HOTLINE & AFTER-SALES SERVICE
Below you will find useful information about our customer service and technical support for the programs that we sell. To know when and how to contact us, see the Contact page.
Main sections on this page:
FREE TECHNICAL SUPPORT
We remind you that the free technical support period for our software lasts for:
- Two years (subsequent to date of purchase) for Astro-PC,
- One year for Infociel Windows and Special Uranian Astrology.
The technical hotline is at your disposal (by e-mail or phone) for problems concerning:
- installation problems with the software
- technical problems encountered in using the program.
The technical hotline staff is unfortunately not able to solve problems relating to:
- printing, printers, or printer drivers (as these vary quite widely, change continually, and can only be solved by contacting your individual printer manufacturer or by consulting the instruction manual that came with your printer)
- using Windows (as these problems should be solved by referring to your computer manuals or the Microsoft Company).
Beyond the free technical support periods, Aureas offers a fixed price hotline contract. If this interests you, please contact us.
THE VARIOUS HELP AVAILABLE
The Aureas programs offer several types of help which are summarized below. Please note that some are not available in all programs.
Technical help file:
Before calling our hotline, have a look on the content of the Helptech file. It gives you the solution to some common problems. You can access this file from the program : Help menu, Technical information, Help Technical support.
User's guide:
We encourage you to read the user's guide carefully. Take the time to study it well, as it has been organized to ease your introduction to our astrological programs and modules. Any time you invest in studying it will save you much time later on. It gives you access to the information needed to maximize your astrological potential in working with the program. A more complete and detailed help guide is available at any time on your screen (see below).
On-screen help:
Our programs possesses a highly useful integrated screen help function, available at any moment by several methods. You can use the screen help in a general way, by going to its first page and then by studying the different chapters (topics) proposed. Or you can get punctual help concerning the last executed function, a specific option, a command in the tools window, or other specific functions, at any point in the program. The program contains three help files: a main help file explaining all the capabilities of the software, a help file for Summer Time (DST) and time zones, and a third one for technical help. If needed, you can print the main help file on paper (more than 500 pages): click on the Help menu and select "Display the main help file", then click on the Files menu and select Print.
Contextual information:
Depending on the program you use, you can get various information using the right mouse button. For example, when you click on the symbol of Saturn in a Natal chart, a contextual menu will appear and provide information on astronomical data, the astrological meaning of the planet with a few keywords, and so on.
Besides, when you move the mouse over some items, such as buttons, a small yellow line will tell you the meaning of the element concerned.
Training lessons:
In the Help menu of the program, if you select the option “Training lessons”, you can get on the screen a dozen lessons to become more familiar with the use of the software.
Tips:
Each time you start the software, you can ask to see on the screen a tip or advice on how to use the program. To do this, select the Help menu, Tip of the day, and check the option line “Show tips on startup”.
Besides, a special “How to” file, also available from the Help menu, will show you, classified by field, the sequence of commands to enter if you want to change options or input choices.
Remote assistance:
In special cases, if you agree, our technical service may require you to download a specific program like AnyDesk to take control of your computer remotely and solve a certain problem.
COMMON PROBLEMS OF USE
Here are some usual problems with their solutions. Note that many problems can be solved simply by reinstalling the software, so try this first.
PROBLEMS WITH THE USB SECURITY KEY:
When starting the program, if you have an old USB security key and get a message indicating that the key is not present or is not recognized, see below.
1) If the serial number of your software starts with 12019, 12018, 12017, 12016 or 12014:
With versions 12, 11, 10, 9.5 and 8.7 of our programs, the driver of the USB key is automatically installed when you select the option “Install driver” during the installation of the software. You can also do it from this page by downloading the following file: SetupDriver2.exe. Download and execute this file, until you see a small message saying “Please wait”, and another one indicating that the operation has been successfully completed. Click OK to finish: the USB key should light when you plug it, indicating that it is properly recognized. If this is not the case, restart your computer. If the dongle still does not light, please contact us. This driver works with Windows 8, 7, Vista and XP-sp3, but not with Windows 11 and 10.
