Godstime Avwenagbiku: May 2018

The best free text to speech software -2018

May 31, 2018
By Gtime Trix
0 Comments

The best free text to speech software 2018

Turn any text document or web page into an audio file

In years gone by, text to speech software was rather expensive, but these days there are excellent options free of charge and we're here to help you find the very best tools that will make converting written documents to audio files as easy as possible.
Text to speech software can be enormously helpful for anyone who's visually impaired, or has a condition like dyslexia that makes reading on screens tricky. It can also help overcome language barriers for people who read a language but don't speak it, or are in the process of learning.
Text to speech software is also ideal if you want to listen to a document while doing something else, if you find it easier to retain information you've heard, or if you want to sense-check something you've written.
Here are the best free tools for reading text aloud – either individual paragraphs or whole documents.
1. Balabolka
Save text as a spoken audio file, with customizable voices
There are a couple of ways to use
Balabolka's free text to speech software: you can either copy and paste text into the program, or you can open a number of supported file formats (including DOC, PDF, and HTML) in the program directly. In terms of output you can use SAPI 4 complete with eight different voices to choose from, SAPI 5 with two, or the Microsoft Speech Platform if you download and install the necessary files. Whichever route you choose, you can adjust the speech, pitch and volume of playback to create custom voice.
In addition to reading words aloud, this free text to speech software can also save narrations as audio files in a range of formats including MP3 and WAV. For lengthy documents you can create bookmarks to make it easy to jump back to a specific location and there are excellent tools on hand to help you to customize the pronunciation of words to your liking.
With all these features to make life easier when reading text on a screen isn't an option, Balabolka is best free text to speech software around.
Balabolka
2. Natural Reader
Free text to speech software with its own web browser
Natural Reader is a free text to speech tool that can be used in a couple of ways. The first option is to load documents into its library and have them read aloud from there. This is a neat way to manage multiple files, and the number of supported file types is impressive, including ebook formats. There's also OCR, which enables you to load up a photo or scan of text, and have it read to you.
The second option takes the form of a floating toolbar. In this mode, you can highlight text in any application and use the toolbar controls to start and customize text to speech. This means you can very easily use the feature in your web browser, word processor and a range of other programs. There's also a built-in browser to convert web content to speech more easily.
Natural Reader
3. Panopretor Basic
Easy text to speech conversion, with WAV and MP3 output
As the name suggests, Panopreter Basic delivers free text to speech conversion without frills. It accepts plain and rich text files, web pages and Microsoft Word documents as input, and exports the resulting sound in both WAV and MP3 format (the two files are saved in the same location, with the same name).
The default settings work well for quick tasks, but spend a little time exploring Panopreter Basic's Settings menu and you'll find options to change the language, destination of saved audio files, and set custom interface colors. The software can even play a piece of music once it's finished reading – a nice touch you won't find in other free text-to-speech software.
If you need something more advanced, a premium version of Panopreter is available for US$29.95 (about £20, AU$40). This edition offers several additional features including toolbars for Microsoft Word and Internet Explorer, the ability to highlight the section of text currently being read, and extra voices.
Panopreter Basic
4. WordTalk
An extension that adds text to speech to your word processor
Developed by the University of Edinburgh, WordTalk is a toolbar add-on for Word that brings customizable text to speech to Microsoft Word. It works with all editions of Word and is accessible via the toolbar or ribbon, depending on which version you're using.
The toolbar itself is certainly not the most attractive you'll ever see, appearing to have been designed by a child. Nor are all of the buttons' functions very clear, but thankfully there's a help file on hand to help.
There's no getting away from the fact that WordTalk is fairly basic, but it does support SAPI 4 and SAPI 5 voices, and these can be tweaked to your liking. The ability to just read aloud individual words, sentences or paragraphs is a particularly nice touch. You also have the option of saving narrations, and there are a number of keyboard shortcuts that allow for quick and easy access to frequently used options.
WordTalk
5. Zabaware Text-to-Speech Reader
A great choice for converting text from websites to speech
Despite its basic looks, Zabaware Text-to-Speech Reader has more to offer than you might first think. You can open numerous file formats directly in the program, or just copy and paste text.
Alternatively, as long as you have the program running and the relevant option enables, Zabaware Text-to-Speech Reader can read aloud any text you copy to the clipboard – great if you want to convert words from websites to speech – as well as dialog boxes that pop up. Zabaware Text-to-Speech Reader can also convert text files to WAV format.
Unfortunately the selection of voices is limited, and the only settings you can customize are volume and speed unless you burrow deep into settings to fiddle with pronunciations.
Additional voices are available for a US$25 fee (about £20, AU$30), which seems rather steep, holding it back from a higher place in our list.

