Features

• Ultimate guide to live, local weather conditions across the U.S.
• Data from one of 8,000 tracking stations; view 6 locations at once
• Access to up to 30 live, local weather cameras
• Severe weather alerts; interactive travel map to check forecast
• Ability to set up 13 unique weather alerts; air quality and UV index reports

Reviews (74)

Love it
I realy enjoy WeatherBug, because everything is local. I live in Baltimore and my favorite local TV station is ABC2, which has the best weather report in my mind. I saw WeatherBug and ABC2 use the same weather stations and share radar and forecast. I don't know what relationship they have, but they certainly help me to prepare for the day...

Major Disappointment
Our new WeatherBug Plus is apparently permanently in ad-supported mode.A local television station is advertised in the upper right-hand corner of the program. A first email to customer support garnered a response complete with a place from which to redownload the program, which did nothing to solve the program, nor did I need this information since I have the program on CD anyway.

One week later I am still waiting to hear a response to my second email; the ad is still there.In sum, it is NOT ad-free insofar as I can tell, and customer support has turned out to be useless.Perhaps all Plus-versions have some advertising despite their claims.Beats me!

So if you don't mind the ads, buy it, but ours is going back to the store.

We use WeatherBug in our School
We have a WeatherBug weather station on our school's roof, we also use WeatherBug in our class. I am the Weatherman for every Monday. I make the prediction right 90% of the times.

Wonderful program to have
I Love weather bug. It keeps me updated on weather even when I can't see the news. Gives alerts of servere weather and is customizable. What refer this program to anyone.

Weatherbug Plus
By far the best weather software I've found!! Gives you everything, including severe weather alerts, in a very timely manner.
GREAT STUFF!! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

This unconventional language-learning series offers games and quizzes that make the learning process fun, relaxing, and, as such, more successful. Ideal for beginners, Talk Now! Arabic includes such topics as vocabulary, phrases, culture, and more. A handy print and picture dictionary produces entries with both text and pictorial references. This interactive software title also features a recording tool, so you can compare your pronunciation to that of native speakers (microphone required). Quizzes and a challenging memory game let you test your newly acquired skills. You can also track your scores and print awards to celebrate. Best of all, you can change Talk Now! Arabic's onscreen help and menus to the language of your choice. With more than 70 languages from which to choose, this software makes learning Arabic accessible to everyone. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Great piece of Sw
This one is really great, illustrates words ,clear pronunciation. Enriches vocabulary. The only draw back is that it does not have phrases. Has also games. I bought the Arabic, Russian, and I am planning to buy the French and Italian. WOW .. Learning languages has never been easier. I got mine from Software outlet for 9.99. Comes only the CD.. why do I need a retail package for?

learnin
hello

at first i must to say that i m very glad to find this place
my language is persion and know arabic and english language little but i want to study and learn most.

english language learning is important than arabic for me
if it possible i want to translate from english to arabic language .

This product is not helpful.
This product does not help at all. Sure it does help you learn a couple of words, but why spend money on something you can find on the internet?

Eurotalk's Fun program for Folks who know basic Arabic
If you have at least a beginner's knowledge of spoken Arabic,this delightful language program is for you.
Spin the wheel and choose your game-in Arabic,of course!!
Fast-moving and addictive,you move from one game to the next,increasing your vocabulary and understanding of the language.
This program does not focus on the Arabic alphabet ;if you find the Arabic letters intimidating at all-this will work for you.

