Remember "SAY!"?

[Leifern]

Hi,
I remember this tiny utility/command on WB1.3 called SAY!. I always wondered where that went. I remember i loved playing around with it.. Anyone know if there is an updated/similar version out there for download. Or an amiga utility/command that does the same thing?

[InTheSand]

Hi,

The later versions of "say" and the associated "translator.library" (from a 2.x set of WB disks) still work on 3.1, so there's nothing to stop you from using them!

- Ali

[Leifern]

WOHOOOO!!!!!! :-D

[TheMagicM]

I remember SynchroExpress had a 'say' intro..

"Seencro Express version one point three copyright coast to coast technologie all rights reserved"

lol.. good piece of software/hardware though.

[InTheSand]

Hi,

I forgot, you also need "speak-handler" and must mount the "SPEAK:" device before you can make it say anything...

- Ali

[kd7ota]

My brother made a say program on Amos. It would randomely place names and prices...and would say random things about some dirty chicks that were town bikes. :-D

[Leifern]

Hmmm.. I've checked all my WB 2.x disks, and none of them have Say, or any of the other stuff on them..

[InTheSand]

Hi,

Here's the full info you need: The files need to come from WB2.0x, as the speech software was dropped from Workbench in 2.1 onwards.

I have these versions:
devs:narrator.device - 37.7
sys:utilities/say - 37.4
l:speak-handler - 37.4
libs:translator.library - 42.0

The files other than translator.library need to come from a WB2.0x set. The translator.library itself can be found here (http://main.aminet.net/package.php?package=util/libs/translator42.lha) on Aminet.

You'll also need a SPEAK file in DEVS:DOSDrivers with contents similar to this:
Handler = L:Speak-Handler
StackSize = 6000
Priority = 5
GlobVec = -1

Happy SAY-ing! :-D

- Ali

[bigdan]

To complete this tread :

http://www.text2speech.com/ (Softvoice, the company behind the narrator.device, "original" translator lib and say command...)

(see http://www.gregdonner.org/workbench/wb_21.html)

[Leifern]

Hehe..Wow, thanks guys! :-P

[Will-i-am]

There is/was a nice program to help adjust the voice in 'say', called Smooth Talker. There was also a program which created a small screen and a face mouthing the words. I used to include a text file in my S directory and referred to it using 'say' in the bootup so when my wife started the Amiga to play one of her shoot-em-ups the speakers would announce, "This doesn't look like doing the laundry, Margaret!" I adjusted the voice to sound like hers. I *always* wanted to develop an animation tool which would allow you to write a script dialog in a text editor, save the file and link it to certain key frames in an animation. Then when you taped it off a genlock the sound would be synched with the picture. If you decided to change the dialog you just retype the words and the 'say' utility would automatically change your animation. Cool concept but I never finished it. Tried in CanDo and tried learning C, but I am just too damn lazy. 8-(

[Managarm]

There's also a thing you can download from Aminet (can't remember the name now) that makes the computer speak all system messages. It's really cool for about a week and then you want to murder someone (or turn the soun down, either's good.) Also there's another thing (again can't remember the name, not near my Amiga at the moment) that added different accents to it. There's even a Klingon accent file in there. In fact have a look at this...

http://www.google.com/intl/xx-klingon/

[c64_d0c]

this is something i like to see included in the aos4.0. we aleready got the drag screen..
________
SEX TAPE (http://www.****tube.com/video/19815/horny-amateur-couple-homemade-sex-tape)

[Leifern]

Hey... "Say!" seems to have wuite the following.. Hehe.. Who would have thought.. :crazy:

Yeah.. It would be great to see "Say!" in OS4. Anyone heard the difference between 1.3 and 2.0's "say!"? I've got 1.3 but not 2.0.. Only 2.1 and 2.4. :cry:

[TheMagicM]

Will-I-am:

I used to have that software.. I forget what it was called.. I think it had the word 'guru' in the name though... I searched aminet but couldnt find it.

[boing]

The 1.3.x version of the SAY software with associated support files is different from the 2.0X version.

The 1.3.x versions appeared to consume fewer cycles, which is handy for a 68000 machine or during multitasking. Some people thought the 2.0x versions sounded better, but just as many thought it merely sounded "different".

I seem to recall getting both versions of the speech system to cohabitate on the same machine at the same time.
IIRC I modified the 1.3.3 versions thusly:

Rename Say to SEZ.
Rename narrator.device to narrato1.device
Rename translator.library to translato1.library
Then copied them to the appropriate dirs on the 2.x and 3.x boot partition.

(IIRC you can use the 2.0x translator lib with the older 1.3.x speech software at least if running on 2.0x or higher; unsure about 1.3.x itself).

I then used NewZap to find and replace all references to Say, translator.library and narrator.device to their respectively renamed versions. I can't recall what i did with the speak-handler. But I got it working.

In fact I can't even recall why the speech system was implmented as a device, library and handler. Just good modular design ethos I guess. Which is why you can mis and match the 1.3 and 2.x versions. :-)


translator.library - Parsed and converted text to phoenemes which is then handed off to the...

narrator.device - which takes the phoenemes and plays an associated sample for each one.

I can't remember WTF the handler does.

[Karlos]

Are there any replacements for the narrator.device that use more formants or other forms of synthesis? I always rather liked MacOS's speech. Hell, there has to be something to like about them :lol:

[boing]

I wasn't overly impressed by some of the SoftVoice Inc ( http://www.text2speech.com ) samples but he's got a nearly-perfect Cylon!!
<a href="htp://ftp.webcom.com/pub4/tts/www/sv_exam2.wav

^Are we sure this is the same guy who did the Amiga speech? It doesn't sound like it's advanced very far at all.


I have a friend who uses another system that's eerily realistic sounding. I'll find out from her what it is. I think it was some AT&T demo online.

IIRC XP and MasOSX both have nice sounding speech systems now, but I don't think you could use them like on the Amiga. Surely you can't MOUNT SPEAK: via a network connection and have fun with your unsuspecting friend. ;-)

[Karlos]

True, the SPEAK device was good fun :-)

[boing]

http://billmumy.com/mumy/guestbook/BMrobotbillrecentc.jpg

About 4 or 5 years ago, there was a project (finished IIRC) where a Mac programmer wrote some new PPC speech software for the Mac (OS 9.x).

Now here's the cool part. He got Dick Tufeld, the guy who was the voice of the B9 robot from "Lost In Space" series (and also the movie) to record phonemes for the project. Sounded pretty damn good as I recall.

And since it sounds like one of the coolest robot voices in history, it wins by default. Only being on the Amiga would make it any cooler.

I always though we could talk him (that Mac guy) into giving us the phonemes so that an Amiga version could be crafted. It should be as simple and creating a new narrator.device. Same software, just different samples.

http://martakristen.com/marta/gallery/lis/first/LISBillMartadance.jpghttp://www.ebsqart.com/Art/78/18055/DangerWillRobinson_275_275.jpg
http://www.billmumyfanclub.com/lis4ever1.jpg




http://martakristen.com/marta/gallery/lis/xmas/santamarta1.jpg

[boing]

Oddly enough, a web search for the project has failed me. I do know the developer appeared at a MacWorld Expo or similar with a partial Jupiter 2 mockup and a working Lost in Space robot (they have kits that cost like $15,000).