Setup

For most uses, MediaLab will run perfectly well on any PC system, running Windows 95/98/ME/NT/2000/XP/Vista. At least 256 Mb of RAM is recommended. If large experiments and/or large multi-media files are going to be used frequently, then additional RAM is advisable though not necessary. Video cards with at least 16 Mb of video memory also are recommended.

It is recommended that you also install Microsoft Office on all machines that will be running MediaLab. These programs allow MediaLab to present documents fully formatted by Word and slide shows prepared in PowerPoint and allow you to execute a number of features using the conditional logic of Excel. Although MediaLab will work fine without them, these programs perform cooperatively with MediaLab to produce some very impressive functionality. Microsoft's Internet Explorer version 4 or later is required in order for MediaLab to present custom items and other HTML formatted pages (whether stored locally or on the internet). Finally, it is necessary to have a spreadsheet application (e.g., Excel, SPSS) installed in order to view the data files produced by MediaLab (although the .txt and .csv data files can also be viewed in any text editor).

If you are accustomed to using a previous version of MediaLab (v1998/v3-v2006), you should be able to continue using v2008 without having to learn anything new. v2008 is backward compatible so that MediaLab experiments from all previous versions should run the same as they always have without requiring modification. In fact, the final release of MediaLab v2006 (v2006.2.40) served as the beta release of v2008. Of course, be sure to confirm compatibility for yourself with any old experiments prior to scheduling participants. As we continue to updated v2008 with new fixes and features, we will post the changes on our support site at:

To install MediaLab, download and run ml2008.x.x.exe (where x.x is the specific release) available from www.empirisoft.com/download.aspx. If installing from a CD-ROM then simply double-click on the ml2008.x.x exe file located on the CD. The installation program will guide you through the set-up procedure. After the setup is complete, follow the security instructions below to gain authorization for the workstation to run MediaLab.

Users will require read/write access to the MediaLab folder following installation. If they do not have read/write permission for the folder, the license check will fail and will cause a new code to be generated. The installation should grant these rights to all users automatically, but if not then they may need to be set as follows by someone with administrator-level access:

Step 1. When logged on as an administrator, this can be done by right clicking on the MediaLab folder and selecting Properties and then Security and ensuring that regular users have Read/Write permission. If you do not see a Security tab, then try Step 2.

Step 2. Open Folder Options in the Windows Control Panel. On the View tab, make sure Use simple file sharing is not checked. It should be one of the last options. With that unchecked, you should now get a security tab when checking the properties of folders. Try Step 1 again—that should do it.

To help control unauthorized distribution and use of MediaLab, it has been secured with ATX™ software protection. MediaLab will not run on any machine until this security has been disabled. To disable the security follow these steps:

▪	You will receive a message that the current workstation requires authorization to use the software, and a code number will be displayed.

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If you are an authorized user, you will receive a translation of this code which will be a registration number unique for the machine on which you have installed MediaLab (usually the same day). Then, re-start MediaLab and enter the five digit code provided to you. MediaLab should now be fully functional. Important: ATX codes are unique to every machine. Be sure to get authorization for each machine that will be using the software. If you have any difficulty at all with this procedure, please contact us for assistance via sales@empirisoft.com.

Tired of entering all those authorization codes? If you belong to a school that has purchased a departmental site license then we can hard code your department's IP prefix into MediaLab so that ANY machine starting with that prefix (e.g., 123.456.789.*) will start up right away if the code 99999 is entered. Multiple patterns can be accommodated. Ask sales@empirisoft.com for details.

If you are upgrading to a new version you will be asked to uninstall the existing version. Experiments, data folders, preferences, and licenses will not be affected by uninstalling. Of course, we recommend backing up experiment data before making any changes to your system.

To allow for the full range of colors usable by MediaLab, it is recommended that you use 16, 24, or 32 bit color. Some older systems are set by default to 8 bit, which provides for only 256 colors (colors or color ranges may appear as dots, patterns, or solid regions). To change these settings, open the Display properties in your computer's Control Panel, and select Settings. Select the highest color range possible. 24 and 32 bit color ranges are both capable of displaying close to the full range of colors detectable by the human eye.

MediaLab frequently makes use of file extensions. These are the three-letters following the period on file names (e.g., .exe, .doc, .mpg). For this reason, it is advisable that you don't instruct Windows to hide these from you. To set this as a default:

▪	In Windows 95/98, open any folder and select View from the pull down menu. Select Folder Options, and then View again. Deselect the option to have Windows Hide File Extensions. It is also useful to have Windows Display the Full Path in Title Bar, as well as Smooth Edges of Screen Fonts.

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In Windows ME/2000/XP, open any folder and select Tools from the pull down menu. Select Folder Options, and then View. Deselect the option to have Windows Hide File Extensions. It is also useful to have Windows Display the Full Path in Title Bar as well as Smooth Edges of Screen Fonts. The latter setting can be found in Control Panel > Display > Effects in Windows ME, NT, 2000 and XP

It is possible to have the windows task bar always on top. This is not recommended for use on machines that will be running MediaLab as it gives participants easy access to the system, and it can obstruct some important features of MediaLab. To deselect this option, right click on the task bar and then click on Properties. Make sure that Always on top is de-selected. The key sequence Ctrl+Esc will make the task bar appear at any time.

Although MediaLab was designed to work in all screen resolutions, how things look may depend on the resolution you choose. Certain items may need to be repositioned with the left and top parameters when running in high resolution modes. If you are working on different computers, it is often best to pick a single resolution for your experiment (e.g., 1024x768). To change these settings, open the Display properties in your computer's Control Panel, and select Settings.