Special iApps - FAQ
Are your apps available for Android or Windows?
Our Special Words app is available for Android as well as iOS. We hope to be able to offer our other apps on Android in the near future. We don't currently have any plans to bring our apps to Windows mobile devices or desktops.
Why won't the app play or record sound?
Check the device's volume control and mute
button. When the device is muted, some apps will still produce sound,
while others won't. On an iPad, if you use the switch on the side of
the device above the volume control as a Lock Rotation button, it may
not be obvious if the device is muted or how to unmute it: the answer in
this case is to double-click the Home button, and then swipe to the
right in the multitasking tray at the bottom of the screen. If you then
see a diagonal line through the speaker icon on the left, the device is
muted: tap the icon to unmute it.
Also check the settings for
the individual app: Special Words and Special Stories have Using
Sound settings and Special Numbers has Playing Sound
settings for each individual activity.
If one of our apps
displays an error message Audio Error: Cannot record sound on
iOS, this can be because the device needs restarting. In this case,
press and hold the sleep button on the top of the device until the
message slide to power off appears, power it off and press and
hold the sleep button again to restart it.
Why does nothing happen when I tap the padlock button on an Apple device?
This button is intended to be child-proof: you need to press and hold it for 3 seconds.
Why is the app text and audio in the wrong language?
By default, the language used by the app
depends on the language and region format set for your mobile device in
its Settings app (under General > International on iOS or Language
& input on Android). So, for instance, if the language is set to
"Español", the app will use Spanish text and a Spanish spoken voice. If
the language you select isn't supported by the app, then US English is
used.
In Special Words and Special Numbers on iOS, to hear a
British English voice instead of American, set your device's language to
"British English", not "English" (which is American). In Special Words,
to hear an Australian voice, set the device's region format to
"Australia"; if the devices language is set to "Nederlands", you will
hear Dutch, unless the region format is set to "België", in which case
you will hear Flemish (Vlaams).
In Special Words and Special
Numbers, you can select a different language for each individual
profile, without having to change the device's language or region
format, as explained in
the Special Words User Guide
for iOS, the Special
Words User Guide for Android, and
the Special Numbers User
Guide. Note that you need to do this to use languages not listed in
the Settings app (e.g. for Hindi and Welsh in Special
Words).
If you change the device's language on iOS, you may
end up with multiple keyboard layouts: you can delete any you don't want
in the Settings app (under General > Keyboard > International
Keyboards).
How do I download and install add-on resources on Apple devices?
1. Ensure you have the latest versions
of Special Stories and Special Words on your iPad, iPhone or iPod
touch
2. We recommend you backup your device before
installing and at regular intervals
3. If you have disabled
editing in either app, re-enable it via the Settings
4.
Ensure your iPad, iPhone or iPod touch is connected to the
Internet
5. Visit the download page in the Safari app on
your mobile device
6. Tap the link to the add-on resource
file
7. Tap the Open in “Special Words”
or Open in “Special Stories” button
8.
Select the Add new profile or Add new collection
option, NOT any of the Replace
options
9. Repeat steps 5 to 8 for any
additional add-on files
Note:
You now have
more than one profile (in Special Words) or collection (in Special
Stories), and will only see one at any time. You haven't lost your
previous data! To switch between profiles in Special Words,
tap Word List then the action button (top right) and
choose Manage Profiles. To switch between collections in
Special Stories, go to the list of stories, tap the action button (top
left), and choose Manage Collections. For more information,
see the Special Words User
Guide and
the Special Stories User
Guide.
How do I download and install add-on resources on Android devices?
1. Ensure you have the latest version
of Special Words on your tablet or phone
2. We recommend you
backup your device before installing and at regular
intervals
3. If you have disabled editing in the app,
re-enable it via the Settings
4. Ensure your tablet or
phone is connected to the Internet
5. Visit the download
page in a web browser (e.g. Chrome or Internet) on
your mobile device
6. Tap the link to the add-on resource
file: a bubble should appear saying Starting
download...
7. Launch the Downloads app: you
should see a file with name ending .siasw
8. If the
download is shown as in progress, wait for it to complete
9.
Tap the file: this will launch Special Words
10. Select
the Add new profile option, NOT any of
the Replace options
11. Repeat steps 5
to 10 for any additional add-on
files
Note:
You now have more than one
profile in Special Words, and will only see one at any time. You
haven't lost your previous data! For how to switch between profiles,
see the Special Words User
Guide.
Can
I transfer to Special Stories the resources I've added to Special
Words, or vice versa?
