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Lesson Introduction
Today's FrenchPod news and features show podcast is full of interesting stuff. There's news! There's features! So join us and find out what's going on at FrenchPod!
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Comments Policy
Allowed comments do not necessarily represent the views of FrenchPod.com. We also reserve the right to reject personal attacks, false/unsubstantiated allegations, spamming of any kind, and comments that include vulgar language or libelous statements.
Out of consideration for our Newbie and Elementary users, English translations should be provided with any Chinese (characters or pinyin) written in Newbie and Elementary lesson discussion posts. New lesson idea? Please let us know on our contact page.
anugrah says
May 16, 2009
How is the 3 lessons a week going to work? Does that mean no more free newbie lessons as well? I'm kind of getting confused. Maybe I need to re-listen to what was in the podcast.
bethalison says
May 16, 2009
Hi Frenchpod Team!
I just want to say that I really appreciate all of the time, energy and effort which you are putting into improving the service. You are wonderful! I think this sounds like a good idea. I guess only time will tell how it will work out. I too am a little confused about the "3 lessons," however. My understanding is that there will be one new lesson a week which will appear on Mondays. So will the other two lessons be recycled from the archive?
There is a lot of great material available in the archives. And it will be great to have it more readily available for review on a regular basis. Good job!
ibon says
May 17, 2009
I think it is a shame that FrenchPod is being phased out like this. It started with 5 new lessons a week, then 3 and now just 1, unlike ChinesePod and SpanishPod which continue to have 5 new lessons, a video lesson, grammar lesson, poem/cinema lesson and news feature. The "top boxes" feature is already in use in ChinesePod, but it just suggests lessons from the archives that I might have listened to already or have no interest in.
feihmaahn says
May 17, 2009
It's hard to see these changes as anything other than a disaster for frenchpod:-
I think Amaury, JP and Marion do a great job. What we want is more of them, not less.
ednarez says
May 17, 2009
J'apprends beaucoup de FrenchPod et j'adore sa excellente équipe. Mais à cause de ces "New news and new features" je me demande si je dois renouveler mon abonnement.
anugrah says
May 17, 2009
Yeah truly to be honest, I miss when we had five lessons a week. I also remember that there wasn't even a FrenchPod cafe, until recently when Catherine came around the corner.
I even though I'm not subscribed, I still wish we had the 1 lesson a day thing. I know it's hard, and you guys do A LOT of work. Erica Tremonti was telling me about the work, and how the fun is about 15 minutes or so. Probably more because JP is here.
But yeah, I hope that FrenchPod will keep improving for the better!
daphnedawn says
May 17, 2009
Hi guys, sorry to say, but I find these changes all rather upsetting. Although revising lessons is always a good idea, only one new lesson a week will definitely not improve the service, how could it ! To achieve that, something comparable to Spanish Pod's Grammar show would have been great. I am on a Praxis Pass subscription and I am quite disappointed that such an important language as French is apparently valued so little at Praxis Language. Btw, I really enjoy using Cpod, Spanishpod AND Frenchpod, and seeing less resources go into French teaching kind of sucks:(
Cornelia says
May 17, 2009
The same is planned for ItalianPod.
I do not like or need it, I have a pretty well organized library of existing lessons on my computer. Getting them pushed again would disturb my system - I will not keep redundancies.
You seem to go away from the original Praxis language teaching approach, where you offer lots of learning material with the learner to cherrypick from. Why now regressing to shape structured courses? Back to patronizing?
The real essence of it means that you offer less new content. I feel cheated with my Praxis subscription with 2 of my languages - French & Italian - cut back in this way.
manen says
May 17, 2009
I, too, am disappointed. I JUST upgraded from a subscription only on ChinesePod to the Praxis subscription. Now I am wondering if that was a mistake?
johnrox says
May 18, 2009
I guess it was inevitable that over time you would want to know how to make use of some of the early material (Erica\'s participation led to some classic shows as much as lessons, and I think JP has got into the swing of. Amury is the stable anchor that I hugely appreciate. What is it like getting excited about these skits, their wacky sound effects and great photos, when you are just putting it in the can waiting for someone to respond out there somewhere?
I see the theme groups at each level as a useful addition, and could be compared with the video Ma France on the BBC. They are helpful was in to complement levels.
What sort of system you have for adding to the pile I am not sure. If it was one show per level per week that is fine. If it is one across all the levels that seems to be short-changing us a bit.
Is there confusion here, hence the comments by others?
Some of the early mini series worked quite well (Brad Pitt; Unwelcome Guest).
A theme across the levels - so that you might take a similar theme for a couple of weeks at all levels so that a person could move from level to level on the same theme?
It may also be that you are starting to hit some of us wanting actual quals - DEFL, DAFL so that your units fitted peoples needs studying for those, even as revision.
