@addyaty ... I went there many years ago for Russian and I was Army. Actually, I DLI at Presido was overcrowded and they were building new barracks so a few classes, mine among them, were sent to a branch campus set up at Lackland, AFB where you're going for Basic and where the Army had its English language school for foreigners. So while I missed out on glamor of Presido, I can't complain because the instruction at Lackland was excellent and I enjoyed being there. As a side note, our graduates performed better at the next phase training, especially on military terminology and listening comprehension.

DLI was one of the few schools that I went in the military that wouldn't keep giving you shot after shot to pass. We had a 50% washout rate. The class was composed of Army and AF personnel. We started with 128 and graduated 64. It was 48 weeks with a 4-week break at the mid-point so we could use our leave time.

All I can tell you is that you if you begin to flounder, get help fast. Go to the instructors and ask for some one-on-one time after class. I imagine nowadays that they're much more high-tech than when I was there. I'm guessing that you can have CDs made to listen to in your room. I don't know what language you have, but we had a few sergeants who were come thru for their second language. I remember one in particular who had been thru DLI for German and was coming thru for Russian ... He didn't make it. If you're taking a language that you're not familiar with already, don't assume that you'll have an easier time just because you already have a second language. It'll be a good time and you'll always remember it ... Good luck!

Ready Reckoners were tables for financial calculations ... I think that would apply nowadays more to calculators. I know that my old textbooks from my university days has financial tables in the back. I wonder if they still print those tables?

But you did stirr an old memory from my early tech days and sure enough, I found it ... Claude Kagan had a proposal for what he called the "Home Reckoner" or "HR"back about 50 years ago. http://www.retrotechnology.com/dri/thehomereckoner.pdf

I think he got the idea for the name from Jules Vernes story. Who, in turn, probably knew about a device called the Step Reckoner.

The verb reckon has a broader meaning than simply to calculate so if I were trying to peg a word for a computer then "reckoner" would probably be it. Oh well ... What could have been ...

Spanish has "ordenador" and maybe they use that in Spain but in Latin America I see "computadora" ... and sometimes hear "el computer".

The people that I know from Quebec use computer ... France probably has an official French word for it.

German has "Rechnung" and "Computer" ... Computer is common among my friends.

Since you speak Russian ... компьютер

I'm sure that their are some holdouts around the world! lol

The problem now would be to accurately describe it. (Three words there that need Anglish words ... problem, describe, accurately).

I can do math, write, draw, communicate (written, sound, and sight) with it ... So, what is it? What would you call it if you didn't already have a name for it?

One more thing ... I feel like I should have taken notes along the way. I did go to the Anglish wiki site and looked around. It's not very user friendly for discussion and debating ... and there doesn't seem to be a lot of debating the terms. And I don't know if there is some method of making a decision on what goes and what stays.

I picked the word battle and here what is listed:
Non-attested:
hurly-burly
clash
struggle

*** Hurly-burly? WTF? Clash ... Maybe. Struggle ... Doesn't have the intensity for me of two armies on a battle field.

Attested:
bedlake ... ?
bedew ...?
hild ... OE word that I recognize. I don't know OE well enough to know if this is a good use. But it wouldn't be something instantly recognizable.

One that I didn't see "camp" or maybe "kamp" from OE for battle ... similar to German "Kampf". But a "campfield" (battlefield) could be confused with a campground ... at least spelling it "kampfield" would help there. Maybe "clashfield" or "clashground" would indeed work. Oh well, I like the word battle so I guess I'll keep some form of it tho I could use clash as a verb.

Loan words that I would keep ... A lot actually.

1. Computer ... I don't know who used it first but US companies like IBM and Apple have taken it and exported it to the world in its current use. We own it now! No sense in trying to go back to yank it out and create yet another word. Besides, it has spun off some English words into other languages. You can see ads in Latin America for "el laptop" and "el notebook" ... libre wi-fi!

2. Military terms. I'm a vet and let's face it. The French-based ranks is widespread and engrained ... especially the officer ranks. Even Germany has Leutnant, Major, and General ... as do the Russians. The military is heavily influenced by French military terms and you're not going to change that institution.

3. As I said before, I don't have a problem with Greek derived words, especially scientific words. I know what a hydrogen atom is. While I know that hydro means water and gen is basically "born of" or "created from", I don't associate the hydrogen atom with directly with water except that I know it is part of the compound of water H20. But the German way of saying it Wasserstoff (water stuff) strikes me as almost childlike and bangs one on the head that that is "water" ... yes, I know that hydro means water but doesn't slap me in the face like "water stuff" would.

To calque economy into English would only make sense on the personal (home/house management) but not on a grander scale. And to calque ecology wouldn't make any sense. Just accept them. If you can't find a better word then just use them.

What an interesting thread! Ængelfolc you should certainly have your own blog for Ænglisc.

While I do fault academia for encouraging the use of Latin and Greek based words, it's probably not for the reason that many think. Actually, it's pretty simple. I had to write a lot of term papers and research papers that usually had a length requirement of X pages. Well heck, why use often and talk when I could use a longer words like frequently and conversation to push me towards that minimum page limit ... and those 50-cent words sounded more impressive. So one becomes used to do that! And once I gained a reputation for being able to write well using those 50-cent words, then the boss always came to me to either write a proposal or proofread something he had written.

But nowadays, I try to stay clear of Latinates. Strangely, I have no issue with Greek based words. Sometimes I think I was a Greek soldier in a previous life. I even learn a little Greek years ago.

I should mention that I am "conversant" ... meaning not fluent but able to talk if the other person speaks slowly and clearly ... and keeps the words simple in Russian, German, and Spanish. I learned Russian at the Defense Language Institute; learned German while living in Berlin, and Spanish while living in Latin America.

I often help others learn English and have even aided in a few professional translations. One of the things that I point out is that the basic English likes short words and to build other words using them similar to German. Having said that, it's very hard for me to keep away from Latinates and I don't think that one can teach latter-day English without them.