Review

LG V35 ThinQ review

May 31, 2018
By Gtime Trix
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The LG V35 ThinQ looks exactly like the LG V30S ThinQ, a phone that looked exactly like the LG V30 . Yes, it’s the same phone, but a little different – just as the LG V30S ThinQ was to the LG V30. It’s easy to see that LG has made a bit of a mess of its V-series phones.
While this isn’t the sweeping overhaul you might have been hoping for, it treads forward by improving on a phone that has aged well with refreshed specs almost across the board. The cameras appear to be better, and it houses the Snapdragon 845 with 6GB of RAM, to name a few changes.
What does this mean for the LG G7 ThinQ, which recently released across the world? LG has now made a mess of that, too, because if you want the best, latest specs in an LG phone, you’ll only find them in the V35 ThinQ right now.
Given the big push for the G7 ThinQ, the timing for this phone’s release couldn’t be more strange. But as far as first impressions go, regardless of how you may feel about a thrice-recycled design, adding more power to last year’s excellent LG V30 can only be so bad – though the third time around, it can only be so good.
LG V35 ThinQ price and availability
As far as we know, the LG V35 will be a US-only affair, coming to AT&T as a carrier exclusive. Looking for a price? LG said that it will be close to the price of the LG V30, around $700, but hasn’t shared an official number yet.
For those open to switching carriers, you’ll also be able to buy and use it on Google’s Project Fi carrier in the US. Whether Google will sell it directly or simply be compatible with the phone hasn’t been made clear, though there hasn’t been a Fi-ready phone yet that hasn’t popped up for sale by Google.
While the AT&T and Fi-ready versions of the phone may seem identical, the Fi version hosts compatibility with a few more 3G and 4G bands, so be careful which one you invest in.
If you’re hoping to have this phone in your hands soon, you’re in luck. Pre-sale starts on June 1 and the V35 ThinQ will officially launch on June 8.

The Design:
On the surface, the phone’s design hasn’t changed at all since the LG V30 released in September of 2017. You still get the all-glass design, fastened together with a aluminum frame that provides military-grade integrity capable of withstanding bends and drops, and IP68 protection against the elements.
The dimensions are exactly the same to the V30, meaning any LG V30 case you bought or are considering will work on this one as well.
Unlike the G7 ThinQ, LG hasn’t imposed a Google Assistant hardware key on its left side, nor is there a power button on the right. Things are right where the company left things with its original V30 design.
Fortunately, that’s a good thing, but may take some getting used to. Say what you will about the rear-mounted fingerprint sensor that doubles as a power button, but the V35 ThinQ holds true to the V-series tradition of including a 3.5mm headphone jack, bolstered by a Quad DAC that greatly enhances the sound delivery when using wired headphones.
The V35 ThinQ will be available in two colors: black and grey. LG hasn’t shared the official names for these colors, but we’ll update this article once we know for sure.