Good for beginners
This is a very simple and easy to use Arabic learning software with a lot of graphics and sounds. I would recommend for beginner students of Arabic. It would give you a basic vocabulary in no time. ... Read more

Features

• Comprehensive interactive language learning; ideal for beginners
• Easy and hard quizzes, plus a challenging memory game
• Compare yourself with native speakers; monitor progress
• Topics include phrases, food, shopping, telling time, and more
• On-screen help available in over 75 languages; printable dictionary

Reviews (2)

Save Your Money!
If you're interested in actually LEARNING Farsi (Persian), this software program is NOT the resource to turn to. While Eurotalk deserves five stars for their incredibly user-friendly lesson interface, this program consists of nothing more than quick snippet lines for business travellers who need enough to survive 2-3 days on an overseas trip (i.e. "Where is the hotel?" "Can you direct me to a phone?" etc. etc). The only redeeming feature of this program is that a user can actually hear Farsi being spoken (and thus get an idea as to lingual sounds). See ya...

Talk Now! Farsi
The program is great and very helpful. It has a printable dictionary for each section as well as a portion of each section where you use a microphone to speak the words being taught to help you say everything properly! I love the program itself, the only downfall is that you'll really like it and when you want to move to intermediate and advanced you find that the publisher doesn't have Farsi for either of those!! I think it's pretty sad that they start you off and then don't have Farsi in intermediate or advanced but at thelst the beginner's program is great! ... Read more

Amazon.com Review

Instant Immersion English Pro is a comprehensive seven-CD suite ofprograms and utilities designed to teach the fundamentals of the Englishlanguage. Ideal for English newcomers who want to grasp the basics andEnglish-speaking children who need to improve their skills, English Proinstructs by immediately immersing its students in common conversational andwritten English. It's important to note that this is not a structured course asmuch as a wide-ranging and often entertaining supplement to standard learningprocesses. Questionably organized and not without its flaws, English Pro shouldnevertheless make a valuable companion to those who find classes andinstructional books somewhat dry.

The central component of the package is the four-CD Tell Me More collection.Consisting of a single installation disc and three increasingly challenging"lesson" CDs, Tell Me More is a multimedia extravaganza of video snippets, stillphotographs, interactive dialogue, written and verbal exercises, and edutainmentgames. Intended only for those who speak Spanish, French, Italian, Dutch,German, and English, the program offers everything from strict text-basedphonetics and conjugation instruction to lighthearted games of hangman andfill in the blanks, wherein incorrect answers generate a chorus of boos andproper responses prompt wild applause. Unfortunately, Tell Me More does notalways understand the spoken word as well as it should, and therefore may awardaverage or failing scores for perfectly enunciated passages. Furthermore, theprogram's many interfaces are not particularly easy to navigate.

Such is not the case with English Vocabulary Builder, a single-CD applicationstructured for total rookies and especially appealing to children. With itsuncomplicated flash card format, warm and fuzzy illustrations, enthusiasticverbal delivery, and customized printable certificates, this is a greatbeginner's tool and a lot of fun to boot.

Two other CDs complete the collection. The first, English Plus, works in similarfashion to Tell Me More but is substantially less interesting and versatile. Thematerial seems sensible and the instructors do enunciate clearly, yet itsmouse-heavy navigation is dated and its sense of repetition when compared toTell Me More is quite obvious. The seventh and final disc, Road to Citizenship,is not a full-blown language tutor but a primer for those who want to becomecitizens of the U.S. Updated in 2001, Road to Citizenship helps determineeligibility, offers numerous governmental contacts, and even teaches users howto read and speak some of the most common naturalization interview questions.

Instant Immersion English Pro delivers a wealth of material for a budget price.Despite its foibles, there's still very much to like in this instructional yetentertaining language tutor. --Gordon Goble ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Total Junk
This product is total junk. I bought this not too long ago and realized what a big mistake that was. This software has a funny interface that is not at all user friendly. Hard to get around things, totally non-intutive. Waste of money.

Other reviewers were right!
When I bought home the 7 CD pack, I opened it immediately. I just wanted to know how the vocabulary builder helps an average english speaking adult, like myself.

