Two different and separate audio data streams are processed through a personal
computer (PC) system or other computing device so that the separate and distinct
audio data streams are heard through separate sound transducers. In a preferred
embodiment, chat messages received over a network during execution of a multiplayer
game are processed separately from sounds produced by the multiplayer game, enabling
a user to hear the game sounds from speakers, separate and distinct from verbal
chat messages, which are heard through earphone(s). The earphone(s) are included
in a headset, as well as a microphone that enables the user to produce verbal data
that are conveyed to a hardware control unit that is connected to the PC system
through a universal serial bus (USB) port. The chat audio data are converted into
an analog audio signal that is heard by the user in the headphone(s) and is spatially
separate and distinct from the game audio data heard through the speakers. Included
on the control unit are switches that enable the user to selectively direct verbal
data either to the chat session or to a voice recognition engine that converts
the verbal data into commands used for controlling the game.
