CHAPTER 5

CUSTOMIZING outSPOKEN

Summary

This chapter explains how to adjust outSPOKEN's settings to best fit your 
needs. Section 5.1 describes the use of the Preferences dialogs for 
adjusting outSPOKEN's voice parameters, as well as keyboard, graphics, new 
window, pointer movement, and punctuation feedback. Section 5.1.7 covers 
outSPOKEN's highlight and caret tracking features, and Section 5.1.8 
describes some of outSPOKEN's more advanced and less commonly adjusted 
settings. Section 5.2 explains how to rename graphics and edit graphics 
dictionaries.

5.1   outSPOKEN Preferences

The outSPOKEN Preferences dialog can be opened at any time by pressing SHIFT 
with the PLUS key on the keypad (SHIFT-KPD PLUS). From within this dialog, all 
of outSPOKEN's settings can be verified or changed. There are eight buttons 
in a column along the left edge of the dialog. Each button opens a sub-
dialog containing controls related to that topic. Beside and/or below each 
button is printed information about the status of various settings within 
that sub-dialog. The rest of this section describes in detail each sub-
dialog, its controls, and what they do.

Each button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog has a hotkey equivalent. 
This means that any of the sub-dialogs can be opened by pressing the 
appropriate hotkey combination. The buttons and hotkeys are as follows:

Sub-Dialog   Hotkey

Voices   ALT-V
Keyboard   ALT-K
Graphics   ALT-G
Window   ALT-W
Movement   ALT-M
Punctuation   ALT-P
Tracking   ALT-T
System   ALT-S
OK   ALT-O
Cancel   ALT-C



Once the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog is open, the sub-dialogs can be opened 
by clicking on the appropriate button, tabbing to the appropriate button and 
pressing ENTER, or pressing the hotkey combination for the appropriate 
button (e.g., ALT-V for Voices).

To exit from the preferences dialog, select either the OK or Cancel button, 
located at the bottom of the dialog. Pressing OK accepts any changes you 
have made to outSPOKEN's settings and saves the changes to disk. Pressing 
the Cancel button closes the dialog and discards any changes made to the 
settings while the Preferences dialog was open. Selecting Close from the 
Control menu of this dialog is equivalent to pressing the OK button.

5.1.1   outSPOKEN's Voices

Voice rate can be adjusted at any time by holding down the SHIFT and CTRL 
keys and pressing either KPD PLUS, to speed up outSPOKEN's speech, or KPD 
ENTER, to slow down the speech. Voice rate, and all other voice controls, can 
also be adjusted from the Voice Preferences sub-dialog of outSPOKEN 
Preferences.

Selecting the Voices button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog opens the 
Voice Preferences sub-dialog. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, 
a shortcut for selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey 
combination ALT-V.

All speech synthesizers have certain parameters that affect the sound of the 
voice they produce. The most basic of these are rate, volume, and pitch. 
Many synthesizers have additional parameters such as inflection, intonation, 
or language. These parameters can be set from the Voice Preferences sub-
dialog of outSPOKEN Preferences. 

outSPOKEN uses a number of different voices to communicate different types 
of information. These voices are Text Voice, Graphic Voice, Focus Voice, and 
System Voice. Each of these voices is explained in detail below. In addition 
to these four voices, there is a Baseline Voice, which is like a master 
control on all the other voices. For example, all the voices can be slowed 
down at once by reducing the rate of the Baseline Voice.

outSPOKEN's use of multiple voices can take advantage of certain 
synthesizers, such as the DECtalk, which supply pre-programmed voices. 
Synthesizers which do not come with such voices can still be used by 
outSPOKEN to produce multiple voices. One voice can be distinguished from 
another by varying a parameter such as volume or pitch. For example, 
outSPOKEN's Graphic Voice has a higher pitch than the Text Voice. This makes 
it easy to differentiate written text from graphical objects.

At the top of the sub-dialog is a combo box titled Voices. This control is 
used to select which voice is having its qualities changed. A voice is 
chosen by first clicking on the combo button of the Voices combo box, then 
clicking on the desired voice. There are five parameters that can be 
adjusted for each voice. In order, they are: Rate, Volume, Filter, 
Inflection, and Auxiliary. Each of these voice qualities has an edit box 
displaying the current value for that parameter. To change any of these 
values, simply click in the appropriate edit box, delete any unwanted digits 
with BACKSPACE, and type a new value.

