[DECtalk] DECtalk TTS licensing

[Don]

On 8/31/2021 2:12 PM, Karen Lewellen wrote:
> Hi again,
>
> On Mon, 30 Aug 2021, Don wrote:
>> How they are processed may differ.  But, how they are USED isn't.
>
> of course they are different, and there  is absolutely no uniformed structure
> that reaches  a desired audience in the same fashion.

Do you see headlines printed in handwritten *script*?
Do you see "body text" printed completely in a BOLD typeface?
Do you see the text of entire articles UNDERLINED?

If you look CAREFULLY, you will notice that body text is typically
presented in a roman, serif typeface, set "ragged right".  This is
easiest for people to read.

Headlines are usually bold, san serif typefaces.

Underline, italics and bold are used SPARINGLY, for emphasis.
Italics are used for words from foreign languages (e.g., etc.).
Underline is used for titles (e.g., of books).

This is basic high school English.

> In fact, one thing I remember from graduate school is just how the supposed
> audience can be manipulated by changing who you ask and how you ask questions
> in your marketing research.

Sure.  Which is why you have to *design* questionnaires and surveys.
What does that have to do with fonts?

>> You choose a font based on the feeling and focus that you want to convey
>> to the reader.
> and what constitutes the reader?  those questions differ a great deal.

Whomever is consuming the printed text.

If I were to type entirely in uppercase, it would be perceived
very differently than if I typed in mixed case -- a more normal
presentation style -- and resorted to uppercase for emphasis
(because I can't rely on other aspects of the typeface
on YOUR computer to convey intent/focus/emphasis).

>   A decorative font used as a headline would be interpreted
>> far differently than a bold, san-serif font.
> who is defining decorative?  based on what experience for what reader?

"Decorative" is a recognized term in the publishing industry.
It's like talking about serif vs. san serif, italic vs. roman,
bold/heavy, etc.  Study a font catalog and you will quickly
recognize how names are assigned to typefaces.

Google "decorative font".

> There is a reason why, scientifically mind you, it is well established that how
> the human brain processes  visual information is less precise than how the
> brain  processes information verbally.
> comprehension is a science.

So, how do you think you convey emotion, focus, etc. VISUALLY?
Do I shine a bright light into your eyes to indicate that this
is important?  The equivalent of raising my voice?




>> There are reasons that font catalogs contain thousands of different
>> typefaces and not just one!
> certainly, but those options do not uniformly convey emotions consistently.
> For example, one reader's decorative is another person's gaudy,

No, you misunderstand the meaning of "decorative".  Do your
homework.  You complained that folks conflate "TTS" and "screen reader";
it seems only fair that I expect you to understand what you are
reading before opining on it.

> One setting
> seeks simple clarity, the more simple the better like newsprint. Another
> setting may layer on the fonts, leaving a reader confused.

Anyone who is skilled in publishing KNOWS not to use more than a few
typefaces in a publication.  Someone who throws lots of typefaces into
a publication is just trying to show that he has lots of typefaces available
and thinks there is some "value" in that!

> I actually took part in a discussion recently where marketers discussed why
> using red yellow and green could be a bad idea because of what the color means
> to different parts of the population.

And colors focus at different "depths" on the retina.

Any more pertinent trivia?

>> In speech, you can convey this with intonation, volume, pitch, etc.
>>
>> But, what do I send to the synthesizer to say "present this with
>> a sense of urgency" or "present this with rage" or "present this
>> with a bit of levity" or ...
> Why the combination of context and punctuation, of course, backed by a screen
> reader that actually provides the ability to influence how this is managed.

What SPECIFICALLY do I put in a document to indicate "I am angry"?
Or, "I'm being flippant"?  Is there a special code that I've not been
made aware of?  I've published thousands of pages of text and never
knew there was this secret code...

> even then though the reader still decides how something will be understood
> within their cultural frames of reference.
> And a quality screen reader paired  with a quality synthesis source does that
> well indeed.

What mood does your screen reader/synthesizer indicate for this sentence?

And this?

And, one more...?

> Speech comprehension is a science too, what constitutes intelligible to the
> human ear.
>   Another simple example.
> I am reading a fanfiction story that has the DC character Harley Quinn in the
> cast..more than one actually.
> the writer uses spelling to capture her  accent and speaking style punctuation
> to indicate the pattern, and my dectalk  synthesizer coupled with my screen
> reader nails her perfectly for that writer.
> The other is less skilled in writing those elements, so Harley does not come
> across so well to my ear.
> You convey those things to the synthesizer by using proper configuration so the
> tool works at its best.

Gee, you have the exact same synthesizer reading both of those texts.
Yet, one you claim performs well while the other, not so well.
Seems to me that the *writer* is the one who represents the difference
in effectiveness!

> A great deal of effort went into how digital equipment corporation made
> that happen
> , because the process of communication in speech again is a science.

No, it's just a consequence of how you convert letters to sound.

Have you never read a book in which the characters were british?
irish?

How do you write a Scottish accent?
Pronounce like words the same, join syllables in words, and drop “g” endings.
When trying a Scottish accent, think of “u” sounds as “oo” sounds.
If there are two short words together, pronounce the two as one.
Drop the ‘g’ sound from words ending in a ‘g.

Try <https://accenterator.com>.  A good writer uses terms that are
native to the culture that he is portraying (e.g., a brit would refer to
the "loo"; an american to the "john"; a sailor to the "head"; etc.)
Beyond that, artificially altering the correct spellings of
words to emphasize the audible characteristics of such a speaker.

If I write "New Yawk", I'm parroting the accent of a native new-yorker.
If I write "Bahston", then I'm parroting someone from a bit further
north.  If I say "Y'all", I'm likely mimicking a southerner.

There's nothing magical about any of these misspellings; ANY
synthesizer should manifest the differences in rhoticity.

If I was putting myself into a story, I would make my utterances
have the characteristics that folks who *know* me would notice.
Someone who doesn't know me wouldn't understand their significance.