Interesting links for Japanese learning

An Introduction to Modern Japanese: Volume 1 Grammar Lessons (preview provided by Google books):
http://books.google.com/books?id=Gu3k3eiOXWAC&pg=PA237&lpg=PA237&dq=kono+aida+in+a+sentence&source=bl&ots=h9X-rzbU4o&sig=Mk56nlGPRu8SOVJ29j-uDcEzdSA&hl=en&ei=OAhvStvQEdOBkQWcqtnHBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result

Nihongo Day by Day
Nihongo wa muzukashikunai!?
http://nihongo.blogzine.jp/blog/

Nihongo o naraitai! (I want to learn Nihongo!)

I have realized recently that I want to learn Nihongo again. Taking advantage of my borrowed Internet connection, I googled for some useful learning materials and tools. Google listed down a lot of links but here are the ones which I found more useful:

1. Past exams
http://jlpt.biz/jlpt/jlptexamine.do?year=2006&level=3
The above address can be modified to specify the year and the level of the past exam you want to view. For example, if I want to get the past exam for 2008 JLPT Level 2, I would type this address on my browser: http://jlpt.biz/jlpt/jlptexamine.do?year=2008&level=2.

2. MP3’s for listening (Choukai) practice
http://rapidshare.com/files/103826057/JLPT_3_Audio_1997-2006.rar
I wasn’t able to download from the above site due to the slow Internet connection I had awhile ago but I think this is worth checking out next time.

3. Online Kanji flashcards
http://www.speedanki.com/
The best online kanji flashcard site I found so far. It allows you to mark the flashcard of a particular kanji as “read”, “mastered”, etc. I haven’t used all of its features yet but I have a very good feeling this is going to be a very useful tool.

4. Offline Kanji flashcard application
http://ichi2.net/anki/
Can’t access the Internet all the time (like me )? Well, if you can access the Net at least once and you’re just itching to have those nifty Kanji flashcards, go to the above site and download your very own Anki application. I don’t know if the site is related to the one mentioned in number 3 but the free app it offers is quite handy especially when you don’t have an Internet connection.

One downside I found with this app is that you need to download the decks you’ll need for your Kanji practice. Not to worry, though. There are a number of sites offering free Kanji decks. This app can also be used for memorizing other stuff as long as you have a deck of those “stuff”, which the app will load for you to guess and remember. One use I can think of for this app is for memorizing the periodic table. If you can download a deck of cards with the periodic table symbol on the front and which will later flash the element name, atomic weight, number of the element in the table, etc., you’ll have a very nice tool for memorizing all the elements from hydrogen to unnilquadium (sp?) or whatever latest element the scientists have discovered now. Anyway, that’s just a thought. It’s not like I would be using the periodic table in my profession. Hehehe.

5. JLPT study guide
http://www.jlptstudy.com/
The most comprehensive JLPT study guide I have found so far. The site comes with vocab lists, kanji lists, and common expressions lists for each JLPT level, as well as some practice exams.

6. Some online books
Ever heard of Google Books? If you haven’t, you should check it out! Google Books is a huge collection of book titles, some of which have a limited preview (read: free chapters from books you would otherwise have to buy from Amazon). You can even create your own library of “limited-preview” books so that you won’t have to search for those books again the next time you have to login. You can use Google Books to look for Nihongo books whose publishers have the marketing sense and/or are kind enough to offer a limited preview. One such book is “Japanese for Busy People“. I’m sure you’ll find other interesting books–Nihongo-related or otherwise–once you start googling on Google Books.

Try Google Books! You would be amazed at how much (academic?) information you’ll have at your fingertips. And the best thing about it is…it’s free! That’s why I just love Google! I wish some publishers would offer a full view of their books, though. Well, it’s “business is business” for them, I guess.

That’s all for now. Nihongo no benkyou ganbarimashou! (Let’s do our best in our Nihongo study!)