Product Description

Item #: K26970. Now you can learn French the easy way with the straightforward software that's been helping people learn foreign languages for more than a decade. Berlitz French Premier is fast, easy and effective. Guaranteed! With this unique, time-proven learning system, there are three powerful ways for you to learn French: (1) on your Windows PC or Macintosh, (2) in your car, and (3) on the go using an iPod or other mobile listening device. Product Description: Berlitz French Premier - complete package
Category: Education application
Subcategory: Education - language / reading
License Type: Complete package
License Qty: 1 user
License Pricing: Standard
Platform: Windows, MacOS
Package Type: Retail
OS Required: Microsoft Windows 98, Microsoft Windows 2000, Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition, Microsoft Windows XP, Apple MacOS X 10.2.8 or later
Customers also search for: Discount Berlitz French Premier - Complete Package, Buy Berlitz French Premier - Complete Package, Wholesale Berlitz French Premier - Complete Package, 0727298403411, ZFX, Education and Training

---

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1771 in Software
• Brand: Nova Development US
• Model: ZFX
• Released on: 2006-05-31
• Platforms: Windows 98, Windows 2000, Windows Me, Windows XP, Mac OS X
• Format: CD-ROM
• Dimensions: 1.18 pounds

Features

• Ideal for all levels; quickly move from beginner to advanced
• Straightforward software for learning French at home or on the go
• Total immersion; multimedia learning; flash-card system; speech analysis
• Complete French course on 4 audio CDs for learning while on the road
• Practice vocabulary using iPod or other MP3 player; innovative exercises

From the Manufacturer
Now you can learn French the easy way with the straightforward software that’s been helping people learn foreign languages for more than a decade. Berlitz French Premier is fast, easy, and effective. Guaranteed! With this unique, time-proven learning system, we’ve provided three powerful ways for you to learn French: (1) on your Windows PC or Macintosh, (2) in your car, and (3) on the go using an iPod or other mobile listening device.

Learn on Your Computer

Engaging Activities Mean You'll Learn Faster.

• Total immersion: learn by listening to actual conversations.
• Multimedia learning: enhance your knowledge by watching videos.
• Flash-card system: reinforce your learning with this proven method.
• Speech analysis: improve your pronunciation with practice conversations.

Learn in Your Car

A Comprehensive French Course on Four Berlitz Audio CDs
Learn in your car with a complete French course on four audio CDs. Berlitz makes it easy to improve your fluency while you're on the road.

Learn on the Go

Innovative iPod Exercises... and More
Practice your vocabulary using your iPod or other MP3 player. Test your proficiency with word lists that match the software.

Plus...

• Flash-card software for your Palm or Pocket PC
• Vocabulary-building screensaver
• And much more!

Ideal for All Levels

Beginner: get comfortable as a new learner by starting with the basics.

• Meeting and greeting
• Basic travel terms
• Numbers and money
• Colors
• Sightseeing

Intermediate: rapidly improve your pronunciation through conversation.

• Asking for directions
• Ordering a meal
• Shopping
• At the hotel
• Emergencies

Advanced: learn words and phrases that will make you sound like a native speaker.

• Office conversation
• Speaking on the phone
• An evening with friends
• Survival phrases
• And much more

For more than 125 years the Berlitz brand has been synonymous with effective foreign language learning. With learning centers spanning the globe, Berlitz has more satisfied graduates than any other program of its kind. And now Berlitz French Premier is guaranteed to make learning French easier and more fun than you ever imagined.

---

Customer Reviews

A huge disappointment
Though described on the box as "the complete French learning system," this severely disappointing cd-rom contains absolutely no formal instruction whatsoever. Instead, it lets you watch or listen to French conversations, with English translation provided alongside (in a rather clunky and outdated on-screen format), and then throws in some vocabulary flash cards and games to help you practice. If you have had formal French instruction before, this may serve as a useful refresher. But if you don't know how to conjugate a verb, this won't teach you -- it seems to hope you'll just pick it up by listening. Some people might prefer this approach -- it's probably more fun than a lesson-based approach, which feels more like high school, and if you learn better by immersion, this might be for you. But most people who learn it this way are likely to have serious trouble reproducing spoken or written French without making frequent, major mistakes. Either way, I simply cannot believe that there isn't more to this program. The package contains 8 cds, but only one is for PCs (the other seven include a Mac install, 4 audio cds, and software for palm pilots and mp3 players, which some people might find valuable). Those who prefer an immersion approach may still be disappointed at the options provided, as there are only four lengthy conversations to listen to, and only two of them seem to have video.

A good idea, but....
I agree with another critical reviewer that the on-screen part of this package isn't particularly well-organized. I did find the audio CDs helpful--went through the 20 lessons on all 4 CDS in about 3 months driving to school and back. But then what? I looked for a Berlitz package that would continue with lesson 21 and forward, but apparently there isn't any. I wrote to Berlitz customer service (which seems oriented toward expensive private or small group instruction), and didn't even get an answer. I'm going to try Rosetta Stone next. We'll see.

Oh, and another thing: it would have been helpful if there had been an a written translation of the audio CDS somewhere in the package. Sometimes there's a word I just don't get in the audio version and there's no way to find out what that word is.

Lastly, notice that this might not even be a Berlitz product--it may be that the name has been licensed by another software company. Not that this makes it better or worse. My feeling is that Berlitz itself may need to readdress its own mission. At one point in time there may have been no great alternative to in-person instruction, but these days the vast majority of language learners are probably going to learn with a computer program, at least through intermediate levels of language learning, and Berlitz really hasn't addressed that. If they don't they may go the way of $800.00 encyclopedia sets.

Horrible installation, excellent program
It was hell to install the product on Mac. It did hang up during the installation, and it wouldn't start afterwards.

I finally made it, and once I got it running it proved to be a very nice piece of software. A little buggy, but the resources, the included games, and this "immersion environment" is very good and enjoyable. If I plan to learn any other languages - I'll definitely buy Berlitz.

Two final pieces of information:
1. This course is good for people who know at least a little French. That was excellent for me.
2. My installation procedure on Mac. Follow the exact order.
- copy everything from CD onto your Hard Drive
- install "fonts"
- install "before you know it"
- install "learning system"
- check Applications/Berlitz Learning System
- copy everything from CD:/commons to Berlitz:/Media
- copy everything from CD:/titles to Berlitz:/Titles