For the protection of an in-the-ear hearing aid against contamination by ear wax through the acoustic outlet port or a vent, a replaceable ear wax guard is inserted in the aid and includes an essentially tubular element with a through-going cavity and an abutment collar in one end for sealing abutment against the hearing aid housing. The method involves a capability profile for a patient and also a first and a second database being provided. Various methods and apparatus are described. A next step includes calculating a magnitude separation of peak and null states of each modulation. Thus, the system allows the creation of a \u201cvirtual convention venue\u201d for conventions that exist only on the central website server and available using the Internet.