Duolingo Sucks, Now What?: A Guide

Duolingo Sucks, Now What?: A Guide

Now that the quality of Duolingo has fallen (even more) due to AI and people are more willing to make the jump here are just some alternative apps and what languages they have:

"I just want an identical experience to DL"

Busuu (Languages: Spanish, Japanese, French, English, German, Dutch, Italian, Portuguese, Chinese, Polish, Turkish, Russian, Arabic, Korean)

"I want a good audio-based app"

Language Transfer (Languages: French, Swahili, Italian, Greek, German, Turkish, Arabic, Spanish, English for Spanish Speakers)

"I want a good audio-based app and money's no object"

Pimsleur (Literally so many languages)

Glossika (Also a lot of languages, but minority languages are free)

*anecdote: I borrowed my brother's Japanese Pimsleur CD as a kid and I still remember how to say the weather is nice over a decade later. You can find the CDs at libraries and "other" places I'm sure.

"I have a pretty neat library card"

Mango (Languages: So many and the endangered/Indigenous courses are free even if you don't have a library that has a partnership with Mango)

Transparent Language: (Languages: THE MOST! Also the one that has the widest variety of African languages! Perhaps the most diverse in ESL and learning a foreign language not in English)

"I want SRS flashcards and have an android"

AnkiDroid: (Theoretically all languages, pre-made decks can be found easily)

"I want SRS flashcards and I have an iphone"

AnkiApp: It's almost as good as AnkiDroid and free compared to the official Anki app for iphone

"I don't mind ads and just want to learn Korean"

lingory

"I want an app made for Mandarin that's BETTER than DL and has multiple languages to learn Mandarin in"

ChineseSkill (You can use their older version of the course for free)

"I don't like any of these apps you mentioned already, give me one more"

Bunpo: (Languages: Japanese, Spanish, French, German, Korean, and Mandarin)

HIM!!!

James Paul Moody, 24 year old sixth officer on Titanic, who liked adventure and aspired to write short stories

Cornish Language Resources

Learning

Gerlyver Kernewek - Online Cornish dictionary

Say Something In Cornish - Cornish lessons in podcast format

Tamm ha Tamm - Video series teaching simple conversational Cornish

GoCornish - Interactive Cornish resources for all ages

-> Memrise course (flashcards with audio)

-> Word Tango (puzzle app available in Cornish)

-> Kows ha Flows (listening materials with notes and vocabulary)

Kesva an Taves Kernewek - Cornish Language Board

-> KDL lessons (designed as a correspondence course but suitable for independent study)

-> Classroom resources (worksheets, activities, etc)

-> Skeul an Yeth - Free Cornish textbook

-> Past papers

Desky Kernowek - Cornish lessons in podcast format (Late Cornish)

-> This is an older site with a lot of dead links, but you’ll be pleased to hear their 24 audio lessons, their grammar notes and their in-depth guide to swearing in Cornish are all still fully functional.

Modern Cornish - Written lessons and texts in Late Cornish

Reading and Listening

Radyo an Gernewegva - Radio and TV in Cornish

An Nowodhow - Radio news bulletin in Cornish

Kernewek Bew - Website with a collection of video and audio in Cornish

Kowethas an Yeth Kernewek online shop  - Books for sale in and about Cornish

Agan Taves - Books for sale and for free in and about Cornish

An Gannas - Monthly magazine in Cornish

-> Dalleth - The puzzles from An Gannas on their own

Bibel Kernewek - The Bible in Cornish

Best language learning tips & masterlists from other bloggers I’ve come across

(these posts are not my own!)

THE HOLY GRAIL of language learning (-> seriously tho, this is the BEST thing I’ve ever come across)

Tips:

Some language learning exercises and tips

20 Favorite Language Learning Tips

what should you be reading to maximize your language learning?

tips for learning a language (things i wish i knew before i started)

language learning and langblr tips

Tips on how to read in your target language for longer periods of time

Tips and inspiration from Fluent in 3 months by Benny Lewis

Tips for learning a sign language

Tips for relearning your second first language

How to:

how to self teach a new language

learning a language: how to

learning languages and how to make it fun

how to study languages

how to practice speaking in a foreign language

how to learn a language when you don’t know where to start

how to make a schedule for language learning

How to keep track of learning more than one language at the same time

Masterposts:

Language Study Master Post

Swedish Resources Masterpost

French Resouces Masterpost

Italian Resources Masterpost

Resource List for Learning German

Challenges:

Language-Sanctuary Langblr Challenge

language learning checkerboard challenge

Word lists:

2+ months of language learning prompts

list of words you need to know in your target language, in 3 levels

Other stuff:

bullet journal dedicated to language learning

over 400 language related youtube channels in 50+ languages

TED talks about language (learning)

Learning the Alien Languages of Star Trek

.