Specs and performance
On the inside is where you’ll find all of LG’s new handy work. The LG V35 ThinQ is a proper refresh internally, swapping out last year’s Snapdragon 835 for a new Snapdragon 845, and its 4GB of RAM for 6GB, putting it slightly above the Samsung Galaxy S9 and in direct competition with the OnePlus 6 and HTC U12 Plus.
The V35 ThinQ didn’t feel particularly faster than the V30, though we’re reserving judgment for the final review.
With 6GB of RAM and a new chipset in tow, the phone will be ready for whatever you have to throw at it for a few years to come, and thanks to the return of its 2,880 x 1,440 QHD OLED display that’s fitted to an 18:9 aspect ratio, your visual entertainment, be it movies, games or virtual reality via Google Daydream, will look excellent while strapped into the Google Daydream View.

Camera and battery
We had a bit of time to play with the camera app, which like the LG G7 ThinQ, features Google Lens built-in, handy for real-time object recognition and copying text. This model features enhancements over the original V30’s camera hardware and software, boosting the wide-angle lens to 16MP over 13MP.
The selfie cam is now a solid 8MP with f/1.9 aperture versus 5MP and f/2.2 aperture seen last year. We’re seeing big improvements here. Photos are no longer visibly blurry, which was a huge oversight that LG seems to have finally fixed.
LG has also added 4K HDR video recording to the V35, now putting LG’s phone in a rather lonely (but growing) pack of phones that can record in HDR alongside the Sony Xperia XZ2 and the LG G7 ThinQ.
Regarding battery performance, LG has opted for the same 3,300mAh battery capacity that we found in the V30, complete with wireless charging.
There’s some concern that a more powerful chipset could put more drag on the battery performance, though the Snapdragon 845 is said to be quite a bit more efficient than the Snapdragon 835. Just how efficient is it? We’ll find out soon.

I described the V30 as “a smartphone that doesn’t put the squeeze on useful features, filled to the brim with useful utilities”, and that sentiments rings true here, albeit with a little less clarity since it’s this phone’s third go around the track.
A lot has changed in the world of smartphones in the past six to eight months. So, it should be interesting to put it up against the very latest devices for the full review.

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IPhones

Top Ten (10) tips to taking a better selfie with iPhones

May 29, 2018
By Gtime Trix
0 Comments

Tips, tricks and filters that will make your selfies spectacular

When it comes to taking a good 'selfie', some tips are universal. It’s usually better to shoot from slightly above eye level so you don’t look “chinny”, but not so much that you appear to be miles away.
If you can, smile; if you can’t, don’t force it. And don’t stare straight into the camera like a police mugshot.
There are also some tips that are iPhone-specific, because iPhones come with some useful tools that can really up your selfie game. Here are 10 tips for taking your iPhone selfies to the next level.

1. Get the light right
Sometimes the phone camera lets too much light in and overexposes the subject. Tap on your face to make sure you're the subject of the pic, not the rest of the room, and you get more natural results.
You can slide your tapping finger up and down to adjust the exposure levels (raising and lowering the brightness) until you’re happy.
As with any photograph, you’ll get best results if the light source is behind the camera – although in direct sunlight it’s often better to stand at an angle so you’re not squinting into the sun.
No matter what the conditions, avoid unwanted light sources such as reflective surfaces.

2. Focus on yourself
If you move the iPhone camera around it may decide to focus on something else, which isn’t ideal.
To lock the exposure, press and hold on the part of screen you’re in until the letters AE/AF Lock appear.
You can now wave the phone around to your heart’s content and the focus and exposure levels will stay locked until you tap the screen again.
It’s been in iPhones since 2012 and it’s particularly handy if you’re moving and don’t want the camera to lock onto something else.

3. Flash the camera
If you’re shooting selfies in low light you can use the screen as a flash, a feature Apple introduced in the iPhone 6S . Just tap the flash icon and choose On.
It’s technically very clever – it analyses the ambient light to find the right tone for the screen so you won’t look washed-out like you often do with traditional flash selfies – but it can only do so much in very low light.
While a helpful feature, we still find it’s often better to move somewhere more brightly lit rather than expecting the flash to work miracles...or at least to ensure that flash-free shots aren’t noisier than an Iron Maiden concert.

