** CHATTER ** VOICE MEMO UTILITY VERSION 1 _______________________________________________________________________ INDEX 1) Introduction 2) Installation 3) Registration 4) Using Chatter - Getting Started - Main Screen - Selecting a "CHAT" - Recording - Playing - Changing the setup (Configuration) - Voice Activated Recording - Setting an Alarm - How to register - File management Utilities - Trouble-shooting 5) Disclaimer _______________________________________________________________________ 1) Introduction Thank you for evaluating CHATTER v1. CHATTER is a shareware voice memo program which utilises the Psion 3a/c's sound capabilities much better than the Psion's built in "SOUND" or "RECORD" applications. You will find the act of recording and playing a voice memo is so much easier using CHATTER, as it requires only One-touch recording and playback; hey you can even perform hands-free recording for those awkward finger tapping moments! CHATTER will prove useful for those people who have to take quick notes here and there, but do not have the time to tap away on the keyboard. Instead they simply speak the note directly into the Psion, where it is stored for later retrieval. 2) Installation The files needed for CHATTER to work are: Chatter.opa - Main application file Sys$samp.ldd - Voice Activation Driver Chatter.pic Splash.pic Install all four of these files onto the same disk in the following directories: Chatter.opa - to the \APP directory Sys$samp.ldd - to the root directory Chatter.pic - to the \APP directory Splash.pic - to the \APP directory To install the program to the System screen, press Psion-I or go to the APP Menu and select INSTALL *Note* - The file TSMP10.zip is included in the Chatter.zip file, as I am required to distribute it because the file Sys$samp.ldd forms part of the CHATTER application. This file (TSMP10.zip) describes the use of Sys$samp.ldd and is not needed for the application to work. 3) Registration To register CHATTER press Psion-K and then type in your name and Registration code, followed by pressing the ENTER key. The unregistered version of CHATTER will be restricted to only 3 Voice Memos. Once registered, you will be able to record up to a maximum of 99 Voice Memos. 4) Using CHATTER - Getting Started Select the Chatter Icon on the System screen, and then press ENTER. An initial configuration dialog will pop up asking you to select your default record time, and to which disk you want to record to. Make your choices, and then press ENTER. CHATTER will then search your Psion for any previous registrations of Chatter. If none are found, some NAG screens will appear, reminding you that this version of Chatter is not registered. Just press ENTER until you reach the Chatter splash screen. Wait a second and the main Chatter screen will appear. - Main Screen Your are now presented with the Main CHATTER screen. On the right-hand side is a List box showing all voice memos already recorded (If any at this stage) and the number in brackets tells you how many voice memos there are in memory. To the left of this List box is a "Duration Meter" which shows the seconds elapsed for record and playback operations. To the left of this there are two "Info Buttons". The top one shows the number of seconds left for record purposes. The Info Button below this one shows the length of the current CHAT (Voice Memo) in seconds. - Selecting a CHAT To select a voice memo (CHAT) just press the UP/DOWN keys, and the "Bullet" cursor will move correspondingly, moving up or down to the left of the Listed CHATS. - Recording To record a CHAT is very simple. Just hold the Psion with the microphone relatively close to your mouth and press the TAB key. The Psion will then beep, signalling the start of the recording. Wait for the beep to end, and then start talking. The Duration Meter will show how many seconds have elapsed. Once the default record time has been reached, you will hear a slightly longer beep, signalling the end of the recording. Immediatly after this, an entry will appear in the List Box showing the date of the recording. Alternatively if you want to save space, just press the ESC key whilst recording, and CHATTER will stop the recording at that point. - Playing To play a CHAT, simply select the relevant CHAT by using the UP/DOWN keys and then press ENTER. Again if you want to stop the Play back process at any stage, press the ESC key. - Changing the Setup (Configuration) The Change Configuration dialog give you choices on the length of record time, as well as which disk you want to record to. You must pick a record Time that suits your requirements. I find that 3 Seconds is a nice time to start off with. Alternativeley you could set the record time