We're very happy to have you here Nikki!  :-*

I'm also pleased to see you posting around in the other areas of the forums, we value your questions and opinions and we thank you for not hesitating to ask whenever you have any questions!   

I hope to hear more from you and your experience teaching your little one sign language.  It would be such a blessing to learn from your insights and experience.

Have a great day!

Cheers,

Lappy

Hi there!  :-*

Looks like we have several members from Singapore, and I'm glad to see you in the forums!

Cheers,

Lappy

As I am sure she'll be! Celest is very lucky to have such loving parents such as you, and I'm pleased to know that most of our forum members care only the best for their little ones, which is why they are interested in giving them a great start in life!

I look forward to hearing more about your parenting experience with your little angel!  :-*

Cheers,

Lappy

Thanks for the props Leanna, it's good to know that you're finding it easy to navigate through the forums!  :-*

Oh yes, and PM does mean Private Messaging - our forums have its very own emailing system where you can send messages to other members!  It's a nifty little tool to know, and you can check if you've gotten anything by clicking on 'Inbox' at the upper right hand corner of your page.   

I hope all of you enjoy your experience staying here at the forums!

Thank you very much for the words of encouragement, and I'm very happy to hear that you and your son are enjoying Little Reader!  :-*

Yes Catherine, we have been mulling over implementing grade levels for the flash cards, but we haven't constructed a viable grading system just yet.   :educated:  But I do certainly agree with you, that we will need to create these grade levels, perhaps we will create such a system and implement them, and this will be in the very near future.

As for the number flash cards, there are ready-to-download Numbers categories in the Little Reader File Downloads section.  These come in numbers 1 through 10, and are available in red dots and blue squares.  The red dots numbers categories are also actually in the Little Reader default library, so if you have downloaded and installed Little Reader, you should already have them.

We are scheduling to release new downloads every week (for flash card printouts, slideshows, and Little Reader library add-ons) so you have something new to look forward to!  :-*  I'll get right on doing the everyday objects in the house, and objects children can see outside (would you have specific words you want me to include? PM me!)

[Deleting the picture from the Word File in Little Reader doesn't delete the picture from your hard drive]

Well then, I am sorry for the misunderstanding.   :-*

To change the pictures in your Little Reader, please follow the same instructions as I gave you.

Deleting the picture from the Word File in Little Reader doesn't delete the picture from your hard drive.  You may still go back to it and use it sometime in the future by going to My Documents - BrillKids - Little Reader - Media Library.  That's where all your imported and default files are.

By deleting the picture from your Little Library, you are merely detaching its association with that particular Word File. 

That's a great suggestion! We'll get cracking on enabling this feature straightaway!

[5. On the picture panel, select the image that you want to remove, and click DELETE.]

Hello Nikki!

Thanks for raising this topic, it'll help us put a clearer perspective on how to Edit Pictures in Little Reader.

I'm glad that you were resourceful as to go to the help topics, and since you have already followed the directions there, I've got an idea of what happened.  After having chosen ADD A NEW PICTURE, you may have failed to delete the old one.  So here's what you do:

1.  Go to WORD LIBRARY.
2.  Highlight the word you want to edit.
3.  Click on EDIT to open the editing dialogue box.
4.  Click on NEW in the picture panel (middle panel of Edit Word Menu) - Locate the photo or image file in your computer.  Click Open.  Your selected image will then appear on the preview box.

And one last note, since what you wanted to do was not ADD a picture, rather you wanted to EDIT the existing one so it gets replaced,

5.  On the picture panel, select the image that you want to remove, and click DELETE.

This will effectively replace the old photo with the new one you just put in.    On another note, you may also just choose to EDIT the image instead and replace it with your new one, instead of adding a new one.  Little Reader is capable of taking in several pictures for one word, which is why the ADD A NEW PICTURE is there - this will enable you to play different pictures of the same person, animal or object each and every time you playback that word.

I hope that helps!  Please let me know how it goes! :-*

Cheers,

Lappy

[New Build Release - Little Reader BETA 1.03]

New Build Release - Little Reader BETA 1.03

We just released another new build for all of you beta testers, and inch by inch we are clearing out the bugs and ironing out the kinks in Little Reader!

NOTE: Your previous version will need to be uninstalled, but you do not have to do it manually.  Simply click on the installation file and it will prompt you to uninstall your old program and proceed to do it for you.  If you've already added new words, not to worry, just make sure NOT to choose to delete all of your existing files during the uninstall.  When you open your new Little Reader, your files will still be there. 

