Installing Emacspeak HOWTO
Prev |  | Next

# 9. Appendix B: Installing ViaVoice TTS

This section steps through the installation of ViaVoice TTS, which can be used as a software synthesizer with Emacspeak.

## 9.1. Downloading ViaVoice

First, you must download the ViaVoice Software Development Kit (SDK) and the Run Time Kit (RTK), as described in the following steps.

1. Go to IBM's ViaVoice TTS website at http://www.redhat.com/services/techsupport/accessibility/s1-access-install.html.

2. Scroll down to the Downloads section, and click on the Downloads link. You will be asked to provide a username and password before you download anything.

3. Download the following files:

   - ViaVoice TTS SDK for Linux V5.1. The filename is `viavoice_tts_sdk_5.tar`.

   - ViaVoice TTS Run Time Kit for Linux V5.1. The filename is `viavoice_tts_rtk_5.tar`.

## 9.2. Installing ViaVoice RTK

Now that you have downloaded the ViaVoice files, you can install them. You must install the RTK first, as it contains libraries required by the SDK.

1. Type the su root command and provide the root password to log on to your system as root.

2. Type the cd command to change to the directory that contains the files you just downloaded.

3. Untar the RTK using the command tar -xvf viavoice_tts_rtk_5.tar. You should now have two files in your directory, `ttsrt_readme.txt` and `ViaVoice_TTS_rtk_5.1-1.2.i386.rpm`.

4. Unpack the rpm using the command rpm -i ViaVoice_TTS_rtk_5.1-1.2.i386.rpm. You will be given a license agreement to read. You can press the spacebar to scroll through the document. When you've read the document, you'll be returned to the command prompt.

5. Type the command source /etc/profile to finish installing the RTK.

## 9.3. Installing ViaVoice SDK

Now that you have installed the RTK, you can install the SDK as well using the following steps:

1. Change directories to the directory that contains the SDK file you downloaded.

2. Untar the SDK file using the command tar -xvf viavoice_tts_sdk_5.tar. You should now have two files in your directory, `ttssd.readme.txt` and `ViaVoice_TTS_sdk-5.1-1.2.i386.rpm`.

3. Unpack the rpm using the command rpm -i --nodeps ViaVoice_TTS_sdk-5.1-1.2.i386.rpm. You will be given a license agreement to read. You can press the spacebar to scroll through the agreement. When you've read the document, you'll be returned to the command prompt.

## 9.4. Testing the installation

Now that you have installed both the ViaVoice RTK and SDK, you must test to make sure that they are working correctly. You can perform two tests using the following steps:

1. Type the cd command to change to the `/usr/lib/ViaVoiceTTS/samples/cmdlinespeak/` directory.

2. Type the command ./runcmdlinespeak at the prompt. You should hear your computer say "Hello, welcome to ViaVoice Outloud for Linux." Normal system volume is often very low, so you may not be able to hear it very well. Refer to Section 6, Troubleshooting, for information on how to increase your system volume.

If for some reason your test was not successful, refer to the installation notes provided with both the RTK (ttsrt.readme.txt) and the SDK (ttssd.readme.txt) for debugging information.

Prev | Home | Next
Appendix A: Installing Linux from a DOS machine |  | Acknowledgments