Yes, you can transfer words, pictures and sounds in both directions. You need both Special Words (version 1.5.0 or later) and Special Stories (version 1.4.0 or later) installed on the same device. For a demonstration of how to do this, watch the video.
Can I open a story created with Special Stories in iBooks?
You need both Special Stories (version 1.3.0
or later) and iBooks on your device, which must be running iOS 5.0 or
later. In Special Stories, go to the list of stories, tap the action
button (top left), and choose Export Story. If you have more
than one collection of stories, select the collection containing the
story you want to open. Choose the story, tap Open In
“iBooks”, and then tap the iBooks icon. A copy of
the story will be transferred to your iBooks library and opened in
iBooks.
Note that the story in iBooks will appear
portrait-only and display one page at a time. To play the sound for a
page, tap the picture.
If you would like to send the story
to somebody else to open in iBooks, instead of opening it yourself,
choose Use Email instead of Open In
“iBooks”, and then choose Email as EPUB
(iBooks). The recipient will need to have iBooks installed on
their device (but won't need Special Stories). To send to someone who
doesn't have iBooks, choose Email as PDF: in this case, only
text and pictures will be included, not sound.
I imported a collection into Special Stories - where have my original
stories gone?
Assuming you selected the Add new collection option when importing, the stories you already had in other collection(s) are still there, but the app's main view is now showing the stories in the new collection. To select one of your original collections instead, tap the action button at the top left of the main view, then the Manage Collections button, and choose the collection you want to see by tapping it. Then return to the main view. For further details, refer to the Special Stories User Guide.
I imported a profile into Special Words - where have my original
words and pictures gone?
Assuming you selected the Add new profile option when importing, the words, pictures and sounds you already had in other profiles(s) are still there, but the app's games and Word List are now showing the data in the new profile. On iOS, to select one of your original profiles instead, tap Word List (at the bottom right), then the action button at the top right, then the Manage Profiles button, and choose the profile you want to see by tapping it. On Android, select Profiles from the main menu in the Word List view. Select the profile you want to use, and then return to whichever game you want to play. For further details, refer to the Special Words User Guide for iOS or the Special Words User Guide for Android.
How can I prevent my child from accidentally deleting and rearranging
things?
In the Settings app on iOS (provided you are
running iOS 4.2.1 or later), in General > Restrictions, you can set a
passcode, and then prevent operations including installing and deleting
apps. In the Special Stories, Special Words and Special Numbers
settings, you can disable editing, so the app's words, pictures and
sounds can't be rearranged, deleted or overwritten.
If your
device is running iOS 6.0 or later, you can also make use of
its Guided Access features, for example, to disable all the
physical buttons.
We also strongly recommend you use the
export facilities in our apps to regularly save copies of your
personalized stories or word lists, and that you regularly backup your
device to iTunes on your PC or Mac or to iCloud.
For more
information about the export facilities in our apps, read
the Special Stories User
Guide, the Special Words
User Guide for iOS and
the Special Words User Guide
for Android.
Where can I find
the settings for Special Stories, Special Words and Special
Numbers on iOS?
In Special Stories, tap the action button at
the top left in the main view, or in Special Words tap the Word List
icon at the bottom right and then the action button at the top right.
In either case, you are then looking at the Extra Actions view,
and the Settings button is at at the top right (if you don't see this
button, you have an old version of the app - visit the App Store to
update it). In Special Numbers, tap the Settings button at the top
right in the opening view. Alternatively, you can find the settings for
our apps in Apple's Settings app: changing the settings for one of our
apps there has the same effect as changing them in the app
itself.
You can read more about the available settings in
the Special Stories User
Guide, the Special
Words User Guide and
the Special
Numbers User Guide.
Where can I find
the settings for Special Words on Android?
From any of the games, select Word List from the device's physical menu button or the overflow button at the right of the action bar. Then select Settings from the same menu in the Word List view. You can read more about the available settings in the Special Words User Guide.
Why can't I print from Special Stories?
First check whether you can print from
Apple's apps, such as Mail and Safari: if you can't print from these,
you won't be able to print from Special Stories. If your device is
running a version of iOS earlier than 4.2, you will need to update it.
If, when you try to print, your device displays Looking for
printers and then No AirPrint Printers Found then you
don't have any suitable printers within Wi-Fi range, or your device
isn't connected to a Wi-Fi network.