I tried the CD 5, a vocabulary builder. I realized it was for real rookies (read: grade 1 kids). The flash cards had cards for such mundane words like: eating, drinking, supermarket, trees etc... hope you are getting the drift. At about 200 words/flash cards maximum - taught through 9 different entry points, the content doesn't justify 600+MB of space it occupied on the CD (Remember Microsoft Encarta originally came in 1 CD). Amazing is that how they wasted valuable space to store .wav files for nearly 3 dozen languages to teach from! As noted by other reviewers, this is a hotchpotch collection. If this is what I sampled, I am not even wasting my time opening other CDs.

You are better off reading books.

this program is clumsy
I brought this program for my relaitves who came from India and I found it very clumsy and difficult to navigate and use. The applications on the different CDs are not cohesive and I find the whole process of using the applications difficult to use 1) I can't click on the different options too well 2) It teaches only very basic sentences 3) Does not teach any grammar. I was better off teaching my relatives by myself.

Don't buy this program!
This program is terribly unfriendly to the first time user. I speak perfect English and it gave me fits. I pity the fool who doesn't speak English and tries to use this. It requires the patience of Job. Actually this is not at all a unified program, but several separate programs offered as a unit. When you try to install it, it wants to change your computer. I had to uninstall everything after making the mistake of letting the program adjust the computer's resolution. It forced me to reinstall Windows before I could get it to work at all. Disk 1 is for instalation only, to work disks 2, 3, and 4. Don't think you learned anything when you finish #4. Numbers 5, 6 and 7 are completely different and you have to start from scratch with each one, if you haven't thrown the whole thing out by then. If the producers of this product had any sense, they would have built some uniformity into the program to make it easy to install and use, put good labels on the icons to describe each action, and made it flow with easy to follow progression instead of the chaos they provided. Bad, worse and terrible describe this program. And you can tell them I said so.

Plus See; Minus Touch
I am not a native speaker of English living in the US since a couple of months, and I am still learning English. My teachers say I am smart enough to learn English very quickly, and I could teach my native language to Americans. Well, I believe these CDs are what I want, but I cannot afford to buy them now, because I spent some money on buying a book on language from amazon.com (the best web site for such stuff) yesterday. I can just see the CDs on your web site and dream of having them in my hands some day. I wonder when this dream is gonna be come true. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

This English-French talking dictionary is designed for anyone who needs to use English or French, from the beginning student to the language professional. The dictionary comes with a set of tools for speedy look-up of any words, checking their meaning and pronunciation, and verifying translations of any text on the computer. The variety of settings and levels makes the software simple and straightforward to use.

The Shooting Gallery exercise helps the user learn new words more quickly. The program offers different levels of difficulty and different word ranges to suit the language level, including the 500/1,000/1,500/2,000/2,500/3,000 most commonly used words. The crossword puzzles included in the software are never repeated, and are also offered in various levels of difficulty.

The AudioPad module is designed to teach correct pronunciation. With the help of AudioPad, the learner can listen to the original speech of a professional native speaker and also record and listen to his or her own speech. In addition, each sound fragment is graphically displayed, which makes practicing more vivid and helps the user to imitate all nuances of the pronunciation with greater precision. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Collins English/French Talking Dictionary
This dictionary is everything I hoped it would be. First, it is the standard Collins dictionary in electronic format. It includes parts of speech and multiple definitions for the word. Liberal use of color in the definitions make it easy to distinguish usage description versus French words versus English words. As in most bilingual dictionaries, only a few of the verb conjugations, mostly past participles, are listed. Therefore, these French language words cannot be found.

The audio quality of the native speaker's pronunciation is very good and includes singular and plural pronunciations. The audio files take about 500 Mb and are normally left on the CD-ROM. It can take from one to five to access them. The IPA phonetics is the first entry for the word. The audio is also very helpful for learning to pronounce IPA sounds.

The user interface is easy enough to learn with the teaching demo. Highlighting a word and dropping it on the "Trap" icon instantly opens the dictionary to the correct word. Right clicking on the word copies it to a word list for later review. I love this feature. The crossword and shooting games also key off of this list.

