# Text To Speech

SIMnet offers a built-in text reader that will read your assignment text without the need to download or install any additional software. The text reader is available in SIMbooks, Lessons, Projects, Exams and the Exam and Lesson portions of SIMpaths. SIMbooks and Lessons also have the added Translation feature.

## SIMbooks and Lessons

When you navigate to your SIMbook or Lesson assignment or Library book, the Text To Speech button is available in the upper right corner. You can click on the button directly or press the Tab key once to select it.

![The Text To Speech button](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FsSw0jBYTvOrqDpc8wGiY%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.33.13%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=3c2d7529-8ad8-4b68-a73c-36c1360d9d0d)

### Controlling Text To Speech for the Page

Clicking on the button begins the audio at the top of the page, working through the entire page. When the audio player begins

![Text To Speech Player](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FIgcu4BWzd3e0ANoMdn1r%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.49.41%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=52ef0e29-ce33-4985-a5c1-356477e8a69e)

1. The **Pause/Resume** button starts the text reader and pauses it, holding the current location on the screen.
2. The **Stop** button stops playing. Upon resuming text, the reader will begin at the top of the screen.
3. The **Volume** button controls the volume of the audio. Clicking the button brings up the **Volume** slider which you can click and drag to raise and lower the volume of the speech.\ <img src="https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FC71tpFo51LF6INN7TYtf%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.33.53%20AM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=210b10f3-6137-46a8-aac1-b916408d52a9" alt="" data-size="original">
4. The **Reading Speed** button controls the speed of the text. Clicking the button brings up the **Reading Speed** slider which you can click and drag to raise and lower the speed of the speech.\ <img src="https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FPjCZPqAkSctjG9Dzjgxk%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.33.59%20AM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=05c0fab7-83df-43c9-9a6c-0d2df5e499a7" alt="" data-size="original">
5. The **Close Player** button will stop speech and minimize the player to the top right corner of the page.

### Controlling Text To Speech for A Selection

If you would only like to hear audio for an individual portion of the page, you can select the text you would like to conver to speech directly. Select the text you would like to hear by clicking and dragging across all of the desired text.  Below the text you will see a mini player popup. Click the **Listen to this selection text** button in the middle of the player to hear the selected text. The reader will stop at the end of the highlighted selection.

![Highlighted text pop up](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2Fo4jRt6rYoocsAFL0wT7X%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.34.23%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=517a335c-88b0-4b98-b3b6-d86ba2bd60b1)

### Translating A Selection

You can use the **Translate this selection** button to translate the selected text in your SIMbook and Lesson. Select the text you would like to translate and click the **Translate this selection** button.&#x20;

![The Translate This Selection button](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2F3daPcdOgfdrGrPJBEyLy%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-03%20at%208.58.52%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=f7b674e2-aa86-4159-b40f-fe871775d1a2)

{% hint style="danger" %}
All translations are generated by software powered by Google Translate. As such there may be issues with the translation as compared with a translation prepared by a human translator.
{% endhint %}

Select the language you would like to translate the selected text into. There are 22 different translation options. Once you have selected your desired language, review the note about automatically generated translations and select **I Understand** to dismiss the note.

![Selected Text Translated to Spanish](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2Fk9Clr4NuJ8YSMyPaC1W8%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-03%20at%208.59.10%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=78d560e7-9781-4e43-a0d1-6962b0b47755)

Use the controls to **Play**, **Stop**, **Increase text size**, **Decrease text size**, **Change volume of speech**, and **Change reading speed**. You can also increase the size of the window to take up the entire screen and close the window using the controls in the upper right corner.

## Projects

Text To Speech is available for all SIMnet Project instructions. Above the instructions, click the **Listen to the project instructions** button to begin playback of the project instructions.

![The Listen to the project instructions button](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2F8NfO5jgO6cCJHw3I0mSo%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2011.15.48%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=5db388d7-628f-4f57-a214-31968324ce38)

Once you have clicked the **Listen to the project instructions** button, the playback controls appear in the upper right corner of your project instructions.&#x20;

* The **Pause/Resume** button starts the text reader and pauses it, holding the current location on the screen.
* The **Stop** button stops playing. Upon resuming text, the reader will begin at the top of the screen.
* The **Volume** button controls the volume of the audio. Clicking the button brings up the **Volume** slider which you can click and drag to raise and lower the volume of the speech.\ <img src="https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FC71tpFo51LF6INN7TYtf%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.33.53%20AM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=210b10f3-6137-46a8-aac1-b916408d52a9" alt="" data-size="original">
* The **Reading Speed** button controls the speed of the text. Clicking the button brings up the **Reading Speed** slider which you can click and drag to raise and lower the speed of the speech.\ <img src="https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FPjCZPqAkSctjG9Dzjgxk%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2010.33.59%20AM.png?alt=media&#x26;token=05c0fab7-83df-43c9-9a6c-0d2df5e499a7" alt="" data-size="original">
* The **Close Player** button will stop speech and minimize the player to the top right corner of the page.

Each instruction also has its own **Listen to project step instruction** button that you may click to hear just that instruction. The button appears to the right of each project instruction.

![Listen to project step instruction buttons](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FWfSFuo6vo8BU8V0WncUi%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2011.57.57%20AM.png?alt=media\&token=bff436f6-8914-4b70-a0c2-f14e094d63dd)

## Exams

![](https://509646706-files.gitbook.io/~/files/v0/b/gitbook-x-prod.appspot.com/o/spaces%2F-M4GzdqvglIbnG5_9XCo%2Fuploads%2FtRTNbBzFYjkWoA8Ig9yD%2FScreen%20Shot%202022-06-02%20at%2012.01.19%20PM.png?alt=media\&token=635fb4dd-4834-4842-8d40-379c7dccd428)

You can play the text for each Exam question by clicking the **Listen to the instructions** button to the right of each question. The player will play back the text for each question.