John
nchriste says
May 18, 2009
I wrote the following on the Italian page:
I agree with Cornelia. Remember, this is the second cutback to come around recently. I just upgraded my membership so that I could do both French and Italian. If I cannot get a new lesson from one or the other every day, then I am out of here. Cornelia put it well, I already have full access to the site, and I am perfectly capable or organizing things for myself. I have a wall full of texts on French and Italian grammar. What I need is constant practice in listening and speaking.
... the lessons as they are structured are fun. While grammar is necessary, there are many other venues to learn those. What is unique about a podcast is the ability to hear and respond. That\'s why I really want to have constant \"fresh\" lessons.
...
While today listening to this French Pod Cafe (I usually skip these) I hear the same justification for the change from Catherine as I heard on the Italian version. I hate to say it, but the explanation rang false. Is this really a cost cutting measure at Praxis? It sure comes across this way. Don\'t play us for fools - if you are trying to save money, say so - \"We cannot afford to creat three new lessons a week for Italianpod and Frenchpod.\" Put it out there. I can\'t believe that reorganizing the structure of the existing podcast would take that long. I do appreciate that making a show for broadcast is a lot of work, and probably costly. But you get what you pay for, and if I do not get something new often, then the show will be over for me here.
ibon says
May 18, 2009
Like Cornelia, I already have all the lessons well organized both in my computer and in my iPod and I fail to see why I should be excited about getting yet another RSS feed about old lessons. Also, we do not need to be told that French has such difficult grammar/pronunciation that one new lesson a week is what we need; it is both ridiculous and patronizing and doesn\'t take into account that a lot of people using the site already speak more than one language. Amaury, Marion and JP do a great job with the podcasts and that\'s what I signed up for; there are plenty of grammar books out there. As nchriste says, Praxis is clearly not investing the resources necessary to run this site. I, too, feel cheated and wonder why I paid hundreds of dollars for a Praxis pass.
md1485 says
May 18, 2009
I write here the same comment I wrote at Italianpod:
I have just updated my subscription to Praxis subscription because I like your podcasts to \"maintain\" my level of Italian, French and English. (I also follow Chinesepod, but I have just an Elementary level in that language.) I liked that there were new lessons every week. As I mentioned in a recent comment, I have been following Upper Intermediate and Advanced lesson, and you say that there will mainly be lessons of the lowest levels. I can understand that, because there are more users of those levels, but then unfortunately it is not useful for me any more.
So, after knowing the huge changes happening in Frenchpod and Italianpod, I think I will get in contact with Praxis Language to pass all my credit to Chinesepod, and I will stay longer as a Premium used only with them. I will not ask for any money back, as I suppose it would be my right. In the way that I have commented, I will continue supporting your company, as I think you deserve, but with the only product that is valid for my needs at this moment.
I am sure this is out of your responsibilities, and so I still would like to greet you all and congratulate for the fantastic lessons offered. I hope the level of the users will increase in some time and then I will be happy to come back.
sakurasaku says
May 18, 2009
I second everything feihmaahn said, so I am not going to repeat those points.
Plus, I am concerned that with the reduced frequency of new episodes, I am going to have to wait weeks to get a new lesson in the appropriate level.
I have already listened to the past shows at my level so many times on my mp3 player that I can repeat many of them line by line by heart. One of the things I liked about Frenchpod was the fact that new lessons were often focused on some seasonal event of the moment in France. The site will definitely lose its freshness with the new scheduling.
I understand that new users come on all the time and keep commenting on old shows, making the whole thing less and less manageable for the instructors as time goes on. I also understand wanting to maximize your return on the investment you made on the old episodes (many of them are real gems). The new structure may indeed be an improvement for new users, of which, as a business, you would want to attract more and more.
However, I believe that this change is not what many regular and enthusiastic French pod users are looking for in this site. If I had known that this was going to happen, I would not have purchased a long-term subscription. I did not even get compensated for going from 5 to 3 per week, because I signed up right around the time of the first change.
I remember Amaury\'s comment when we went from 5 new episodes to 3 new episodes that that was being done to build up lessons at more advanced levels, and that it would not last long, so not to worry. I kept waiting for Frenchpod to go back to the 5 per week schedule, not to further reduce it to 1.
I get so excited when I get an e-mail notice for a new lesson. While my enthusiasm for the talented production team at Frenchpod remains the same, this corporate decision has me pretty disappointed.
anugrah says
May 18, 2009
I 2nd it again. Also, if people aren\'t organized enough with all those lessons,why work so hard for them, and waste your energy on organizing things rather than making new lessons. Please please, please, don\'t do this.
shoshanna says
May 18, 2009
I agree with most of the comments that have preceeded me. I am very disappointed with only 1 lesson a week & will seriously reconsider resubscribing.
Thanks.
