Connecting to a Worldwide Meeting with John Sherman on a Windows computer.

The detailed instructions below, which include many useful pictures, should give all you need to set up your system so you can participate in our online meetings.

But please understand that we are unable to provide any real technical support regarding the software, nor are we able to provide basic computer skills training.

There are only John and Carla working here and, as joyous and wonderfully nourishing as this work is, there are still only so many hours in the day and much for us to do in them. We are happy to do all we can to make these meetings available and useful to all, but please also do all you can to figure out on your own how to set up and make your system work for these meetings. And please help one another as much as possible.

If you are using a Mac computer, click here for different instructions.

For security reasons, we set up a password to the server. You will not be able to log in to the meeting unless you enter this password in your login information: truth.

There are a number of tasks you will have to complete in order to connect with the Worldwide Meeting with John Sherman. It may seem to be very complicated and difficult, but it is much easier than it seems at first. Just follow the instructions step by step, and all should go well.  If you do run into a problem, please email us and we will do our best to get you up and running.

WHEN YOU ARE FINISHED SETTING UP, PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW THE ONLINE MEETINGS ARE ACTUALLY CONDUCTED.

You can click on any of the screenshot thumbnails to see a bigger image in a new window.

1.  Download and install the TeamSpeak software:

Please verify that your computer meets the minimum requirements before using TeamSpeak.

Click here to download the software Teamspeak 2 Client 2.0.32.60 from the Teamspeak website.

(Do NOT download Teamspeak 3, as we are not set up to use this new version yet.)

It is best to download the program from the Teamspeak website, so you can be sure you have the latest version. But if you are having difficulties downloading the file from the Teampeak website, you can download it from here.

Save it to a convenient location on your computer, such as the Desktop.

Double click the file you just downloaded (ts2_client_rc2_2032.60.exe) to start the installation. Agree anytime you are asked if you want to continue, and the software will be installed.

2.  Launch the software and configure the connection. 

There may be a shortcut on your desktop, or you may have to go to Start> Programs> Teamspeak2 RC2.

• If you are at the three-paned blue window, you should see a menu across the top of this window. Most of these may be grayed-out.  It has:

1. Connection Channels Players Self Recording Info Settings Help
   
   
2. Click on Connection, and then click on Connect.  This will open a window with a mostly blank, white pane on the left.  Right click anywhere in that white pane and choose 'Add Server'.  Enter the name 'RiverGanga' in the box, and press 'Enter', and a number of text fields will appear on the right.  Please fill them out as follows:
• Label:  RiverGanga
  
• Server Address:  riverganga.serverroom.us:8100
  
• Nickname: Enter the name you want to be called by plus the city and state or country where you are.
• Password: truth
  (not shown in the picture)
  

You can use any name you like for your Nickname, up to a maximum of 29-characters (including spaces). Because your Nickname will be the only way we can identify you on the final list of Satsang participants, it's exciting for everyone involved to know where you're located on the Planet, so please give us a clue as to your whereabouts! For example, my Nickname is John Sherman - Ojai, CA.

Now, make sure that the checkbox "Allow server to assign a nickname" is NOT checked, and that the radio button Anonymous IS checked.

During a previous meeting, we were harassed by script kiddies who were trying to disrupt our meeting with a barrage of offensive language. For this reason, we set a password to the server. You will not be able to log in to the meeting unless you enter this password in your login information. 

The Server Password is truth. The Password field is case sensitive, so you must type truth exactly as written: with no capital letters or spaces. Please note: The entry in the window below is for illustrational purposes only. When you type the password, your entry will be protected from prying eyes and truth will appear as a series of bullets like this: ••••• This is perfectly normal!

ATTENTION: If you try to connect and receive the following message: "Socket Error # 11004" it might be because the DNS server fails to resolve the name into an IP address.   Instead of using the name "riverganga.serveroom.us:8100", use instead the IP address "66.201.187.199:8100" in the server address field.

Now, when you click the button at the bottom of the window, Connect, your window will change, and you will see a icon with the name: Worldwide Meeting, with an icon with your nickname connected underneath.

3.  Configure the software.

Click on the Settings menu and enter the following settings:

• Sound Input/Output Settings: Voice Send Method:

On certain versions, a different screen may appear, asking you to press a key to choose which key you will be using for Push-to-Talk.

