Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Using FM patched into Computer audio port - 9/10/2007

Nichole is taking Spanish again in 10th grade (and has taken Spanish since 7th grade). The High School has a language lab that uses computers with headphones/mics and an application to allow the students to speak to the program and get graded. I have arranged to get into the lab this afternoon to figure out how Nichole can best utilize the system.

To that end, last night I used a patch cord to connect her Zoomlink hand held FM transmitter (which beams the input to her FM receivers on her CI Processor and Hearing Aid via the teacher's SX Campus FM Transmitter) to her computer headphone jack. Nichole said she could hear the music, but it turned out she was hearing the speakers on her desk (which I then muted). The FM portion was not working. Then I figured out that Windows XP or one of the applications on her PC had detected the new "device" plugged into the headphone jack and was asking me (via a pop up menu) what it was, and if I wanted to enable it. I had to click "ok" before it actually turned on the port (a bit of overkill if you ask me). Anyway, once I responded, Nichole was able to hear the music being pumped over the FM. She was walking around the whole upstairs listening to music that the rest of us could not hear. Way cool!