Baka has $50 towards Learning Japanese

[WhoIsDaffy]

sorry cris

you can usually get free papers and crappy magazines full of adverts at a japanese food shop.

also most publishing houses will do international subscriptions,
i know IPC, NATmags FT etc. do

and you can probably get special offers if you look

[Harumaki]

Buy minna no nihongo level 1 books. That's it

[yuriyuri]

I'm all for self-study learning and trying to get by without too many explanations etc.
But honestly, if you try learning from newspapers etc from being a beginner, it will in most cases either:

A: Make you hate the language
B: Take an extremely long time to learn the basics
C: Get you speaking broken Japanese because of crappy assumptions you made when starting out

At least read Tae Kim's site.

Also when you can afford it, get a grammar dictionary.
Like this:
Amazon.com: A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar (9784789004541): Seiichi Makino, Michio Tsutsui: Books

Other than that, Japanese google is your friend, if you really want native material, search for it in Japanese and find something you like:
Google
(I'm assuming you can do this since you are confident you can learn from newspapers etc)

[BakaCrisis]

You all are idiots. Bye

[BakaCrisis]

YOu all seriously dont think this shit through.

Japanese people dont need any damn " LEarn japanese in 3 steps with an english book " Japanese people dont use rosetta stone damnnit.

Its something called immersion and I kind of got used to it in America.

Did you have a book in your childhood called " Learn English in 3 steps? " No you had an english class with an english book only about english.

I want a japanese book with Japanese words ONLY about Japan.

Yea, I've now resigned from this site.

[Nathan]

Originally Posted by BakaCrisis

YOu all seriously dont think this shit through.

Japanese people dont need any damn " LEarn japanese in 3 steps with an english book " Japanese people dont use rosetta stone damnnit.

Its something called immersion and I kind of got used to it in America.

Did you have a book in your childhood called " Learn English in 3 steps? " No you had an english class with an english book only about english.

I want a japanese book with Japanese words ONLY about Japan.

Yea, I've now resigned from this site.

I'm pretty sure you are the one not thinking things through sir.

You don't learn to read Japanese through picking up a newspaper. Were it that easy, anyone could do it.

No, I didn't have a book called 'Learn English in 3 steps' as a child. I had a whole community of native English speakers who taught it to me. I was surrounded by English on a constant basis. I didn't pick up a book in English and start reading it from the get go.

You may not have even looked at the resources people have linked you, because there are Japanese-only textbooks and sites out there. Hiragana Times, which Hatred linked, is a prime example.

A newspaper is not immersion. If you want immersion, you'll have to surround yourself with Japanese; meaning live / study in Japan.

Edit:
Browsing through the sites I linked more thoroughly, there are Japanese books / magazines and manga available, and by 'Japanese books' I mean books in Japanese, not the learning materials you are so adamantly against.

And if the Hiragana Times are too easy for you, you could always try other Japanese newspapers like The Daily Yomiuri.

[yuriyuri]

On the contrary it is you that has not thought this through.

You've been nothing but rude to people who have tried to help through this whole thread.
To be honest I'm surprised anyone helped you at all (Including myself)

Your right, you can learn through immersion only, and immersion is a great way to learn and pick new things up, but textbooks and dictionaries etc where created to give learners a kind of short cut.
I don't like textbooks and things like that myself, but to rule them out entirely is in my opinion shooting yourself in the foot.
The only books I use are grammar dictionaries (Since I hate textbooks so much)
No matter what you think it would probably be worthwhile investing in one.

But I guess if you want to shoot yourself in the foot... 十人十色 right?

Use Google.
That's all you will ever need.
Here is a search hint: Amazon
Since you are unwilling to accept any ones answers I'm surprised you came here at all.

Come back and show us your amazing Japanese... whenever that is.
Without using any form of English help it's going to be years.

[MMM]

Hatredcopter is right. A Japanese newspaper is useless in learning fundamental Japanese.

If you want to see Japanese in context, then the Internet is much cheaper and more accessible. There are even plug-ins in Firefox that show you the readings and meaning of kanji.

I would recommend being a little more appreciative of the answers people are giving you, or next time there may not be any.

[Hatredcopter]

Japanese people dont need any damn " LEarn japanese in 3 steps with an english book " Japanese people dont use rosetta stone damnnit.

You are not Japanese.

Its something called immersion and I kind of got used to it in America.

Immersion actually requires, you know.. being in Japan.

Did you have a book in your childhood called " Learn English in 3 steps? " No you had an english class with an english book only about english.

First language acquisition in the formative years (i.e. as a young child) and learning a second language as an adult are two entirely different things. And I can guarantee you 99.9% of every Japanese person in Japan who learns English learns it through a Japanese textbook that has both Japanese and English content in it.

I don't know if its an issue of pride, or if its an issue of just 'wanting to have Japanese stuff', but if you're actually sincere about learning Japanese, you'll find a class, tutor, textbook, or something. Materials like magazines and newspapers can be used as a supplement to your learning - but you'll never learn a thing with them all by themselves.

[komitsuki]

Originally Posted by BakaCrisis

I want the goods. A Japanese Newspaper is more effective than any english to japanese book you can get your hands on.

If it's possible to learn Japanese from scratch via newspapers (I totally doubt it), you'll have a very poor background on Japanese colloquialism. You'll be better off reading Japanese scholarly papers or go to an academic conference... instead of reading manga and novels, watching TV shows, or use Japanese in daily life situations.