This is a great product and a great learning tool. The latest update can be downloaded from Intense Learning Office's web site, so one does not have to worry about buying the latest version.

Useful Tool
For a person who is taking a French 101 course, this dictionary is a valuable tool. One of its greatest features is the fact that it "talks," allowing you to familiarize yourself with the French language. The big downside is that the interface itself is not very aesthetically pleasing: a drab gray background (the same color as your browser's "framework") with arial font. At the top of the program window are two tabs, one that reads "French-English," the other "English-French." Not surprisingly, this allows for reverse look-up, itself rather useful.

The word at the top of the list--whether selected by typing or by scrolling--is always bolded in red, the parts of speech in yellow, various phrases in dark blue, pronunciations in green, purple for associated French words, and the list of words (except the one selected) in royal blue. Right clicking on any word--whether in the definition or elsewhere--acts as a hyperlink, taking you to its definition. Right clicking on the speaker icon calls up "Audio Pad": a small window opens that allows you to record your own voice next to the one provided by the dictionary to perfect your pronunciations.

To get a sample of the quality of definitions before you buy, you can access the Collins French-English dictionary online at ....., identical to the software in terms of content. The online version does not, however, offer the audio pronunciations, though it is more aesthetically pleasing, a nice white background with real hyperlinks and most letters in black for high contrast readability, unlike the drab gray program that looks like something developed between DOS and Windows 3.0.

Whatever a person may think of its appearance, purchasing this software is invaluable primarily because of its many sound files (taking the relative quality of its definitions as a given). I would recommend it to the struggling student, though it might not be the best tool to use as a "stand-alone" to learn the language: it should be supplemented by other learning resources. (At the very least, one should also make use of Laura K. Lawless's French website at ...... it has a number of lessons and audio files to aid anyone from beginner to expert, though if you don't have pop-up blocking software, you might want to download the free Google toolbar first ......as About.com sites are notorious for their annoying ads.) As an aside, the Collin's French-English Talking Dictionary also comes with a "shooting gallery" and a crossword puzzle feature, both of which will help one learn even if they are not quite on a par with the appeal 3D animation and stunning effects hold for those entranced by the gaming industry. :)

In conclusion, it may not be the best software ever developed, but for the price it is reliable and useful and the content itself is of quality. The main thing is that it is just a bit ugly. Whatever the case, it could very well mean the difference between that A or B in the class: if I were you and I were wavering between buying or not, I would go ahead and take the plunge. Even if it isn't everything you thought it might be, it certainly isn't going to hurt you any and in the end it just might help. Go ahead. Jump in. :)

Essential for the student of French
I bought this book for use with my self-study aids, and I can't tell you how invaluable it is. For one thing, it is so handy to have on my computer while I'm surfing through French websites and come across a word I don't know. It's greatest value to me, however, has been the pronunciation. I had opted to study using a college textbook (used, no audio CDs) and workbooks rather than purely audio sets like Pimsleur et al., and my only exposure to hearing French speakers was software, a few DVDs, internet radio, and this. This is by far the most helpful aspect of this software. Now, I often get compliments on my french accent, and I owe most of it to this program. One warning: this program is not a translator. If you don't speak any French, this program is not going to help you navigate through foreign websites or newspapers, particularly if you don't know which words are verbs and which aren't.

It's worth noting that you will not find all of the verbs' many variations on this program (you will find "manger" of course, but not (tu) manges (indicatif), (je) mangais (l'imparfait) etc. As a student, or fluent speaker of French, it is up to you to recognize what verb is being used...then you must look up the verb in its infinitive form (-er, -re, -ir, etc.) It does have entries (and mercifully) pronunciations for some common or unusual variants that could otherwise stump the self-studier, like (j) "aille," (present subjunctive for aller) or (il) "faille." Again, the biggest help is the pronunciation.

