Parts Unknown
Parts Unknown
That’s what I asked Annette.
I didn’t get far learning any language using free online resources (technically English, but that was/is rather a passive learning experience).
I mostly used Duolingo to take the first steps and to challenge my interest for the language. At a certain point I prefer language-specific services, e.g. for Esperanto there is lernu (I stopped that, because I hated a few concepts of the language).
I learn Japanese on and off. I’m currently at my third or fourth attempt I believe xD I tried a lot from (again) Duolingo, JapanesePod101 to Memrise. On the long-term I prefer to use online resources secondary, e.g. existing Anki vocabulary decks to guide my textbook. And for a language like Japanese I like to use different kinds of dictionaries, articles and historical context, because sometimes there simply isn’t a definite answer T_T
I know people mean it well and I respect that. But it’s a little indirect insult, when their first reaction is to assume that you feel bad about it and to patronize you.
Of course there are people with that mindset among short dating men who often aggressively blame women’s standards. So I try to be not too upset about it.
I always choose hardcover. I try to keep the number of my owned physical books low. So when I do buy it, I want my eyes to be satisfied and they prefer the looks of hardcover. Since I usually buy secondhand books, overall it’s very cheap (although I don’t have high standards on the book’s condition).