4. Adjust the filter
Selfies can be unflattering, especially if as here the subject has a skin condition: the default settings in this light can really make flushed faces very noticeable.
Before you reach for the thickest foundation money can buy or decide to don a balaclava, you can adjust the filters to change the way the phone processes colors.
This can be done before you shoot, as shown here, or you can do it after the event in the Photos app.
The available filters can make colors more or less vivid, brighten or reduce the colors and so on.
You can also, of course, carry out more detailed editing in your favorite photo app if you want to take things a little further... Snapseed is a top free choice if you're wondering which to try, or Photoshop Express, which we'll discuss in more detail later.

5. Make use of portrait mode
If you’re fortunate enough to have the iPhone X, you can use the 'smart' portrait lighting to deliver studio-style lighting through the TrueDepth camera.
As with the main camera, it works best in well-lit environments: it can really struggle in low light and often produces overly grainy shots or fails to focus at all.
But when it gets a good shot the results can be astonishing: they can really look like they were taken in a studio or on a stage.
It’s easy to laugh at Apple’s example images, all of which are amazing, but while many of them have clearly been taken in very well lit spaces Portrait Lighting really does incredible things for even the average subject.

6. Go Live (take a live photo)
If you’ve got an iPhone 6S Plus or later, you can take Live Photos with the selfie camera: this takes a series of stills before and after you press the shutter.
If you take a Live Photo and then open it in Photos, you can swipe between each still to find the best image – just make sure you choose one that’s in focus, because the camera’s often shooting while it’s trying to get a fix on you so some frames are blurry.
If you wish you can then turn off the Live feature on that particular photo so you only get the best bit.
If you don’t have the Live Photos option, pressing and holding down on the shutter enables burst mode, which takes a series of pics in close succession.

7. Don’t touch the screen
We’ve spoiled numerous selfies by tapping the on-screen shutter and getting a blurry mess.
Instead, use the iPhone’s volume buttons as a shutter control – or your EarPods, if you have a pair and an iPhone 6 or later. You can also use the Camera app on the Apple Watch as a remote shutter button.
Don’t forget the self-timer, either. It gives you time to relax and check your framing before the shutter clicks.
The more stable your phone, the less likely you are to end up with blurry results. If you can and it doesn’t spoil the shot, hold the camera with two hands instead of one.

8. Crop the photo

If you open your Photos app to look at all the selfies you've already snapped and press Edit, tap the Crop icon and you can then free-rotate your image to get the best angle and crop out the bits you don’t want.
Additional background is fine for everyday photos but if you’re using your selfie elsewhere (for something like an online avatar) it’s better to crop out unnecessary detail.
If you’re planning to take selfies that’ll be used for really small images it’s best not to have any background at all, so look for the most boring, light, non-reflective backdrops imaginable.
If you’re shooting for Instagram, shoot in square mode (one of the modes found by scrolling along the bottom of the selfie camera) to save you having to crop anything.

9. Change the color
You can adjust the color in several ways using the Edit function in the Photos app mentioned earlier.
In here, you can use the predefined filters to warm or cool the colors as we mentioned earlier; you can adjust the brightness and exposure; and you can change individual parameters such as color saturation and white balance.
If all else fails, stick it into moody black and white and whack up the contrast so it looks like a 1930s crime movie. That’s a good way of making backgrounds less distracting too.

10. Get on the Express
Photoshop Express is a must-have app for selfie shooters on any phone: its automatic photo fixing is excellent, and its filters are better still: you can achieve some really incredible results with a couple of taps, and you don’t lose the original when you save the new and improved version.
It can swap open eyes for closed ones, perform magic on any skin tone and generally prove that while the camera never lies, camera software can be a great big fact-alterer.

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