Zoomtext V10 Recorder - Keyboard - Audio - iTunes

One of the features in Zoomtext magnification and speech software I really enjoy using is the Recorder. In fact, in these mobile orientated days, I consider this feature is a bit of a slow burn and think there should be a bit more noise about it.

Zoomtext Recorder is one of two tools in the program that work with the current content of the Windows clipboard and, basically, it converts that current clipboard content into an audio file. It's a pretty straightforward process and, if you have a quality software synth on your computer and you are using Zoomtext, you have the ability to create a lot of bespoke audio content very swiftly. You can even go a little bit further than this because those audio files you create can even upload straight into an iTunes playlist, something I will cover in a short while. So, Zoomtext users, let's roll some speech here!

Using the Zoomtext Recorder to Record to a File

The first route I'm going to cover is the more manual, mouse-driven approach. This is perfect for those times where you just need to quickly create a standard, uncompressed (.WAV) audio file and save it somewhere on your computer.

1. Select a chunk of text in any document and copy it to the clipboard in the usual way (using the CONTROL C keystroke or by accessing the Copy option via the context/applications menu (right hand mouse button). Of course, you may want to select all the text in the document, in which case you can use the keystroke of CONTROL A to select everything.
2. With the text copied to the clipboard, go to the Tools toolbar and activate the Recorder button or access the Tools menu and activate the Recorder option in there.
3. The Zoomtext Recorder dialog box will open and your keyboard focus will be in the Track Name edit field. Type in a suitable name by over-writing the default text already there (normally, this is the first line of text in your selection) then move on to the Track Location field.

4. Set your save location for the audio file you are about to create by either typing in the full path or by accessing the associated Browse... button (ALT B)
5. Now move to and activate the Record Text button to start the audio file creation. By default, the file will be uncompressed (.WAV) so, depending on the amount of text you have copied this process may take a little while. Additionally, you may have a pretty big audio file on your hands!
6. When the audio file has been created, move to the Close button and activate it to close the Zoomtext Recorder dialog box.
7. Now locate your new audio file and play it!

Using the Zoomtext Recorder for Quick Audio Files in iTunes (Keystroke Route)

If you are looking to make this feature a bit more central in how you do your work and you use iTunes for synchronising then I would advise you to go down the following route. This is a much quicker way through using keystrokes and we'll be piping our results straight into a playlist in iTunes for further sorting. This playlist, called Zoomtext Recorder by default, functions in the same way as other playlists in iTunes. Let's try it out:

1. As in the above steps, select your text and copy it to the clipboard.
2. Press the keystroke of CONTROL CAPSLOCK S to record the text you have selected.
3. The Recorder dialog box opens directly, focus will be in the Track Name field as expected, but SHIFT TAB to move to the previous field labelled Record Text To and set this combo box to show iTunes. (Note that when you select iTunes here the Track Type and Track Location fields become unavailable.)
4. Press TAB to move back to the Track Name edit field and type in a name. If you are planning a series of recordings you might want to think about including a reference or a number at the beginning of the title.
5. Press the TAB key once again and focus will move to the Record Text button (ALT R) then use the SPACEBAR to activate. The conversion will now take place and at some point you'll probably see iTunes opening up in the background.
6. With the file created, tap the SPACEBAR to activate the currently focused Close button then ALT TAB into iTunes and check your playlists. You should notice a new addition - labelled Zoomtext Recorder - and you'll find your audio file in there. Note that if you create a second file using this method it will be added into the same playlist. This means that you can build up a whole playlist pro-actively from scratch - how about an IT Tips playlist, anyone...?

So there you go, if you are using Zoomtext and sync a lot of content via iTunes, please explore the Zoomtext Recorder - it's really nifty.

Until next time, have fun!