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TMAFE Help:Troubleshooting Microsoft Agent

From Agentpedia, the Microsoft Agent encyclopedia

As Microsoft Agent was last officially updated in 1998, errors on modern systems may be encountered with software that utilizes its components. However, completing these steps will usually fix the majority of Microsoft Agent-related issues.

Microsoft Agent components and Visual Basic 6.0 runtime

Steps

  1. Download the MASH full setup which contains Microsoft Agent 2.0, Lernout & Hauspie TTS Engines, and the Visual Basic 6.0 runtime from here: https://tmafe.com/downloads/MASH_Setup.exe
  2. Launch the full setup as administrator, and make sure that all available options are checked.
  3. Once the setup is completed, test out the Microsoft Agent application you are trying to open to see if it works.

Extended steps

If the issue still persists, you can also try the following:

  1. Make sure the .ACS files the program needs are in "C:\WINDOWS\MSAGENT\CHARS" or "C:\WINNT\MSAGENT\CHARS" on older versions of Windows NT.
  2. If not, copy the .ACS file from the original location to this folder, and do not try to launch it directly by double-clicking.
  3. Once copied, the Microsoft Agent program that uses that file will be able to utilize it.

.NET Framework

A substantial amount of later Microsoft Agent programs require the .NET Framework, particularly either version 2.0 (requires Windows 98 or later) or version 4.0 (requires Windows XP or later). To install .NET Framework, follow these steps.

Steps (.NET Framework 2.0)

  1. If you are on Windows 98, 2000, or ME, the Microsoft Agent program you are installing will usually come with a DotNetFX in its "Program Files" directory or ZIP.
  2. Run this file if so, as it meant for these operating systems only. Otherwise, if you are on modern system, skip to the next step.
  3. Click the Windows button, and search "Turn Windows features on or off".
  4. At the top of this menu, check the box ".NET Framework 3.5 (includes .NET 2.0 and 3.0)", and click OK.
  5. Once it is finished installing, try re-launching the Microsoft Agent program you are having issues with.

Steps (.NET Framework 4.0)

  1. Download .NET Framework 4.0's installer from https://dotnet.microsoft.com/en-us/download/dotnet-framework/net40
  2. Run the installer as normally, and it is highly recommended you also download .NET 4.5's installer if you are on Windows Vista or 7.
  3. Once it is finished installing, try re-launching the Microsoft Agent program you are having issues with.

Remarks

This should fix the majority of issues you may encounter with running a Microsoft Agent program, as most of these programs are coded in the Visual Basic 6.0 or Visual Basic .NET programming languages.

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