This problem is almost always the result of a permissions conflict. In order for multiple users to access Inspiration at the same time, the permissions for your users on the Inspiration folder on the server must be set to Read-Execute or Read-Filescan ONLY. Any write access will cause any user after the first to be locked out of the program. Once you have set the permissions correctly, multiple users should be able to run Inspiration from the server at the same time. For a platform-specific, technically-worded, full set of network install instructions, please click here.

The first time Inspiration launches on your computer, it must perform a few setup tasks. On some computers, most notably those with many fonts installed, these setup tasks can take a while. Inspiration will launch when it finishes these setup tasks.

The students will need Read, Write, and Delete access, at a minimum, to be able to successfully save to a folder. We recommend full access.

Because Inspiration is a Macintosh Application, it is recommended that you connect to the Windows 2000 server via AppleTalk (afp) if you installed via AppleTalk. If you installed via another connection method, please run Inspiration through the same kind of connection.

Normal UNC paths are allowed, but one crucial tip is always important to remember when installing via UNC. Do not add a backslash to the end of the UNC path, as this can result in operating system errors.

As long as you are using Inspiration 7.0a or later, there are two ways to do this. The first method we describe assumes that you normally start Inspiration from the Start menu. The second method works for people who start Inspiration with a shortcut from their desktop.

To customize your Start Menu:
1. Click on the Start button.
2. Locate your shortcut to Inspiration.
3. Right-click on the Inspiration shortcut.
4. From the menu that appears, select Properties.
5. A new window should appear. Click on the Shortcut file tab.
6. You should see a section called Start In. This is the directory that Inspiration will default to when opening and saving files. Just change this section so that it points to the directory where you store your Inspiration files. Once you're done with this, just OK or Close your way out of the windows that are open, and you should be done.

To customize your shortcut: Select the Inspiration shortcut icon on the desktop. Right-click to open the menu and select Properties. Now follow steps 5 and 6 above.
 

The Arrange tool, found in the Diagram toolbar at the top of your Inspiration document window, is used to perform an automatic arrange of your already-created diagram based on preset, common arrangement types. To use it to arrange your whole diagram, simply click on the Arrange button. Select one of the types of diagrams, then click "OK" to apply the arrangement to your whole diagram.

To use Arrange to arrange a portion of your diagram, begin by clicking on the main topic at the top level of the section you wish to arrange. Next, click on the Arrange button. Click on the check box next to the words "Entire Diagram" so that it is unchecked. After choosing your preferred diagram settings, click "OK" to apply this arrangement to this section of your diagram. If you should see a message that alerts you to a possible overlap of your symbols, note that choosing "Rearrange" will rearrange the whole diagram. If you wish to keep the arrangement restricted to just this section, choose "Overlap." This may overlap some symbols from this group over symbols in another section of the diagram. However, you can then drag the overlapping symbols away from each other.

To change your default settings, please use the Default Settings Wizard. To do so, choose "Default Settings" from the Utility menu, then follow the directions.

Yes, this is fully supported with Inspiration 7.

Yes. You can select a graphic in another program, drag it into your Inspiration document and let go of it where you want to place the graphic. You can also drag and drop graphic files into Inspiration directly. To do this, simply drag and drop the file into your Inspiration document window. On the Macintosh, you can drag and drop PICT, JPEG and GIF files. In Windows, you can drag and drop WMF, BMP, JPEG and GIF files. Note: not all applications support dragging from their workspace.

Yes. Just make sure that you have write permission for the Symbol Libraries folder.

Although this is the case on the screen, documents with overlapping animated GIFs will print normally. The frame will not be displayed. This problem can also be avoided by turning off the GIF animation in the Application Properties dialog, which can be opened via the Utility menu.

This is due to a setting called "Draw Links Under Symbols." If you would like your links to appear on top of your symbols when those symbols overlap, please choose "Draw Links Under Symbols" from the Link menu. This will turn off this setting.

To choose your preferred word processor for use with the Transfer tool in Inspiration 7.5, begin by going to the Utility menu and choosing "Application Properties." On the right side of this window, you should see a menu next to the words "Preferred Word Processor." Click on this menu, then choose either Microsoft Word or AppleWorks. Click "OK" to accept the change. The next time you use Inspiration 7.5's new Transfer tool, it will transfer your work to your preferred word processor.

Yes, if you no longer wish to use the older version, though deleting it is not required for version 7.6 to work properly. Version 7.6 will open all documents created with version 6.x, so you don't need to keep version 6.x around for that reason. However, if you want to save the symbols that you added to your old symbol libraries, you should first copy the specific libraries into the Inspiration 7.6 symbol libraries folder.

