Technical Support:
Frequently Asked Questions
This page provides answers to technical issues you may encounter when running Waters to the Sea. If your concerns aren't addressed here, please email us at: cgee@hamline.edu.
Q. How do I install and run the program?
Q. What are the minimum system requirements for my computer?
Q. Can I run the program if my system requirements don't
meet the minimum?
Q. What is QuickTime 6.0 and why is it needed to run
this program?
Q. The program doesn't play smoothly. Transitions
between segments last a long time, movies take a long time to load
and/or are choppy when they play. What do I do about it?
Q. Occasionally the program's drag-and-drop activities
or other interactive features don't work. What can I do about this?
Q. Images look pixilated or splotchy. Can I improve
their quality?
Q. How
do I install and run the program?
A. If you
have QuickTime 6.0 (or better) installed on your computer, no installation
is necessary. To run the program, insert the CD ROM into your CD
ROM drive.
Windows users who have Autorun active will find that the program
launches automatically. If Autorun isn't active, double-click the
My Computer icon on your desktop and find the "WTTS_Chattahoochee" icon
for the CD ROM. Double-click this icon and then double-click a file
called "a_start.exe" among the files visible within the
WTTS window.
Macintosh users should double-click the "WTTS_Chattahoochee" icon
on your desktop, then double-click the "a_start.apm" file.
Note: If your computer doesn't have QuickTime 6.0 or is it
has an earlier version of the program, you will be prompted to install
QuickTime 6.0 from the program CD ROM. Follow the installation instructions
given by your computer.
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Q. What are the
minimum system requirements for my computer?
A. Windows 98, ME, 2000, or XP:
500 MHz Pentium, 128 MB available RAM,
24-bit colors, 8X CD ROM drive,
QuickTime 6.0 (or better) (QuickTime 6.0 is included on the CD ROM)
Macintosh:
500 MHz Power PC, System 9 or OS X,
128 MB available RAM,
Millions of colors, 8X CD ROM drive,
QuickTime 6.0 (or better) (QuickTime 6.0 is included on the CD ROM)
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Q. Can I run
the program if my system requirements don't meet the recommended
minimum?
A. Yes, Waters to the Sea is programmed
to play on computers that don't meet the minimum system requirements,
but the program will probably perform poorly.
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Q. What is QuickTime
6.0 and why is it needed to run Waters to the Sea?
A. QuickTime is software made by Apple Computer that
plays multimedia files. You need to have version 6.0 installed on
your computer or none of the videos in Waters to the Sea will
play. QuickTime provides a similar function to the Windows Media
Player, which comes installed in all Windows computers. However,
Windows Media Player will not play the videos in this program. QuickTime
6.0 is included in the Waters to the Sea CD ROM.
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Q. The program
doesn't play smoothly. Transitions between segments last a long time,
movies take a long time to load and/or are choppy when they play.
What do I do about it?
A. The most likely causes of this problem
are either that you are using a computer that doesn't meet the minimum system
requirements or that your computer's hard drive is full and/or fragmented.
Increasing the amount of available disk space on your hard drive by eliminating
uneeded files may improve performance. Software such as Norton's Utilities,
which includes a program called Speed Disk, is available that will "defragment" your
hard drive (rearrange the way files are stored so enhance performance).
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Q. Occasionally
the program's drag-and-drop activities or other interactive features
don't work. What can I do about this?
A: In some of the program's interactive segments if you use the left arrow
button to return to a previous screen, the interactive features on that screen
won't work. If this happens, you can regain the interactivity for the screen
in question by returning to the main menu and beginning the program segment
again.
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Q. Images look
pixilated or splotchy. Can I improve their quality?
A. The most likely cause of poor image quality relates to the color
settings of your monitor. For optimal image quality, your monitor should be
set for 24-bit colors (Windows), or Millions of colors (Macintosh). Here's
how to check and change this setting:
Windows: from the Start menu, select Settings, then Control
Panel from the list of choices. Double-click the Displays icon in
the Control Panel window. In the Displays window, select the "Settings" tab.
In the drop-down menu under "Color Pallet" select the highest
available color setting (at least 16-bit colors).
Macintosh: In the Apple menu (accessed by clicking and holding
on the colored Apple icon in the top left corner of your screen),
select the "Control Panel" option. In the Control Panel
window, double click the Monitors icon and the Monitors control panel
will open. In the area designating number of colors (the appearance
of this window varies with different versions of the Macintosh operating
system), select the highest available setting (at least Thousands
of colors).
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