Learn Chinese Now 10.0

It's obvious that Learn Chinese Now 10.0 isn't the 10th version of a Chinese learning software line. Learn ... Now 10.0 appears to be the 10th version of a language framework set up so that they can easily churn out language software for a number of languages (preferably ones with Roman characters.)

In a nutshull, the product is organized as follows - there's one large text file with a decent amount of sentences in pinyin (romanization) used to demonstrate usage of common words. (Chinese characters aren't used as all in the main program.) You can listen to the text read in Chinese or click on the words to get an English translation. While this approach may be OK in building your vocabulary after you've studied Chinese for a while, it is definitely not for beginners (like me) and useless if you want to learn Chinese characters.

A better alternative I've found is Power Chinese (which also happens to be by Transparent Language). It is organized like an actual class, going step by step explaining Chinese grammar, tones and best of all, breaking down the drawing of Chinese characters so that you can understand what the pictures represent. Personally, I think Transparent Language should drop the Learn Chinese Now product line and instead focus on upgrading the Power Chinese line (which does look a little dated graphically).

The one positive feature of Learn Chinese Now is the Before You Know It (BYKI) program, included on the CD. It's a decent flash card program to help you learn vocabulary through several different exercises. (Unlike the main program, BYKI also has half of the words in actual Chinese characters.) BYKI also comes with a handy PocketPC app so that you can learn your vocabulary on the go. I've ended up using this app much more than the main program itself.