Rosetta Stone? Transparent language courses? Forget them. Pimsleur takes you from being unable to understand a word spoken by a native to speaking and understanding like a native. I got this free, but I actually learned sufficient German from one Pimsleur tape to get by in Austria, where, to my amazement, nearly everyone I met spoke English like Americans. Home away from home, Gruss Gott! I am sure the Russian lessons are as good.