Microsoft Plus! for Kids Talk It!

Microsoft Plus! for Kids Talk It!, also known as TalkAny, is an application that turns text to speech, and serves to teach the proper pronunciation of words. It may also be used for other text-to-speech purposes. It supports two languages, namely English and Spanish. It was bundled with the Microsoft Plus! Program suite for Windows 95 and is also available as a standalone application. This program comes with 20 different voices, such as Child, Old Woman, Martian, and Fly.

The interface of Talk It! is simple, which makes the application easy to use, especially for children. The top portion contains the different personalities who will “read” the text. Users can pick one and also adjust the pitch and the speed at which the text will be read. Below these are options for pitch quality; users can choose from Natural, Moderate, and Sung. Users can also indicate if they would like the text to be read in English or Spanish. In addition, users can also select from different vocal qualities, such as whispered, breathy, and normal.

There is a content box where users can type in a word, phrase, sentence, or paragraph. Below the content box is a button labeled “Talk it”. Users can click this to hear the speech as read by the application.