Activities/Read Etexts - Revision history

Rdrsadhu: Migrate to GitHub

2018-07-30T11:12:08Z

Migrate to GitHub

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-<noinclude>{{TOCright}}[[Category:Activities|Read Etexts]]</noinclude>
+== Read Etexts ==
-== Description & Goals==
+Read at https://help.sugarlabs.org/read_etexts.html
-''"Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend.  Inside of a dog it's too dark to read."'' -- Groucho Marx
+The source file has been moved to [https://github.com/godiard/help-activity/blob/master/source/read_etexts.rst GitHub]

Patrol: moved Walter is a wanker 7/Read Etexts to Activities/Read Etexts over redirect: revert

2010-02-24T01:38:42Z

moved Walter is a wanker 7/Read Etexts to Activities/Read Etexts over redirect: revert

← Older revision	Revision as of 21:38, 23 February 2010
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Page move vandal: moved Activities/Read Etexts to Walter is a wanker 7/Read Etexts: Walter is a wanker

2010-02-24T00:18:26Z

moved Activities/Read Etexts to Walter is a wanker 7/Read Etexts: Walter is a wanker

← Older revision	Revision as of 20:18, 23 February 2010
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Patrol: moved Anal bleaching 14/Read Etexts to Activities/Read Etexts over redirect: revert

2010-02-21T22:39:50Z

moved Anal bleaching 14/Read Etexts to Activities/Read Etexts over redirect: revert

← Older revision	Revision as of 18:39, 21 February 2010
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Anal bleaching: moved Activities/Read Etexts to Anal bleaching 14/Read Etexts: Anal bleaching

2010-02-21T22:21:32Z

moved Activities/Read Etexts to Anal bleaching 14/Read Etexts: Anal bleaching

← Older revision	Revision as of 18:21, 21 February 2010
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FGrose at 20:56, 10 October 2009

2009-10-10T20:56:59Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:56, 10 October 2009
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			<noinclude>{{TOCright}}[[Category:Activities\|Read Etexts]]</noinclude>

	== Description & Goals==		== Description & Goals==

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	* Text to speech does not work perfectly. The gstreamer plugin combined with newer versions of espeak works much better than the original speech-dispatcher code did, but in Sugar on a Stick on ''some'' machines the text highlighting lags badly behind the spoken words.		* Text to speech does not work perfectly. The gstreamer plugin combined with newer versions of espeak works much better than the original speech-dispatcher code did, but in Sugar on a Stick on ''some'' machines the text highlighting lags badly behind the spoken words.
			* Trac tickets: [http://bugs.sugarlabs.org/query?component=Read&col=id&col=summary&col=component&col=type&col=status&col=priority&col=milestone&col=time&col=changetime&order=priority Sugar Labs]

	== Source ==		== Source ==

	http://git.sugarlabs.org/projects/readetexts		* http://git.sugarlabs.org/projects/readetexts

			* [http://activities.sugarlabs.org/en-US/sugar/addon/4035 Sugar Activity Library page]

	== The Movie! ==		== The Movie! ==
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	''"You are interested in the future, because it is where we will spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friends, future events such as these will affect you in the future."'' -- Edward D. Wood		''"You are interested in the future, because it is where we will spend the rest of our lives. And remember my friends, future events such as these will affect you in the future."'' -- Edward D. Wood

	~~[[Category:Activities]]~~

Jdsimmons: /* The Baen Free Library */

2009-10-07T22:29:29Z

The Baen Free Library

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:29, 7 October 2009
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	Version 17 of Read Etexts solves this problem by converting RTF to a plain text file automatically. So now, in addition to the great classics of literature by dead authors that Project Gutenberg gives you you can also read fairly current science fiction from Baen Books.		Version 17 of Read Etexts solves this problem by converting RTF to a plain text file automatically. So now, in addition to the great classics of literature by dead authors that Project Gutenberg gives you you can also read fairly current science fiction from Baen Books.

	You can use the Browse Activity to download RTF files from the site. Be sure to choose the RTF file, not the zipped up RTF file. The zipped version ''should'' work, but the website does something to it that keeps it from getting a proper MIME type. I was able to use Browse on my XO running Sugar .82 to download RTFs. If Browse doesn't work for you an alternative is to use another computer to download the file to a thumb drive.		You can use the Browse Activity to download RTF files from the site. Be sure to choose the RTF file, not the zipped up RTF file. The zipped version ''should'' work, but the website does something to it that keeps it from getting a proper MIME type. I was able to use Browse on my XO running Sugar .82 to download RTFs. If Browse doesn't work for you an alternative is to use another computer to download the file to a thumb drive, then copy that file from the thumb drive to the Journal.

	When you ~~restore~~ the file for the first time be sure to do it with Read Etexts, ''not'' Write. Write does something to the file that prevents Read Etexts from being able to convert it properly. Once you open it with Read Etexts it will be given the Read Etexts icon and will open with the correct Activity by default.		When you Restore the file for the first time be sure to do it with Read Etexts, ''not'' Write. Write does something to the file that prevents Read Etexts from being able to convert it properly. Once you open it with Read Etexts it will be given the Read Etexts icon and will open with the correct Activity by default.