You can check your beta version by clicking on the 'HELP' dropdown on the upper left corner of Little Reader and clicking on 'About Little Reader.'

Here’s a list of changes and improvements we've made:

Playlist and Category Buttons
When you view the Playback and Word Library screen, you will no longer have to click on a drop down menu to change the view between playlists and categories – the buttons will help you identify what list you are viewing!



Only Esc Key - Keyboard Lock
Having a problem with your baby banging on the keyboard? Now, when you use the Auto Forward feature, you will have an option to enable the Only Esc Key function which virtually locks your keyboard with the exception of your Esc key.



Additional Pointer Settings
We’ve added a setting that will auto-position the pointer at the start of the word each time it is played back. With this new feature, you can add or remove that extra-click before the pronunciation begins for your playback!



Auto-Import Confirmation Message
We’ve added another dialogue box that pops up whenever you upload new categories, so you’ll be able to confirm whether or not you want to proceed with the auto-import.



Sound FX = Picture Audio
We have changed the name of Sound FX files to Picture Audio, for users to better understand that this is the audio that accompanies pictures, and it is possible to attach audio files that not only contain sound effects but also voice recordings, music, or other narrations.



Drop-down View for Playlists Containing Whole Categories
When you create a playlist which consists of a whole category, you will now be able to view the entire contents of the category by clicking on the drop down button beside it.



Download Button
You are now able to view a list of Little Reader categories available for download at our forums, just by clicking on the Download button on your Little Reader.



Playback controls
We have enabled additional playback controls to give you more control over how you can show your presentations!
  •  To go forward - Left mouse click, right arrow, space bar, or enter
  •  To go back - Right mouse click or left arrow
  •  To repeat slide - Mouse wheel click or down button



Little Reader Tutorial Button
We've changed the "Quick Tour" button on the Home Screen to "Tutorials" and this is where you will be able to view all user tutorials for Little Reader.  We will also release other tutorials for you in the future, so please stay tuned.



Automatic Font Size Feature
This option will display your words in the biggest font size recommended as per your screen settings. It will also auto-shrink the font size to accommodate longer words and phrases, intelligently fitting them into one line and breaking them up into two lines as it sees fit.



BrillKids Latest
Want to have a quick peek at the forums while you’re using your Little Reader? Now it’s as easy as clicking on the BrillKids Latest button! You’ll be able to see a list of the newest posts and replies in the forums.



And here are some of the more significant bug fixes:
  •  Error importing/playing categories (Parameter Not Valid) – FIXED!
  •  Disappearing mouse error (Invalid Hook Handle) – FIXED!


================================================================

New Build Release - Little Reader BETA 1.02

We just released a new build for all of you beta testers, and we're happy to say that we've taken some of your suggestions and added some new features to Little Reader!

NOTE: Your previous version will need to be uninstalled, but you do not have to do it manually.  Simply click on the installation file and it will prompt you to uninstall your old program and proceed to do it for you.  If you've already added new words, not to worry, just make sure NOT to choose to delete all of your existing files during the uninstall.  When you open your new Little Reader, your files will still be there. 

You can check your beta version by clicking on the 'HELP' dropdown on the upper left corner of Little Reader and clicking on 'About Little Reader.'

Here's a list of new functions:

Flash Playback mode - Message at the beginning of playback
If you playback a playlist that is set in Flash mode, you will now see an opening screen prompting you to begin. This will help you to know what to do next instead of just seeing a blank screen at the beginning.

Auto-importing of new categories and playlists
We've just made importing new files to your Little Reader much easier! Now, if you download a new category or playlist file for Little Reader, you just need to double click on the file and it will automatically import itself into your program! We've also made the File Downloads section for Little Reader more convenient for you. To visit the section, click here.

Also make sure you check out the DOWNLOAD button on your Little Reader - you will see that it will now show you all available Little Reader word sets to download!

Updated Quick Tour
To help you get more acquainted with Little Reader and its functions, we've made a new Quick Tour for you - you can access it by pressing on the Quick Tour button on your Little Reader's Home Page.  If you're still seeing the old Quick Tour, make sure you right click on the Quick Tour screen and select 'REFRESH.'

