Category: Geeks r Us
Hi all,
I just tried to install jaws 5 on my moms' computer, and the talking installation didn't come up talking. The cd rom came on, and did its usual whirring thing when you put a cd rom in the drive, but no speech. She has an e machine, and to my best recollection, she has a 500 mhz processor, a 10.4 gb hard drive, and 64 mb of ram. The reason we tried it is because we wanted to see if jaws would work on her e machine, since she saw some e machines for $250 at the local walmart. She got her emachine from qvc, one of our shopping channels, and she'd have to get me another computer from there, since they have it delivered via ups, and computers are so heavy, counting the main computer, and monitor. The fact that the install thing didn't come up talking really scares me. Has anyone ever brought a computer from qvc, and does anyone on here have an e machine? if so, did the install come up talking, and if not, how did you resolve the problem? We may have to get a dell. Does the jaws install wizard automatically come up talking on a dell?
Thanks,
wonderwoman
I'm not sure what an E Machine is, but I have a Gateway or Compact desktop computer with Windows XP and a Dell laptop that is older with Windows 98. Both have JAWS and they come up automatically.
Leilani
I've run plenty of EMachines with Jaws. Her computer might just have autoplay disabled. When you put the cd in, click start, then run, and type in d:setup, assuming your cd drive is D.
thanks kragil,
that might be possible, I'm not sure. She told me she just tried to play one of the training cds, and she got one of those stubborn messages saying some file couldn't be found. She doesn't know much about computers, less than I do, which isn't saying much, because I don't know much about computers myself. I can navigate mine, and have been doing so for almost 8 years, but I'm not a computer geek, which makes me wonder if I even have the right to be on this board, but oh well. After my mom left my room, I just happen to think, the reason the training cds won't play on her pc is because winamp isn't on her computer. I've had it on my computer so long, it feels like part of the computer. Anyway, it's a thought. but, you can hear the windows start up music on her computer, but sound isn't very good on it, because of those little speakers.
wonderwoman
Does the installation dialogue box come up at all? No, jaws doesn't work with all computers right out of the box, some computers do not have compatible video card drivers installed, though this doesn't seem to be the problem u r describing.
Hi kc, no, I put the cd in, and the cd rom drive spins, or whirs, whatever you want to call it, but after that, nothing happens, no speech at all.
wonderwoman. Ps, I will try that suggestion later in the fall, because we have to wait till the weather cools down, because the computer is in her bedroom, and it doesn't get much cool air, being that it's at the other end of the house.
Yeah, wonder woman <grin> may be you can check the computer in January then, you must live in a big house if it's such a long walk 8smiles*.
But in general, just check the system requirements for Jaws (I think they're posted everywhere, they may be different depending on the version of Jaws that you are using) and compare that with the system specifications for the computer you want to run Jaws on. I know 64mb is hardly sufficient for Jaws, especially not the later versions. I would not buy a computer with less than 512mb of ram ever, Windows XP at least and at least 80gb of hard drive space. I don't know much about Emachines but I'd be careful and rather save up a bit more money and bbuy a machine that you can actually run programs on, almost all programs today require at least 256mb of memory and so even if you got a cheap 64mb memory machine it would be almost usseless to you. And you can get a top knotch desktop for $600 so I'd imagine you can definitely get a good enough machine for $350 to $400 e.g. at Circuit City.
Thanks
-B
yes wildbrew, it's a fairly big house, and the thing that blows out the heat and air conditioning is on my end of the house, so my part is always a bit cooler in the summer, while moms' room is like an oven, and in the winter, my end is always warmer than hers. But to get back to the computer, she has 64 mb of ram, while I have 98 mb on mine, after upgrading it from 32 mb, which is what I was running on for years. Her processor and hard drive space are a little better, 500 megahertz processor, where mine is a 200 megahertz, and she has a 10.4 gb hard drive while I have a 2.37 gb hard drive. I'm not a compusive downloader, and only download, because I have to have the software to do whatever it is I'm trying to do, rather than just looking for things to download, or just downloading something because it sounds interesting. Up to jaws 5.0, fs was very good about giving system requirements, but in version 6 help topics, it just says you need enough ram to run jaws and other programs, you need enough disc space to run jaws and other programs, you need enough processor speed to run jaws with other programs. I didn't even try loading jaws 6 on her computer, because it doesn't seem to be quite as efficient on mine as jaws 5. And now I have this time and date instability issue, that's another reason I can't use it very well.
