New Release of Keynote GOLD Multimedia A. Introduction Pulse Data is pleased to release version 1.15 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia. Version 1.15 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia is available in English-only and Multilingual versions. This document describes the changes from the previous versions and the methods of upgrading to the new versions. As the changes introduced in version 1.14 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia were quite extensive and some users may be upgrading to version 1.15 from versions prior to version 1.14, this document describes the changes introduced in both releases. B. New Features and Bug Fixes in Version 1.15 A full list of new features and bug fixes in version 1.15 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia is included below. The main change of significance to users is as follows: 1. The main purpose of version 1.15 is to fix problems that version 1.14 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia had working with some voice-modem wave drivers that incorrectly report their playback capabilities. This caused Keynote GOLD Multimedia to load but not speak and to slow down the computer. C. New Features and Bug Fixes in Version 1.14 A full list of new features and bug fixes in version 1.14 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia is included below. The main changes of significance to users are as follows: 1. The bug with DOS screen readers such as VocalEyes or Slimware Window Bridge crashing or freezing is fixed. 2. Keynote GOLD Multimedia now works well with KeySoft. 3. Keynote GOLD Multimedia can now load earlier in the Windows start-up sequence than before. It can load before early-loading Windows screen readers and can, for example, be used to read the Windows 95 network logon dialog. 4. The maximum speech speed has increased by about 35%. 5. The INI file used by Keynote GOLD Multimedia has changed from KEYNOTE.INI to KNSYNTHS.INI. This should reduce confusion caused by the INI file used by Keynote GOLD Multimedia and the INI file used by the Keynote SSIL driver having the same name. D. Policy for Upgrading to Version 1.15 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia The upgrade to version 1.15 of Keynote GOLD Multimedia is available to existing users free of charge. The upgrade files are available for downloading from Pulse Data International's web site (www.pulsedata.co.nz). Specific instructions for upgrading to version 1.15 of the English-only version and version 1.15 of the multilingual version are given in the following two sections. New versions of the demonstration versions of Keynote GOLD Multimedia are also available for downloading from Pulse Data International's web site E. Upgrading to Version 1.15 of the English-Only Version 1. Download the ZIP file containing everything needed to upgrade to version 1.15 of the English-only version of Keynote GOLD Multimedia from Pulse Data's web site. Go to www.pulsedata.co.nz, follow the links to the Download page and download knmm115e.zip into a temporary directory. 2. The upgrade can be performed while Keynote GOLD Multimedia is installed and running. There is no need to uninstall or unload Keynote GOLD Multimedia. 3. Unzip knmm115e.zip using the following command line: pkunzip -d knmm115e Make sure that you use the switch '-d'. The 'd' recreates the original directory structure. Alternatively, use Winzip to unzip knmm115e. Make sure that you select the option to recreate the original directory structure. 4. Install the upgrade using INSTALL.EXE from the temporary directory. It is not necessary to uninstall Keynote GOLD Multimedia first. 5. If you have made changes to Keynote GOLD Multimedia's INI file (KEYNOTE.INI in versions prior to 1.14 or KNSYNTHS.INI in version 1.14), to customise its behaviour then transfer the changes to the new KNSYNTHS.INI file. F. Upgrading to Version 1.15 of the Multilingual Version 1. Download the ZIP file containing everything needed to upgrade to version 1.15 of the Multilingual version of Keynote GOLD Multimedia from Pulse Data's web site. Go to www.pulsedata.co.nz, follow the links to the Download page and download knmm115m.zip into a temporary directory. 2. The upgrade can be performed while Keynote GOLD Multimedia is installed and running. There is no need to uninstall or unload Keynote GOLD Multimedia. 3. Unzip knmm115m.zip using the following command line: pkunzip -d knmm115m Make sure that you use the switch '-d'. The 'd' recreates the original directory structure. Alternatively, use Winzip to unzip knmm115m. Make sure that you select the option to recreate the original directory structure. 4. Install the upgrade using INSTALL.EXE from the temporary directory. It is not necessary to uninstall Keynote GOLD Multimedia first. 5. If you have made changes to Keynote GOLD Multimedia's INI file (KEYNOTE.INI in versions prior to 1.14 or KNSYNTHS.INI in version 1.14), to customise its behaviour then transfer the changes to the new KNSYNTHS.INI file. G. New Features in Version 1.15 1. Implemented new entry Int2FMultiplexSkip in KNSYNTHS.INI. If set to 1 or more, this entry allows the VoiceCard driver to capture a lower Int2F multiplex number than KNGMM even if KNGMM loads before the VoiceCard driver. Software searching for the real-mode Keynote software interface can thereby find the VoiceCard first. 2. Harmonics added to KNGMM's tone generation to make KeySoft's error beep more audible on laptop computers with small speakers. H. New Features in Version 1.14 1. Maximum speech speed increased by about 35%. 