Computers, Sample Libraries, and Compatibility

[Annabelle]

Hi there, all you fellow Music Members.
I'm planning to upgrade my computer from an IBM Thinkpad G41 to a MacBook Pro, and I have a question about compatibility. Does the MacBook Pro have the capability to run the Windows XP Professional Operating System? I'm planning to purchase the following sample libraries of music instruments: Symphonic Orchestra Platinum Edition Bundle, Symphonic Choirs, Pianos, Voices Of Passion, RA, Goliath, Stormdrums 2, and Percussive Adventures 2. Will these libraries be compatible with Kontakt 2? Will they be compatible with JAWS (Job Access With Speech) 9.0 Screenreader? Will they be compatible with Sonar 7 Producer Edition?

[noldar12]

Annabelle

It is hard to say whether the programs will work with JAWS or not. You may need to contact Freedom Scientific to get an idea, as well as the tech support of each of the companies whose software you desire to purchase. You may wish to also consider upgrading to JAWS 9.0. Note also that JAWS only works in a32 bit O/S under Windows, including Vista.

I seem to remember that at one point about ten to eleven years ago Cakewalk was working with the blind community and did support some forms of text to speech programs. It may have been JAWS, but I do not remember, nor do I remember which version of Sona/Cakewalk supported text to speech functions.

In my own situation, I am legally blind, not total, and I have been able to figure out ways to get things to at least work through massive screen magnification, etc. This is far from ideal, but allows me to function at some level. Obviously, if you are total, this method will not be an option.

Depending on where you live, do you have a government agency that deals with assisting blind individuals? If so, you may wish to contact them, as they might be aware of other specialized user groups and resources. The American Federation of the Blind might be of help as well (I am guessing that you live in the United States). You may wish to post something on the Sonar forum as well - there are a number of people on that forum that do seek to be helpful.

Hope this helps.

Jim

[Annabelle]

Originally Posted by noldar12

Annabelle

It is hard to say whether the programs will work with JAWS or not. You may need to contact Freedom Scientific to get an idea, as well as the tech support of each of the companies whose software you desire to purchase. You may wish to also consider upgrading to JAWS 9.0. Note also that JAWS only works in a32 bit O/S under Windows, including Vista.

I seem to remember that at one point about ten to eleven years ago Cakewalk was working with the blind community and did support some forms of text to speech programs. It may have been JAWS, but I do not remember, nor do I remember which version of Sona/Cakewalk supported text to speech functions.

In my own situation, I am legally blind, not total, and I have been able to figure out ways to get things to at least work through massive screen magnification, etc. This is far from ideal, but allows me to function at some level. Obviously, if you are total, this method will not be an option.

Depending on where you live, do you have a government agency that deals with assisting blind individuals? If so, you may wish to contact them, as they might be aware of other specialized user groups and resources. The American Federation of the Blind might be of help as well (I am guessing that you live in the United States). You may wish to post something on the Sonar forum as well - there are a number of people on that forum that do seek to be helpful.

Hope this helps.

Jim

I do live in the United States, Eugene, Oregon to be exact. I do have JAWS 9.0. I wonder, are these sample libraries compatible with Kontakt 2, made by Native Instruments?

[Michiel Post]

Originally Posted by Annabelle

Hi there, all you fellow Music Members.
I'm planning to upgrade my computer from an IBM Thinkpad G41 to a MacBook Pro, and I have a question about compatibility. Does the MacBook Pro have the capability to run the Windows XP Professional Operating System? I'm planning to purchase the following sample libraries of music instruments: Symphonic Orchestra Platinum Edition Bundle, Symphonic Choirs, Pianos, Voices Of Passion, RA, Goliath, Stormdrums 2, and Percussive Adventures 2. Will these libraries be compatible with Kontakt 2? Will they be compatible with JAWS (Job Access With Speech) 9.0 Screenreader? Will they be compatible with Sonar 7 Producer Edition?

Hi, I worked with WIN XP Pro on my MacBook Pro without any issues at all for two years. In fact it's a pretty fast and convenient way to use the MacBook Pro, having a lot more software available than with OSX. The only issue you may encounter is making a good back up of the internal drive. If you create one with OSX, the logical choice, you need a Mac formatted external disk and you will not able to read or write anything to that drive when you boot up in Windows, since the drive is formatted in a way that is unreadable for Windows. So you need two external backup drives, one for the OS backup and one for the data and sample libraries that you have in Windows.
Some additional software like MacDrive can overcome this issue. www.mediafour.com/products/macdrive/ $ 50
MacDrive is a must have for anyone running Windows on a mac with Bootcamp. It allows you to access the Mac partition of the system drive and all external drives inside Windows.

Kontakt 2 or higher is a perfectly functioning host for the following libraries you plan to buy: Symphonic Orchestra Platinum Edition Bundle, Symphonic Choirs and Percussive Adventures 2. The other libraries (Pianos, Voices Of Passion, RA, Goliath, Stormdrums 2) all come with EastWest's own sample player, PLAY, which is not working under Kontakt but is fully functioning on all operating systems on it's own. All of the above libraries are fully compatible with Sonar 7.
I noticed that JSonar has keystrokes and scripts for synthracks in Sonar but I'm not sure how accessible Kontakt and PLAY are with JAWS. The HotSpotClickers for JAWS should do the trick though.
Hope this helps.