Feel free to reblog and add your own lists / masterlists!

----- 𝚂𝙷𝙾𝚁𝚃 𝚂𝚃𝙾𝚁𝙸𝙴𝚂 𝚆𝚁𝙸𝚃𝚃𝙴𝙽 𝙱𝚈 𝙹𝙰𝙼𝙴𝚂:

so, sadly there is only one example of james' writing publicly available online. he had an oc! this original character was named ' brisco fletters '. this short story was written between 1904-1909. during this time, he was often in south america and you can tell that his work as a sailor and surroundings heavily influenced his work. it's important to note that, despite some sloppy grammar, he was extremely eloquent with his words. he would have been around 19-22 years old when this manuscript was written. it is also suggested that he was looking to publish his work, perhaps for an american women's magazine. this story is set in south america, probably chile or argentina as those were james' normal stomping grounds in his south america runs. the nature of this story features a phenomenon called 'crimping' or also known as, 'shanghai-ing'. james explains it best: "Most people have heard of the word "shanghai", and vaguely know that it means to catch poor sailormen and pop them aboard an outward-bound vessel very much against their own free will, and many tales have been told about these poor fellows being drugged and smuggled aboard by night"

Now if I had not had my ever alert suspicions [calmed] both by the gentle tones of her voice and innocent remarks, and the day being a calm sunny one I should have questioned her how they could proceed when men were so scarce. But we skimmed gently along and presently she pointed out a smart four masted schooner named the “George H Waback”, on approach which she stood up in her stern and waved a white handkerchief to the villainous looking rascal whom I took to be the mate. When we got alongside the accommodation latter and the surly ruffian had helped her up she called to me in a most bewitching way “Oh, Mr Fletters you must just come up and have a glass of wine and a morsel to eat as I’m sure you have missed your dinner time, besides I want Dad to pay you & thank you for rowing his “little treasure” safely back to him.”

No as I said before if there hadn’t been a beguiling little woman in the case and a clear fine sun shining pleasantly overhead as if there was no evil or underhand work going on in such a beautiful world I should have had my nerves sensing danger before now, especially when the “Dad” dropped from the same pretty lips which had just distinctly said he was not aboard. But with hardly any hesitation I made the boat’s painter fast and ran up the ladder to the deck.

in the next scene, it is clear that brisco fletters has been shanghaied and drugged. but this poor guy, well... he's kinda horny.

One evening some days later during my trick at the wheel, and while the officer of the watch was forrad about some work, I saw a small figure steal up from the cabin companion way, and soon recognised a winning little face which I had not seen since that eventful moment when I received my first meal in this ship from her hands, but which I had thought more about than would perhaps be considered reasonable by men who do not believe in “love at first sight”. She stole softly aft and was beside me when she whispered “That is you Briscoe is it not?”

I answered in the affirmative with a thrill to think that she knew my name. “I want to ask you for forgiveness for the cruel thing I did in Callao” she continued “and am now going to tell you enough to shew you that I have real reasons for wanting to get a crew. This is my first voyage with my father, and though I love the ship and sea very much, shall be glad to get home again, because I think the mate has some influence over my father, and also he wants to marry me, which” (with a fierce little stamp of her foot) “I will never do” she turned away evidently thinking she had said too much to a stranger, though had she known it that stranger was willing and anxious to be her best friend, so I softly called her back and told her I freely forgave her enticing me aboard, and was only to glad to be there now that she had come on deck and would perhaps come to speak to me again at the wheel.

welp, that's it!! it so cute to read. whether or not it was published is unknown.

Here's THE masterpost of free and full adaptations, by which I mean that it's a post made by the master.

Anthony and Cleopatra: here's the BBC version, here's a 2017 version.