Please note that changing the setting of the combo box with the UP-ARROW 
and DOWN-ARROW keys displays a new voice name in the combo box, but the 
parameters for that voice are not displayed in the edit boxes below 
until one of the edit boxes is selected by clicking in it. 

Along the bottom of the sub-dialog are three buttons. From left to right 
they are: OK, Test, and Cancel. The Test button speaks the contents of the 
Test Text edit box, using the voice currently being modified. Pressing the 
OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes the sub-dialog. 
Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the settings, restores the 
previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing the sub-dialog with 
the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to pressing the OK 
button. 

Baseline Voice:

The Baseline Voice is like a master control for all other voices. When the 
Voice Preferences sub-dialog is first opened, the Baseline Voice values are 
displayed, and the combo box at the top contains the title "Baseline Voice." 
The default value for each baseline parameter is fifteen out of an effective 
range of about thirty (depending on your synthesizer). These default values 
should correspond to the normal voice of your synthesizer. To change the 
voice, simply change any of the displayed values by clicking in the 
appropriate edit box and entering the desired value. Pressing TAB 
automatically moves to the next control and highlights the contents of the 
new edit box as it does so. The Baseline Voice is outSPOKEN's standard 
voice, so the user should set it to a comfortable rate and volume.

The non-baseline voices described below display a 0 for parameters that 
match the Baseline Voice. This indicates that the parameter has zero 
deviation from the baseline value. To raise such a parameter's value above 
the baseline, the user replaces the 0 with a positive number. To lower the 
value below the baseline, a negative number is used. Thus, if the baseline 
rate is set to 15, and the user wants a particular voice to be slightly 
faster than that, a small positive number (such as 3) might be used for that 
voice's rate setting. This would give that parameter an effective value of 
18, which is 3 greater than the baseline value of 15. Generally numbers 
between -10 and +10 are best for non-baseline voice parameters. It is not 
necessary to use a plus sign when entering positive values. 

Text Voice:

The Text Voice is the voice that outSPOKEN uses to read text. All parameters 
are defaulted to match the baseline settings.

Graphic Voice:

The Graphic Voice speaks the names of graphical objects such as icons and 
symbols (Sections 3.2, 5.2). This is helpful in distinguishing the name of a 
graphic from text using the same words. For example, it is important to know 
the difference between a graphic which represents a printer and the word 
"printer" itself, since the graphic and the word have different uses. The 
Graphic Voice makes this distinction simple and intuitive. The default 
Graphic Voice has a higher pitch than the Text Voice.

System Voice:

The System Voice notifies the user about events and activities which occur 
in the Windows environment. These events are neither text nor graphics, so 
outSPOKEN uses a separate voice to communicate them. Feedback from outSPOKEN 
keys such as TOP and BOTTOM are spoken in the System Voice. When the pointer 
moves into a new control, such as an edit box, button, or group box, 
outSPOKEN speaks that information in the System Voice as well. This makes it 
clear that the words "edit box," for example, are not written on the screen, 
but rather that there is an object called an edit box into which the pointer 
has moved. There are many other instances in which the System Voice is used. 
Among them are pointer shape changes (Section 3.1), new window feedback 
(Section 5.1.4), and estimated numbers of blank lines skipped when 
navigating (Section 5.1.5). The default System Voice has a lower pitch than 
the Baseline Voice.

Focus Voice:

The Focus Voice speaks newly selected items as focus moves to them (Sections 
4.8, 5.1.7). It is this voice which provides feedback when using built-in 
Windows commands, such as TAB and ARROW keys. The default settings for this 
voice match those of the baseline voice.

5.1.2   Keyboard Feedback

Selecting the Keyboard button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog produces a 
sub-dialog from which the level of feedback about keyboard activity can be 
adjusted. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a shortcut for 
selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination ALT-K.

The Keyboard Preferences sub-dialog contains eight check boxes for turning 
on and off various keyboard echo features. The check boxes are labeled: Echo 
Characters, Echo Words, Echo Punctuation, Echo Toggles, Echo Function Keys, 
Echo Modifiers, Echo Cursor Keys, and Echo Other. At the bottom of the sub-
dialog are the buttons OK and Cancel, for accepting or rejecting changes to 
the settings of the displayed controls.