A workaround, if you
have no AirPrint-compatible printer, is to use the Email as
PDF option in Special Stories, and then print the attachment from
a Mac or PC. Alternatively, there are programs available to turn a PC
or Mac into an AirPrint server, so that Apple mobile devices can then
print via that: we have successfully used
Printopia
2 for Mac.
What ages of children is the Special Words app aimed at?
Quite a wide range. You can start showing a baby the matching pictures game, and by the time they are 15 months old (sooner for some children, and much later for others) they may be able to tap or drag the pictures for themselves. Matching words to pictures can start as soon as you feel your child is ready: this could be pre-school for typically developing children, or may need to be a little later for those with learning difficulties. There's no upper age limit, as long as you can keep your child interested by personalizing it, or downloading additional add-on resources.
How can I organize stories into collections in Special Stories?
To manage collections, tap the action button
(at the top left) to display the Extra Actions view, and then
tap the Manage Collections button, to reveal all the
collections you currently have. From there you can add and delete
collections. To change the title of a collection, tap the white and
blue arrow button to the right of its name.
To copy or move a
story from one collection to another, select the collection it's in, and
then go back to the main view and tap the story's white and blue arrow
button. Then tap the story's Edit button, to reveal
the Copy button, and use that. You can also copy individual
pages between stories (in the same or different collections), by using
the Copy button in the page editor.
The Export
Story and Import Story options in Extra Actions
will allow you to export and import stories either individually or as
whole collections.
For more details, read
the User Guide.
Ready-made downloadable collections of add-on
resources are also available.
My child has impaired hearing, how can I make the sound louder?
The built-in speaker in most mobile devices isn't very loud. We recommend connecting your device to a pair of portable speakers - there are many models available, some are sold on the Apple Store. Beware speakers only costing around $10 - you may be disappointed by the volume and sound quality - we suggest trying or reading reviews before buying. Alternatively, we find connecting to a Hi-Fi system works well - you would typically need a cable with a 3.5mm (1/8") stereo jack plug at one end and 2 phono plugs at the other end.
The sounds I recorded don't sound as clear as the built-in ones, what
can I do?
The device's built-in microphone may pick up stray sounds. Try to record your voice in a quiet room. Speak clearly, but don't talk directly into the microphone or you may overload it. Your device may have a set of earpieces that have a microphone built into their cable - this can be better. For the very best results, use a good quality external microphone - you may need an adapter cable specially designed for connecting the microphone to your device. Not all Android devices support external microphones.
How can I take better quality photos than with the built-in
camera?
Use a good quality digital camera. If you have an iPad, you can buy an Apple iPad Camera Connection Kit from the Apple Store, and connect the camera's USB cable (or its SD Card, if it has one) directly to the iPad: you can then import any photos from the camera directly into the Photos library on the iPad. If you don't have a connection kit, or for an iPhone or iPod touch, you can transfer photos from the camera to your Mac or PC, and then synchronize to your mobile device using iTunes. Alternatively, email them as attachments to yourself: when you open the email on your mobile device, you can save the attachments to the Photo library (on iOS) or Gallery (on Android).
Is there an undo option when deleting words in Special Words?
There's not an option to undo individual
changes. You can reset the app to its original state (as when first
installed) using the Reset button. However, this will undo all
additions, deletions and other changes you have made, and remove any
profiles you have added, so is not generally
recommended.
What you can do is snapshot the Word List before
making changes, by exporting it as an e-mail attachment, and saving it
elsewhere. Alternatively, you can create a new profile as a complete
copy of the words in an existing profile, without needing to export or
import, and use this as a backup.
In Special Words, why are some of the buttons disabled?
This is the intended behavior if you have disabled editing in the Special Words settings. If you re-enable editing, these buttons will be enabled again. This and other settings are described in the User Guide for iOS and the User Guide for Android.
If you tap an existing word in the Word List (to highlight it in blue) before tapping + to add a new word, then the new word will appear directly after that word, instead of at the beginning. If you've already added a word, and want to move it, tap the Edit button (on iOS) or padlock button (on Android) at the top of the Word List, and then drag the word up or down the list using the icon that appears next to it on the right. When you've finished, tap Done (iOS) or the padlock (Android).
In Special Words, you can have more than one list of words, each referred to as a “profile”, and switch easily between them. Refer to the Profiles chapter in the User Guide for a detailed explanation of how to use this. Likewise, Special Numbers also has Profiles. In a similar way in Special Stories, you can arrange stories into “collections”, as explained in the Collections chapter in the User Guide.
Do you provide free promo codes?
Please read our policy on promo codes.
Please refer to our Mission Statement.
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