Rocket Languages Blog The 2014 Edition is here!

The 2014 Edition is here!

jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Bonjour tout le monde !

We are pleased to announce the release of the 2014 Edition of all our Rocket Languages courses. A lot of thanks goes to the hard working Rocket team, as well as quite a few members who contributed to the cause.

The major changes are;

My Dashboard
A new more user-friendly Dashboard; this style of Dashboard will work a lot better on a range of devices and screen sizes. Also, it gives you an "at a glance" overview of your progress through the course.

You'll see that each Lesson icon on the Dashboard has smaller icons within it, typically one or more of H, W, K, and Q. These relate to the "Testing" part of each lesson.

Testing
Both the Interactive Audio, and Language & Culture lessons have a "Testing" tab that replaces the old "My Level".

When you've successfully rated the lesson using one of;

Hear it Say it! (H)
Write it! (W)
Know it! (K)
or the Quiz (Q)

The respective letter icon on the Dashboard will update along with the corresponding icon at the top right of the actual lesson.

Write it!
Now, Write it! is a new learning tool that we have added in response to members' suggestions about how to improve their writing of another language. Make sure you check it out it's pretty cool!

Quiz
Nearly every lesson has a multi-choice quiz. Until now the results of this quiz were not included in the lesson rating. That has now changed and quiz results are now pulled through to the Dashboard!

Lesson layout
Also, the lessons themselves are laid out in a more user-friendly way. For example, the Interactive Audio Course lessons now have the audio for the conversation and extra vocabulary all on the same page.

My Vocab
My Vocab is the tool that lets you double click on a word or phrase and then store it for future reference. We have upgraded this so that when it pops up it also gives you results from Phrase Finder so you can see the word/phrase in different contexts if it is used elsewhere in the course.

Apps and mobile devices
We are currently working on upgrading how Rocket courses work on the apps and with the multitude of devices that are available today. Please be patient with this!

AN IMPORTANT NOTE!
Because we have added new algorithms into determining how the Dashboard works some users may have an odd looking Dashboard until Quizzes or Write it! tests are completed.

Is there anything else?

Well, yes! There are quite a few cosmetic changes that have been made. These are too numerous to list here!

Also, we are working on a couple of other things that should be out before the end of the year, which will also greatly enhance the learning process!

Amicalement

Jason Oxenham
CEO
Rocket Languages Ltd
fduke47

fduke47

The repetitive and interactive audio lessons are really great and easy to access. Being able to reset and replay each piece of the lessons is helping me remember what i worked with previously prior to moving ahead.
Edward--39

Edward--39

The addition of the written exercise is a vast improvement on an already outstanding learning environment. Well done and thank you.. Best or Alles Gut Edward
Dan-H24

Dan-H24

I like the new, fresh look of the dashboard. And I think the addition of "Write It" will really add to the learning experience. ¡Bien hecho!
grahame-r

grahame-r

I love the new edition, although it will take a while to get accustomed to the new lay out, only one gripe with the 'write it' is why all the dots after some words, like the word 'or' when the person pauses after saying 'o' we get 3 dots o ...! and if you don't put them in you are wrong. pointless!
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi all - Thanks for the feedback!

Write it! does have a couple of issues that we are sorting through. Certainly figuring out what to do about fullstops and exclamation marks is one of them. We will be changing things behind the scenes once we get a handle on the usage patterns.

Make sure you check out My Vocab to see how we have integrated it with Phrase Finder (just double click on any word/phrase and then click the "abc" icon that appears. Very useful for finding that word/phrase in other contexts.

Jeremy V

Jeremy V

im guessing the chat box didn't work out. not alot of people were on it, it was alittle hard to figure out. i hope you can make a new design for it, make it more user friendly. and available to every. i like the new 2014 edition. thank you Jason and staff of rocket languages. Happy Learning.
Jeremy V

Jeremy V

Did you announce the new 2014 edition on facebook? might bring back some old users.
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Jeremy - The chat functionality needed a rethink from the ground up. As you rightly mention there were far too many things wrong with the beta version.

The release will be posted on social media and the blog later today!

Jeremy V

Jeremy V

Thank you Jason.
Jeremy V

Jeremy V

Jason where did the proficiency test go? also if you could pass this on to the rocket korean group ask them if they could make more rocket korean games as we only have one. thanks.
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Jeremy - We ended up taking out the Proficiency tests as they have been superseded by the Testing tab that is now in each lesson. Also, the usage rates for the Proficiency tests were really low, only around 3% of people used them.

grahame-r

grahame-r

Personally I’m disappointed, I thought it gave more incentive,the testing tab is just the old practice tab with the 'write it' added, but I’m only of the 3%. The needs of the many out weigh the needs of the few!?
grahame-r

grahame-r

The My vocab is brilliant just clicked on the word ‘che’ and got back 20 pages of different conjugations and meanings, very helpful for new people at the start of their course. Thanks Jason
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Grahame - The Proficiency tests were just pulled from the Quizzes, so we believe the new Testing tab provides better all round learning. We do have at least one other thing in mind for the Testing tab before the end of the year. Watch this space!