Echo Characters:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN echoes all alpha-numeric keys, as 
well as most math symbols and accent characters, as the keys are pressed. 
From within the sub-dialog, the state of this check box can be toggled by 
pressing the hotkey combination ALT-H.

Echo Words:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN speaks each word as it is 
completed. A word is considered to have ended when the SPACEBAR, ENTER, or 
TAB key is pressed. From within the sub-dialog, the state of this check box 
can be toggled by pressing the hotkey combination ALT-W.

Echo Punctuation

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN echoes standard punctuation 
characters, such as periods, commas, exclamation points, question marks, 
quotation marks, and apostrophes, as the keys are pressed. From within the 
sub-dialog, the state of this check box can be toggled by pressing the 
hotkey combination ALT-P.

Echo Toggles:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN speaks the state of all keyboard 
toggles as they are pressed. Toggle keys include the Caps Lock, Scroll Lock, 
and Num Lock keys. From within the sub-dialog, this feature can be turned on 
and off by pressing the hotkey combination ALT-T. 

Echo Function Keys:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN speaks the names of the function 
keys, F1 through F12, as they are pressed. From within the sub-dialog, the 
state of this check box can be toggled by pressing the hotkey combination 
ALT-F.

Echo Modifiers:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN echoes the SHIFT, ALT, and CTRL 
keys as they are pressed. From within the sub-dialog, the state of this 
check box can be toggled by pressing the hotkey combination ALT-M.

Echo Cursor Keys:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN speaks the names of cursor keys as 
they are pressed. Cursor keys are keys that move the caret, such as the ARROW 
keys, HOME, and END. From within the sub-dialog, the state of this check box 
can be toggled by pressing the hotkey combination ALT-U.

Echo Other:

When this check box is checked, outSPOKEN echoes keys which do not fit into 
any of the categories listed above. These keys include BACKSPACE, TAB, and 
ENTER. From within the sub-dialog, the state of this check box can be 
toggled by pressing the hotkey combination Alt-R.

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

5.1.3   Graphics Feedback

Selecting the Graphics button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog brings up 
the Graphics Preferences sub-dialog. This sub-dialog contains controls for 
setting the level of feedback about icons and symbols when reading (Section 
4.3). From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a shortcut for selecting 
this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination ALT-G.

The Graphics Preferences sub-dialog contains a group box, titled "Spoken 
Graphics," which contains three radio buttons. The radio buttons are labeled 
Verbose, Normal, and Off. At the bottom of the sub-dialog are the buttons OK 
and Cancel, for accepting or rejecting changes to the settings of the 
displayed controls.

The Verbose radio button, which can be selected with the hotkey combination 
ALT-V, tells outSPOKEN to speak all graphics 128 pixels square or smaller as 
it reads. The Normal setting, which can be selected with the hotkey 
combination ALT-N, tells outSPOKEN to ignore certain graphics (Section 
5.2.1). The Off setting, which can be selected with the hotkey combination 
ALT-F, tells outSPOKEN to ignore all graphics as it reads. outSPOKEN always 
ignores graphics larger than 128 pixels square.

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

5.1.4   New Window Feedback

Selecting the Window button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog produces a 
sub-dialog from which feedback about new windows, dialogs, and menus can be 
adjusted. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a shortcut for 
selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination ALT-W.

The Window Preferences sub-dialog contains three group boxes titled Window, 
Dialog, and Menu. Each of these group boxes contains three radio buttons 
labeled Voice, Tone, and Off. At the bottom of the sub-dialog are the 
buttons OK and Cancel, for accepting or rejecting changes to the settings of 
the displayed controls.

Each group box title refers to a different type of window which can be 
announced as it opens: normal windows, dialog boxes, and menus. The selected 
radio button inside each group box indicates the level of notification 
outSPOKEN provides for that type of new window. If, for example, the Voice 
radio button is selected in the Dialog group box, outSPOKEN says the word 
"Dialog," followed by the title of the dialog, whenever a dialog box opens. 
If the Tone option is selected, outSPOKEN produces a tone from the PC 
speaker whenever a dialog box opens. The button labeled Off tells outSPOKEN 
to provide no feedback at all for that type of new window.