Note that it is possible that a window “Found New Hardware Wizard” prompts when you insert the key. In this case, select the proposals “No, not this time” (if this option appears) and select “Install the software automatically”. A final window should tell you that the driver has been installed correctly. This wizard may be displayed again if the key is connected to a USB port different from the first time. In this case, repeat the above procedure.
2) If the serial number of your software starts with 12013 or 12012:
If a Windows message prompts saying that a new hardware has been detected and offers to install the driver from Aladdin, you must click Cancel -- do not complete this procedure.
If the key is not recognized, it is often due to incorrect installation of the driver. Therefore, you must reinstall it. To do this, click on this link: Driver HASP for Windows
When the first window “Select language” appears, click on “English” and then click the OK button. In the next window, click “Next”. Select the option “I accept the license agreement” and click “Install”. Wait until the message “Drivers successfully installed” appears. Click on “Finish” and restart your computer. Then start you program: the problem must be resolved. If not, the problem may be the computer's USB port. Try to connect the key to another port, such as a port for a printer or any other material (so you'll know that this port works). The USB key should light when you plug it, indicating that it is properly recognized. If this is not the case, restart your computer. If the dongle still does not light, please contact us. This driver works with Windows XP, but not Windows 11, 10, 8, 7 and Vista.
SAVE AND RESTORE YOUR PERSONAL FILES:
When you use our astrological programs, you can save a large number of charts in the personal files (as explained in the lessons of the user's guide). If you have modified the program options to suit your work habits, those changes are also saved on the hard disk of your computer (not on the Aureas USB dongle, if you bought one, since it contains only the security code).
If you need to change your computer or hard drive, or if you have done an upgrade of your program, you may want to make a backup of your personal charts and options, and copy them to your new PC or program. To do this, you can use the functions “Save personal data” and “Restore personal data” from the Help menu. You can save your data to a CD, USB flashdrive, or other storage device. Click on the “Help” buttons of these functions if you need more information.
THE ON-SCREEN HELP WITH WINDOWS 11, 10, 8, 7 AND VISTA:
Due to mandatory changes made at Microsoft, if you are using Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, or Vista, the display of the on-screen help files is different from previous versions designed for Windows XP. If you are using Windows 11, 10, 8, 7, or Vista, and the help screens are not displaying automatically when you first run the program, you have 2 options to fix this.
1) The help screens (including topics for all Aureas astrology programs) have also been reformatted in a second format internally compatible with newer versions of Windows, which can be accessed via the main top menu bar of the opened program at Options: Advanced Users, where you can select “Compiled help files (.chm, alternate format)”. This format presents a menu at the left of the help screens, with a search function at top, and the topic may have to be selected manually from a list, in some cases.
2) If you want or need to use the older format, you can still download a special Microsoft adaptor program called “WinHlp32.exe” and display the older files (not available with Windows 10 and 11). For instructions, you can click the Help menu in your program, select Technical Information, and then the line Download Windows Help. This will display the Microsoft web page where you can download the “Windows Help” (WinHlp32.exe file). After installing it, you will have access to the original on-screen help for the features of all Aureas programs. Or you can search manually for “WinHlp32.exe” online and download it manually. For these to display, you will have to have Options: Advanced Users: “Standard help files (.hlp)” selected via the main top menu bar in your program.
Both formats have unique advantages.
PROBLEMS WITH YOUR ANTIVIRUS:
Our programs are tested with several antivirus and are guaranteed virus-free. However, according to your antivirus and its configuration, you may receive warning messages that indicate a virus or trojan in your program. This can happen if you are using old versions of our software. More rarely, it can also be caused by the fact that our programs are encrypted to prevent hacking, as some antivirus consider this encryption as a threat.
If your antivirus causes problems during installation of our software, you must temporarily disable it during the installation, and then re-enable it (see your antivirus documentation to know how to do). If the problem occurs after the installation, you must allow the execution of our program. To do this, go to the settings of your antivirus and create an “Exception” or “Exclusion” (again, see the documentation of your antivirus for the procedure).
Note that this problem may appear suddenly after your antivirus has downloaded an update of its database. This means that a program can work very well at the beginning of the week and then be blocked after a few days.