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Rosetta Stone V3: French, Level 1, 2 & 3
 
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Rosetta Stone V3: French, Level 1, 2 & 3

by Rosetta Stone
Windows Vista / 2000 / XP, Mac OS X
4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


There is a newer version of this item:
Rosetta Stone French Level 1-3 Set Rosetta Stone French Level 1-3 Set 4.0 out of 5 stars (40)
$399.00
In Stock.
Please note: This product has been discontinued by the manufacturer. To see the full selection of current software, please visit the Rosetta Stone Store.

System Requirements

  • Platform:    Windows Vista / 2000 / XP, Mac OS X
  • Media: CD-ROM
  • Item Quantity: 1
 See more system requirements

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Product Features

  • Learn French with Rosetta Stone's proficiency-based listening and reading activities.
  • Pronounce French words correctly after practicing with our proprietary speech recognition and analysis tools.
  • Speak French without a script in no time! Rosetta Stone's Contextual Formation™ makes sure you have the confidence and the cues you need to get the words out on the spot.
  • Use Rosetta Stone Milestone activities to gain confidence quickly in French so that you can engage in real-life conversations.
  • Track your French language learning progress to reinforce your strengths and revisit needs with our Adaptive Recall™ Language feature.

Product Details

  • Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
  • Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
  • ASIN: B000TFG00U
  • Date first available at Amazon.com: August 26, 2007
  • Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,385 in Software (See Top 100 in Software)

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description

Why is Rosetta Stone the world's No. 1 language-learning software? Because it works.

Escape the endless tedium of translation, memorization, and grammar drills. Get the language you want, the skills you need and the success you deserve by learning a new language naturally--the same way you learned your first language.

 
 

The complete immersion environment puts your native language-learning skills to work, eliminating your dependence on tedious translation and rote memorization.

 
 
 
  Images Intuition  
   
 

In Rosetta Stone you learn the meaning of new language from clear, real-life images.


In this activity you learn colors.

You advance using language you've learned and clues from new images. That's your intuition at work.


Now that you know colors, you can easily grasp the meaning of the new words...

 
   
  Interactivity Instruction  
 

Throughout Rosetta Stone, you constantly interact with the program to confirm your intuition.


...and then check what you've learned.

From beginning to end you build systematically toward your language-learning goals, for the most effective and enjoyable instruction anywhere.


And finally, you get the fun of trying your new language in a real-life simulation. Speech recognition shows you exactly how you're doing.

 
 

You learned your first language without translation.
You learned your first language easily and naturally by connecting words to objects and events around you. With Rosetta Stone, learn a new language the same way: using native speakers and thousands of real-life images to help you think in the new language from the very beginning. Studies show that learning exclusively in the new language, without translation as a crutch, is crucial.

The exclusive Dynamic Immersion method reinforces your natural language-learning skills with award-winning instructional technology. Identify your learning goals, then choose customized courses that take you there.

The timeless immersion method, along with research-based techniques and new technologies, make Rosetta Stone the clear solution to your language-learning needs.


What will you be able to do?

Understand everyday language.
Through Rosetta Stone’s proficiency-based listening and reading activities, you'll learn quickly.

Pronounce words correctly.
After practicing with Rosetta Stone’s speech recognition and analysis tools, pronunciation will come easily.

Speak without a script.
Contextual Formation makes sure you have the confidence and cues you need to get the words out on the spot.

Spell and write accurately.
You'll build gradually from letters to words and sentences.

Engage in real-life conversations.
With Milestone activities, gain confidence using speech alone in simulated situations.

Retain what you learn.
The unique Adaptive Recall reinforces language so it sticks with you in the real world.

