To install the software, simply drag the Voice Processor Demo icon to your hard disk.
RECORDING AND PLAYING SOUND
Double-click on the Voice Processor Demo icon. (The little guy's face is the easiest part of the icon to hit.) You will be presented with a "splash window" for two seconds, after which you can start to use the program.
Choose New... under the File menu. This will allow you to create a tape for recording purposes. The program will ask you where you want to save the tape and under what name; specify anything you want, since the demonstration version does not actually write any data to disk. The dialog box also allows you to specify the compression type and compression level, which you may set as desired.
Once you click on the Save button, the tape is formatted (erased) and a tape window is shown on the screen. The controls are the familiar controls of a tape recorder: Record, Rewind, Stop, Fast Forward, Pause and Play. You can also run the program from the keyboard using the arrow keys (Shift-Up arrow, Left arrow, Down arrow, Right arrow, Shift-Down arrow and Up arrow, respectively).
The input level meter determines the level of sound at which Voice Processor will start recording, once the Record button is clicked. The level can be changed by clicking within the level meter's rectangle and dragging the mouse. The level meter shows the current level of sound coming in to the microphone as two sliding pointers.
The volume level is the level at which Voice Processor will play sound. The level can be changed by clicking within the slider's slot and dragging the mouse.
The tape reel shows the amount of tape available to be recorded and the amount recorded so far. A digital readout of these times is presented immediately below the tape reel.
TRANSCRIBING A TAPE
After you have recorded some sound, rewind the tape to the beginning (either by clicking the Rew button, pressing the Left arrow, or selecting To Beginning under the Rewind menu under the Tape menu). Choose Transcribe... under the File menu. You will be asked where you want the transcription to be saved. Click Save; because this is a demonstration version, your transcription will not be saved to disk. The tape window changes to show a transcription pane into which you may type. The arrow keys now move the text cursor within the transcription pane; you must use the on-screen buttons or the Tape menu to manipulate the tape.
Pressing the Enter key causes the tape to play to the end of the current segment. A segment is defined as continuous recorded speech; a segment ends where you paused when you were recording. While the tape is playing, you can type into the transcription pane. You can change the rate of playback by sliding the rate control slider (the horizontal scrollbar underneath the tape buttons). Setting the control to less than 100% causes the tape to playback at slower than normal speed, while setting it to greater than 100% causes the tape to playback at faster than normal speed. If a segment plays too rapidly, type Command-L or choose Last Segment under the Play menu under the Tape menu to repeat the segment.
PROBLEMS FIXED SINCE 1.1v3
The following changes were introduced in Version 1.1v4:
• A bug in which tapes would be recorded past the end was fixed.
• The performance of the program’s graphics was improved.
• A problem with importing and exporting some AIFF files was corrected.
• Compatibility with Useful Voice Processor Lite™ was established.
• A problem with erasing previously recorded tapes was fixed.
• Problems with the clipboard and pasting were fixed.
PRODUCT INFORMATION
The complete version of Useful Voice Processor for Macintosh may be ordered directly from Useful Software Corporation for $179.95 (MA residents add 5% sales tax). Send check or money order to:
Useful Software Corporation
34 Hart Street
P. O. Box 5560
Beverly Farms, MA 01915-0511
We accept American Express (and Optima); sorry, no Visa or MasterCard. Corporate and educational P.O.s are accepted on credit approval. Educational and quantity discounts are available, and dealer inquiries are welcome. Call (800) 666-9828 for information ((508) 922-7272 for international inquiries), or fax us at (508) 922-0413. We can also be reached via electronic mail as follows:
