Background Reader - Zoomtext V10 - Keyboard

Using the Background Reader in Zoomtext V10

During a recent coaching session one of the subject areas I covered was the Background Reader in Zoomtext. This feature is a fairly new addition in Zoomtext and it is one that I've been guilty of overlooking - probably because I'm not great at trying to do two individual things at once! But if you can get over that particular hurdle you might find that this feature is actually pretty useful at certain times.

You can find the icon for the Background Reader (the headphones icon button) in the Tools page in the main user interface (CONTROL SHIFT U) or, alternatively, via the main Tools menu (ALT T). What does this feature actually do? Well, it allows you to read text while you are working on something else at the same time - hence the name "background" reader. So, if you are often faced with the scenario of having a lot of information to read, at the same time as you need to complete other work, this could be the feature of your dreams!

Launching the Background Reader

The Background Reader feature is used in one of two ways:

• To read text copied to the Windows clipboard, use CAPSLOCK C.
• To read any currently selected text, use CAPSLOCK S.

Personally, I rarely use the clipboard reading option. In fact, I only use that approach if I want to remind myself or double-check the information I have stored in the clipboard to begin with. Of much more interest to me is reading the text I have selected so, to give you an idea of how I work with this feature, let's run through an example.

Reading Selected Text in the BG Reader

Here's the scenario, one of my colleagues has just emailed me a Word document and needs a response as soon as possible but I also have some routine spreadsheet administration that also needs to be done straight away. My solution is to read the document using the Background Reader which allows me to carry on working in my spreadsheet. Let me run through the steps here:

1. I open the document to be read in MS Word and press CONTROL A to select all the text in it.
2. I use the keystroke of CAPSLOCK S to launch the background reader and the reading starts. The Background reader toolbar will also appear.

3. Now I ALT TAB back to Excel and carry on with my spreadsheet work as before. Meanwhile, the text in Word continues to be spoken back to me in the background.
4. When necessary, I pause the reading at any time using the Pause/Play command of CAPSLOCK ENTER.
5. When the text is finished, I press CAPSLOCK ESCAPE to close the background reader.

Keystrokes to Control the Background Reader

I hope the above example has put you in the mood to experiment a bit with this feature! As you might expect, there are a few more hotkeys you can use to achieve specific actions and I have included a full list of relevant keys at the foot of this paragraph. My own personal view is that you'll only need a few keystrokes because, if you are having to concentrate that much on the reading itself, it makes more sense to stop whatever you are doing and concentrate solely on reading your text. That said, explore the options and come up with your own approaches. Have fun!

List of Keystrokes and their Function in the Background Reader

Hotkey	Action
Capslock C	Reads text copied into the Windows Clipboard
Capslock S	Reads text selected in the current document
Capslock Enter	A toggle keystroke that pauses and plays the text reading.
Capslock Backspace	Restarts the text reading from the beginning.
Capslock Escape	Quits the Background reader mode.
Capslock T	Puts focus on the Background reader toolbar. Useful if you are more of a mouse user.
Capslock Spacebar	Reads the current sentence.
Capslock Right Arrow	Reads the next sentence.
Capslock Left Arrow	Reads the previous sentence.
Control Capslock Spacebar	Reads the current word.
Control Capslock Right Arrow	Reads the next word.
Control Capslock Left Arrow	Reads the previous word.