New Language, Need Advice.

Hello!

I want to learn either French or Russian and i have some questions...

What do you think is harder to learn?

How long did it take you to learn either language?

What is the best way in your opinion to learn either language?

What should i do to learn either language?

I know your personal ability and time put into it will differ from mine, but i would like to know.

I was reading around and some people learned decent Russian in a couple years.. while others.. they could hardly grasp it in 5. I also read that some people learned french in a couple months.

I was thinking about getting Rosetta Stone. I started looking it up and it seems it only gives the very basics. I want to be able to have a conversation with someone in either language.

So, i could use some advice by people that are pretty experienced in learning one of those.

Thanks for any advice.

I'm not going to answer any of the questions, I'm just gonna give you some advice.
Learn spanish, It will get you farther in life. Actually, I'll answer one. French is a bit easier, seeing as you wouldn't need to learn any new characters.

Dude, I know a bit about most of the common tongues, and I've to say, go with French. I don't particularly like the language--too flowery for my tastes--but, it's a lot less difficult than Russian. (The romance languages are by far the easiest to learn, if you speak English natively.)

However, if you want my opinion... Russian. It has a nicer sound to it--in my opinion--than French. (I prefer watching Russian films to French films.. <<)

An', I'm sorry to say, but I've never used Rosetta Stone. People have told me it works wonders, however, I will not recommend a product I have not used, myself.

Personally, I'd say that the better way to learn a language is to start out with small phrases. (Writing comes AFTER learning a fair bit of the language!) It's best to know someone who can speak the language in question, because textbooks don't help. (I'm speaking from experience, here.)

Oh, and I actually have two years in high-school Spanish. Yet, I'm able to keep a conversation going with one of my friends who took French.

...

And, the other reason why you should meet someone who's a native speaker of the language: they can teach you all the fun words. :3

Can't tell ya how much time it'd take to learn Russian, because that's one language that's just over my head. French, on the other hand, should only take a few years at most.

(And, if I'm way off in any categories--sorry. Haven't had much caffeine today. -_-)