Shoshanna
P.S. I had hoped for much more grammar help along the way....i.e. examples of congugations of various verbs used in the dialogues.
bryn says
May 19, 2009
I second the comments above that recycling old lessons is not helpful -- I access all the lessons directly through the website, not through iTunes, so I have already been through all the old lessons myself. And by all means, YES, if this is really just a necessary cost-cutting measure due to the state of the global economy right now, please be honest with us and tell us so! (And give us a partial refund....)
Thanks for all the great podcasts you have created to this point...hope they can continue.
simonpettersson says
May 19, 2009
As (apparently) many others, I recently upgraded to a Praxis Pass to maintain my level of French whilst continuing to learn Chinese. With one new lesson a week, it seems like I'll get a new Advanced level lesson, what, once a month?
I do like the show and I am understanding of the difficulties you face what with economic crisis and all. However, I suspect that one show a week, often at a newbie level which is availible for free, is simply not something people are willing to pay for. And that could mean the end of FrenchPod alltogether.
Seems to me, looking at all these comments, that the thing to do to please the user base is to cut the costs everywhere EXCEPT the shows. Less service, less site upgrades, no news shows, no pretty pictures, even no personalized vocab lists -- I suspect all of this would go down easier than fewer shows per week. The shows are, after all, what we came for. All the rest is just a bonus.
sulis says
May 21, 2009
I am extremely dissapointed with this decision. One new lesson a week is simply not enough material to warrant paying a subscription fee. I understand that many businesses these days are facing tough choices, but I find the attempt to hype up the recycling of old lessons as an exciting new 'feature' to be extremely patronising. I, like many others it seems, do not access the lessons through itunes and I have them all organised on my computer. The re-appearance of old podcasts serves no purpose.
For a long time Frenchpod.com stood out as the best amongst all the French learning podcasts, but no longer. Very sad.
spanishlearners says
May 21, 2009
The disappointment of people show that your content is top class and people care. As a praxis subscriber I understand that I will get less lessons for the money I have paid.
However I understand that the changes are temporary and that you will be shifting the gears very soon to the same old number of lessons, with a full updated set of lessons and a better served site.
Is there a time frame for these changes to end, as we as subscribers are very thirsty for your lessons which represent to us a change from our routine every day life. Ienjoy the Praxis way and hope it leads to more lessons to cover the cutback.
amaurylibeer says
May 22, 2009
Chers amis,
All week long, we've been reading your comments regarding the change and the whole FrenchPod team would like to thank you for your feedback.
You can be sure of our commitment to deliver interesting and useful lessons as we are still producing new content.
We're trying at the moment to refocus our resources on providing a better content.
Once again, merci beaucoup for your comments.
user76423 says
May 22, 2009
spanishlearners said
I would not be so confident about such a shift back.
The cutback in podcast frequency is not a good signal.
I was thinking a long time about subscribing, but now I will not do it anymore. The benefit-cost ratio isn't OK for me.
What about a statement from Praxis' CEO Hank Harkoff or Praxis' COO Steve Williams about these decisions?
shazza says
May 23, 2009
Salut! :)
I really enjoy listening to FrenchPod and think you guys are great. There are some very funny lessons such as those about cat deodorant and refugee turkeys.
I also listen to SpanishPod and ChinesePod.
I think the changes might be useful for people who have just signed up and don't know where to start. I don't really think they will help the elementary to advanced users very much, though maybe I am wrong. Maybe more people will sign up, allowing you to do more lessons in the future.
A better change in my opinion would be to add more lessons, and lots and lots of grammar exercises and/or games.
Perhaps you could do grammar exercises where, for example, you have to choose the correct ending for a word using a drop down box......or where you play some sort of addictive game that requires correct grammar.
I learnt to type though a very basic car racing game. The car went faster when I typed faster, and flies hit the windscreen causing the car to slow down whenever I made a mistake. Though I realise it would take a lot of time and money to design a game.
I didn't realise what the Lesson Audio Reviews were until just recently. I think I will be going through these while I wait for more lessons.
I'm still planning to sign up again in September when my subscription runs out, though it does depend upon how quickly I can find a new temp. job in the next few months.
Anyway thanks for your reading time!
A bientot!
Sharon
p.s. any 6 month jobs over there for native English speakers with NZ accent, very basic Chinese, basic Spanish and Intermediate French? hehehe :)
jimoya says
May 25, 2009
I think that all of us who love and enjoy Frechpod are entitled to feel disappointed, but somehow I believe that Praxis will reconsider this new policy (one lesson per week is just too little!) and everything will go back to normal.
anugrah says
May 28, 2009
Can we at least get FrenchPod Cafe, so we can know what's going on please? I'd really love to know, and not just have one lesson a week that doesn't tell you anything about what's going behind the scenes.
bryn says
May 30, 2009
I second anugrah's comment that (at least this week) a new FrenchPod Cafe would be nice so that we can get a substantive response to all the negative comments that have been posted regarding the decision to cut back on the frequency of new podcasts. I hope monica5 is right and Praxis will reconsider the decision in light of this feedback from users!
nkambaya says
May 31, 2009
We have not had any new lessons since May 19. One lesson per week is just so little, and is not right for what I was promised at the time of subscription.
