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TALKTOME.DOC
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1986-08-04
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When first receiving a copy of the Speech.Com package I was thrilled!
I soon found that creating text files of phonems used be the
interpreter was a cumbersome chore. A task not looked upon favorably.
So, I wrote a utility which minimizes the job for me. I hope you will
find it as useful as I have.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 1
Talktome.Bas allows you to enlarge your computer's vocabulary as well
as edit phonems and create phonem text files. The vocabulary of words
are stored in a random access file. After every session of adding
words this file must be sorted. This is done automatically by the
editor. For more information on the sort and search routines used here
please refer to the book entitled Dos Random Access & Basic File
Handling by H. J. Muller. This book is a wealth of information.
Creating phonem text files which are used by the READ utility is as
simple as writing a letter. After every line the utility will pick out
each word and locate it in its vocabulary file. If your computer knows
this word then the phonem for that word is written to your text file.
In the event a word is not part of your computer's vocabulary the
utility will inform you. To end this session merely hit ENTER or
RETURN on a blank line. Your text file will be closed and you will be
informed of it. That's the gist of the utility. The following will
attempt a more detailed explanation of each command.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 2
T H E M E N U C O M M A N D S
{A}dd words
This command allows you to add words to your computer's vocabulary.
Upper and lower case letters make a difference! To be on the safe side
enter all words in UPPER CASE (RECOMMENDED!!).
After you input a word, the word is checked against duplicates. If the
word already exsists you will be informed. If not, you will be
prompted to enter the 'phonem' of the word. Your computer will then
'say' the phonem. If it does not sound 'right' you can change it
before saving it. When you are ready to quit adding words answer the
'Enter word' prompt with a RETURN or ENTER. The utility then loads the
sort utility. More about that later.
The speech utility does not recognize numerics or punctuations. You
will need to 'spell' them out i.e. 13 becomes THIRTEEN and the
corresponding phonem is TH-R-R-T-EE-N-N (or something similar).
Contractions are acceptable. The phonem for the word DON'T is
D-OH-N-T. If you use abbreviated words followed by a period such as
'MR.', the period is considered part of the word and it must exsist in
the vocabulary file as typed.
To use this feature of the utility you must be fully aquainted with the
phonems Speech.Com supports. Please familiarize yourself with Say.Doc.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 3
{C}reate
This is where you create the actual phonem text file. You will be
prompted for a filename to store the phonems. Do not use a file
extension. A default extension is used by the utility. The file you
will be creating is the text file which is 'read' by the READ utility.
You will be limited to 60 characters per line. There are no limits on
number of lines. After every <CR> the individual words are extracted
from the sentence. The words are then sought out in the vocabulary
file. Words that are found are matched with their corresponding
phonems. Each phonem is written to the text file specified by you. If
a word or words do not exsist in the vocabulary you will be informed of
such and asked whether or not to continue. Answer this prompt
accordingly. I must warn you that if you answer NO the utility returns
you to the main menu.
Do not include puncuations in your text. For example, placing a "."
(period) to signify the end of a sentence will be looked upon as part
of the word. Compound words such as 'GOODBYE' should be broken up into
two seperate words. Unless of course, 'GOODBYE' is part of the
vocabulary. The use of contractions is fine.
To quit just hit <CR> on a blank line.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 4
{E}dit
This option allows you to change a phonem to a specified word. This is
so you can get the sound of the word just 'right'.
Again, you must be familiar with the supported phonems. You will need
to experiment to get the word sounding 'right'.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 5
{L}isten
Here you will be able to HEAR your computer talk. First you will be
shown a list of all files (default drive:*.TXT). You will be prompted
to enter the filename or text you wish to hear. You must enter the
filename including the file extension. The READ utility generates no
error if a file does not exsist.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 6
{Q}uit
This option is self explanatory. However, it can mean END, STOP, let
me out of here and I want to play DINO EGGS!
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 7
{T}alk
This option is similar to {C}reate text. The difference is phonems are
NOT saved to a file, they are 'spoken'. This feature comes in handy
when you want to hear what the words will sound like before creating a
text file.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 8
S O R T I N G T H E D A T A F I L E
Sorting the vocabulary file is an essential part of maintenance. In
order for the SEARCH of words to be correct this file must be in alpha
sequence. This is why sorting is done after ending a session of
addings words to the vocabulary file. The utility does this
automatically. The larger the vocabulary file the longer the sort.
For your convenience a vocabulary file, roughly 400 words, was supplied
with the Talktome.Bas utility. My son and I have included words that
are commonly used. This is so you can jump right in there and start
creating phonem texts as soon as you receive Talktome.Bas.
Since the vocabulary file supplied with Talktome.Bas is large I
recommend that when adding words to the file you do so in large
quantities. Even if you add just one word the sort will take
approximately 17.7 minutes.
After the sort is completed Sort.Bas will create a backup of your
sorted vocabulary file called BCKUPWRD.DAT. It will then return to the
main utility.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 9
NOTES
Documentation is not necessary as you will find Talktome.Bas quite
simple to use (I really wanted to check out my new text formatter).
The Talktome.Bas utility and associated programs were placed in the
public domain so feel free to distribute it as long as the following
conditions are met:
1> The programs are distributed in their original form!
2> No fees be accepted for copies of the Talk-to-me programs!
Remuneration is the sole right of the author. If you find this program
of great use then a donation sufficient enough to purchase a one way
first class ticket on a lunar shuttle would be appreciated!
(just kidding!) I am not accepting donations of any sort for these
programs at this time. I already have enough problems with the IRS.
Just enjoy it.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 10
No! No! I am not affiliated with any corporation or with the
individual who wrote Speech.Com. The speech utilities have been
provided with the Talk-to-me utilities for your convenience only.
You will use the Talk-to-me programs at your own risk. I will not be
held responsible for any allege damage caused to your computer or
financial status.
Cat Miller
Author - Dreamer
CIS#: 76257,307 Delphi: SYSTEM80
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 11
More notes:
8/4/86 Shell sort implemented.
Speech - Text Creator and Editor Page 12