Support - FAQ

What is the best way to use LanguageBob?
I cannot switch LanguageBob off / on?
I cannot find the Options to change the Language, etc?
Does it give accurate translations?
What about grammar?
By itself, is it enough to learn a language?
LanguageBob slows me down – what should I do?
Any new languages / language-pairs?
Does it work for Internet Explorer?
Why does LanguageBob only work for some websites?
Dying / Rare languages?

What is the best way to use LanguageBob?

Leave it on all the time and you will be drip-fed a language. You won’t learn much over a day … but over a year the accumulated learning is enormous.

You should not stop and figure out each foreign word. Read on. We learn best and easiest when we just let the context suggest the meaning; this is the way you learnt as a child. You did not stop and ask what every word meant – you just guessed and if the meaning wasn’t obvious you didn’t worry.

 I find LanguageBob works best when the highlighting option is switched off and I ignore the foreign words. This way it does not slow me down or interrupt me at all. (Obviously for very important and legal documents LanguageBob should be switched off).

I cannot switch LanguageBob off / on?

The LanguageBob icon is in the bottom right-hand corner of the browser. Simply click on it. When it is OFF there is an X on the icon. It may take a second to update the settings.

I cannot find the Options to change the Language, etc?

Right-click on the LanguageBob icon in the bottom right-hand corner of the browser.

Does it give accurate translations?

Mostly. Computer based translations are never fully accurate. LanguageBob translates words / phrases in isolation. It substitutes the most common translation of these words / phrases, but inevitably will sometimes get it wrong. The role of LanguageBob is to familiarise yourself with the words and phrases and their probable meaning.

What about grammar?

LanguageBob’s strength is in teaching /revising words and phrases. English word order is deliberately kept when individual words are translated, (e.g. the adjective comes before the noun). This enables you to read faster and more smoothly. Where we translate a phrase together we use the grammar of the foreign language. This is so that when you use the foreign phrase it should come out naturally with the proper grammar.

Note that adjectives do not agree with their nouns (unless as part of a phrase). Past participles are not made agree with their objects, etc.

By itself, is it enough to learn a language?

No, but it will help you enormously.

There is no substitute for a patient, native teacher. LanguageBob will help you along the way. It is also particularly brilliant at reinforcing what you have learnt and in keeping up a language.

LanguageBob slows me down – what should I do?

Try this … don’t try to figure out every word. Don’t stop … force yourself to read faster glossing over the foreign words, guessing their meaning. You may find this easier to do if you switch off the highlighting option. Lastly, you can also decrease the translation density in the Options menu.

Any new languages / language-pairs?

We hope to continuously add new languages you can learn / revise with LanguageBob. Visit the site regularly.

Does it work for Internet Explorer?

Not yet but we’re working on it… so in the meantime please install Firefox.

Why does LanguageBob only work for some websites?

Some websites have special encryption and some use a lot of java-script and other programming languages that do not function with LanguageBob.

Dying / Rare languages?

There is a story about a man from Donegal in Ireland who went through his whole life without repeating a single word! The spoken Irish language used to be very rich in vocabulary. However, true native speakers are now sparse and little is read in Irish. The used vocabulary continuously shrinks. Good Irish speakers wouldn’t know relatively common words like glee or ooze because 90% of their communication, especially written, is probably through English. They do not come across these words in Irish often enough to learn them. (Even if they do the people they are talking too won’t understand them!) Perhaps there is a role for LanguageBob to help sustain these languages and their vocabularies.