In sum, if you are in need of a handy computer dictionary that is faster to access and use than a book, you might want to think about this program. If you are studying the language by yourself, I can't imagine how you'd live without it. ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

Now you can learn a new language with the award-winning method used by the U.S. State Department to train diplomats. Proven effective by NASA astronauts, Peace Corps volunteers, and millions of students worldwide, the Rosetta Stone Language Library teaches new languages faster and easier than ever before.

We all learn our childhood language by associating new words and phrases with the world around us. The Rosetta Stone method replicates this process by presenting vivid, real-life images to convey the meaning of each new phrase. Instead of translating, memorizing, and studying rules of grammar, you actually learn to think in the new language. Vocabulary and grammar are integrated systematically, leading to everyday proficiency. It's the natural way to learn.

The Rosetta Stone Explorer contains 22 lessons for beginning learners with nearly 900 real-life images and phrases spoken by native speakers. It develops all key language skills--listening comprehension, reading, speaking, and writing--while its systematic structure teaches vocabulary and grammar naturally, without lists and drills. Includes previews, exercises, and tests for every lesson, with automated tutorials throughout the program. (Ages 6 and older) ... Read more

Features

• Multimedia encyclopedia and feature-rich reference tools
• New Encarta search bar; New online Math Center
• Kids section; video content from Discovery Channel
• Visual browser facilitates easier navigation among articles
• Complete learning resource for students aged 7 and older

Reviews (1)

A whole new way to learn spanish!
This program takes spanish language learning software to a whole new level. Advanced spanish is an appropriate title for this program since It literally immerses you in the language with an actual spanish soap opera episode. You can practice in a number of ways, as well as take quizzes. Some of the activities include a visually based vocabulary program. In this area of the software the program shows you a still from the movie with an object circled and you name the word in spanish. Others include listening for the missing word in a conversation- harder than it sounds. You can watch the movie with and without spanish subtitles so you can follow along with the script or try to watch it without. Some minor- very minor- technical glitches not really affecting the operation of the program or use of it prevent me from giving this a full 5 stars. But a really great, well rounded buy! ... Read more

Amazon.com Product Description

This English-German talking dictionary is designed for anyone who needs to use English or German, from the beginning student to the language professional. The dictionary comes with a set of tools for speedy look-up of any words, checking their meaning and pronunciation, and verifying translations of any text on the computer. The variety of settings and levels makes the software simple and straightforward to use.

The Shooting Gallery exercise helps the user learn new words more quickly. The program offers different levels of difficulty and different word ranges to suit the language level, including the 500/1,000/1,500/2,000/2,500/3,000 most commonly used words. The crossword puzzles included in the software are never repeated, and are also offered in various levels of difficulty.

The AudioPad module is designed to teach correct pronunciation. With the help of AudioPad, the learner can listen to the original speech of a professional native speaker and also record and listen to his or her own speech. In addition, each sound fragment is graphically displayed, which makes practicing more vivid and helps the user to imitate all nuances of the pronunciation with greater precision. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Face your mistakes and try to improve by playing!
This item offers a basic bilingual dictionary and some tricky games as well.
By using the dictionary, the first thing that catches your attention is the grey background on which bright words in yellow, blue, green, violet and red lie to be read. All entries have IPA transcriptions in bright green, and a yellow loudspeaker offers their pronunciations. Useful information follow in dark blue.
If you think to be extremely good at a foreign language, just try the crosswords, but mind you, if you are unable to finish them and you click on the white flag, a voice will tell you how bad you are! So, I'll advise you to start with the "learning mode" where a list of terms appears for you to study - and you not only get their translations, but also their meanings and pronunciations. Once you have studied the list of terms, you are ready to try the crosswords as well as the "shooting gallery," a game where you have to type quite fast the translations of the words shown in green on a blackboard. The software continues to repeat the game till you have memorized all the words. If you do it well, you'll get some applause.
The software recognizes different users, and you can sign in your name to have your efforts memorized and displayed in colourful graphs!
I'll advise all foreign languages students to try it. It's a way to improve their knowledge by means of interesting and quite difficult games.

