2007-08-26 Not the worst piece of software out there...

...but close.

To start off with, the good point - it is cheap.

However, that's where the good stuff ends. It is so limited in it's scope that even a complete beginner will soon get all use out of this piece of software. Most importantly, the greatest downside of this package is that you are not learning French, but simply learning words in French. In other words, you are not learning grammar (and despite how much you may dislike the thought of grammar, it is the basis for any language programme) and how to construct sentences based around what you want to say. Instead, you are left with a number of predetermined phrases which - especially for the complete novice - is hardly the basis for communication.

Added to that is the fact that the program itself is simply awful - it looks dated, the sort of thing we would have expected from software from the mid-90s at best, and not something still being peddled in the 21st century. There doesn't seem to be a way of switching off the incredibly annoying sound effects, and you can't just switch off the sound completely as you need that hear how the words should sound.

My advice is to avoid this package, unless you have a spending compulsion, have spare money, and have a slight streak of masochism within you. Instead, get something like Beginner's French by Catrine Carpenter for about the same price (slightly less, in fact) which is better all round, includes a CD, and is a lot more portable. Believe me, you'll thank me later.