Setting Up Your Hardware
NOTE: This article assumes that you use Classic View in Control Panel. To change views, follow these steps:
In Control Panel, click Switch to Classic View or Switch to Category View.
Set Up Speakers
Speakers vary greatly in design and purpose. Consult the speaker manual for hardware and software specifics. However, most models can be installed in a similar fashion. To set up speakers, follow these steps:
Locate the sound connections and connect the speaker jack to the computer. Most computers use an internal sound card and often the connections are in the back of the computer. These are a series of connections the same size and diameter as the speaker jack. In many cases there are two sound out connections:
One will be labeled as a line-out connection. Most speakers that require a separate power supply adapter or batteries) should use this connection. It is also used to export amplified sound to recording devices including recordable CDs and tape cassette systems.
The other connection is for the non-powered speakers. Because the signal is boosted by the computer, powered speakers may be damaged if connected.
Plug the speaker into the proper connection.
To test the connection, follow these steps:
On the Text-to-Speech tab, click Preview Voice to hear the currently selected voice. The text is spoken and the words are highlighted as they are spoken. If the speakers are working properly, you will hear the spoken words.
Select an Audio Output Device
How To Turn On Speech Recognition And Dictation In Windows 10
Activating speech recognition in Windows 10 requires a deep dive into configuration settings.
As the quality of speech-to-text technology improves, the overall usefulness of speech recognition features and applications in our computing devices has improved as well. Whether it means giving commands to your favorite smart device at home or your mobile smartphone, talking to your digital assistant has become a common and effective way to interface with your connected world.
Read Text Aloud To Make Multitasking Easier
If you’re the type of person who likes to work on multiple things at once, then making your computer read to you is a great way to boost the number of tasks you can do at the same time.
Try out the different methods that we have introduced you to, and you will be sure to find one that suits your way of working.
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Way 2 Use Vlc Screen Recorder
Even though Windows Media Player is the default medial player on Windows, users prefer VLC Media Player over Windows Media Player. This is because VLC Media Player supports more file formats and there are more customizable settings available such as boosting audio sound. Most importantly, you can use VLC Media Player to record your screen on Dell laptop and view the recorded video instantly on VLC Media Player as well. Here are the steps to screen record Dell laptop using VLC Media Player as screen recorder.
Step 1: Open VLC Media Player and go to Media> Convert/Save option.
Step 2: Go to Capture Device tab and change Capture Mode to Desktop.
Step 3: Under Destination section, click on Browser to select the destination folder as well as mention the destination file name.
Step 4: Finally, click on Start button to start recording your screen. You will get controls to stop recording. The recorded video will be available in the destination file you have selected previously.
Advanced Navigation With Scan Mode

Scan Mode in Narrator will help you work through page content like paragraphs using just the Up and Down Arrow keys. Turn it on or off with Caps Lock+Space and then use keyboard commands like H to jump forward through headings, B for buttons, or D for landmarks.
There are many Scan Mode commands. Refer to the Microsoft Support’s Narrator Guide to learn more about them.
Narrator has an exhaustive list of commands to help navigate a screen with the help of sound and shortcuts. Remember these two keyboard shortcuts
- Narrator+F1: Display the entire commands list.
- Narrator+F2: Display commands for the current item.
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Voice Dictation In Windows 10
You can dictate text with the dictation feature instead of typing it in. To open voice dictation, hold down the windows key on your keyboard, then press H.
A box will appear along the top of the screen allowing you to use your PCs microphone to dictate text into a text field.
When you see the prompt: listening, click in the field you want to enter text, then start to dictate your message.
If you want to enter a new line, delete a word, or add punctuation, you can do this with the voice commands. Ive included a list of some common ones in the table below.
If its not working, make sure you turn on online speech recognition. To do this, open the settings app on the start menu, select privacy then click speech. Turn on online speech recognition.
Also check your microphone levels. To do this, right click on the speaker icon on the bottom right, then select sounds from the popup menu.
Select the recording tab, then select your microphone. Click properties, then select the levels tab. Here, you can adjust the microphone recording volume and the microphone sensitivity.
Additional Settings To Change In Windows 10
Under the Choose keyboard settings section, you can select your keyboard layout and pick the Narrator modified key. Click the link for Create your own keyboard commands to select from a variety of commands to use with Narrator.
In the Use Narrator cursor section, you can determine how and where the Narrator cursor works and how you can control it with your mouse or keyboard. Under the Use Braille section, you can install and set up braille software to use a braille display with Windows.
