What makes Narrator unique as a text-to-speech program?
Several functionalities within Narrator enable it to extend text-to-speech functionalities already present in Mac OS, accessible. It may seem confusing, then, which specific functionalities make Narrator unique as a solution for creating audio presentations. This article will outline those functionalities.
Multiple Characters
Narrator allows for the configuration and assignment of multiple characters to a text. Characters can be assigned to begin speaking at any point in the text with character flags.
Controls for Presentation Configuration
- Character Controls - specify how each character should sound by changing any of the following voice settings:
- Rate
- Pitch
- Inflection
- Volume
- Casting Assistant - Cast Characters automatically based on cues entered into the text.
- Chapters - Manage text segments within a presentation.
- Substitution Dictionary - Configure Narrator to read substitute text for for terms you define. For example, you can instruct Narrator to read “Captain Hook” where “Capt. Hook” appears in your text.
Playback Controls
- Playback control button, to pause and restart playback within Narrator:
- Start/ Stop
- Pause/ Resume
- Advance Position
- Narrator can be configured to begin playback at the text insertion point.
Export Options
- Settings in Narrator make it possible to set iTunes tags for exported presentations before they are exported to iTunes. Tags that can be configured include:
- Playlist
- Genre
- Artist
- Export to file - In addition to exporting directly to iTunes, Narrator can export to .AAC file.
For a full introduction to Narrator’s functionalities, see this Knowledge Base article.