My Red LightSpeed

My Red LightSpeed

August 29, 2008

Sharing user configurations

Can't set up your configuration files? Try some other users' configs. I have uploaded some user config.xml files at www.alcra.org/downloads/configs. All you have to do is save the file to your LightSpeed folder (instructions on the linked page) and load them in your LightSpeed GUI interface.

August 18, 2008

Taking a certification test

So last week I was asked to sit in on our state's certification test to monitor the quality. Okay, sounds like, um, fun. So I agreed. I went in with no practice, and I forgot to bring any warm-up material. So I sit there while the test candidates warm up.

At test time, I wrote the intro as my warm-up. I was a little nervous. Then the test. WOW! Went great! Nailed the literary and jury charge; not drops. Did really well on the QA, although I did drop a portion. Still, what a great experience with the writer. Now... time to practice for the realtime certification.

August 12, 2008

LS software and config files

The LightSpeed software is the interface, or GUI, on your computer.
The LightSpeed firmware is the software which resides on the writer itself.

When you make changes in your basic threshold settings, when you click on Done, you will see a small box indicating that the software is sending the settings to your writer. When you use Bluetooth as your method of connection for realtime, the settings which reside on your writer are utilized. When you use Bluetooth, you are not going through the LightSpeed GUI, so you don't have the advantage of the settings other than the basic thresholds -- the single key, combination, and other settings in the LS software, such as the anti-stacking. When you use the USB cable, you do get the benefit of those settings.

When you save your settings, you are saving a config.xml file. Each time you save it, you should rename it with a specific name. I use Greta_config_(date). That way, if I mess something up, I can go back to my last config. Or at least that's the theory. I recently had an incident where I quit using the date, and I accidentally overwrote all my settings by clicking on Apply All. Thankfully, I had my config backed up on my thumb drive with my other backup files!

The config file resides in this path (which opens automatically in the dialog box when you click Save in your LS GUI):
C:/
Documents and Settings
(User name)
Application Data
LightSpeed

If you get to the user name portion of the path and you don't see Application Data folder, go to Tools and the View tab, the Hidden files and folders folder, then click on Show hidden files and folders.

I am working on a web page which will have different LS users' config.xml files for download. When I get that up and running, I will post that here.