Under the Sync my settings section, click the Use current settings before sign-in button to save any changes you made to Narrator settings so they automatically apply to anyone else who uses Windows on this computer.
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On Windows: Microsoft Word
If youre using Microsofts word processor on a Windows computer, you have several voice-recognition options. This section will address three of them, mostly focusing on the Windows Speech Recognition program built into this operating system.
The integrated voice-recognition service will work on any Windows application, including Microsoft Word. To launch it, type windows speech recognition into the search box on the taskbar, then click the app when it appears. The first time you run this software, youll need to teach the utility to recognize your voice. Windows has a short step-by-step wizard that will walk you through the process step by step. Over time, the system should get better at recognizing your voice, and you can also train it by right-clicking on the Speech Recognition console, choosing Configuration, and clicking Improve Speech Recognition.
Once youve completed the initial voice-recognition setup, youll always be able to launch the utility from the taskbar . With Speech Recognition, you can control all kinds of computer actions, including launching programs and searching the computer, using only your voice. If that appeals to you, you can set the program to launch automatically whenever you start Windows: Just right-click on the app, choose Options, and hit Run at Startup.
Have Adobe Reader To Read Pdf Documents To You
Adobe Reader is the default choice for many people for viewing PDF files. While it Adobe Reader became bloated over the years, recent versions are better and fairly pleasant to use. Adobe Reader can also read documents to you. If you dont already have Reader installed, head to the . Make sure to uncheck their optional McAffee downloads, and then click the Install Now button.
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Note: Adobe Reader also installs browser plugins to integrate PDF tools into your browser. If you prefer not to use that, you can follow these steps for disabling plug-ins in your web browser of choice, disabling the Adobe Acrobat plug-in.
When youve installed Reader, open up a PDF file that youd like the computer to read to you. Open the View menu, point to the Read Out Loud submenu, and then click the Activate Read Out Loud command. You can also hit Ctrl+Shift+Y to activate the feature.
With the Read Out Loud feature activated, you can click a single paragraph to have Windows read it aloud to you. A progress bar appears on screen to let you know how far through the selection you are.
You can also choose other options by returning to the View > Read Out Loud menu. There, you can have Reader read the current page, read from the current location to the end of the document, or pause, stop, and play the reading. You can also deactivate the Read Out Lout feature if youre done with it.
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How To Turn On The Speech
It’s likely that speech-to-text is not turned on by default, so you need to enable it before you start dictating to Windows.
1. Click the “Start” button and then click “Settings,” designated by a gear icon.
2. Click “Time & Language.”
3. In the navigation pane on the left, click “Speech.”
4. If you’ve never set up your microphone, do it now by clicking “Get started” in the Microphone section. Follow the instructions to speak into the microphone, which calibrates it for dictation.
5. Scroll down and click “Speech, inking, & typing privacy settings” in the “Related settings” section. Then slide the switch to “On” in the “Online speech recognition” section. If you don’t have the sliding switch, this may appear as a button called “Turn on speech services and typing suggestions.”
Speak Up: How To Use Speech Recognition And Dictate Text In Windows
You can talk to Windows using the built-in speech recognition or text dictation features.
Did you know you can issue commands to Windows? You can tell the operating system to open applications, dictate text, and perform many other tasks. This can be done through Cortana, or you can use the speech recognition built directly into Windows 10 and 11 in order to speak to any supported version of Windows.
Once you teach the operating system to understand the sound of your voice, it will respond to your commands. This is a feature that is especially useful to users with disabilities who cannot use the mouse and keyboard, but it is also available for anyone to use. There is even a built-in reference guide to show you what commands you can use.
Windows also offers a dictation feature that you can use to create documents, emails, and other files using the sound of your voice. Once the dictation is active, youre able to dictate text as well as punctuation marks, special characters, and cursor movements.
Both features work similarly in Windows 10 and 11, however, there are some differences in the look and layout of the dictation window. Let’s check out how to use speech recognition and dictation in Windows.
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How To Turn Off Text To Speech On Chromebook
Chromebook offers another screen reader in the form of Select to speak. This feature, as expected, reads the selected text on the screen. You need to manually activate it when you need to read some text as opposed to ChromeVox, which is always active.
To turn off Select-to-speak on Chromebook, follow these steps:
1. Open Settings on your Chrome OS.
2. Go to Advanced > Accessibility > Manage accessibility features.
3. Turn off the toggle next to Enable Select to Speak.
To Set Narrator Voice Options

Press CTRL+ESC, press R, typenarrator, and then press ENTER. Click Voice.
