Talk:Windows Text-to-Speech

Cwolfsheep 12:09, 9 July 2006 (UTC)

My take on the article
I'm a blind user of a screen reader called JAWS, which allows access to any synthesizer using versions 4 or 5 of the Speech Application Programming Interface (SAPI), including Microsoft text-to-speech and many others. As a Windows XP user, I also have to use Microsoft Narrator from time to time when JAWS isn't working or can't be loaded. And I'll tell you, it's not funny when you have to hear Microsoft Sam guide you through a one-hour program installation, as I once did.

Anyway, I believe this article should redirect to Speech Application Programming Interface, as that is the speech engine behind these voices, and is probably what most people want to learn about rather than the programs that use it in newer versions of windows. I also don't believe we should have much on Microsoft Sam, because even though he is the default voice of windows, he's not widely used by people doing serious speech work. We have User:Martinultima/101 Things To Do With Microsoft Sam for anyone so inclined, and anyway, much cooler things can be done with better speech synthesizers.

I also think that Microsoft Narrator should be its own article, because it's a significant program for Windows 2000 and XP, especially for the visually impaired. Having said that, there's not much more I could add to the article as it was before the redirect. However, when details of the screen reader that will come with Windows Vista are known, maybe an article can be created like Microsoft screen readers or something. Just my two cents, Graham talk 04:16, 24 July 2006 (UTC)
 * If there are no objections, I'll do as I stated above in 24 hours. Graham talk 12:16, 1 August 2006 (UTC)
 * I won't do it today, as I don't have the time. I'll do the redirect soon (like Thursday or Friday), if there are no objections between now and then. Graham talk 13:20, 2 August 2006 (UTC)
 * OK, redirect about to be performed ... Graham talk 11:56, 3 August 2006 (UTC)


 * I think this is a reasonable change. There isn't really a component or products called "Windows Text to Speech", so I don't think this was adding much value over the individual Narrator, Sam, Anna, SAPI etc. pages. Dave w74 21:49, 8 August 2006 (UTC)