to 0 seconds, and CHATTER will determine the record time left on your disk, and then use this as the record time. Just remember to press the ESC key to stop recording. The record to disk: option means that you can choose from the Internal, A or B drives as your main CHAT Disk. Please note that it is impossible to record to a FLASH SSD, and if there are any problems regarding the recording of CHATS to either the A or B Disks, CHATTER will automatically reset the default record disk to Internal. - Voice Activated Recording Before this utility can work, you have to enable Voice Activation by pressing the Psion-V keys, or selecting the option from the Special menu. Once activated, you should see an idicator on the screen stating that Voice Activation has been enabled. To record, hold the Psion with the microphone close to your mouth and make any noice in a slightly raised voice. You will hear a beep, signalling the start of the recording process, and then talk to your hearts content. The record time will be limited to the default record time as stipulated by you in the Setup (Configuration) setting. Once your record time has elapsed, you will hear another slightly longer beep, signalling the end of the recording. *Note: After selecting Voice Activated recording, CHATTER will wait a couple of seconds before the Voice Activation becomes operational. This is to give you a chance to close the cover. (This is to get around the possibility that the creaking noise which you may hear while closing the cover will initiate a recording). WARNING: While Voice Activated recording is enabled autoshutoff is disabled. You must therefore make sure you do not leave your Psion switched on in these circumstances. - Setting an Alarm To set an alarm for a particular CHAT, select the relevant CHAT using the UP/DOWN keys, and then press Psion-A or select the "Set Alarm" option from the special menu. You will be given the option to set the time/date/advance time of the alarm, as well as adding a caption. Once CHATTER will display an alarm indicator next to the relevant CHAT. To view or delete alarms you must go to the TIME application from the system screen and do it from there. - How to Register To register CHATTER, please contact the Author at the following addresses, stating what version of CHATTER you have. This can be found by pressing the G key. email: belcher@samara.co.zw Snail Mail Address: Gary Belcher 11 Derwent Road Marlborough Harare Zimbabwe Registration Fees: By e-mail/snail mail (Cash!!) GBP 20 USD 35 By e-mail/snail mail (Cheque/Postal order etc) GBP 25 USD 40 Please send money by registered mail in an opaque envelope and the money stored between 2 sheets of cardboard (so it cannot be seen from the outside). - File Management Utilities CHATTER comes with its own File management utilities such as Delete and Rename. To delete or rename a file, select the relevant CHAT and then press Psion-D (Delete) or Psion-R (Rename) To exit CHATTER, select the option from the Special Menu, or press Psion-X - Trouble-shooting Recording Failed: -Replace batteries - They may be too low for digital recording. -Flash SSD - You may be trying to record to a flash SSD. This is impossible. Use the Special menu (Change Setup) to change to the internal disk or a RAM SSD. On playback, sections of the memo are silent: -Replace batteries. Main Batteries are low. Start of memo clipped: -Wait a fraction of a second after the beep before you begin speaking. Watching the Duration Meter will also indicate when recording has started. Using Voice Activated recording, recording starts before I say "Record": -Whilst in Voice Activated mode, recording can be triggered by long continuous noises provided they are sufficiently loud. Move if possible to a quieter area. Voice Activated recording does not always work: -Try holding the microphone of the Psion closer to your mouth and speak in a louder voice. 5) Disclaimer CHATTER is a shareware application. The author cannot be held responsible for any damage which might result from its use. The driver used for Voice Activated Recording is an unsupported driver from Psion. Psion cannot be held responsible for any damage which might result from its use. This driver has not been exhaustively tested and cannot be guaranteed not to reset your Psion 3a/c. You may not in any way reverse translate the program. You may distribute the program provided that you keep all supplied files together and do not charge for the program. _______________________________________________________________________ ** Copyright ** CHATTER is copyright 1998 of Gary S Belcher, 11 Derwent Road, Marlborough, Harare, Zimbabwe. _______________________________________________________________________