At the teaching centre where I work, I have installed all the current CD-ROM versions of the advanced learner’s dictionaries from the main publisherson computers in the self-access room as well as in the teachers’ room. These are the Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 2nd edition; the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, updated edition; the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, 7th edition ({{link http://kevwes9.dreamhosters.com/pages/cd/cd_oalc.htm see Pete’s review}}); and the Macmillan English Dictionary for Advanced Learners. The first edition of the Cambridge is currently the favourite amongst my colleagues as the combination of the SmartThesarus and QuickFinder, plus a very clear interface made it easiest to use and demonstrate.
Later this week I’m going to run a training session for my colleagues and show them the updated Cambridge and compare it to the new Longman which has now caught up in terms of the features mentioned above. I hope to encourage them to use both CD-ROMs with their students and in their own lesson preparation in order to find out which they favour.
We would also be interested in anyone else’s experiences with these CD-ROM dictionaries; which ones you use and prefer and why.
CD-ROM dictionaries to go "headword to headword"