Will our subscription be extended in exchange for the limited number of classes? Although my subscription is basic, I am still paying for the service.
londonparis says
May 31, 2009
I'm feeling anxious about the changes as well. I really like the current set-up and I ended up subscribing after listening to the Newbie lessons. A really fun efficient way to learn French.
Amaury did say though that there will be 3 new lessons per week in total.
I'm a Newb so personally I'm benefitting a lot from listening to the archived lessons.
I'm going to be optermistic about these changes. I really think Frenchpod is a good place to be and have great content, hopefully they are just building on the excellent content and approach they already have and taking it to the next level!
Let's see what happens.
Keep up the great work! :)
ibon says
June 1, 2009
I quote Hank Horkoff, CEO of Praxis Language
...Instead of investing in a static archive of a hundred, or a thousand lessons, we have found it important to publish new lessons daily, not only to keep the overall lesson archive fresh, but importantly to help focus student attention and fuel community conversation...
One new podcast a week is simply not enough to justify the subscription charge, so I'm quitting FrenchPod. Thank you Amaury and Marion for some great podcasts. Au revoir!
sulis says
June 1, 2009
I would like to know if the FrenchPod team are reconsidering their decision to only produce one new lesson a week given the dissatisfaction of current members?
amaurylibeer says
June 1, 2009
It's always been a pleasure to see your comments ibon. Merci du fond du coeur de toute la part de l'équipe de FrenchPod.
Nous espérons que ceci est juste un 'Au revoir' et pas un 'Adieu'.
We hope this is just an 'Au revoir' and not an 'Adieu'.
amaurylibeer says
June 1, 2009
Once again, we would like to thank you all for your feedback and assure you that all your comments are taken into consideration.
We're going to have a FrenchPod Café this week end to give you more details about the forthcoming lessons.
Merci à tous.
shoshanna says
June 2, 2009
Merci beaucoup Amaury for finally responding to our many concerns. I will await FrenchPod Cafe anxiously to hear what you all have to say. I hope it is good news as I do so miss the daily podcasts & am feeling very stagnant now. One per week is just not enough....Maybe one in each level????
Thanks so much.
Shoshanna
jimoya says
June 7, 2009
I thought we were going to have a new French Pod Café this weekend...:(
londonparis says
June 7, 2009
Me too :/
kimiik says
June 7, 2009
C'est la fin des haricots !
bryn says
June 7, 2009
Bonjour, Amaury - Thank you for responding to our comments and for letting us know there will be another FrenchPod Cafe very soon. Since none was published this weekend, hope to see one sometime this coming week....
amaurylibeer says
June 7, 2009
Bonjour à tous,
J'ai cru que le FrenchPod Café serait publié ce dimanche comme d'habitude, mais je me suis trompé. Je vous présente toutes mes excuses. Il sera publié aujourd'hui en fin de journée.
I thought FrenchPod Café would be published this Sunday as usual, but I was wrong. I would like to apologize. It will be published later today.
amaurylibeer says
June 7, 2009
Salut kimiik,
Je te rassure, ce n'est pas la fin des haricots. Merci de nous donner ici le lien vers l'explication de cette expression. C'est très intéressant.
oliver08 says
July 10, 2009
I have to agree with the many responses here that the reduction in new lesson content is very unfortunate.
I listen to FrenchPod at the Upper-Intermediate and Advanced level, and I am now extremely pessimistic about my chances of receiving new content at my level on a regular basis. I have already listened to almost all of the Upper-Intermediate, Advanced, Advanced Media and Entrepod content, and I have everything neatly arranged on my ipod, so for me there is no value at all in creating a feed to old content.
Personally, I would much prefer for you to focus on delivering new content. I would be quite happy to forgo grammar explanations, a restructure of the site or anything else that you might consider if it meant I had access to a steady stream of new material.
You guys at FrenchPod do a fantastic job, and revived my interest in the language after I had spent the last couple of years studying Spanish and Mandarin. I sincerely hope that you are able to reverse the proposed changes.
amaurylibeer says
July 10, 2009
Merci, merci beaucoup for your feedback oliver08.
We understand your concern and we will take your comment into consideration.
Merci encore pour ce commentaire.
highnoi says
July 28, 2009
Hi:
I rarely take take the time to become involved in such pedestrian and self serving commentary. However, I believe what you have produced so far stands alone as an exceptional value. Perhaps all these people that want more should demonstrate that they have actually learned somethng by constructing their complaints in the proper French gramatical form.