macOS Sierra: The Missing Manual

The Mac Reads to You

As you know from this chapter so far, the Mac can type out what you say and obey spoken commands. But there’s a third talent: The Mac can talk.

Most Apple programs have a Start Speaking command built right in: Safari, Mail, TextEdit, Stickies, Pages, and so on. Just right-click or two-finger click inside a window full of text and, from the pop-up menu, choose Speech→Start Speaking. How cool is that? Your Mac can read your email or a web article to you while you’re getting dressed.

You can add a Speak command in FileMaker Pro scripts. MacOS’s Chess and Calculator programs can talk back, too.

But that’s kid stuff. Truth is, the Mac can read almost anything you like: text you pass your cursor over, alert messages, menus, and any text document in any program. It can speak in your choice of dozens of synthesizer voices, ages 8 to 50. Most read with a twangy, charmingly Norwegian accent—but some of the newest voices (like Alex, Jill, Samantha, and Tom) sound scarily like a professional human voice-over artist.

Note

This text-reading business is not the same thing as the Mac’s VoiceOver feature. VoiceOver is designed to read everything on the screen, including pop-up menus, buttons, and other controls, to visually impaired Mac fans (and to permit complete control, mouse-free, of everything). Details are in Figure 10-4.

Gem in the Rough: Talking to Chess

If your friends and coworkers are unimpressed by macOS and your mastery of it, invite them over to watch you play a game ...