|  | From: Avanquest
List Price: $39.99
Buy New: $17.99
as of 3/18/2010 18:55 CDT details
You Save: $22.00 (55%)
New (14) Used (3) from $14.99
Seller: ExcelBro
Rating:  18 reviews
Sales Rank: 816
Format: CD-ROM
Platforms: Windows Vista, Mac, Windows XP, Mac OS X, Windows
Media: DVD-ROM
Edition: Student and Home
Operating System: Windows
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5.3 x 1.7
MPN: 8811
Model: 8811
UPC: 018059088122
EAN: 0746290120645
ASIN: B00192D1HM
Release Date: June 2, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand New. Never Used; Outer carton missing!
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 6-10 of 18
 Worth the money. April 5, 2009
Tammy Blaker (Mississippi)
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I love this product. I also love the year of free online and with updates it has it all!
I have to run it as admitstater on VISTA but it does work well then.
 "Free" subscription requires a credit card! Auto-renewal. March 31, 2009
Cranky (Arizona, USA)
13 out of 15 found this review helpful
At some point, after using this product for a while, I will revise this review. Meanwhile, I hope the one star rating will draw attention before folks commit to buying the Encyclopedia Britannica 2009 Student and Home Edition Ultimate Reference Suite.
This issue may not be important to you. But it will be to some, and I want to provide a heads-up.
I just purchased this and have installed it in my Mac, and as far as I can tell the installation went well. Next, I went online to register and sign up for the free one year access to Britannica Online. Britannica Online is a significant benefit of the purchase; it provides access to the full 32 volume Britannica and, I believe, articles from current periodicals, and more. This free subscription is mentioned twice here in the Amazon description, and it is visible on the larger image of the box. When you receive the software, you find this free benefit touted three times on the outside of the box. (On the box there is a tiny cross about the size of the dot over an "i", after the words announcing this free benefit, to indicate there is more information somewhere.) It is not until you've found your magnifying glass and read the two point type (really!) on the bottom of the box, or unsealed the box and read something inside, or attempted to register online, that you learn you must supply Britannica with your credit card number in order to receive this "free" subscription. Also, you will be automatically billed for another year at the end of the subscription unless you remember to cancel. Additionally, according to the FAQs on their subscriber services page, they will not notify you if the renewal price goes up before they bill your card. You are expected to look online somewhere where subscription rates are posted.
I guess I could have summed up my comment in a few sentences, but I'm annoyed. I don't want to give them my credit card number - I'm not buying anything from them. Did the publisher choose to keep an important piece of information obscure, information which could affect a consumer's decision to purchase? Well, I know this: I've lost some respect for the Encyclopedia Britannica. I don't like their business practices. We'll see about the software.
 Encyclopedia excellent, rebate refused March 27, 2009
K. Reznek
8 out of 8 found this review helpful
I sent in the rebate with all requested paperwork and original copies within a few days of receiving the DVD at the end of December. Avanquest did not process it until March 11, and refused it -- "Your rebate cannot be paid because your submission was incomplete and missing one or more requirements." Because I know all of the requested paperwork was there, my guess is that it was refused because it was after the 30 days -- even though they are the ones who sat on it until it has passed the time limit. No response from them when I tried to contact them.
So don't assume that the rebate will materialize. Buy based on the purchase price and let the rebate be a nice surprise if it is actually approved and sent.
Rip Off and the program stinks too February 26, 2009
PackerFan (Michigan)
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
[..]
You can find articles on Wikipedia that are more interesting and in-depth than the pieces in this thing. I've been a long time Encarta user, and decided to try Britannica for a change. Wrong move. The atlas and supporting articles are crude, and not as easy to navigate as Encarta.
The BrainStormer feature must have used Dr. Frankenstein's monster's brain for a model. Basically, this whole program and it's publishers (Avanquest) are unworthy of a share of your hard earned wages.
Beware buying this product... February 10, 2009
Cindy Goetz (Arizona)
18 out of 23 found this review helpful
I bought this product for my son for Christmas because I thought it would help him with his schoolwork. And maybe it will... This is not strictly a review of the quality of the product--in this case, a software program--because there are two things that make this product much less than what I was promised when I bought it.
First, I bought this product because it had an online rebate; I don't do paper rebates because the submitted rebate is often rejected because of "missing" items, even when they aren't missing. Unfortunately, this "online" rebate proved to be merely an online notice from me to them that I would be paper-mailing a rebate form to them in the future. In this case, the rebate required several items from the product packaging. With my electronic purchase from Amazon, the promised online rebate should not have required submission of any paperwork. Instead, it was a ploy to get me to buy their product while they get out of paying the rebate. I have submitted online rebates at Amazon that were fast, easy, and truly electronic; this wasn't one of them.
Secondly, when I went to sign up for the promised free year of Britannica Encyclopedia Online, I discovered that a credit card is required to get my "free" year. If I have to give a credit card number, then it isn't free--period. Of course they are hoping I'll forget to cancel during the year so that they can charge me $50 for the next year. Do they have so little confidence in their product that they believe no one will renew unless they coerce credit card numbers up front?
I can usually rely on up-front deals when I buy from Amazon. For example, when Amazon promises a free magazine with a product, my credit card number is not given to the magazine. My subscription isn't renewed at the end of my free year unless I take action to renew it--and I often do renew if I like the magazine. I really like knowing that Amazon won't be playing games with me.
With the reputation of Encyclopedia Britannica, I thought I was buying from a reputable company that didn't play these games. If I had it do over, I would not buy this product because, given my two complaints above, it wasn't the "good deal" I thought it was.
Showing reviews 6-10 of 18
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