LS
England
info@talkfast.com
Rosetta Stone
Level 1 programs have 1 CD-ROM with 8 units divided into 92 chapters.
Level 2 programs have 2 CD-ROMs with 11 units divided into 118 chapters. $281.00 each.
Reviewed by Chorus

Fairfield Language Technologies  
122 South Main Street  
Harrisonburg, VA  22801    
800-788-0822   

Interactive Spoken Language Education System 
Prototype interactive voice recognition program for beginning Japanese not currently available commercially.

Entropic Research Laboratory, Inc.     
1040 Noel Drive     
Menlo Park, CA  94025     
415-328-8877
http://www.entropic.com
KanaKun  
Over 200 vocabulary through animation, photography, pictures, and recordings, incl. user's guide, CD-ROM, Mac only, $59.00.  

Kana Nirvana
  
Memory game for one or two players to teach Japanese hiragana and katakana to beginning students and those who know romaji, $39.95.  

Reading and Writing the Kanas  
Reading, writing, and pronunciation of hiragana and katakana; animation to teach stroke order, $35.00.  

JapanEase (vols 1 & 2)  
Vol 1 teaches 300 katakana and hiragana, 50 basic phrases, garaigo thru katakana syllabary.   

MacSunrise Script, Release 3  
Comprehensive program for learning  hiragana, katakana and some kanji, stroke order, pronunciation; intermediate version 500 kanji, advanced version 2000; imtermed $129, advanced $329.00.  

Kana Learning Games  
Three games to learn kana, $35.00.  

Mikan  
Kanji reading software, 300 pages of readings by well-known authors, hypernotes w/grammar and English references; a flash word quizzer, Mikan Personal Dictionary; 500 word vocabulary, introductory and intermediate, $99.00.  

Kanji Reader  
150 kanji, quizzes and games, kanji dictionary which shows how to draw the kanji, $40.00.  

Blackbelt Japanese (Set 1)  
Multimedia game for all ages (best for HS) teaches kana and kanji by progressing through martial art belt ranks, set 1 covers the first two of 8 belt levels in kanji (192) and up to black belt in kana,  $99.00.  

Kantaro
  
Mnemonic system to learn 200 basic kanji characters, $129.00.  

Fundamental Japanese  
First CD includes hiragana, katakana and vocabulary, the second CD contains numbers, times and dates, the third CD includes expressions and conversation, $348.00 set of 3 CDs.  

KanjiWorks 1.5  
Stand-alone program in 3 versions: extended, advanced, and intermediate' for Macs; $195.00 extended, $149.00 advanced; $85.00 intermediate.  

Saijiki  
Cultural reader for intermediate/advanced students; 6 essays on Japanese culture, language and literature; illustrations, stroke order, animations, and appendices for explanations of the material, click for English translations; $49.95.

Cheng & Tsui Company   
25 West Street   
Boston, MA 02111   
617-426-6074  

Berlitz for Business Japanese

BrightStar Services, Inc.
3055 Northwoods Circle
Norcross GA 30071 USA
770-441-2421 Voice
770-441-2227 Fax
888-547-3715 Toll Free
http://www.brightstar.com/index.html
Learn to Speak Japanese
Multimedia Interactive Japanese learning software. Contains 20 chapters with native speaker recordings, grammar, vocabulary, and more. Skill Focus: Speaking, listening, grammar, reading, $70.00.

Hyperglot 
Box 10746   
Knoxville, TN  37937   
800-726-5087  
Dynamic Japanese
Listening multimedia course, all instructions in Japanese, audio, graphics, glossary w/spoken translations, in context, matching kana to spoken words, level one has 2 CD-ROMs for approx 40 hrs. of study, level two includes "Family schedule" and "Likes & dislikes", $99.00 per level.

Berlitz Live! Japanese
Multimedia, animated guide, pronunciation, Tokyo subway adventure game, prepare for trip to Japan, learn hiragana & katakana and intro to kanji, $49.00.

Nihongo Learning Systems
No-frill programs include: kana drills $29.95; kanji drills $54.95; kanji combinations $34.95; gairaigo.

Essential Kanji Cafe 
Includes 1,945 joyo kanji taught in the Japanese public schools, phonetic spelling, frequency of occurence, self-assessment tests, self-paced. 

Read Japanese 
Interactive reader, pronunciation and translation of characters, recognizes common grammatical forms, gives use of kanji in compounds, displays homonyms, tool for Japanese Web users, $89.00.

Denjikai Standard 3.0 
320,000 entries E-J/J-E, 9 different word-search options, lookup from within other word processing programs, supports custom dictionaries, menus and instructions in Japanese, $120, Denjikai Deluxe V 3.0 $190). Add-on dictionaries for $240 each: computers, science, mechanical engineering, medicine, business. 

Cosmology of Kyoto 
Mystical journey to 10th-century Kyoto, bizarre characters speak in Japanese, see their speech displayed in English or in Japanese, 400 illustrated encyclopedic cultural and historical entries in J or E, $49.00. 

Musume Fusahose Hyakunin Isshu 
Poetry anthology for serious Japanese scholar, history & meaning of the poems, reading in the traditional style, karuta, in Japanese only, $69.00.  