2. KNGMM can now be loaded from the drivers= line in the [boot] section of SYSTEM.INI. This allows it to load earlier in the Windows start- up sequence than previously. It loads before early-loading Windows screen readers and can, for example, be used to read the Windows 95 network logon dialog. By default the KNGMM installer installs KNGMM to load this way in Windows 95, but not in Windows 3.1x. (KNGMM can load this way in Windows 3.1x as well, but the copy protection code in KNGMML.EXE pops up a non-fatal error message box complaining of insufficient low memory.) A side effect of the new early loading mechanism is that it completely suppresses the Win95 start-up sound. This is because Keynote GOLD Multimedia speaks its start-up message as soon as the Win95 multimedia sound output system becomes available. 3. New INI file option OutputHoldTimeMs, which allows KNGMM to keep the wave output device open for a specified time after speech stops, or to keep the wave output device open continuously. This can improve responsiveness and can be used to prevent other multimedia programs locking out the speech. I. Bug Fixes in Version 1.15 Bug: On some computers with voice modem drivers installed (e.g. Toshiba internal modem for 480 CDT laptop computer; MWave drivers in recent IBM computers), KNGMM loads but never speaks. The computer runs slowly until KNGMM is unloaded. Fix: KNGMM now tests that a waveform output device accepts a buffer of Keynote-format waveform for output, in addition to KNGMM's other device capability tests. Bug: Uninstaller cannot run unless the computer has sound support capable of playing Keynote speech. Fix: Installer's sound playback capability check is now made only while installing, not while uninstalling. Bug: Installer fails if any of the files WIN.INI, SYSTEM.INI, or CONTROL.INI are less than 31 bytes long. Fixed. Bug: When loading early (in Windows 95 or Windows 98), KNGMM loads but never speaks. Depending on the computer, this may happen sometimes or it may happen every time Windows is started. It has been seen most often on recent Compaq computers. Fix: a) A bug in KNGMM has been fixed in KNGMM.DLL. b) In case KNGMM still doesn't load early reliably in other types of computer, a workaround has been implemented. KNGMM now supports a new entry OutputTestDelayMs in KNSYNTHS.INI, which delays KNGMM's querying of waveform output devices for a fixed time after KNGMM loads. This can be used to avoid querying the Windows multimedia system while it is unstable during Windows start-up. Bug: Unexpected interactions between KNGMM and the Windows 95/98 multimedia system may occur because KNGMM, when loading early, begins querying the Windows multimedia system while Windows is still loading waveform device drivers. Fix: Increased the default value of OutputTestDelayMs from 0 to 2000 milliseconds. Bug: When reading text with JAWS for Windows v3.2 and the KNGMM/JFW interface, under certain settings of JAWS for Windows, KNGMM may not properly speak text between square brackets "[" and "]". Fix: Fixed in KNGMM.JLS (new version 1.04.01). Bug: When KNGMM is loaded, the KNGMM loader does not correctly return input focus to the window that last had it. The input focus sometimes is not passed to any active window. When this happens, screen readers such as JAWS for Windows may remain silent until the user moves the input focus to a visible window. Fix: Fixed in KNGMML.EXE. Bug: Manipulation of Windows task time-slicing priorities in Windows 3, to improve responsiveness of speech from apps in DOS boxes, disabled accidentally in v1.13 and v1.14 releases. Fix: Re-enabled in VKNGMMD.VXD. Bug: KNGMM v1.14 upgrade procedure requires end-users to overwrite their distribution diskettes, making them unable to re-install their earlier version of KNGMM. Fix: Created an "upgrade" version of the KNGMM installer, which installs an electronically-distributable upgrade image over the top of an existing installation of KNGMM. J. Bug Fixes in Version 1.14 Bug: If KNGMM is loaded when Windows 3.1x is shut down, Windows crashes during shutdown. Fixed Bug: If KNGMM and JFW 3 are loaded when Windows 95 is shut down, and JFW is configured to use the KNGMM native interface, Windows may crash with a page fault during shutdown. Fixed Bug: When a DOS screen reader such as Slimware Window Bridge or VocalEyes is screen-reading in a DOS box with KNGMM, and the user enters a command (such as DIR or MEM /C) that generates a lot of output to the screen, the computer reboots or the DOS box freezes. Fixed Bug: When KeySoft is used in a DOS box with KNGMM, keystrokes are sometimes "held up". Nothing happens for a few keystrokes and then suddenly KeySoft responds to all of the keystrokes at once. Fixed Bug: If An Open Book and KeySoft are both running, KeySoft says "c-cedilla" a lot when it is speaking any text. If speech is switched off in An Open Book, KeySoft says even more "c-cedilla"s. Fixed Bug: "Big" and "Small" voices do not work properly in languages other than English. Fixed Bug: The DLL entry point for the Keynote API, VcApi(), should accept ANSI text but instead it expects OEM text (code page 850). This affects languages other than English. Fixed Bug: The minimum speech pitch setting in many speech applications gives speech at the normal default pitch, not at the minimum pitch. Fixed Bug: The An Open Book 3.x installer overwrites KNGMM's INI file in the Windows system directory, destroying KNGMM's settings. Fixed Bug: The JFW 3 native interface, KNGMM.JLS, depends on a fixed time delay to synchronise with the loading of KNGMM, and may fail prematurely if JFW is run during Windows start-up on a slow PC. Fixed Bug: KNGMML.EXE GP-faults when closed if another application has unloaded the KNGMM DLLs from memory. Fixed Bug: The KNGMM installer sometimes doesn't delete the KNGMM files during uninstall. Fixed Bug: The KNGMM installer doesn't clean up and delete the temporary sub-directory it creates in the Windows system directory. Fixed