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About Powerpoint and TTS (text to speech)

by robgaz2009
11 replies
Hi Gang!

I am "trying" to do some article video marketing,
but in a slightly different way.

What I would like to do is use computer generated voice with powerpoint and record the slide show, and of course distriubte the content.

Most of it is easy, except the compute generated voice (TTS).

Anybody, got any (instructions) or tips/tricks.

Thanks,


Rob.
#powerpoint #speech #text #tts
  • Profile picture of the author Doug Slaton
    Wow, I've been going down this same path the last couple of days. Listened to quite a few demo tracks but settled on Voice Reader Home. The sound seems the best:
    Linguatec - Voice Reader Demo

    Runner up was Text Aloud:
    Text reader for your PC - TextAloud is the text to speech converter that reads emails, documents and more.
    *Note: Most things I read said get the AT&T Natural Voice upgrade.

    And here's a roundup of some free options:
    Text To Speech Online: 5 Best Free Conversion Tools

    Most of the programs are copy and paste or file open dialog then they can be saved as mp3 or wav files.
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    • Profile picture of the author robgaz2009
      Doug,

      I found a piece of software called powertalk.

      It takes the powerpoint presentation and adds voice to the slide show.

      Then its just a matter of recording the screen (camstudio/camtasia)

      The trouble is, the software will only use the basic voice supplied with MS Windows, and I just can't figure where/how to find other voices that will be compatible with windows.

      Any ideas?

      P.s thanks for your reply.
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  • Profile picture of the author Supernatural_fan
    My question is why would you want to add computer generated voice over a ppt slide show? It sounds awful, I've tried various softwares to determine how realistic is the sound of the voice, and was not satisfied. I myself as a regular user would not have the patience to follow the flow of the words while listening to that robotic voice. Thje main flaw is not entirely the quality of the sound, but the intonation, which is so important when trying to determine the meaning of the sentence. The intonation when using such softwares is completely off, and I don't consider it a smart addition to your article video marketing. Why not using your own voice or someone else's voice?
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    • Profile picture of the author Scott Woodside
      Do you really think anyone with a freaking brain will listen or watch computer voiced power point presentation? You're cluttering up the internet with unprofessionally produced products that people won't even watch or listen to all the way through. The minute they hear that unprofessional mess, they will delete it and go on with their life. It's like everything else in life. You get what you pay for.
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      • Profile picture of the author WillR
        Originally Posted by Scott Woodside View Post

        Do you really think anyone with a freaking brain will listen or watch computer voiced power point presentation? You're cluttering up the internet with unprofessionally produced products that people won't even watch or listen to all the way through. The minute they hear that unprofessional mess, they will delete it and go on with their life. It's like everything else in life. You get what you pay for.
        I totally agree and this is why I offered my service. A video article is going to be the first point of contact a potential prospect has with your business. Imagine the impression you are giving them by using a cheap-sounding computer automated voice.

        You definitely get what you pay for. Why waste all your time setting up these videos if you are not going to do it properly. Just putting the videos up does not mean you are going to get traffic to your site. People have to actually watch them and WANT to click through to your site. I doubt many people will be in a rush to click through after sitting through a computer generated voice for a few minutes...

        Just my thoughts...
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        • Profile picture of the author robgaz2009
          I do hear those who are not for tts. Perhaps, content created that way is kind of cold. And I am not FOR it or AGAINST it.

          Please hear me out.

          What I am for is TEST and Experimenting.

          And I'm in the group of people who says "lets do it and see what happens" and record my findings.

          *I just had a problem trying to setup alternative voices with Windows 7. I think I can do this with Windows XP - I'll have to see.

          **As for voice over - hey, thats a possibility, I'd be more than likely to explore that idea. Shall look into that prospect.

          For all who shared their thoughts/opinions thanks.

          Rob.
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  • Profile picture of the author NicoleBeckett
    Those computer voices are something else (and not in a good way!) They remind me of Ben Stein's character in the "Wonder Years" -- only more boring There is no inflection, no passion, no excitement, and, thus, no reason for anyone to stick around and listen to them.

    Why not voice the videos yourself? Even if you're apprehensive about being on camera, no one will see your face; they'll only see the Powerpoint slides.
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  • Profile picture of the author Doug Slaton
    @robgaz2009::Hmmmm, I missed Powertalk in my search. Looks like the program will run with any of these voices ... voices available and examples include AT&T Natural Voices, Nuance RealSpeak, Neospeech and IBM ViaVoice.

    For my uses I prefer AT&T Natural Voices. And for whatever reason I think the intelligibility of female voices is superior to the male ones. Could just be my ear though.

    Finished getting a sample up on my site not too long after my previous post. While it won't win any awards it is filling a square for my needs.
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  • Profile picture of the author WillR
    At your service...

    I posted a WSO a few weeks ago offering this exact service. No computer generated voices here. Just simple, powerpoint presentations narrated and recorded by me.

    You can check out the sample in the WSO:

    http://www.warriorforum.com/warrior-...-just-5-a.html

    Let me know if I can be of any help to you!
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  • Profile picture of the author realhouston
    Banned
    Might want to look into different software!
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  • Profile picture of the author DomiS
    As I like voices from Expressivo Text Reader - Text to Speech Software with Ivona voices I wanted to use them for my videos but I found:
    "Speech generated with Expressivo and IVONA 2 voices is not allowed for commercial use, as such use is not permitted by the IVONA User License. If you are interested in using speech synthesis for business purposes, please contact our sales department."
    I think that it could be a similar situation with other text-to-speech programs/voices
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