How to Have Your Mac Read to You

Some of us might not want to know what our Macs would say if they could speak. But you supply the words with text-to-speech software (included in system software versions 7.5 and later).

Things You'll Need

• AppleWorks
• Mac OS 9.0
• Microsoft Word (for Mac)
• NisusWriter
• WordPerfect For Mac (Corel)

Instructions

1. Compose text using your favorite word processing program.

2. Launch SimpleText, a basic word processor included on every Mac.

3. Copy the text into the open SimpleText window.

4. Open the Sound menu and select Speak All (or press Option-J). Your Mac reads the text!

Tips & Warnings

• You can choose from a number of voices offered in SimpleText. Not all voices are available on all Macs.

• NisusWriter (a Mac-only word processing application) has a text-to-speech function built-in, including the ability to read aloud French, German, Italian and Spanish text.

• Use text-to-speech to edit your writing; it helps you hear mistakes. Listen to the text, then make corrections in your original word-processing document. (You lose most formatting copying back and forth from SimpleText.)