When the Voice option is selected in the Window group box, outSPOKEN says 
"Window," followed by the name of the window, for each window that gets 
created. If the Voice setting is selected in the Menu group box, outSPOKEN 
says "Menu" each time a menu is opened, and "Leaving menu" when the menu 
closes.

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

It is important to note that in order for any of the Tone options to 
function properly, the Enable System Sounds check box, at the bottom of 
the Sound Control Panel, must be checked. The Control Panel is a 
utility provided by Windows for setting various Windows parameters. It 
can be found in the Main window of Program Manager. If tones are not 
being produced when any of the above notification levels are set to 
Tone, verify that system sounds are enabled.

5.1.5   Movement Feedback

Selecting the Movement button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog produces a 
sub-dialog from which feedback about outSPOKEN's pointer movement across 
empty space can be adjusted. It also contains controls for setting 
capitalization feedback. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a 
shortcut for selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination 
ALT-M.

The Movement Preferences sub-dialog contains three check boxes. The first is 
titled New Line Tone, the second is Line Approximation, and the third is 
Capital Letter Notification. At the bottom of the sub-dialog are the buttons 
OK and Cancel, for accepting or rejecting changes to the settings of the 
displayed controls.

New Line Tone:

This feature is available only if a sound card or sound generating software 
is installed. When the New Line Tone feature is on, it causes a tone to 
sound when reading across a line boundary with LEFT (KPD 4) or RIGHT (KPD 
6). This means that when reading by word or character to the right or left, 
a tone sounds if the next word or character to be read is on a different 
line. This check box can be selected with the hotkey combination ALT-N. 

Line Approximation:

outSPOKEN's Line Approximation feature estimates the number of blank lines 
crossed when the pointer is moved with outSPOKEN commands. For example, if 
outSPOKEN is reading a document which contains three blank lines, outSPOKEN 
says "three lines" at that point in the document. When FIND (KPD 1) (Section 
4.4) is being used, outSPOKEN also estimates the number of lines between the 
point where the search is initiated and the location at which the item is 
found. The number of estimated lines is always spoken in the System Voice 
(Section 5.1.1). This check box can be selected with the hotkey combination 
ALT-A.

Capital Letter Notification:

When Capital Letter Notification is turned on, outSPOKEN says the word "cap" 
in the System Voice (Section 5.1.1) before capital letters, when reading by 
character (SHIFT-KPD 4, SHIFT-KPD 6) or when spelling a word (CTRL-0). If the 
current letter is capitalized, this feature also speaks the word "cap" when 
reporting font information (KPD PERIOD). This check box can be selected with 
the hotkey combination ALT-L.

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

5.1.6   Punctuation Feedback

Selecting the Punctuation button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog 
produces a sub-dialog from which outSPOKEN's level of announced punctuation 
can be adjusted. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a shortcut 
for selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination ALT-P.

The Punctuation Preferences sub-dialog contains three radio buttons labeled 
All, Some, and None. At the bottom of the sub-dialog are the buttons OK and 
Cancel, for accepting or rejecting changes to the settings of the displayed 
controls.

When All punctuation is turned on, outSPOKEN reports all punctuation as it 
reads. This feature can be quickly selected from within this sub-dialog by 
pressing the hotkey combination ALT-A. The Some punctuation setting filters 
out such characters as dashes, apostrophes, question marks, and exclamation 
points. For a full list of the characters that are not spoken when this 
setting is turned on, see the list below. This setting can be selected by 
pressing the hotkey combination ALT-S. The None setting for punctuation 
feedback does not announce any punctuation when reading with most outSPOKEN 
commands. This setting can be selected with the hotkey combination ALT-N.

Characters Omitted When Punctuation Feedback is Set to Some:

apostrophe   dollar sign   question mark
asterisk   equals   quote
back quote   exclamation point   semicolon
braces   greater-than   tilde
brackets   less-than   underscore
colon   parentheses   vertical bar
dash   plus

It is important to note that these settings do not apply when reading 
by character (SHIFT-KPD 4, SHIFT-KPD 6), getting font information (KPD 
PERIOD), or spelling current word (CTRL-KPD 0). In these cases, all 
punctuation is always spoken.

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

5.1.7   Pointer Tracking

Selecting the Tracking button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog produces a 
sub-dialog from which outSPOKEN's highlight and caret tracking features can 
be adjusted. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a shortcut for 
selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination ALT-T.

