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Questions & Answers
General
Will Language Adventure run
on Windows 2000, ME or XP?
Yes, once you have updated it with a downloadable new version
available here.
Will Language Adventure run
on Windows '98?
YES. We recommend 32 MEGS of memory.
What is the computer system
spec for Language Adventure?
Language Adventure runs on Windows 95/98 /2000/ME/XP/Vista: CPU
Pentium 90 MHz or higher. Memory 16 MB, 32 recommended for 98.
60 MB of HD storage per student. 4X CD-ROM drive. 16 bit sound
card. Microphone and speakers or headphones.
Why would my child want
to use Language Adventure; all other software I tried has failed?
Language Adventure captures the attention and motivation of children
in the same way that good stories or movies do. This is where
most other language learning software fails. Once engaged, the
child is rapidly exposed to the foreign language through interactive
exercises which unveil a gripping saga.
Why should my child learn
a foreign language?
Other than the value of being able to speak another language per
se, second language acquisition is considered one of the most
powerful "brain builders" possible. Science, mathematics, logic
and music all exist as symbolic forms and learning a second language
increases the brain's capacity for handling such symbolic systems.
It is not surprising therefore, that so many universities and
colleges have learning a second language as a fundamental requirement
and it has also become a 21st Century imperative of the American
Government.
Why learn a language
so young?
Research has shown that learning a second language is best done
before the age of 10 when mimicking aptitude is at its peak and
the neurological circuits of the cortex are not too far established.
Few people manage to speak a foreign language like a native if
they have learned it after puberty.
How to ?
How do I get detailed
Help?
Language Adventure has an extensive on-line help manual which
works just like any other. It can be accessed by going to the
Language Adventure directory from Start/Programs/Language Adventure
on the Windows TaskBar. Remember to have your Language Adventure
CD-ROM in the CD-ROM drive.
I cannot install by using "Add/Remove Programs" from the Control Panel. What do I do?
Make sure the Language Adventure CD is in
your CD ROM drive. Use your desktop explorer to browse to the
Language Adventure CD-ROM. Then double click on autorunmgr.exe.
This will bring up the install program. Click the Setup button
and then follow the instructions.
What happens when I run
low on hard disk space?
Each student requires approximately 60 MB
of hard disk space when recording at the best quality. If you
are running low on disk space when starting Language Adventure
you will get a message "Available disk space is low. You may not
be able to record or save your work." If you get this message
you should immediately exit the program and free up disk space
(by deleting files - make sure to empty the recycle bin so space
is truly available). If you do not exit but continue to use Language
Adventure and attempt to record you will again get the low space
message. Also the control panel will be set in its black disabled
state, to prevent you from going on without disk space. At this
point, hold down the ALT key while pressing F4 on your keyboard.
This will exit Language Adventure so you can delete files and
make more space.
I tried to log-on as
a student and I was asked for a password but I was never given
a chance to select a password at registration. What do I do?
There is an update to fix this
problem by disabling passwords.
The most likely thing that has happened is that the particular
student folder name was changed with Explorer. The student folders
can typically be found in \program files\instinct\language adventure\$students\student
name. You should change the student name back to the exact original
name used when you first registered that student. If you forgot
the name, look in the "student.ini" file by opening it with Notepad.
The "student=" keyword gives the name that was used when the student
registered. This file can also be found in the student folder
which is typically located at: \program files\instinct\language
adventure\$students\student name.
As a general point no one should be in the $students
folder in the first place, as any changes or deletions will cause
trouble. This is true for most windows programs.
Can I view and print
the scripts in Language Adventure?
YES. Browse through the CD-ROM with explorer along this path to
the languages directory: La/movies/languages/. Then open the directory
with the name of the language you wish to view e.g. French. The
text files in that directory are the scripts. You can open them
with any text editor or by double clicking the file.
Sound
How do I record with
the microphone on my computer?
It is essential that sound levels are correctly
set and recording is enabled on your computer before you use Language
Adventure. You may check these settings through the Volume Control
software on your system. The following sets the sound recording
level and adjustments.
From
the desktop:
Click Start
Click Programs
Click Accessories
Click Multimedia
Click Volume Control
When the recording control is shown, from
the "Options" menu, select "Properties"
This displays the Record Controls Properties.
In "Adjust Volume For", select "Recording"
Make sure "Microphone" is checked in "Show
the Following Volume Controls"
Click OK
In
the Record Control:
Make sure "Microphone" is selected
Slide the level to the maximum setting.
You can reduce this later if necessary
Enable automatic gain control: Some sound
cards/drivers support this.
To
enable automatic gain control:
Click the "options" menu
Make sure "Advanced" is checked (if it’s
grayed you don’t have this feature)
Click on the Advanced button
If you see "Automatic Gain Control" make
sure there’s a check mark next to it.
Click Close.
You are also able to fine tune
the relative sound levels of recordings and music from within
Language Adventure in Setup.
DEMO
I installed the demo but can't
find it. How do I run it?
From the Taskbar Start go: Programs/Language
Adventure/ Language Adventure Demo. Click on the red dog.
When I run LangAdvDemo.exe,
it unzips some files and then requests "Please insert disk" of an entirely different program. Can you help me with this?
Our technical staff think the automatic launching of set-up is
the problem on your system. We therefore provide the demo with
out this feature so installing will be a 2 step process. Here
are the instructions.
1) Click below to download this version of the
demo: LangAdvDemoZip.exe
2) You can run it directly from the web
or save it to disk, locate it using Explorer and then run it.
3) When you start LangAdvDemoZip.exe you'll see a dialog title "Win Zip Self Extractor", "Language Adventure Demo Installation".
Click on OK
4) You'll then see a dialog "Win Zip Self Extractor. [LangAdvDemoZip.exe]".
Click on the "Unzip" button. This will extract files to your temp
directory (shown in the Unzip folder field). If you want to unzip
it to another location, enter it there.
5) You'll get a message "13 file(s) Unzipped Successfully". Click
OK
6) Using Explorer, go to the temp folder or folder where you extracted
the files and locate the file "setup.exe". Run this program. This
will begin the Language Adventure Demo Installation. Follow the
instructions you see on the screen.
How do I register?
On starting the program you must register
the student with a name and select the native and foreign languages.
After clicking OK, the lesson movie will start and then stop at
the first exercise. Record what you just heard by clicking on
the microphone. Click it again to stop recording. If you are satisfied
with your recording click the flashing advance button to go on.
How do I get a lesson?
Select the lesson by clicking the blue lesson button and then
clicking the picture in the lesson library.
The lesson movie will start and then stop at the
first exercise. Record what you just heard by clicking on the
microphone. Click it again to stop recording. If you are satisfied
with your recording click the flashing advance button to go on.
Can I just see the whole lesson
without doing it?
Click the round purple button to the left and below the microphone
while depressing the CTRL key on your key board. Under Play Options
check Observer Mode and Click OK. Select the lesson again and
when it stops, click on the blue Play Through button with a double
triangle to the right of the flags. This will play the lesson
right through without stopping at exercises.
Is there Help in the demo?
Click on the blue question mark (?) on the control
panel for help on how to use the program. Click the green check
mark button to exit help.
Why is the professor
silent in the demo ?
The voice help files spoken by the professor are very large and
so have not been included in the demo. In the CD-ROM version the
professor helps you in all six languages.
I downloaded German but
still get Spanish?
You must first install the Spanish-English demo and THEN install
additional languages..
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