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• Overview (PocketPC and Java)
• Java Plugin
  • Details: Plugin installation for MS Windows
  • Details: Plugin installation for Netscape on Linux
  • Details: Other platforms
• Java security
• Reboot the machine or restart the browser or reload the demo page
• Audio Checklist
  

For our Java-based demos, don't skip these steps:

• Install Java 2 if it's not already there.
• Give Java permission to record audio.
• Check mic, volume, and line-in/mic-in settings.
• Problems? Check here.

Get the Java Plugin

http://java.sun.com/j2se/downloads.html

Details: Plugin installation for Netscape on Linux:

http://java.sun.com/j2se/downloads.html.

http://java.sun.com/j2se/1.3/jre/install-linux.html.

export NPX_PLUGIN_PATH=/usr/java/jre{version}/plugin/i386/ns4

export NPX_PLUGIN_PATH=/usr/java/jre1.3.1_01/plugin/i386/ns4

The instructions above probably have a family resemblance to the steps you will need to take to install Java 2 for your platform; presently that's the best we can do for you.

If you can share your experience with us, so that other users can benefit, we would very much appreciate an email from you describing your own step-by-step installation procedure. Please let us know the operating system name and version, and browser name and version, and email us at info@sprex.com. Thank you!

Java security

• Find the active file: Locate your active "java.policy" file. This text file is normally located at

      java.home\lib\security\java.policy
  

  Here, java.home is your runtime environment's directory: the jre directory in the SDK (for example: C:\java\jre) or the top-level directory of your Java 2 Runtime Environment (for example: C:\Program Files\Java\j2re1.4.0_03\lib\security). You can find all the java.policy files on your computer as follows:
  In Windows XP, click on Start,
  then Search,
  then All files and folders,
  then enter "java.policy" in the "All or part of the file name:" field,
  then ensure "Look in" is set to "Local Hard Drives",
  then click the Search button (ensure that system folders are examined, under advanced options),
  then in the Recording Control dialog box:
  click the "Select" checkbox for either the "Microphone" or "Line In", according to which jack the mike is plugged into.
  Also here you can adjust the volume levels.
  Then close the three newly opened windows via their upper right "X" buttons.

• Open the one with the most recent date modified field in WordPad: Rename the one with the most recent date modified filed to java.policy.orig. Open this java.policy.orig file with a plain-text text editor such as WordPad or emacs (Word makes it harder to save it in the right format, and NotePad misinterprets the line breaks) using right-click followed by "Open With..." and "WordPad". Notice that the file contains the keyword grant { followed by many permission lines, followed by a }; line at the end of the file.

• Add a permission line in the right place: To make your java.policy file work (like the sample modified policy file), add the needed audio recording permission line, thus: Copy the following line, and then Edit->Past Special... it as "Unformatted Text" into your policy file after the last of the permissions and before the final };

  	permission javax.sound.sampled.AudioPermission "record";
  
  

• Save it: Then save the file as plain ASCII text to the name "java.policy.allowrecord" in the same directory as your java.policy.orig file; no special formatting is allowed.

• Activate it: Copy java.policy.allowrecord to its parent directory (using, for example Windows Explorer). Change the name of the copied file to java.policy. Ensure you have backed up your original java.policy file to java.policy.orig as described above. Then move the java.policy.allowrecord file renamed to java.policy to over-write the existing java.policy file (via cut from the parent directory and paste into the java.policy directory, often the security directory). Then reboot or at least restart your web-browser to activate the new java.policy file. You may need to select the Java whose java.policy file was modified using Internet Explorer -> Tools -> Internet Options -> Advanced -> Java (Sun) or Microsoft VM. Please let us know of any comments you have on these steps for your specific environment. Thanks!

• Wiring: The microphone must be plugged into the correct sound card jack. We normally use "Mic in" (Blue) for unpowered microphones. And we use "Line in" (Red) for microphones with a battery or external power supply such as a pre-amp.

• Jack Settings: The computer must know which jack the microphone is in.
  • In Windows XP, click on Start,
    then Control Panel,
    then Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices,
    then Sounds and Audio Devices,
    then the Audio tab,
    then within the Sound recording area click the Volume... button,
    then in the Recording Control dialog box:
    click the "Select" checkbox for either the "Microphone" or "Line In", according to which jack the mike is plugged into.
    Also here you can adjust the volume levels.
    Then close the three newly opened windows via their upper right "X" buttons.
  • In Windows 2000, click on Start,
    then Settings,
    then Control Panel,
    then Sounds and Multimedia Properties,
    then the Audio tab,
    then within the Sound Recording area click the Volume button,
    then on the Recording Control dialog box:
    click the "Select" checkbox for either the "Mic Volume" or "Line In", according to which jack the mike is plugged into.
    Also here you can adjust the volume levels.
  • In Red Hat Linux with OSS, run "xmixer" and toggle the Mic or Line recording status button.

  • If you have a different OS and you can send us step-by-step instructions on how to set these values, please help our other users who may be using your particular platform and send them to us. Thanks!

• Volume Settings: The computer must have its volumes set to appropriate levels. Too low and it can't tell your voice from background noise. Too high and you get clipping, which totally ruins everything. So look at the VU meter while running the ANSR demo. It should show significant movement as you count to ten. But it should never, or almost never, go beyond the clipping range. To adjust the volume, follow the directions for Jack Settings above.

  You might want to turn down the recording volume levels for the other audio devices, so that they don't add any noise to the signal.

• Mike Settings: Some mikes have a mute button; set it to its non-mute position. We have cursed many a recognizer before realizing the mic mute button was on.

  Some mikes have a pre-amp with volume controls and a power supply. Plug in the power cord, or check the battery. Then talk into it to see if the overload LED lights up; turn the volume up until it does light up; then turn it back down a little, to the point where the LED lights up only when you say HOW LOUD AM I NOW, not actually loudly, but with just a little emphasis. Now you know what "speak in a normal voice" means: don't set off the overload light very often.

• Mike Position: The microphone should be close to your mouth. If it's closer to your disk-drive fan than your mouth, don't blame us for recognition failures.

  The Shure SM10A microphone instructions say to position the microphone between 7 and 15 millimeters from the corner of your mouth.

  Do NOT put it in front of your mouth, where you'll blow on it; we want your voice, not blowing noises!

  Look at the VU meter in the ANSR demo. Is it bouncing happily as you talk and frozen when you're silent? That's what we want.

• Speak politely: Don't yell, don't whisper, don't mumble, don't be nervous, don't talk strangely, just relax and speak like a normal person, or if you can't do that, speak like a TV news announcer. ;-)