Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™
Read Me Notes
Version 1.2

Thank you for buying Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™, the ultimate children's writing and creativity tool!
This Read Me file contains some last-minute information and updates to the Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ user documentation.  The User Guide and Installer Guide also provide information to help you get started using the program.  If you have any further questions, our toll-free Technical Support Department at 1-800-852-9952 is available to help you.

INSTALLATION TIPS:

*  Windows:  Please make sure you have at least 30 MB free on your boot drive to install the program.

*  Macintosh:  Please make sure you have all of your virus detection software and all extensions turned off except your CD-ROM drivers.  Refer to the Macintosh documentation for more instructions on how to disable the extensions. 

COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Performance:

Is there a way to make Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ run even faster?
*  Windows 3.1:  Increase the amount of virtual memory to the maximum allowed on your system.  You can do this by going to the Control Panels and opening the 386 enhanced icon.  This will bring up the Virtual Memory dialog box. You can change the amount of virtual memory here, and there is a help button to assist you if you have questions.

*  Macintosh:  Make sure you have virtual memory turned off while you are using the program. 

*  Power Macintosh:  Set your virtual memory to the minimum setting if you have only 16 megabytes of RAM.

*  All systems:  For better performance, don't add your graphics and borders to your document until you are almost done.

*  Windows 95 and Windows 3.1:  Some programs can run slowly with certain video cards.  Please make sure your video card software is correctly installed and that it has enough memory.  Also make sure you are using the most up-to-date driver for the card. You can contact the manufacturer for this.

Sound:

Why can't I see the sound note I just placed in my picture?
*  When you add a sound note to a picture, it will not appear immediately. However,  it's easy to see which pictures have sounds attached by moving the mouse over the picture and the cursor will change to a sound note.

How can I change the sound in a picture?
*  To change a sound already in a picture, just place another sound note on the picture.

How many sounds can be placed in a picture?
* You can only place one sound note in a picture.
* You can place more than one sound in a background by having several pictures on the background with sounds attached.

Why don't some of the sound notes play in my document?
* A sound note in a picture will no longer play if you attach a border to the picture.
* A sound note in a picture will no longer play if you change the original picture by resizing it unless after doing so, you return the picture/clipart back to its original size.

Pictures and Animations:

Is there an easy way to place or move my pictures and animations?
*  An easy way to reposition animations in your document is to zoom out with the magnifying glass in the Word Processor.  It will let you see the whole document at once.  You can then move them around with the cursor.

How do I change my text in my pictures? 
*  If your text was added with the text tool in the Picture Place, the only way to change the text is to use the eraser tool.  You can also backspace as you are typing, but as soon as you click away from the typing area, the text is now part of the picture and can only be erased with the eraser tool.

I also own Student Writing Center® from The Learning Company.  Can documents from Student Writing Center® be used in Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™?

	*  Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ can read Student Writing Center® documents.  You can open an existing Student Writing Center® document from inside of Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ and modify it.  Save it out as a Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ document.

Can clip art created in most other programs be inserted in Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™?

*  Yes it can.

For Windows 3.1 and Windows95:

1.  Open the clip art in the program you created it with and copy the image to the clipboard. Open MS Paint and paste the image. Copy the image to the clipboard. Open Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™.  Paste your clip art into the new document in the Word Processor.  You can only paste the image in the Word Processor.  You cannot paste it into the Picture Place.
	
	For Macintosh and Power Macintosh:
	
	2. Open the clip art in the program you created it with and copy the image to the clipboard. 	Open Ultimate 	Writing & Creativity Center™.  Paste your clip art into the new document in 	the Word Processor.  You can only paste the image in the Word Processor.  You cannot 	paste it into the Picture Place.
Word Processor:

Why doesn't "Read Words" play the text that I added inside my picture in the Paint Place?
*  Since it is a picture of the text, you will not be able to play what you have written in your picture in either the Word Processor or the Theater.

My document was created on another platform, and can't be seen in the file menu.
*  Make sure the "All Files" option is selected, and you will find your document there.  This way, you can read Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ Mac files on your Windows machines, and Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ Windows files on your Mac.

Why don't my animations stay where I put them?
*  Animations are what we call "text-based" objects.  They can only be placed in a sentence in the same way as you would place a sticky note or type in a letter. Pictures are what we call "page-based" objects.  They can be placed anywhere on the document and the text will wrap on one side.

How does text wrap work in Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™?
*  When you place your picture in the document, the text will wrap either to the left or the right of the object.  Tip:  you can place pictures on both sides of the text, and the text will be in the middle.

Animations:

Is there an easy way to move the animations around once they are placed in the document?
*  The easiest way to move animations and reposition them on your document is to move the cursor over the animation until the hand cursor appears.  Click to make the outline box appear so the animation can be moved.  If you zoom out with the magnifying glass, it's easy to see the whole page and place the animation exactly where you want it to be.  You can also cut, copy, and paste the animations and move them that way too.

Why is there a lot of blank space around my animation when it is placed in the sentence?
*   The animation is considered to be an object when you place it.  The extra space allows for what it will need to play without you having to reformat the document.

Why doesn't the animation play if Zoom Out is active?
*  Animations will only play if they are in their original size. 

Idea Lands:

Why does my document disappear when I go to the Idea Lands?
*  Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ will ask you to save your document before going to the writing lands.  It does not disappear, and you can easily open it again from the File Menu.

Theater:

Why don't the illustrated letters or drop caps from the binders or the prewriting lands get read in my document?
*  Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ has drop caps located in the binders and the prewriting lands.  These are the alphabet clip art pictures you'll find in the "Art" section or in the prewriting clouds.  When you play a document that uses one of these as a drop cap, that letter will not be pronounced by the text-to-speech software since it is a piece of clip art, not text.

Why does the page jump around when I play the document?
*  Pictures with sounds will be read as the last items on each page, even if they are placed at the beginning of the document.

Why doesn't the Theater read the text inside my pictures? 
*  Since text added inside a picture is actually a picture of the text, you will not be able to play what you have written on the picture in either the Word Processor or the Theater.

Why doesn't my picture show up in the Theater?
*  If you have a document or page containing one or more pictures, they may not show in the Theater.  You'll need to have either some text before and after each picture, or a sound note in the picture to get it to stop on the screen.

How can I tell when the animations will play in the document?
*  An animation is treated the same way as text.  When you place an animation, it will be positioned in the sentence just like a letter, and will play in order in the sentence as the speech is read.

Why is there sometimes a flash as my document is being shown?
*  The Theater will only read sounds and text.  Other parts such as pictures may appear briefly as flashes.

Software and Hardware Notes:

*  Ultimate Writing & Creativity Center™ may not be compatible with some applications.  Here is a list of known compatibility issues that is current as of shipping: 
 
Macintosh:
	*  Ram Doubler
	*  Now Utilities
	*  Screen savers (Dark Side of the Mac)

You may encounter some problems with the following sound cards.  If you encounter problems, be sure to get the latest driver from the manufacturer:
*   Aria
*   Awe
*   Diamond Telecommander 3500
*  Turtle Beach
*  Gravis Ultrasound	

You may encounter some problems borders not printing on Epson printers.  If you encounter problems, be sure to get the latest driver from the manufacturer.

If your Sound Notes and / or Animations print black, get the latest printer drivers from the manufacturer.

If your borders get cut off while printing, make sure that you have the latest printer drivers or you may want to try a thinner border.

If  a Sound Note is playing in the word processor, do not exit the program.