As you like it: you'll find here an outdoor stage adaptation and here the BBC version. Here's Kenneth Brannagh's 2006 one.

Coriolanus: Here's a college play, here's the 1984 telefilm, here's the 2014 one with tom hiddleston. Here's the Ralph Fiennes 2011 one.

Cymbelline: Here's the 2014 one.

Hamlet: the 1948 Laurence Olivier one is here. The 1964 russian version is here and the 1964 american version is here. The 1964 Broadway production is here, the 1969 Williamson-Parfitt-Hopkins one is there, and the 1980 version is here. Here are part 1 and 2 of the 1990 BBC adaptation, the Kenneth Branagh 1996 Hamlet is here, the 2000 Ethan Hawke one is here. 2009 Tennant's here. And have the 2018 Almeida version here. On a sidenote, here's A Midwinter's Tale, about a man trying to make Hamlet. Andrew Scott's Hamlet is here.

Henry IV: part 1 and part 2 of the BBC 1989 version. And here's part 1 of a corwall school version.

Henry V: Laurence Olivier (who would have guessed) 1944 version. The 1989 Branagh version here. The BBC version is here.

Julius Caesar: here's the 1979 BBC adaptation, here the 1970 John Gielgud one. A theater Live from the late 2010's here.

King Lear: Laurence Olivier once again plays in here. And Gregory Kozintsev, who was I think in charge of the russian hamlet, has a king lear here. The 1975 BBC version is here. The Royal Shakespeare Compagny's 2008 version is here. The 1974 version with James Earl Jones is here. The 1953 Orson Wells one is here.

Macbeth: Here's the 1948 one, there the 1955 Joe McBeth. Here's the 1961 one with Sean Connery, and the 1966 BBC version is here. The 1969 radio one with Ian McKellen and Judi Dench is here, here's the 1971 by Roman Polanski, with spanish subtitles. The 1988 BBC one with portugese subtitles, and here the 2001 one). Here's Scotland, PA, the 2001 modern retelling. Rave Macbeth for anyone interested is here. And 2017 brings you this.

Measure for Measure: BBC version here. Hugo Weaving here.

The Merchant of Venice: here's a stage version, here's the 1980 movie, here the 1973 Lawrence Olivier movie, here's the 2004 movie with Al Pacino. The 2001 movie is here.

The Merry Wives of Windsor: the Royal Shakespeare Compagny gives you this movie.

A Midsummer Night's Dream: have this sponsored by the City of Columbia, and here the BBC version. Have the 1986 Duncan-Jennings version here. 2019 Live Theater version? Have it here!

Much Ado About Nothing: Here is the kenneth branagh version and here the Tennant and Tate 2011 version. Here's the 1984 version.

Othello: A Massachussets Performance here, the 2001 movie her is the Orson Wells movie with portuguese subtitles theree, and a fifteen minutes long lego adaptation here. THen if you want more good ole reliable you've got the BBC version here and there.

Richard II: here is the BBC version. If you want a more meta approach, here's the commentary for the Tennant version. 1997 one here.

Richard III: here's the 1955 one with Laurence Olivier. The 1995 one with Ian McKellen is no longer available at the previous link but I found it HERE.

Romeo and Juliet: here's the 1988 BBC version. Here's a stage production. 1954 brings you this. The french musical with english subtitles is here!

The Taming of the Shrew: the 1980 BBC version here and the 1988 one is here, sorry for the prior confusion. The 1929 version here, some Ontario stuff here, and here is the 1967 one with Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor. This one is the Shakespeare Retold modern retelling.

The Tempest: the 1979 one is here, the 2010 is here. Here is the 1988 one. Theater Live did a show of it in the late 2010's too.

Timon of Athens: here is the 1981 movie with Jonathan Pryce,

Troilus and Cressida can be found here

Titus Andronicus: the 1999 movie with Anthony Hopkins here

Twelfth night: here for the BBC, here for the 1970 version with Alec Guinness, Joan Plowright and Ralph Richardson.

Two Gentlemen of Verona: have the 2018 one here. The BBC version is here.

The Winter's Tale: the BBC version is here

Please do contribute if you find more. This is far from exhaustive.

(also look up the original post from time to time for more plays)