L-Lingo: Learn Thai Online for Free

lingo software

This article was originally posted on WomenLearnThai.com.

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L-Ceps Personaltrainer language learning software…

I played around with L-Ceps Thai Language Software last year, but I did not spent a lot of time with it (my bad).

There were three reasons:

  1. L-Ceps had too much of a PC feel
  2. I already had Rosetta Stone (also PC)
  3. I did not like Rosetta Stone (guilt by association?)

But this week L-Ceps launched a free online version, L-Lingo, that kept my attention. Not only is it beautifully crafted, but it offers 40 free Thai lessons (and that’s just for starters).

Although free is great, I am not gushing for that reason. It was the design of L-Lingo that jiggled me to take a look at the redesign of L-Ceps.

And loving the new look, I contacted Khun Busakorn (the voice of L-Lingo) to ask a few questions.

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Interviewing Khun Busakorn from L-Ceps…

When did you rewrite your original software? The reason I ask is because I tried L-Ceps previously, and the old version had a different feel to it.

The major redesign of L-Ceps was in Version 2.0, published June 2009.

The online application was released just a few days ago. This version was created because we wanted to make our language learning software more accessible to our users.

Also, we plan to adapt the software to mobile phones – iPhone, Android, etc – and this new platform will make it easier.

The new platform is also visually much more attractive (or what do you think? 🙂

In order to get a lot of feedback from users, we released this version early. This is because we are serious about building an application that people like to use; one that suits their needs.

Besides the price, what are the main differences between L-Ceps and Rosetta Stone?

We started developing L-Ceps after using Rosetta Stone (my husband to learn Thai, and I to learn German). In general, we liked Rosetta Stone but we found some things missing. We also wondered why it was so expensive.

We believe the main differences are:

  1. Our application offers translations. In Rosetta Stone, the meaning of the pictures is not always clear (we often had to use a dictionary).
  2. Our application teaches practical phrases. For instance, the L-Ceps software has a unit dedicated to common phrases. Note: this unit is not available for the web based version, but it will be eventually.
  3. We focus on Asian languages and consider typical Asian language patterns. For example, most Asian languages do not change verb forms for tenses, etc., but add certain words for past or future tenses.
  4. Our images are mostly shot in Asia (especially in Thailand), whereas Rosetta Stone uses predominantly North American scenery and people.
  5. Our PC version has features that Rosetta Stone does not. Giving just one example: a Joker to hide possible answers.

Please do not misunderstand me, we both like Rosetta Stone. But RS leans more towards total immersion based learning (that is why there are no translations in Rosetta Stone).

What do you see in L-Lingo’s future?

The free online version at l-lingo.com will always remain free.

What you see at the moment is the first version. We will continuously update and add more (hopefully exciting) features that people like to use.

At the moment our main focus is getting feedback from users.

At a later stage we might offer premium (paid) features to support our business. However, I do not see this happening soon.

We also aim to create a mobile version for iPhone and the new Android phones.

Can you tell me more about L-Ceps?

The paid version at l-ceps.com is a Java based software, which offers many features that are not (yet) available online.

It might not be as visually appealing as the online version, but it contains more content. It has detailed learning statistics, printable textbook and pdf flashcards, and more.

The L-Ceps version has been developed over many years. It will continue to be maintained, with new features in the pipeline.

Thank you Khun Busakorn.

L-Lingo: Learn Thai Online for Free…

When you check out L-Lingo, please be sure to leave your two cents are they are totally serious about getting responses from users.

We would like to know your feedback and suggestions and therefore let us know if you find anything that doesn’t work. Use our Blog (click here) to communicate with us.

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