To open an Inspiration 6 file with Inspiration 7.6, please use Inspiration 7.6's "Open" command to open the file. Please note that, should you make any changes to the document and save them, your Inspiration 6 document will become an Inspiration 7.6 document. Should this happen unintentionally, you can use Inspiration 7.6 to save your document as an Inspiration 6 document. To do so, choose "Inspiration 6 Document" from the Save As Type dropdown list in the Save dialog.

Open the template with Inspiration version 7.6. Choose the Template Wizard from the Utility menu. Follow the Template Wizard's directions to complete the conversion.

Yes. Copy the file InspUser.clx from your Inspiration 6 folder into your personal Inspiration settings folder. The Inspiration settings folder is found in your personal settings folder in the following location: Inspiration Software\Inspiration\76. Your personal settings folder can be found in your local Settings or Preferences folder; the exact path is dependent on the specific operating system.

Yes. Copy the version 6.x symbol library into the folder Inspiration Libraries 7. When Inspiration opens that library, it will automatically convert it to version 7.6 format.

Yes. Inspiration 7.6 files can be opened and modified with Inspiration 7.

At this time, Inspiration 7.5 is the correct version for Macintosh computers using OS 7, 8 or 9. The Inspiration 7.6 updater addresses tools and issues only on Mac OS X (and Windows) computers.

If you have not yet updated your version of Inspiration 7 to Inspiration 7.6, please click here to get the free updater.
 

There are two ways to move your outline to another application. The first is to copy your outline, then paste it into a document in the other application. The other option is to export your outline to a format that can be read or imported by another application. To export your outline, choose Export from the File menu. In the window that appears, choose a text format, like Plain Text or RTF, that can be used with the destination application. Click Save. Use the other program to open or import the exported text file. Depending on the application you're using, what you see should look similar to the outline you created in Inspiration--the exact format can vary with the application.
 

There are two ways to include your Inspiration diagram in a document created by another application. The first is to copy your diagram, then paste it into the other document. The other way is to export your diagram to an image format that the other application can use. To export your diagram, choose Export from the File menu. In the window that appears, choose one of the image formats, such as PICT, WMF or JPEG--pick the one that is accepted by the destination application (check that application's help system if you're not sure what format to go with). Click Save. In the other application, insert the exported diagram just as you would any other image file.

You can share your Inspiration documents by exporting them as a file type that can be read by another application used by your colleagues and/or friends. For example, you can export your outlines as RTF (rich text format) so that they can be read by Microsoft Word, Claris Works and other word processors. Inspiration outlines and diagrams can also be exported as HTML files, which can be viewed by any web browser. For more details on export formats, choose Export in the File menu and take a look at your options. To export to HTML, please choose "Export to HTML" from the File menu.

When you export your outline as a web page, it is encoded in HTML. HTML uses special characters to communicate with a web browser. If you use those characters in your outline, it may confuse the browser, and strange symbols will appear. The special characters you should avoid using in the Inspiration documents you want to export as HTML are < (less than sign) and > (greater than sign).

Try reducing the size of the diagram either before or after exporting. To reduce the size of a diagram in Inspiration, choose Select All from the Edit Menu, then choose Group from the Symbol Menu. Scroll to the bottom right-hand corner of the diagram: you should see a solid black box. Click and drag this box towards the center of the diagram to reduce the size.

Yes. First, in the drawing program, copy your graphic using the Copy command. Then open the Inspiration diagram in which you want the symbol to appear and choose Paste from the Edit menu. The graphic will appear in your diagram. You can then install the graphic into a symbol library so that you'll be able to use it in any Inspiration diagram--check the "Managing the symbol libraries" topic in online help for instructions.

Try saving the AppleWorks graphic as a BMP or JPEG file. In Inspiration, choose Insert Graphic from the Edit menu, select the BMP or JPEG file you saved and click Open.

This is because Inspiration does not import RTF files that include images. Try importing your RTF without its images, then copy and paste your images into your Inspiration outline.

Inspiration 7.6 is designed to support interactive electronic whiteboards, including the Promethean® ACTIVboard® and the SMART Board™ interactive whiteboards, Tablet PCs and Wacom® tablets.
 

Please begin by choosing "Application Properties" from the “Utility” menu. Next, check the "Main Toolbar to Bottom" box. Click “OK” to accept this change. The tools will now appear at the bottom of the Inspiration workspace.

Definitely. Please make sure you turn on Stylus Mode in Inspiration 7.6 to take full advantage of all the new stylus-based enhancements. On the “Utility” menu, choose “Application Properties.” Select the “Stylus Mode” check box and click “OK.”