And, I agree, the new My Vocab / Phrase Finder layout works really well! Thanks for the feedback!

grahame-r

grahame-r

Yes I suppose, I just thought it gave you something to aim for at the end of the course, but time will tell. Definitely watch this space! Always trying to improve! Well done
Dan-H24

Dan-H24

I just finished the "Write It" portion of the lesson I am working on now. I think that this is a great addition to the testing portion. It requires me to listen more carefully to the speakers, and to really think about which words get accents and where they go. I think the writing tests will really help cement the spanish language into my brain. Thank you for this addition.
Shan-L1

Shan-L1

For the 'write it' part, where are the keys for the accented 'a' and 'o'?
Dan-H24

Dan-H24

I could not find them either, but I am getting used to using the keyboard shortcuts anyway. I figure that if I am going to be writing in spanish in the future I might as well learn them. On a Mac: Option+e, then a, e, i, o, or u.
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Dan/Shan - We are working on a better keyboard than the one that is currently available for Spanish. We hope to have this sorted by the end of next week. Sorry about any inconvenience!

Kathleen-H21

Kathleen-H21

I've just gone through my first 2014-version "tour"... I like it very much! The Write it section is exactly what was missing. The rate it feature seems a little ... quirky in what it "grades" as, but it's very nice to have that instant feedback. I did discover that if you continue (as a clever incentive for repetition?) and do better the next time the phrase comes around, you can get an "It's Easy" ... (Which is important for perfectionists like myself, I guess.) EDIT: I also noticed that at least for me on Safari and Mac OS 10.8.5 that the Reset button for the quiz doesn't seem to work ... of course, it could be that I don't understand quite HOW it works yet. The organization is also much nicer... and the indicator that you've completed a lesson is also quite good. I can't wait to see if there are other cool feature upgrades in this release!
Shan-L1

Shan-L1

Well i am catching on to it! i found the accents so its just th upside down question mark that I'm missing...but otherwise it is really nice!! Thanks for all the upgrading you've done! :)
luigi-p

luigi-p

I noticed an issue with the 2014 Rocket Languages Italian version.... I'm not sure if this issue has been reported yet. In all of my saved notes, it shows weird computer symbols / computer language for things like commas, quotation marks, hyphens, etc. I also noticed that it does this in the new Write It! section. I'm wondering when this issue will be resolved? By the way, I love the addition of Write It! and really like the new layout. Bravo! Grazie, Luigi
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi all - Thanks for the comments and feedback. We are hoping to iron out a few of the bugs this week, although on the whole they seem relatively minor.

Luigi - Try a few hard refreshes (ctrl + F5), if this doesn't work then the best bet is to email support with your system details.


grahame-r

grahame-r

Hi Jason. The hard refreshes solved the problem with all the bugs in my notes. keep up the good work. Grazie
Dan-H24

Dan-H24

Repeating Kathleen's complaint: I just tried to reset Hear it Say it in lesson 4.1 and it will not reset on my MacBook using Firefox. For people like me who repeat the testing in an effort to cement new words and phrases into our heads, the ability to reset and retake the tests is critical. Please address this issue as soon as possible. Thanks!
Dan-H24

Dan-H24

Just for fun I logged in using Safari instead of Firefox and it still would not reset. So it is not an issue with Firefox.
Byron-K21

Byron-K21

The reset quiz doesn't work for me either (I'm on chrome), unless I log out. Then it resets. In fact, all my quizes always reset after I log out and come back in whether I want them to or not. However, my Hear It and Know it stay recorded.
Dan-H24

Dan-H24

Just tried your log out/log in trick, Byron, and it still won't reset for me. I'm thinking there is a bug in the new system they need to fix.
Byron-K21

Byron-K21

Yeah, there's some goofy stuff going on. For example, some of my Dash board test scores in some sections don't record at all even though they are completed, but others do.
Elisabeth-P2

Elisabeth-P2

Where can you open the pdf to print out the conversation?
larry-190

larry-190

I've been having problems with the reset quiz and my dash board test scores not getting recorded .
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi all - The tests not resetting is a known bug, it will be rectified this week. As will the issue with My Vocab not saving correctly. Sorry for any inconvenience. 

