In a Constant State of [R]Evolution

Strayer is somewhat justified in saying that there were connections between the two revolutions, but not so much so in saying that one inspired the other. As in France, the Russian revolution took place during a time of poverty (due to the war) and malcontent. Not only were the people hungry, but they were also disappointed by the incompetence of their Czar, whose skill as a military figure was unimpressive. This ties in with the unpopularity of Louis XVI, who was by no means a malicious man, just not terribly skilled at his job. In both cases, the lower classes (Third Estate/"workers and soldiers") united to bring down the monarchy. In due course, a temporary leadership was set up (Robespierre's commitee for public safety/Provisional Government) and then overthrown again due to further dissatisfaction with political performance. Yet out of the people's confusion and righteuos despair came a charismatic leader who quickly won support (Napoleon/Lenin). After the resulting civil wars followed a time of relative peace, in which the people found that their chosen commanders were not who they had been supposed to be. In Napoleon, the people discovered a dictator (or rather, Emperor), while Lenin's authoritarian and aggressive methods proved less than ideal. From this general timeline of both revolutions, it can be said that they followed the same course, but by no means would one have inspired the latter.
The ideologies of each revolution, while similar, are subtley (yet importantly) different. In the French Revolution, the people fought to overthrow the monarchy because they believed in "liberty, equality, and fraternity." The soviets and Bolsheviks on the other hand, fought for communism. Now, one might say that communism is the practice of absolute equality, which follows the ideals of the French revolutionaries. Yet, I believe that there is a difference in that in communism, the equality is won by absolute abolition of private property, whereas in the French revolution it was thought to be done by redistribution of belongings and an equality in what was owned. So, one is about have an equal amount of something, whereas the other is about having absolutely nothing (or rather sharing everything with everyone). As I said, subtley different. Also, in all practicality, I doubt that Russian revolutionaries fashioned their revolution after that of the french because, really, who would want to go through that? So while it coincidentally happened thus, I doubt that it was a conscious effort to make it so.