wonderwoman
with jaws 6, when I'm in an edit field, like word pad, or typing an address in internet explorer, jaws 6 is sluggish, and can't keep up with my typing, and there is a few seconds lag time before it speaks. On quicknotes, there was a several seconds lag before it would announce the send button. And on that accessible friends website, when I'd try to enter on some of the links like the registration link, I'd get that message about microsoft internet explorer encountered a problem, and needs to close. When I went back to jaws 5, I didn't have that issue at all, and I was very surprised, because I thought it was an issue between internet explorer and the site. Another thing is that I'm using the flextalk synthesizer, and I'm going to have to call the dealer I use to do business with before the talking installation cds came out, to find out how to get it on the new computer. I could use eloquence if I absolutely have to, but I just don't like eloquence voices. It's ok for short reading, but for long pages or documents? ugh, the voices go up and down too much, I can't explain it, but I like keith belle and kerry watson as my default flextalk voices. I think they're better quality, and the most human sounding.
wonderwoman
ps, I forgot to mention, we'll have to get it from qvc, because they have your orders delivered to your house via u ps, and places like computer stores don't deliver, and mom can't carry the computer home herself, they're too heavy, not to mention how heavy the monitor might be.
wonderwoman
well bryce, I can't do anything, with volume or otherwise, because jaws won't install. There's no speech. I don't think it's the volume, because I can hear sounds when she turns the computer on. She's just got puny little speakers on her computer. see, her speakers are real small, and mine are fairly big speakers. She doesn't even get on it that much. she hasn't even had it turned on in months. I'm curious to find out if she has a multichannel card. Her computer isn't as old as mine, probably 3 or 4 years old. I don't think it's turned the 5 year mark yet, because her clocks' battery hasn't gone dead, or else the time and date would've rolled back, like all computers do when that happens.
wonderwoman
All computers' CMos batteries don't go dead after five years. I have a computer that I've had for a lot longer than that, and the battery's still kicking! In the livingroom, we have an EMachines with a 400MHZ processor, and it runs XP, JFW, Window Eyes, and anything else I want to throw at it. It's the family computer though, so they just use it as a beater, and that's fine, but the point is, all the stuff you'd want will run on your mom's pc.
Hi Kragil, I don't want to install anything else on it except jaws, we're just curious to see if it will work with jaws. I wouldn't install anything else on it though, because she and I aren't interested in the same things, so programs like winamp, real player and windows media player would just take up a lot of unnecessary disc space, and have a few more unnecessary icons on her desktop. I think in the long run, it might cost more to have an older computer upgraded than it would to get a new one, if you upgraded the processor, ram and got a big new hard drive, plus buying a windows xp cd, which neither of us could install. I guess in order to find out if her computer has a multichannel sound card, I guess I'm going to have to come on here, and see if jaws will talk at the same time the sounds play, like in hangman or something.
wonderwoman
I know what you mean about jaws being strange on some computers.
Hi src, I wouldn't even know how to get it to anyone. I think there is a folder that has it in it, and when I entered on the .txt file, just to see if it said anything about flextalk, it just said, this is just a place holder for flextalk. The dealer who set everything up already had jaws and flextalk on my computer when I started using it. I somehow lost the 3.5 version I had, the cd I mean, though I still had it on my computer, but I think I still have version 4.5, which I got for free, I don't know why. I never installed kurzweil 4.5, but stuck with 3.5. I was using flextalk for a jaws synthesizer a year before I even had kurzweil on my system. I don't even want to reinstall kurzweil at this time, just flextalk, if I get a new computer. I'll probably have to call my x jaws dealer and ask him what to do to get it on there. I wonder, if I could find where it's stored, if I could put it on a floppy, and put it on the new computer that way?
wonderwoman