	I'm dedicating this feature to the author Howard L. Myers. His book ''The Creatures of Man'' is available for download from the website. Back in 1974 I was graduating from High School and subscribing to ''Galaxy'' magazine. ''Galaxy'' ran a couple of cracking good yarns by Myers, writing as "Verge Foray", in the May and June issues. I was really looking forward to more in the series, and even wrote an incoherent letter to the magazine asking for more Verge Foray stories. I only found out this year why no more stories ever came. Howard L. Myers had died in 1971.		I'm dedicating this feature to the author Howard L. Myers. His book ''The Creatures of Man'' is available for download from the website. Back in 1974 I was graduating from High School and subscribing to ''Galaxy'' magazine. ''Galaxy'' ran a couple of cracking good yarns by Myers, writing as "Verge Foray", in the May and June issues. I was really looking forward to more in the series, and even wrote an incoherent letter to the magazine asking for more Verge Foray stories. I only found out this year why no more stories ever came. Howard L. Myers had died in 1971.

Jdsimmons: /* Sharing Documents */

2009-10-07T22:27:51Z

Sharing Documents

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:27, 7 October 2009
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	This activity uses code adapted from the core Read activity for document sharing over the network. To share a document with someone that person must also have the Read Etexts activity installed, and it should be the same version for best results. You can invite an individual to join the activity or share it with the whole neighborhood, but either way only those who have the activity installed will see the invitation.		This activity uses code adapted from the core Read activity for document sharing over the network. To share a document with someone that person must also have the Read Etexts activity installed, and it should be the same version for best results. You can invite an individual to join the activity or share it with the whole neighborhood, but either way only those who have the activity installed will see the invitation.

	When someone accepts the invitation to join the activity a copy of the document is sent to his computer for him to read. When he exits the activity the document will be saved in the journal. The Journal entry will be titled "Read Etexts Activity", not the title of the book. Of course the recipient can modify this title to match the actual title of the book, but the activity currently will not do this for her.		When someone accepts the invitation to join the activity a copy of the document is sent to his computer for him to read. When he exits the activity the document will be saved in the journal.

	This is a bit different from the core Read activity because I actually save a copy of the received document in the Journal, whereas Read does not. If you try to resume a shared Read activity when the document is not currently being shared you will get an empty document.

	== The Baen Free Library ==		== The Baen Free Library ==

Jdsimmons: /* Using Text to Speech */

2009-10-07T22:26:59Z

Using Text to Speech

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:26, 7 October 2009
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	== Using Text to Speech ==		== Using Text to Speech ==

	Read Etexts uses software called ~~Speech Dispatcher~~ to read text aloud and to perform callbacks which enable the word being spoken to be highlighted. ~~Speech Dispatcher~~ is not yet included with the normal XO software distribution, but ~~will be~~ included in ~~version .84~~.		Read Etexts uses software called gstreamer espeak plugin to read text aloud and to perform callbacks which enable the word being spoken to be highlighted. This plugin is not yet included with the normal XO software distribution, but is included in Sugar on a Stick.

	To start text to speech you simply press the check mark button on the XO's display (Numeric Keypad "End" on a standard keyboard). This button will also pause and resume speech. Only the current page will be spoken, and always starting from the first word on the page unless you are resuming after pausing. You need to have the text control containing the text to be spoken in focus. I use the check button because you can use it when the XO is folded into its ebook reader configuration. There is also a Play/Pause button on the Speech tab of the toolbar that you can use instead.		To start text to speech you simply press the check mark button on the XO's display (Numeric Keypad "End" on a standard keyboard). This button will also pause and resume speech. Only the current page will be spoken, and always starting from the first word on the page unless you are resuming after pausing. You need to have the text control containing the text to be spoken in focus. I use the check button because you can use it when the XO is folded into its ebook reader configuration. There is also a Play/Pause button on the Speech tab of the toolbar that you can use instead.
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	The toolbar is very much like the one in the Speak activity and was adapted from its code. It allows you to change the language, pitch, and rate of speech. You can only do this while the Activity is not speaking. You can pause the speech, change its rate, pitch,or language, and then resume.		The toolbar is very much like the one in the Speak activity and was adapted from its code. It allows you to change the language, pitch, and rate of speech. You can only do this while the Activity is not speaking. You can pause the speech, change its rate, pitch,or language, and then resume.

	The latest version of Read Etexts supports either speech-dispatcher or the gstreamer espeak plugin developed by Aleksey Lim for the Sugar project. This plugin should be part of Sugar on a Stick and future releases of Sugar for the XO. This plugin works much better than speech-dispatcher does and does not require running a demon program or doing any configuration.

	== Sharing Documents ==		== Sharing Documents ==

Jdsimmons: /* The Baen Free Library */

2009-09-07T20:20:43Z

The Baen Free Library

← Older revision		Revision as of 16:20, 7 September 2009
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	When you restore the file for the first time be sure to do it with Read Etexts, ''not'' Write. Write does something to the file that prevents Read Etexts from being able to convert it properly. Once you open it with Read Etexts it will be given the Read Etexts icon and will open with the correct Activity by default.		When you restore the file for the first time be sure to do it with Read Etexts, ''not'' Write. Write does something to the file that prevents Read Etexts from being able to convert it properly. Once you open it with Read Etexts it will be given the Read Etexts icon and will open with the correct Activity by default.

			I'm dedicating this feature to the author Howard L. Myers. His book ''The Creatures of Man'' is available for download from the website. Back in 1974 I was graduating from High School and subscribing to ''Galaxy'' magazine. ''Galaxy'' ran a couple of cracking good yarns by Myers, writing as "Verge Foray", in the May and June issues. I was really looking forward to more in the series, and even wrote an incoherent letter to the magazine asking for more Verge Foray stories. I only found out this year why no more stories ever came. Howard L. Myers had died in 1971.

	== Planned Features ==		== Planned Features ==