Hello NAT-EDU and other interested parties:
I read with much interest the articles about the Winnebago using computers
for teaching their language to their children. I am currently working on a
similar project.
My wife and I started a computer consulting business: Muscupiabe Software,
and also do business under the names Muscupiabe Books, and Indigenous
Languages Project. Muscupiabe Software's income feeds us and the kids.
Muscupiabe Books' income supports the Indigenous Languages Project.
The Indigenous Languages Project deals with languages and other linguistic
information about languages native to the Western Hemisphere (although
primarily the United States, Canada, and Mexico).
A current project I (we) are working on is an interactive, instructional
CD-ROM for the IBM-compatible computer that helps teach a language to anyone
who is interested enough to try it out. We are working on our first
"electronic book," but once the first is finished, others should be able to
be produced fairly rapidly. Living in San Bernardino, California (Southern
California where Interstate 10 and Interstate 215 meet), our first book
will most likely be a Southern California language. However, we are interested
in any information we can gather on any language. Our e-book will be similar
to "Quick and Easy Spanish," a CD-ROM published by SoftBooks, Inc., in Lake
Forest, California. We plan on improving on the format of the Spanish
e-book when doing indigenous languages. We are including visual words,
spoken words by a native speaker (need a sound card for this), drawings and
photographs, and short video clips. Anybody with ideas on how we can make
a superior product is encouraged to send suggestions to:
CJCoker@CSUPomona.Edu
The indigenous languages of the world are not commercially viable, thus our
project is more a labor of love than anything else. If you speak a native
language or know of anyone who does that would be interested in helping us,
please let us know. We need all the contacts we can get, as well as
information on other similar projects. We also have a bulletin board system
that will be on-line shortly at (909) 882-7226 -- again, all income will
support the Indigenous Languages Project. (We don't get funding from
anywhere, this is all out of our own pockets. If you would like to make a
donation, our snail-mail address is: P.O. Box 2931, San Bernardino,
California 92406-2931.)
In case you are wondering about the word "Muscupiabe," there used to be a
Serrano village named Amuscupiabit on the site where our house now stands.
As I understand, the missionaries destroyed the village in an effort to
convert the inhabitants to Catholicism. This was around 1800 -- if anyone
wants more info, I'll get more and let you know.
Remember, when a language dies, so does a culture -- a peoples' history. No
matter where you are, you must support language projects such as the
Winnebago's and others.
Thank you for listening to my ramblings,
Chuck Coker
(Cherokee, working on getting a roll number)
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There have been no dragons in my life, only small spiders and stepping in gum.
I could have coped with the dragons.
Anonymous (but wise)
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