Mangajin CD-ROM I 
Selected manga from the first 10 issues of Mangajin magazine with translations, notes, digitized voice recordings in English & Japanese, $49.95. 

Story Forest 1 (Ohanashi no Mori 1)  
4 children's tales in storybook form with illustrations,  easy-to-read Japanese text, and Japanese narration, games, puzzles and sing-alongs, for Japanese children or beginning to intermediate Japanese students, $59.00. 

The Tale of Genji 
Trip thru Genji's world with photos, artwork, video clips, music, and virtual reality; 54 chapters are presented w/NS narration in E/J, $66.00.

Japanese for Everyone
Beginning program in listening and speaking, interactive activities, $99.00.

Mangajin, Inc.
P.O. Box 77188
Atlanta, GA 30357-1188
TEL: 404-724-0895 FAX: 404-724-0897
E-mail: webmaster@mangajin.com

Free Light  Japanese 
for hiragana & katakana & some kanji,  3 levels of difficulty, 4 floppies + small manual, $45.00.

Free Light Software 
3 rue des Primeveres 
91380 Chilly-Mazarin 
France 
Distributors
OK! Software, Inc. 
P.O. Box 3029 
West Lafayette, IN  47906-0582 
765-743-6363 
Exotic Japan
Culture-learning CD-ROM, $49.94.

Forest Technology
514 Market Loop, Suite 103
West Dundee, IL 60118
Phone: (800) 544-3356 Fax: (847) 428-1310 E-mail:
amichael@foresttech.com
Star Festival
Interactive visit to Japan in which student sees and hears what a professor who had left Japan 30 years previously sees on his return, focus on listening/culture, $120.00.

Reviewed in Language Learning and Technology

Botticelli Interactive Inc.
104 South Street
Boston, MA 02111
(617) 695-1960 fax: (617) 695-1962
info@botticelli.com
Dynamic Japanese (Level One)
Beginning level, for high school and adults, consists of two discs with 6 lessons each; lessons are divided into content based and practice based with a variety of activities and online references, $350.00

Reviewed in The Northeast Conference Newsletter, 41, Winter 1997, pp. 49-51.

DynEd International
989 E. Hillsdale Blvd., Suite 130
Foster City, CA 9440
4
EZ Language (25-language edition)
Vocabulary/pronunciation tutor for beginners with over 800 words and phrases in 16 different thematic lists, record/playback/compare, $69.95.

EZ Language (17-language edition)
Vocabulary/pronunciation tutor. 25,000 Words & 2,250 phrases; record/playback/compare; on-line multimedia dictionary.

IMSI
1939 Fourth Street
San Rafael, CA 94901-5506
Telephone: (415) 454-7101Fax: (415) 257-3565
Sales: 1-800-833-8082
Kanji Works
Japanese-English bidirectional dictionary, over 2,000 kanji, 6,500 compounds and 3,000 examples, animation and stroke order for every kanji, $190.00.

Multimedia Flashcards - Japanese
Ages 2 - 10. Introductory program to introduce Japanese to young children. Learn several hundred words divided into the topics of: Colors, Plurals, Places, Actions, Positions, Professions, and 3 miscellaneous groups. After the vocabulary is learned, there are 3 games: "Find the Card", "Match the Pairs", and "Beat the Clock" - each with 3 levels of difficulty - to test your knowledge. Earn enough points and print out a bronze, silver or gold medal certificate. Finally record your voice in your own mini-movie to practice pronunciation. For teachers, print out a list of all the students' names and scores. The progress of each student can be saved separately.

Japanese To Go
Ages 12 - Adult. 6 lessons with over 60 minutes of video tutorials, dialog skits and games to teach vocabulary, grammar, counting, verbs, cultural body language and more. Record and playback & compare pronunciation, $45.00.

World of Reading, Ltd. 
P.O. Box 13092 
Atlanta, GA  3024-0092 
800-729-3703

polyglot@wor.com

 

JAPANESE WEB-BASED PROGRAMS

Banzai Particle Tutor 1.01
Beginning Japanese particle tutorial. Each lesson contains 19 problems or less and can be finished in about 30 minutes. Prior to each lesson, its grammar is explained in a comprehensive manner, so that first-timers and those who want to review the grammar can
study it. The grammar review can also be consulted at any time while doing the exercises.

Reviewed by CALICO.

Noriko Nagata
Department of Modern and Classical Languages

College of Arts and Sciences
University of San Francisco
2130 Fulton Street San Francisco, CA 94117-1080
Phone: 415-422-6227
Fax: 415-422-6928
Email: nagatan@usfca.edu
http://www.usfca.edu/japanese/nagata.html

Japanese E-mail Project at Purdue University
A Guide to Japanese E-mail
E-tomo for the Macintosh
E-tomo/WIN for Windows
Eudora/J

Japanese Freeware Projects at Purdue University
Hiragana & Katakana
World Geography
Development Tools for Japanese
AutoGloss/J

Japanese Department at Purdue University
http://www.sla.purdue.edu/academic/fll/JapanProj/
Freeware Japanese-English-English-Japanese Dictionary for Windows 95/98
VKC/J 2.0
Vocabulary, Kanji, Conjugation Exercises
http://www.sla.purdue.edu/fll/JapanProj/