Different highlight colors for Playlists and Categories
To help you further differentiate Categories from Playlists, we've made the highlight colors different - You may see this by going to your Playback Menu. Toggle between 'Play From: Categories' and 'Play From: Playlists' and you will see that the entries you highlight will be colored differently. If you'd like to know more about the difference between a Playlist and a Category, click here.

Pointer Mode - Extra-click to start pronunciation playback
Whenever you have checked the POINTER option to activate the pointer, by default it will require you to click one more time after the word is displayed before the pronunciation audio is played back. This will give you time to position your pointer at the start of the word before playing back the recording, so that you may move the pointer along the bottom of the word as the pronunciation audio is played back.

Other Minor Changes:

Updated action word video files
We just removed some playback errors in the Action Words category. The files will now play smoother on your PCs.

Help menu - Added link to Forum - We've also included a link to bring you directly to the beta forums - just click on the 'HELP' dropdown on the upper left corner of Little Reader and click on Get Help From Forum.'

Hi Nine!

Glad to have in here!  :-*

Sorry to hear about that - but not to worry - all children grow and develop at different rates, and sometimes early speech difficulty won't hamper his progress later on in life!    One great example of that is Albert Einsten - ol' Einstein had early speech difficulty too and look at how he turned out - REALLY SMART!  :educated:

I hope that our free downloads and software can help you with teaching your little one how to read, and I look forward to reading you recount your experience in the forums!

Cheers,

Lappy

Hi Leanna!  Glad to see you in the forums!  :-*

Wow, a speech language pathologist - I'm looking forward to reading your posts on insights about early learning, and I hope you won't mind sharing your experiences with us.  It'll be great to have some professional opinion on the subject from an SLP... haha not slow lazy person!

Hope to see you posting around!

Cheers,

Lappy 

[FOR THE POWERPOINT SLIDESHOW FILES]

Thanks for asking that question.  Here's little more to clear things up with the downloads:

FOR THE POWERPOINT SLIDESHOW FILES
The free downloads do not need Little Reader to play.  These PowerPoint files are stand alone files that you can play for your babies even without Little Reader.

To download:
Go to the FILE DOWNLOADS area and click on POWERPOINT SLIDESHOWS (.ppsx) - You will then see a list of PowerPoint files that you can download.  After choosing what you like, click on the DOWNLOAD button and the download will begin.

To play the files:
You will need PowerPoint Viewer 2007 to open these files.  If you don't have the program yet, you can download it for free by clicking here.  Download and install the PowerPoint viewer first before you open the files.

FOR THE FLASH CARD PRINTOUTS - PDF FILES
The flash card printouts are there for you to open, print out, and show to your child as hard copy flash cards.   

To download:
Go to the FILE DOWNLOADS area and click on PRINTED FLASH CARDS (.pdf) - You will then see a list of Flash Card Printout files that you can download.  After choosing what you like, click on the DOWNLOAD button and the download will begin.

To open the files:
You will need Adobe Acrobat Reader to open these files.  If you don't have the program yet, you can download it by clicking here.  Download and install the Adobe Acrobat Reader first before you open the files.

I hope that made thigns a little clearer for everyone.    If you still have any problems, do let me know.

Lappy

Hi Leana! Glad you asked that question... wow, our new users are all beginning to be experts at using Little Reader and I'm really happy about this!  :educated:

Here's what you need to do to record your own voice for Little Reader:

1.  You need a working microphone for your computer.  If you have a headset with a microphone, this will do just fine.
2.  You need to open Sound Recorder in your PC.  I'm assuming you're using a Windows-based computer, and they all come with a Sound Recorder program (it's just that not a lot of people use it!)
 - Click on START on your taskbar.
 - Click on ALL PROGRAMS - ACCESSORIES - ENTERTAINMENT
 - Lastly, click on Sound Recorder.
3. This will open a very simple sound recorder on your computer.  Make sure your microphone is plugged in already.
4. Click on the RECORD button to begin recording.

That's it!  You can now record all the words, phrases and yes - even stories - that you want!

Let me know how this goes for you and if you have any other questions, just drop me a line in here!  :-*

Lappy

Hi Ceci!  :-*

Glad to see you in the forums too! And yes - we really could use some help with supplying some Spanish flash card sets! 

It's great that you were able to use the Infant Stimulation Cards, and hopefully I'll get right on making some more soon for everyone to download.  If you have a wish list on what kind of Infant Stimulation cards you want to see, do let us know so we can get cracking on it!

Cheers!

Lappy

P.S.
I love your baby's name!