The PDFs have been taken out as the print screen function should now print the lessons in the same way that the PDFs were presented.

There has been a caching issue with the new style sheet that we have used, which is causing the Dashboard and same ratings not to be updated. The way to rectify this is to hard refresh a few times (ctrl + F5). If there is still an issue then please email support so we can look into it further.

Byron-K21

Byron-K21

Hi Jason, My dashboard updates except for the lessons in chapter 22 of Rocket German. I'll email support as well. thanks, Byron
Stuart-B2

Stuart-B2

Love the new layout. I have experienced a few issues during the "write it" test on the language and culture lessons. Regardless of what the tutor says, it expects you to actually write the full explanation from the lesson. An example from Italian Premium 1.6: Tutor says "Centro" Computer expects you to write "centro (pronounced like CHen-tro)" Keep up the good work. Stuart
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Stuart - Yes, this is an issue we are looking at as soon as we can!

Stuart-B2

Stuart-B2

Thanks for the quick response, Jason. Keep up the good work. Stuart
Garry-P

Garry-P

Love the new 2014 edition. Only one thing not working. Vocab icon. Thanks Garry
Ozan-C

Ozan-C

where did you put the rocket progress bar? can't we know how much we've finished with this new release? I agree that ''writing'' is too much of a hurdle to go through the lessons for hindi learners and it's disappointing to have all the elemantary lessons gone through to pass the lessons you passed months ago.. I'm spending my lesson time struggling to try to write ''hello how are you'' in devanagiri alphabet... Most hindi speakers don't need to write hindi, it's enough if they know how to have daily conversations which is this lesson's actual offering. There must be some toggle to use this feature or not for the user...
David--418

David--418

Not sure if this stretches for all the languages, but i notice my notes for the R. German course are displayed without the Umlauts. Notes just display the US standard forms now (- [ ' ; / ), and the Umlaut selection boxes are missing for writing new notes.. New writing section a bit funky at the moment as suggested by others, but over all a writing test is surely welcome.
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Garry - The My Vocab icon is now working!

Hi Ozan - The progress Rocket has been removed and replaced by the new Dashboard layout. Over the next week we will add in the ability to manually rate a Test. In saying that Write it! acts as another reinforcement of the vocabulary. It really forces you to listen from my experience!

Hi David - Yes, there are a few issues with the umlauts that we are trying to work through!

Karen-S2

Karen-S2

I like the new layout, it makes navigating the lessons SO much easier! The Write It is excellent to have. I didn't do as well as I thought I would with the 'e' accents. Now I know I need to focus on them some more.
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Karen - Glad you like it. I have found Write it! good for testing my pronunciation of accented letters, as well as my actual writing. It makes one more aware of the subtleties in my opinion!

SisterLuna--

SisterLuna--

Do you have a guide for using the new 'write-it' accent keypad? I'm having trouble finding some of the required accents - for example i can't write 'A bientot' correctly. Nice work on the new layout! I think the study plan and 'write it' are brilliant additions. These were the two things i found were lacking for me before.
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi SisterLuna - There is a check box at the bottom left of the keyboard. When that is checked you can select the accent you want and then the letters that fit with that accent are highlighted. Select the letter you want the accent applied to and it should auto-magically appear!

SisterLuna--

SisterLuna--

Hi Jason, Thanks for the help! Think i've got the hang of it now.
eric-mcgough

eric-mcgough

Excellent Upgrade - Love the dash board and Write it! Write it works very well with my Korean Keyboard on Mac OS X. I also love the improvement in conversation transcript. The translations are all nice and close together. Much easier to read and study now. Great work Rocket Team!
grahame-r

grahame-r

Hi Jason. I have a problem of the grave accents appearing as numbers and symbols in the culture sections. I have tried hard pressing ctrl+f5 a number of times to no avail! They seem to be the phrases used under the pictures/photos used in the culture sections. Not a big problem, but may confuse new learners. Oh, and I have just read your blog on being such a small company. Fantastic! I must say you can all be proud at Rocket Languages of what you are doing. To compete with the big boys and come out on top. Keep it up. Ben fatto!
jason-oxenham-founder

jason-oxenham-founder

Hi Eric - I am glad you like it!

Hi Grahame - Do you mean the Language and Culture sections? Can you email a screenshot along with the lesson number/s to support @ rocketlanguages.com?

Rocket-Languages

Rocket-Languages

Hi Grahame, Thanks for your positive feedback - it's really appreciated! Thanks also for sending through the screenshot. The apostrophe you mentioned in lesson 12.5 has been fixed. Please don't hesitate to let us know if you see anything else. Thanks again!