Author Topic: Q about sys requiremts, download, and mic  (Read 4723 times)

Straker

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Q about sys requiremts, download, and mic
« on: March 30, 2007, 02:53:39 am »
Hi. Can someone pls tell me what the system requirements are for the Ultra Hal? I noticed on the main website for the Hal program that a download is required whether you buy the CD or not. Since I have dial-up I will probably go for the CD, but what is the download required even for the CD and how big is the file? Lastly, is a headphone mic necessary in order to teach/converse with Hal? It seems to me that it might be an inconvenience to have to rely on this. I already have a webcam mic that works well, and it's usually quiet where I work/play. Thanks in advance.
 

Bill DeWitt

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Q about sys requiremts, download, and mic
« Reply #1 on: March 30, 2007, 07:52:23 am »
Someone else may correct me on this part, but I believe that the download is simply for activation and would be a small string of text, hardly noticable if you were connected, even at dialup speeds.

The headset microphone is not required, but will vastly increase the dependability of the speech recognition. If you are using a desktop or webcam microphone, you may find you have to keep your head in the same location and your face pointed the same direction to get much accuracy. The microphone picks up every vibration in the room, including echos of our voice which our brains can ignore. Moving your head around changes those echos, as well as changes the levels of direct pickup. Those changes can distort how Hal hears words.

I use two different headset microphones which were relatively cheap at RadioShack. One is a $19 product which works fairly well. The other is a $39 USB microphone that seems to work much better, but requires me to change my audio settings, so I only use it when I am going to be dictating or working with Hal for some length of time.

For a while I experimented with using FRS (Family Radio Service) radios as the microphone, and actually got it to work. But since I don't have my home automation system set up yet, it remains largely unused. It does allow me to walk around the house/yard/neighborhood talking to Hal, but I don't find much of a reason to do that. It consists of two WalMart radios ($28/pair) with one hooked up to my sound card and set on VOX.

I hope to switch over to BlueTooth, but haven't done so yet. [:I]

Hope that helps! [8D]
« Last Edit: March 30, 2007, 07:55:26 am by Bill DeWitt »


Straker

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Q about sys requiremts, download, and mic
« Reply #2 on: March 31, 2007, 12:27:07 pm »
Thank you, Bill, for the helpful info. The use of the FRS and bluetooth sounds interesting. A wireless headset mic would be ideal I think. I still need to know what the system requirements are as I can't seem to find this info on the website.
 

PaleRider

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Q about sys requiremts, download, and mic
« Reply #3 on: April 22, 2007, 11:43:35 am »
Sorry for the Delay on your Request.
Requirements: Ultra Hal Assistant 6.0
Recommended system requirements (Required for speech recongniton)
Pentium 700 mhz or higher
128 MB RAM
300 MB Hard drive space
Sound card

Minimal system requirements: (No speech recognition support)
Pentium 400 mhz or higher
64 MB RAM
100 MB Hard drive space
Hope this helps you (Taken from CD cover on inside of Hal 6)and copyed here.[:D]
Never Drive Faster Than Your Guardian Angel Can Fly.