Alpha VS 100 - Text to speech hints

6. Text
to speech hints
The text to
speech success
rate
is better
than
90?i
.
By
using the
following methods, you will
be
able to get a
perfect score.
•
Misspell the word.
If the
word
comes
out
wrong,
try
spelling it
phonetically. For
example, the
word
"read"
will
be
pronounced
like
"reed", even
if you want
it to
sound
like
"red". If you
want
it
to
sound
like "red",
spell it
"red"
.
•
To
say initials,
such as
TRS-80 or IBM,
simply
put a
space
between
the letters
(that is T R S 80
or IBM). For
a more natural
sound,
insert
dashes instead
of
spaces
between
letters.
Each space
adds
a pause.
Dashes
separate
words
or
letters
for
pronunciation
rules, but
do not add a
pause
.
Try T-R-S-80.
Also compare
"thank you"
with
"thank-you"
.
•
Spaces,
periods,
commas, and
exclamation
points add
pauses.
Other punctuation
like
";:?<)
do
not. They are
treated as "word
separators"
for pronunciation
rules.
•
Any number
up to ninety
nine
trillion
will
be
spoken
correctly.
(You can use
commas
and decimals)
Example:
12,345,000.67
•
For ordinal
numbers
add the proper ending,
i.e. 1st,
2nd,
3rd, 4th,
2,345th,
etc.
•
Some
abbreviations
are
supported:
Mr., Mrs.,
Ms., Co.,
lb.,
oz., ft..
Dr.,
etc.
•
The following
punctuation
symbols are
pronounced:
#,
$,
x,
&, @,
*,
=,
+, /
•
Frequently,
you
will
use
the
"-"
(dash or
minus
sign)
to
link and
split words to
improve
pronunciation.
Use
•"--"
if
you
mean
"minus".
Example:
49--43=6
•
The VS32
and
VS48
programs
accept
255 character
strings
as input
.
Generally, this
will mean
roughly 255
phonemes
(about
25 seconds
of speech) if you
type only words.
If
Page
15