[DECtalk] DECtalk TTS licensing

[Don]

On 8/30/2021 6:06 AM, Devin Prater wrote:
> I mean, there is ESpeak.

There are *lots* of (FOSS/exposed) synthesizers out there,
if you are looking to incorporate one into a product (and
likely need to work with sources)!

It's an ancient technology that has been replicated by many
people in many different ways over the past 4 decades (longer
if you want to look at cruder synthesis technologies).  You
just have to decide what features you want *in* the synthesizer
and what resources you have to devote to it.

["Making noises" that sound like bits of speech is relatively easy]

DECtalk made sense in the 80's -- when resources were scarce
and the synthesizer had to be a "bag" that was bolted onto
an existing product/system.  It was a "one-size-fits-all",
standalone solution to "converting text into speech".  But,
*it* had no idea what purpose it was serving in any particular
application.  So, it could never adjust its approach to
synthesis to match the expectations made of it.

Nowadays, one would *integrate* the synthesizer into the
product/system to improve performance, intelligibility, etc.

Do you really think ONE set of synthesis rules should apply to:
- reading your email
- reading a URL
- reading a password
- reading a web page
- reading a novel
- reading a child's book
- reading stock tickers/quotes
- reading picture captions

A synthesizer should understand context; HOW it is being used
AT THIS PARTICULAR TIME.  If you push that responsibility into
the application that is driving the synthesizer, then much
of the value of the "TTS as black box" disappears -- you're
doing the work *for* it!

Why not just implement a "LETTER-to-speech" synthesizer?  And,
*spell* everything, out loud (Ans:  because, while it could
TRULY be "one-size-fits-all" -- because it pushes all of the
real work into the listener's brain -- it would be incredibly
unuseful)