Product Description

With French Level 1,2&3 you connect with the world around you. Build a foundation of fundamental vocabulary and essential language structure. Quickly gain the confidence to enjoy social interactions such as greetings and introductions, travel, dining o

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Customer Reviews

24 Reviews
5 star:
 (15)
4 star:
 (4)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
 (5)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.0 out of 5 stars (24 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

100 of 100 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing software -- I'm hooked!, September 5, 2007
By 
kalyson (Sacramento, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Rosetta Stone V3: French, Level 1, 2 & 3 (CD-ROM)
I've been interested in languages for years. I've spent many, many thousands of dollars on language learning aids. I have to say that, although I was very skeptical about buying it, this one is truly amazing. I was afraid to buy it because of the cheesy computer language programs I'd seen years ago. But this software is excellent -- they've come a long way with these programs. The photography is beautiful and the speech analysis software is astounding. You can set the strictness of the speech analyzer from 1 to 10. I set it on the hardest since I want to have a really good accent. Installation was trivial. Very, very easy to install on a Windows XP. They are also good about customer service.

Another nice feature is that you can have multiple users and it will keep track of each person's progress independently.

I had one gripe about the volume control not being located in the software itself. Rather irritating. Apparently it used to be, but is now just controlled outside the application in the volume control settings on your computer. And the specific setting on a Windows computer that it uses is the "Wave" volume setting.


The Pimsleur audio cds I have are great in that you acquire an excellent accent and learn to speak well, but it takes some real dedication to get through all the recordings and you don't learn to read. The Capretz "French in Action" series is fantastic, but quite expensive for the entire video program, books, audio, etc. This one, while also somewhat expensive, is a lot of fun. It is highly effective for teaching speech, writing, and reading. It is entertaining in the same way that playing games on the computer can be entertaining. I would say that the only thing it does not teach is conversational skills, but that is why I would suggest using it in conjunction with Pimsleur and other tools.

I use all three of these tools but this one is perhaps the most fun. The "French in Action" video program is also a lot of fun to watch, but the workbook and audio lessons require a fair amount of effort (but are effective). I learn to speak with Pimsleur, to understand spoken French with "French in Action", and learn to write, read, pronounce French and increase my vocabulary with Rosetta Stone.

I'm learning French really fast with Rosetta Stone. I'm glad I finally decided to give it a try. Note that if you purchase the product through them, (as of the date of this writing) they offer free shipping a six month return policy -- no questions asked. It may cost a bit more than getting it through other means, but if you are concerned about whether it is right for you, it may be worth it to check out their guarantee policy. But if you are already sure you want to keep it, it is worthwhile getting it on sale elsewhere. They offer this guarantee because they are pretty confident about their product, and I can see why they would be.

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28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Great if you learn this way, March 19, 2008
By 
RonAnnArbor (Ann Arbor, MI United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   
This review is from: Rosetta Stone V3: French, Level 1, 2 & 3 (CD-ROM)
This is terrific software, and truly immerses you into the French language. It is easy to use, and the graphics well done.

The most important thing to keep in mind, though, is that this software will only work if you personally learn using an immersion system. As a neuropsychologist who specializes in learning theory, I can clearly state that the immersion method does not work with everyone. You should try the free lessons Rosetta Stone offers on their website before purchasing.

Some people learn faster, and retain their knowledge better if they use the standard rote memorization system (such as the Living Language system). Others learn better using the immersion method.

Some caveats to keep in mind after having worked through about 10 lessons (I already speak fluent French, but wanted to know why my partner was having such a hard time with this software):

- The lessons are boring -- it repeats sets of 4 words over and over. They system only works if you use all of the modules for each lesson -- read, recall, write. This is extremely tedious.The more tedious it gets, the easier it is to "cheat" i.e. just quickly look at the first photo that you know matches and click - no real learning is happening then.
- None of the language that you learn in the first level will be anything you really use in real-life in France -- sure, it is developing concepts, teaching you sounds and cadence, numbers and colors -- but there are very few people who will ever have to say "the horse jumps" or "the boy is under the airplane", or "the man fell off the horse"
-The basic lessons do not teach you any day to day conversational french, nor how to say hello, goodbye, or order anything on a menu
-Finally - there is nothing here to take with you -- everything is dependent on the software, there are no printed lessons, translations, or lists to put in your pocket and review for memorization purposes. You better buy a good French Dictionary while using this system, since you WILL need to look up some of the words -- not all of the photos are intuitive enough to tell you what they are talking about.