A fine dictionary, you get what you pay for
This dictionary has it all it helps one with grammar and sentence structure, The pages are thick and the font is very easy to read. ... Read more

Features

• Multiple games and quizzes introduce basic elements of Kurdish culture, while explaining simple words & phrases
• Fun quizzes and challenging Memory games will reinforce learning
• Handy print & picture dictionary with both text and pictures to help you look up unfamiliar words
• Recording tools let you record your own voice, to compare pronunciation with a native Kurdish speaker
• Track your abilities and measure your progress, for greater improvement - you can even print out special certificates to prove you completed the Program

Features

• Total coverage of 6.5 million towns, cities & streets --as well as 4 million points of interest
• Add your own addresses to any map -- just add a symbol and you've marked an important point of interest
• The interactive legend modifies your maps to suit your personal needs or tastes
• Identify which roads you should take when avoiding roadblocks -- the built-in route calculator handles it for you
• Fully GPS compatible - connect your GPS to your serial port and always know exactly where you are

Features

• Comprehensive interactive language learning; ideal for beginners
• Easy and hard quizzes, plus a challenging memory game
• Compare yourself with native speakers; monitor progress
• Topics include phrases, food, shopping, telling time, and more
• On-screen help available in over 75 languages; printable dictionary

Amazon.com Review

Business users seeking the shortest route between two points-of-purchase should examine Microsoft MapPoint 2002. It has all the standard features a business map user would expect--place finder, route planner, mileage calculator, and so on--but also permits extensive data manipulation throughout the United States and Canada.

Installation is a breeze, and setting up the program to any user's specifications should take only a few minutes to a few hours, depending on the nature of imported data. Once it's running, MapPoint will pay for itself quickly with improved sales and marketing reports, trip planning, and projections. The interface will be intimately familiar to Office users, so importing and exporting files and data is painless. The look and feel of other Office-suite programs is preserved--the learning curve of nonstandard tools and features is quite gentle.

One extremely powerful new feature is territory creation, which allows user-defined, overlaying boundaries that are simple to create manually or compose from pre-existing data. Combining territorial categories with the vast reams of census and demographic data contained within MapPoint should yield plenty of fresh business ideas. Nonbusiness users should pick up some much cheaper trip planning software; the most expensive features of MapPoint will offer little of value to them. --Rob Lightner ... Read more

Reviews (21)

Microsoft helps you find your way!
I am very impressed with Microsoft's newest MapPoint edition. We have been able to illustrate office locations, insert maps onto our website, and send directions/maps as attachments via e-mail.

A terrific product for the consumer market.

Only worth it for the business features
This product has all the same features as Microsoft Streets and Trips 2001. And for the average home user, that is all you need as the price is significantly lower. What you're paying for with MapPoint is all the data features. It analyzes business info and puts them on a map (usually through an Excel spreadsheet). It also has some more web collaboration features than the standard version.

Unless you are going to seriously use a program to analyze business needs (e.g. where customers are coming from, where you should put a store, etc.), it's not worth it. (It does make some pretty maps and graphs, though.) I would have never bought the program in the first place, but I got it as a promotional sample from Microsoft. I like it, but I will probably never use most of the data tools.

On the mapping side, it's great. Read some of the reviews over for streets and trips and you'll see what a great program it is. MapPoint does all the same things.

(For those who care, this product does not use the controversial product activation sequence as other office 2002/xp programs do.)

Could be better
Very flashy but falls short in several areas. You can't define specific villages or cities for display. You can get around it by cobbling together small areas within the town (blocks) but why should you have to? I'd like to be able to say draw me X, Y and Z village. Then draw my county, etc. The maps are in a comic quality making it hard to use for presentation purposes. Really just good for checking out areas, not for real business needs. I miss the more [costly] packages.