The Tracking Preferences sub-dialog contains four check boxes. The first 
two, Follow Caret and Read Caret, determine outSPOKEN's response to movement 
of the text insertion cursor. The second two check boxes, Speak Focus and 
Track Focus, govern outSPOKEN's response to changes of highlighting and 
focus. At the bottom of the sub-dialog are the buttons OK and Cancel, for 
accepting or rejecting changes to the settings of the displayed controls. 

Follow Caret:

The Follow Caret check box toggles on and off a feature which is sometimes 
referred to as "cursor tracking." This setting has an effect only when a 
caret is present (e.g., in a word processor or edit box). When this feature 
is turned on, the mouse pointer automatically moves to follow the caret any 
time the caret changes position. This allows outSPOKEN navigation to pick up 
from the location of the most recent text changes. When the caret is not 
moving, the pointer can be moved with outSPOKEN commands to read different 
areas of the screen, but as soon as the caret moves again (i.e., if text is 
typed or cursor keys are used) the pointer immediately moves to follow the 
caret. This check box can be selected from within the sub-dialog with the 
hotkey combination ALT-F. 

Read Caret:

The Read Caret feature enables outSPOKEN to speak characters, words, and 
lines when the caret is moved with cursor keys (e.g., ARROW keys, HOME, and 
END). This check box can be selected from within the sub-dialog with the 
hotkey combination ALT-R. This setting has an effect only when a caret is 
present (e.g., in a word processor or edit box). When this feature is on, 
cursor keys announce the character, word, or line at the caret's new 
location. When this feature is on and a cursor key is pressed, outSPOKEN 
moves the pointer to the caret and speaks the indicated item. If this 
function is not active, all caret movement commands work properly, but 
outSPOKEN provides no accompanying voice feedback. These functions, and the 
voice feedback provided by outSPOKEN, are summarized in the table below. 

Key Name   Standard Caret Movement      outSPOKEN Feedback

LEFT-ARROW   Back one character   Read current character
RIGHT-ARROW   Forward one character   Read current character
CTRL-LEFT-ARROW   Back one word   Read current word
CTRL-RIGHT-ARROW   Forward one word   Read current word
HOME   Beginning of line   Read first word of line
END   End of line   Read last word of line
PAGE UP   Scroll to previous window   Read current line
PAGE DOWN   Scroll to next window   Read current line
DELETE   Delete next character   Read deleted character
BACKSPACE   Delete previous character   Read deleted character



It is important to note that some applications do not use the standard 
Windows caret, but draw something that looks identical. In these 
situations, outSPOKEN needs to let the caret cycle through at least one 
on-off-on sequence before the caret can be identified. Consequently, 
increasing the Cursor Blink Rate in the Desktop Control Panel will 
allow outSPOKEN to more quickly find the caret and may remedy 
sluggishness in such applications. In other cases where non-standard 
carets are used, the Read Caret feature may not function properly. 
Within most Windows applications, the cursor keys have standardized 
functions, but not all applications use them. For information on a 
specific application's treatment of the above commands, consult that 
application's documentation.

Speak Focus:

The Speak Focus check box specifies whether or not outSPOKEN announces newly 
highlighted items and controls. It can be selected from within the sub-
dialog with the hotkey combination ALT-S. This feature facilitates the use 
of Windows' built-in commands, such as TAB and ARROW keys, for highlight and 
focus shifting within dialog boxes. For example, as the user TABs to each 
new control in a dialog box, outSPOKEN announces the control type (in the 
System Voice) and speaks the newly highlighted item in the Focus Voice 
(Section 5.1.1). Highlighted items are spoken regardless of the method used 
to select them (e.g., ARROW keys, typed letters, or mouse clicks). Speak 
Focus works in virtually all situations, including dialog boxes, menus, 
Program Manager, File Manager, and all other standard applications.

Please note that dimmed menu items are not spoken when they are 
highlighted, regardless of the setting of Speak Focus. To read these 
items, use outSPOKEN's reading commands.