The lessons DO help you to "think" in limited French -- it will not help you listen and understand others without substantial additional work using other materials.

Overall, these are great very basic French lessons -- but many users will be better off with a standard text book.
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73 of 83 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars REVIEW FOR ALL MAC OWNERS, November 15, 2007
This review is from: Rosetta Stone V3: French, Level 1, 2 & 3 (CD-ROM)
BACKGROUND
Using Rosetta Stone French (v.3) on a Mac iBook G4 (10.3.9). Using home school addition. Have used it for last 6 weeks.

SUMMARY
In spite of the cost, the awkward port from Windows and difficult network set up, it's still best of class for learning a foreign language.

REVIEW
Powerful, detailed and complicated: those are the adjectives I would use to describe this program. If you want to learn the language, then this program systemically teaches it to you. It keeps record of your progress, gives tests and records your grades. It treats you as if you are a student in a classroom. Additional workbook, study guide and included microphone headset supplement the visual and audio CD disk. But having said all this, there are some things I wish as a Mac user that I would have known.

The set-up of the program is SO non-intuitive and non-mac like. This includes installation of the application and its MANY helper files needed to run in the background with the main program disk. In my former life, I was an Apple System engineer, so I am no stranger to the Mac and networks setups. But even this installation caused me to eventually have to call Rosetta's technical support for instruction. This is partially due to my complicated home network set up (I've got multiple Macs with multiple (non-Mac) Routers that work as Access Points and bridges), and partially because of the complexity of installation of the program itself. This is definitely NOT a "drag-and-drop", or "double click to un- compress" or even "double click and follow the step by step instruction" type of experience. It is "multi-step, enter by hand, enter in data and information" type of installation process.

That is what is most disappointing to me. This is a BAD PORT of a PC program. They did nothing to make the program conform to Apple program standards. This means there are many helper files (20 something??!!!) in various folders. There is a network component that HAS TO run in the background for the main language program to run. This means you have to always first launch this secondary program (or leaving it running all the time). If you run on a network (like I do), you have to assign the computer's IP address that the program is running on (can't use the default, non-network IP given by the setup program). If your computer ever is assigned a different IP address locally by your router (power goes out, etc), then you will have to make some changes or this network helper file will not launch, and therefore, the language program will not either.

Getting to the place to even begin to first use the program is a tedious and complicated process. Another helper program that keeps track of the students progress must also first be set up. The "teacher's" name, access settings, the "student's" name(s) and their access privileges must first be established. ALL THIS IS DONE AWKWARDLY AND IN AN IBM 90'S INTERFACE. Constant referring to the user guide is necessary. There is no way some one could figure out what to do by only looking at the screens.

And this is the main criticism of the program, this clunky interface, non-intuitive layout of material is the same throughout the entire presentation of the language program. The program's strengh--the detailed comprehensive, multi-media presentation of material--is also it's greatest weakness. It's hard to follow where you are, where to go, what stage you are in, how much further you have to go on any given unit, lesson or session. The implementation of more than one user account and switching between the two is counter intuitive as well.

My 16 year old daughter, is now working her way through the program and has used it enough now to understand how to advance though it. But it was a slow start. She is enjoying the program and is learning the language of her love, and I have no doubt this program is a great help, I just wish more effort and forethought was given to making it more elegant in its presentation. Basically this looks to me like a 90's program in desperate need of a face lift. While calling the toll-free tech support and talking with a couple of different individuals, you quickly come to understand these people don't fully understand the Mac. The first individual had to pass me on once he discovered my Mac issues. The second was very polite and patient and we finally got my set up to work. But it wasn't easy for them since I was on a Mac. And I bet if you call you will get the same two people, They are, after all, not a help desk, but a language learning software company.

CONCLUSION
OK, so that's it. I hope this review was helpful. I've tried to share my experience for other Mac users so they know more of what to expect before they buy the program. A program that has (from my research) no other comparison as far as best in class for learning a foreign language, but a program that--in it's implementation and presentation as far as on Macintosh computers is concerned--leaves a lot to be desired.

Tom
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