I suppose it's okay.....
If it's what you need, it may work well. Unfortunately, it was a waste of money for my company and our needs. We need to be able to define worldwide territories as well as a few within the US, and it wouldn't do both. Importing from an Excel file would not work for both the US and other international regions. Further, it took up nearly a full gigabyte of hard drive.

Excellent mapping product but... with one exception.
I have used MapPoint for about three years now and I just upgraded. Overall, it is an excellent, full-featured product that is very intuitive and easy to use.

I use MapPoint along with a full-blown professional ArcView-based GIS system. I find that MapPoint allows me to perform "quick and dirty" and relatively simple GIS tasks without having to get into the more complicated and time consuming - albeit more capable - ArcView GIS system.

Truth is, I could probably rely completely on MapPoint except for one shortfall in the program. You can only create customized boundaries based on the pre-existing included boundaries (Census Tracts, Zip Code areas, etc.).

For example, rather than being able to go in and create a boundary around a neighborhood, I have to conform this "custom" boundary to something like Zip code boundaries or census tracts, etc. that are inluded in MapPoint.

Microsoft, include this feature in MapPoint 2003 and you will get 10-stars! ... Read more

Features

• Comprehensive interactive language learning; ideal for beginners
• Easy and hard quizzes, plus a challenging memory game
• Compare yourself with native speakers; monitor progress
• Topics include phrases, food, shopping, telling time, and more
• On-screen help available in over 75 languages; printable dictionary

Amazon.com Product Description

This unconventional language-learning series offers games and quizzesthat make the learning process fun, relaxing, and, as such, more successful.Ideal for beginners, Talk Now! Swedish includes such topics as vocabulary,phrases, culture, and more. A handy print and picture dictionary producesentries with both text and pictorial references. This interactive software titlealso features a recording tool, so you can compare your pronunciation to that ofnative speakers (microphone required). Quizzes and a challenging memory game letyou test your newly acquired skills. You can also track your scores and printawards to celebrate. Best of all, you can change Talk Now! Swedish's onscreenhelp and menus to the language of your choice. With more than 70 languages fromwhich to choose, this software makes learning Swedish accessible to everyone. ... Read more

Features

• Swedish language learning software
• Study vocabulary, phrases, culture, and more
• Recording tool lets you practice with native speakers
• Games and challenging quizzes make learning fun
• On-screen help available in more than 70 languages

Reviews (2)

not recommended
I read the online reviews of this product and thought it looked good or at least good enough. It isn't.

The image editing is incredibly jerky and the actors' smiles are downright creepy when seen time and time and time again! (Were the option available to exclude the actors from the screen while still hearing them speak, it would be a better product.)

Though some of the vocabulary presented may be useful, the content of the CD does not offer much in the way of sentence or phrase help.

When you just need to hear it...
I was having a great deal of trouble learning Swedish from books because I just couldn't "hear" it inside my head. A friend of mine loaned me this CD and it helped a great deal to get past that challenge. It is a very simple program and there isn't much depth, but I did find it useful because (as Swedish is uncommon here in rural New York) I needed to hear phrases to orient myself. The vocabulary and phrases taught are primarily for tourists. I would rate it higher if the price were just a bit lower, more in line with it's true value. ... Read more

Features

• Comprehensive interactive language learning; ideal for beginners
• Easy and hard quizzes, plus a challenging memory game
• Compare yourself with native speakers; monitor progress
• Topics include phrases, food, shopping, telling time, and more
• On-screen help available in over 75 languages; printable dictionary

Reviews (1)