In the Voice Settings dialog box, select the voice options that you want to change:
To change the speed of the voice, click a number in the Speed box.
To change the volume of the voice, click a number in the Volume box.
To change the pitch of the voice, click a number in the Pitch box.
Note: When you change voice settings, it may take from a few seconds to a minute before the new settings take effect.
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Microsoft Windows 7 Speech Recognition
Summary:This article provides information on the speech recognition feature in Windows 7
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Windows 7 includes a speech recognition software program that allows you to either control the computer or dictate test into word processing programs. In the past, you would need to purchase a 3rd party program, such as Dragon Naturally Speaking to dictate text.
Cause
If you wish to use the Speech Recognition software in Windows 7, follow these steps:
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How To Use Speech Recognition
Speech Recognition is another option if you want to control Windows 8.1, 10, or 11 with your voice. To set this up, open Control Panel in icon view and click the Speech Recognition applet. Choose the Start Speech Recognition link to set up the feature.
The first screen for setting up speech recognition explains what the feature does and how it works. Click Next, then choose whether you are using a headset, desktop, or standalone microphone. Click Next to see information on how to properly place your microphone.
Click Next again and read the sentence aloud to make sure the speech recognition feature picked up the sound and volume of your voice. Click Next, and if your voice was properly detected, the screen will tell you the microphone is set up and ready to use.
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Have Narrator Announce Events On The Screen
Once you turn on Narrator on your Windows 10, the selected voice will start announcing events on the screen.
Its an automatic process, though you can continue choosing different settings. For example, you can select Dont Announce under Change how the capitalized text is read. It prevents Narrator from announcing whenever theres capitalized text on the screen.
How To Convert Text To Speech On Pc Or Mac
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This wikiHow teaches you how to use your computer’s text-to-speech feature to select a character, word, line, or paragraph on your screen, and have it read out by your computer’s virtual assistant, using Mac or Windows.
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Change What You Hear In Windows 10
By default, Narrator will speak aloud any buttons, screens, or windows you hover over or select, as well as any text on those screens. If you want to change this level, click the drop-down menu next to Change the level of detail Narrator provides about text and controls. For example, to hear only text and not controls narrated, select the option for Text only or Some text details.
Below the drop-down menu are additional options that will tell Narrator to emphasize formatted text, read aloud by character, use punctuation to determine pauses, and speak advanced details, such as help text, buttons, and other controls.
The second drop-down menu in this section allows you to set the level of context that Narrator provides for buttons and other controls. You may want to first try the highest optionFull context of old and new controlsand then lower the level if you wish to hear less context.
You can then set when Narrator provides details about buttons, either before or after you activate them. Next, you can try the other three options for this section: Hear hints on how to interact with buttons and other controls. Hear Narrator announce why an action cant be performed. Hear audio cues when you perform actions.
Under the Change what you hear when typing section, you can determine whether you want to hear letters, numbers, words, function keys, navigation keys, toggle keys, and modifier keys as you type them.
Set Up Narrator In Windows 10
To use Narrator, you must first enable the feature. In Windows 10, go to Settings > Ease of Access > Narrator to view the Narrator pane. Turn on the Narrator button.
A message may appear explaining how the Narrator keyboard layout has been updated to more closely match your experience with other screen readers. Check the box next to “Don’t show again” if you don’t want to see this message each time Narrator starts. Click OK to dispense with the message and keep Narrator running. Otherwise, click the button for Turn off Narrator to view and explore the other options and settings before you actually use Narrator.
With the default options, Narrator can be difficult to use as it sometimes fails to read the screen elements you wish to hear, or it reads the wrong part of the screen. Thats why its important to review all the settings beforehand so you can finely tune Narrator to work the way you want.
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Training Your Computer And More
Youre all set at this point to use speech-to-text with a variety of files within Windows Docs. But first, you might want to take the time to fine-tune Windows voice-recognition capabilities. With a little training, Microsofts latest software can learn your voice and process it to text with greater accuracy.
Step 1: Go to the Ease of Access menu. Click on Speech Recognition.
Step 2: Select Train Your Computer to Better Understand You.
Step 3: Windows will have you read out extended sequences of text, which will help it learn the particular quirks of your voice and intonation, allowing it to understand your voice better.
Near the bottom of the speech-recognition menu is the Speech Reference Card, which is a helpful tool. It provides a cheat sheet on controlling software programs verbally, for those new to voice commands. You can access the cheats in either a small side screen or a print-out.
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