In order to set your Push to Talk key, click on "Settings" on the top menu bar, then on "Sound Settings".

Under "Voice Send Method", select the radio button right next to "Push to Talk" by clicking on it.

Push and hold down the CTRL key on your keyboard. We use the left CTRL key.

While holding it down, click on the button that says "Set" (which is right next to "Push to Talk". This selects the CTRL key as your Push to Talk key.

Click on "Close" to close the dialog box.

You can test it yourself, by clicking using the Self Test feature, which is located in the same dialog box (Settings > Sound Settings > Activate test mode>.

Click on the "Activate Test Mode" button. Now push and hold down the CTRL key and speak into your microphone. If you can hear yourself as you speak, your settings are correct.

During the meetings, when you are in a conversation with John, you must push the CTRL key and hold it down while you are speaking, and release the key so that John can speak to you. Please repeat this procedure during your entire conversation with John, to prevent feedback and other sound problems.

Settings> Options> Sound devices:

• Here is a listing of all the sound devices found on your system. You need to find the devices you are using and select them there. We use a USB headset, so the same device is found in both the Input device list and the Output device list.  Whatever you are using, click on it in each window and then click Apply.
  
  

In the Sound Driver option, make sure that Direct Sound is checked.

Direct Sound buffer size: move the slider all the way to the right toward Better saound quality.

Settings> Options> Sound notifications:

• The default setting here is to have the software let you know when a person enters or leaves the room. Those voice messages are extremely annoying.
  
  You must disable all sound notificationsby checking the radio button next to Disable all sounds, otherwise you will be endlessly disturbed by notifications whenever someone enters or leaves the meeting, or asks and is granted voice permission.
  
  

Settings> Options> Other

All that needs to be entered here is the Default Guest Nickname. This is the name you want to be called by when speaking with John. Please make sure you enter a name, so John will know what you want to be called. If you do not enter a name, you will show up as Guest. If several people choose to not enter a nickname, we end up with a list of nameless people: Guest 1, Guest 2, Guest 3, etc... that are really hard to keep track of.

 

4.  Configure your computer

On a Windows XP machine, open the Control Panel and choose Sound and Audio Devices. These instructions are for Windows XP machines. If you have a different operating system, the names might look a little different, but they are basically the same.

You will have to configure the AUDIO and the VOICE settings.

On the AUDIO tab, choose your sound card mixer for both INPUT and OUTPUT.

On the VOICE tab, choose your headset for both INPUT and OUTPUT.

The microphone on the Voice tab should not be muted, so you can speak with John if you wish. This is the microphone you will use to speak with John.

IMPORTANT: You must test your Teamspeak and your computer's audio settings before each meeting, because it is often the case that they are altered by other programs on your computer. Do this at least one hour before the meeting begins, so you'll have time to correct any problems. Once the correct audio settings are confirmed both in Teamspeak and on your computer, do not use any other programs that use your speakers, microphone, or headset, such as Google Talk, Windows Messenger, Yahoo Messenger, Media Player, Skype, etc. If you do, you will need to check the settings again, because they might have been changed.

SEE THE PICTURES:

Setting up your Teamspeak connection and saving it for future use.

SEE THE PICTURES:

More detail of the Teampeak setup process.

If you need help, please email us at info@riverganga.org, and put the words "Online Meetings" (without the quote marks) in the subject.

The last thing you need to know is that when John asks for questions and discussion, if you want to speak, just click on the Self Menu, and then click on Request Voice.

Don't forget to check the sound settings in your computer's Control Panel. The Input and Output devices chosen for VOICE must be the same that you set in the Teamspeak software.

If you are using a headset/microphone combo, and you are experiencing noise or echo when you speak or when John speaks, you will need to make an adjustment in your computer's audio settings.

During the meetings, please close all unnecessary programs that might be running on your computer (Firefox, Internet Explorer, Safari, your email program, any VOIP program such as Google Talk, Skype, Windows Messenger, etc.). Doing this will free up resources on your computer and may improve the quality of the audio.

WHEN YOU ARE FINISHED SETTING UP, PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW THE ONLINE MEETINGS ARE ACTUALLY CONDUCTED.