Track Focus:

The Track Focus feature moves the pointer to the end of any newly 
highlighted item or control. This feature can be selected from within the 
sub-dialog with the hotkey combination ALT-T. It is frequently used in 
conjunction with Speak Focus. The difference between these two features is 
that Speak Focus speaks the highlighted item without moving the pointer, 
while Track Focus moves the pointer to the highlighted item without 
speaking. If both features are enabled, outSPOKEN both speaks and points to 
the newly highlighted item. Track Focus facilitates the use of outSPOKEN's 
reading and navigation commands by moving the pointer to the item of most 
probable interest. The user can then investigate the surrounding area with 
outSPOKEN's navigation keys.

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

5.1.8   System Settings

Selecting the System button in the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog produces a 
sub-dialog which contains settings for a number of infrequently used, but 
important, settings. From within the outSPOKEN Preferences dialog, a 
shortcut for selecting this sub-dialog is provided by the hotkey combination 
ALT-S.

The System Preferences sub-dialog contains four check boxes labeled 
Automatic Text, Automatic Graphics, Character Substitution, and Read 
Windowed DOS Sessions. The first two, Automatic Text and Automatic Graphics, 
allow text and graphics to be spoken as they are drawn to the screen. 
Character Substitution replaces punctuation and math symbols with their text 
equivalents, as well as performing character counting. Read Windowed DOS 
Sessions allows outSPOKEN to interpret text inside DOS windows. At the 
bottom of the sub-dialog are the buttons OK and Cancel, for accepting or 
rejecting changes to the settings of the displayed controls.

Automatic Text:

The Automatic Text feature reads text as it is written to the screen. It is 
most useful in windows which contain command line interfaces, such as DOS 
windows or terminal emulators. Using this feature, it is possible to hear 
each new prompt as it appears. Microsoft Windows has an unfortunate tendency 
to draw and re-draw the same item numerous times. If Automatic Text is 
turned on, this tendency leads to more text being spoken than one desires. 
For this reason, it is usually best to leave this feature turned off. From 
within the System Preferences sub-dialog, the hotkey combination ALT-A turns 
this feature on and off. Automatic Text can be toggled on and off from any 
location (inside or outside the preferences dialog) with the outSPOKEN 
command SAY-ON (CTRL-KPD ENTER). The state of SAY-ON, however, does not get 
saved in the outSPOKEN preferences file.

Automatic Graphics:

The Automatic Graphics feature speaks each graphic as it is drawn to the 
screen. It is most useful when tabbing or arrowing between non-standard 
buttons that are drawn as icons. As each graphic is highlighted, it is 
redrawn, and outSPOKEN says its name. Often the button being tabbed away 
from is spoken as well. As with Automatic Text, some graphics may be drawn 
numerous times. This control can be toggled on and off from within the sub-
dialog with the hotkey combination ALT-G.

Character Substitution:

outSPOKEN's Character Substitution filter replaces punctuation such as 
period (.) and exclamation point (!) with their text names (point and 
exclamation), rather than sending the punctuation character itself to the 
speech synthesizer. Also incorporated into this filter is the ability to 
count repeating characters. For example, a line of dashes forty characters 
long is reported as "forty dash" when Character Substitution is active. When 
this feature is off, outSPOKEN passes all characters to the synthesizer as 
they are. Thus, in the above example, the word "dash" would be spoken forty 
times. 

Character substitution preempts any punctuation filters or abbreviation 
interpreters that are hard-wired into your synthesizer. If you want to use 
the features built into your synthesizer, Character Substitution should be 
turned off. If you want outSPOKEN to interpret punctuation and count 
characters, this filter should be turned on. From within the System 
Preferences sub-dialog, this control can be selected with the hotkey 
combination ALT-H.

Read Windowed DOS Sessions:

The Read Windowed DOS Sessions check box lets outSPOKEN know whether or not 
it should read DOS windows. If this feature is turned off, outSPOKEN turns 
over control of these windows to any DOS screen reader that may be running 
underneath Windows. By providing this option, outSPOKEN offers maximum 
flexibility for use of a DOS screen reader in conjunction with Windows. This 
check box can be selected from within the System Preferences sub-dialog with 
the hotkey combination ALT-R. 

Pressing the OK button accepts any changes that have been made and closes 
the sub-dialog. Pressing the Cancel button rejects any changes to the 
settings, restores the previous settings, and closes the sub-dialog. Closing 
the sub-dialog with the Close option under the Control menu is equivalent to 
pressing the OK button.