Yes. First, be sure you have Stylus Mode enabled in the “Application Properties” dialog. For most supported devices, follow the instructions in your device's user manual. If you are running Inspiration 7.6 on a Windows machine and are using a Promethean ACTIVboard, click the “Show Handwriting Area” button on the “Formatting” toolbar. Any stroke you make with the stylus in the Handwriting Area will now be interpreted as text.
 

When an ACTIVBoard is attached to a PC running Windows, stylus strokes made in the main Inspiration workspace are interpreted as lasso selection or shape recognition. To enter text, use the Handwriting Area located at the bottom of the window. To access the Handwriting Area, click the “Show Handwriting Area” button on the “Formatting” toolbar. Any stroke you make with the stylus in the Handwriting Area will now be interpreted as text. To enter special characters, such as backspaces, returns, etc., use the tools on the ACTIVstudio or ACTIVPrimary palette. On a Macintosh computer, handwriting recognition is built into OS X. If your ACTIVBoard is attached to a Mac, enter text directly on the Kidspiration workspace; there is no special input panel.

When you launch Inspiration 7.6 on a computer that supports a stylus, Inspiration will automatically offer to turn on Stylus Mode. However, you can turn on Stylus Mode at any time by choosing “Application Options” on the “Teacher” menu.

Using the stylus, draw a loop around the symbols you wish to select. When the loop encloses the symbols, lift the stylus from the surface.

Yes. Using your stylus, draw an approximation of any of the following shapes: oval, rectangle, circle, square or diamond. The shape you draw will be recognized and inserted into the document. In other words, draw an oval where you want one to appear, and an oval will display on your diagram.

It sounds like your system is set to Handwriting Mode. If you are using a Wacom tablet with Mac OS X and have Write Anywhere turned on, for example, this will be the case.. In Handwriting Mode, any and all movements of the stylus will be interpreted as handwriting. To drag symbols or topics with the stylus, turn off Handwriting Mode, and then drag your symbols or topics to your desired location. If you are unsure of how to turn off Handwriting Mode, please consult the user's manual for your system or device.

Begin by choosing "Application Properties" from the Utility menu. Next, uncheck or check the box that corresponds to the Talking Interface or the Listen tool.

Inspiration diagrams default to Fit to 1 page when printed. When your diagram is much larger than one page, the shrinking that occurs in order to fit it to one page can make your printed diagram look much smaller than it appears on screen. To make your diagram print out full size, simply choose Page Setup from the File menu and change the diagram options to Normal - Smart Page Breaks or Normal - Full Size. Either of these options will cause your diagram to print without a reduction in size. Please see the Inspiration Help system, which is available under the Help menu, for more information about Printing a diagram at full size.

Yes, especially on Macintosh computers using the 68K-based processor.

This can happen when the inserted or pasted graphic in a sticky note is larger than the sticky note window. The way to improve the appearance of your printout is to expand the sticky note window so that it fits the graphic.

This problem is almost always the result of a permissions conflict. In order for multiple users to access Inspiration at the same time, the permissions for your users on the Inspiration folder on the server must be set to Read-Execute or Read-Filescan ONLY. Any write access will cause any user after the first to be locked out of the program. Once you have set the permissions correctly, multiple users should be able to run Inspiration from the server at the same time. For a platform-specific, technically-worded, full set of network install instructions, please click here.

The first time Inspiration launches on your computer, it must perform a few setup tasks. On some computers, most notably those with many fonts installed, these setup tasks can take a while. Inspiration will launch when it finishes these setup tasks.

The students will need Read, Write, and Delete access, at a minimum, to be able to successfully save to a folder. We recommend full access.

Because Inspiration is a Macintosh Application, it is recommended that you connect to the Windows 2000 server via AppleTalk (afp) if you installed via AppleTalk. If you installed via another connection method, please run Inspiration through the same kind of connection.

Normal UNC paths are allowed, but one crucial tip is always important to remember when installing via UNC. Do not add a backslash to the end of the UNC path, as this can result in operating system errors.

As long as you are using Inspiration 7.0a or later, there are two ways to do this. The first method we describe assumes that you normally start Inspiration from the Start menu. The second method works for people who start Inspiration with a shortcut from their desktop. To customize your Start Menu:

1. Click on the Start button.
2. Locate your shortcut to Inspiration.
3. Right-click on the Inspiration shortcut.
4. From the menu that appears, select Properties.
5. A new window should appear. Click on the Shortcut file tab.
6. You should see a section called Start In. This is the directory that Inspiration will default to when opening and saving files. Just change this section so that it points to the directory where you store your Inspiration files. Once you're done with this, just OK or Close your way out of the windows that are open, and you should be done.