User Comments - Fiona@ChinesePod
Fiona@ChinesePod
Posted on: My Cell is Out of Juice!
August 19, 2016 at 6:11 AMYou've basically answered your own question there and you can think or 或者 and 或是 being the same. 
You might find these articles helpful for the difference between 还是 (asking questions) and 或者 (making statements).
Posted on: Trying to Cool Off During Summer
August 17, 2016 at 7:40 AMWe had a few issue publishing this lesson to the website, so the exercise and expansion sections are a bit smaller than normal. Apologies on behalf of the team.
Posted on: Asian Rainy Season
August 17, 2016 at 3:43 AMThe one with the "L" is indeed the published form, but both are common. When hand-writing you don't use the "L" form accept when doing calligraphy. If you're typing in pinyin, 直 will pop up most commonly.
Posted on: Department Store Announcements
August 17, 2016 at 3:37 AMThanks for spotting that. The notes should be updated now. The pinyin generation can be very finickity at times. We try our best to spot mistakes before they go out.
Posted on: My Cell is Out of Juice!
August 17, 2016 at 3:34 AMOops. I've updated the lesson notes now. Thanks you two.
Posted on: I Can't Finish My Food
August 17, 2016 at 3:26 AMHaha, that's funny. If you make it, pop a picture in the comments if possible :)
Posted on: Small Talk at a Leaving Party
August 16, 2016 at 2:49 AMHi Agustin!
Don't worry at all about looking ridiculous. If anything, if you are in this type of setting, your Chinese acquaintances will be very impressed that you understand this type of communication.
A lot of our users at this level, want to learn more formal Chinese that they can use at gatherings, business meetings etc.
A lot of the times, it not necessarily about being able to produce the language but being able to understand what going on. With a couple of key words, you can quickly figure out who is the senior and who is the junior. This could be key info if you are trying to strike a business deal.
I think this lesson is very representative of what I saw at business meetings in China/Taiwan.
I'm sure there is something you can take away from it. If you are interested in other topics, do email us and let us know! :)
Fi
Posted on: Small Talk at a Leaving Party
August 16, 2016 at 2:40 AMHi there!
This is a very standard way/format that native speakers use to introduce your name. For example, my Chinese name is 田欣. So my standard introduction, or when I am letting someone know my name over the phone, I would say "你好，我是田欣。田地的田、欣欣向荣的欣"
We go into it in way more detail in this QING WEN: Introduce Your Name Like a Native. I encourage you to check it out.
Fi
Posted on: Have You Done it Yet?
August 11, 2016 at 6:47 AMThe lesson notes and website comes with both simplified and traditional. Since most people learn simplified, and it's hard to get all character sets on screen at the same time (pinyin/English/trad/simp) we usually opt for simplified. However, in more recent shows, we include both since users request it.
Posted on: Killing Roaches
August 24, 2016 at 3:59 AMThat sounds like a horrifying scene, especially the thought of an old lady in rain boots stomping on them. Luckily we have cats, so any large ones that enter the house don't usually very get far. They struggle with catching mosquitos though.