Talk Now Urdu
The Talk Now series is good because they are available in almost any language you can think of. It's one of the few available in Urdu. As for really learning the language, Talk Now falls short. It completely neglects teaching grammar and verb tenses. It teaches many nouns, but is lacking in adjectives and verbs. The only section where you learn any kind sentences is the "phrases" section, but without any knowlege of sentece structure, I had a hard time figuring out all the words of each sentence.
It also doesn't convey Indian or Pakastani culture. For example, half the words in the "food" secition are english. The abundance of english words wastes my time. If you're going to Pakistan, when do you need chopsticks? It should include pakastani foods.
There are other poor odds and ends. Overall it is lacking in verbs, adjectives, grammar, sentence structure, and cultural flavor.
On the other hand, the recording ability is an excellent feature. Being able to hear yourself and compare it to a native speaker is very good for pronounciation. It also includes a bunch of games that makes learing easy and fun. If you are planning on taking a language course or supplement, this program is good for starting you off, but don't count on it advancing you very far. ... Read more

Reviews (16)

Can't run software on a computer with 1GB memory
I have the same problem on a computer running Windows 2000 with 1GB memory. The software won't start and gives me the error message "Director Player 6.0 - This program requires at least 3MB of free virtual memory to run". I know there is more than 3MB of free virtual memory on my computer. I tried different virtual memory setting and found that setting virtual memory to 128MB would cause the software to run. It is obvious that the software has mis-calculated the available virtual memory. It interprets virtual memory > 1GB as less than 3MB virtual memory. I have sent email to the technical support at Encore and are waiting for their reply. I share the previous reader's opinion that setting the virtual memory to a lower setting is not an acceptable solution.

However, after I started the program, I like the interface and graphic. The software is better than "Mind Power Math Middle School" from the Learning Company. I also like that it has a game where you can test your skill.

I will write an update after I receive a reply from Encore.

Way around memory problem
Haven't tried this software but had same problem with some other software, the error message: "Director Player 6.0 - This program requires at least 3MB of free virtual memory to run". The only fix is to change your virtual memory settings to something below 500mb or to exactly 4000mb. Of course, I chose 4000mb since I have a large hard drive and almost 1 gig of memory on this pc.

So the full fix is:
From the Windows XP desktop, select the Start button, right-click on the My Computer icon, and select Properties from the resulting menu.

Click on the Advanced tab to bring it forward, and then select the Settings button within the Performance section.

In the Performance Options window, click on the Advanced tab to bring it forward, and then select the Change button in the Virtual Memory section.

Click the Custom size button...
Change the Initial size (MB) setting to 4000
Change the Maximum size (MB) setting to 4000

Select SET to accept the change, which will close the Virtual Memory window. Select OK to close the Performance Options window. And select OK to exit the System Properties window.

$40 + junk = angry customer
This is a faulty and buggy piece of software. It will not run on my PC (XP Home)without me changing my Virtual Memory from 1000 mb to 200 mb...what an absurdity! The developer offers no solution other than to change my VM everytime I want to use their software.

Well, forget it. They're not the only game in town.

It's Great!!
I have the Elementary Advantage, and I'm about to go into Middle School Advantage. I find these programs are excellent. I am a homeschooling parent, and the Elementary Advantage suite have done a great job in assisting me with teaching my child. I've learned a lot myself. My son is about to enter middle school grades, and as I explore the the Middle School Advantage suite, I marvel at how well its put together. I have not run into answers that are wrong as was the claim of one reviewer. But, that does not bother me because you will find wrong answers in educational books written by the best educators. I focus on the how well I am taught the subject. If I can catch the wrong answers then I was taught well. I paid only $24.99 for each suite. I also have a Dell Dimension 4600, and the programs run fine. For all those having a problem running the program. You better get a Dell, Dude! For the money, IT'S GREAT!

Not Recommended
If this program can confuse X and Y intercepts I can only imagine what else may be wrong with it. I just purchased this for my son today, but will be returning it tomorrow. He has a placement test in 2 weeks and I don't want him to blow it because of this faulty software. ... Read more

Features

• Practice the basics of Italian by participating in pre-designed conversations
• A set of audio & video clips guide users through the intricacies of the language
• You'll listen in on other people's conversations, improving your ability to understand
• Read interesting articles written in Italian, for better comprehension
• Master survival phrases and build vocabulary from a dictionary of over 10,000 words