Is there a favorite communication package with switch access?

[mupslee]

We are using switch access with Predictable on an iPad because it allows importing of all the voice banked messages, but my PALS doesn't use anything but the keyboard (no favorites or saved phrases). She uses switch access and the keyboard (her preference), but it's very very slow because it has to scan through all the letters row by row. It does offer guesses at words, but what it lacks is real anticipation.

There has to be an app (either Windows or iPad) that anticipates letters, but I have spent hours and just can't find one. Our dad had one 30 years ago, so I know there is one out there! What I mean is one that knows that if you start with the letter R, the next letter will be a vowel since no consonant ever follow an R in standard English.

I've played with Dasher, and I find it great, but my PALS has slight cognitive impairment, so it won't work for her.

Any other ideas?

Thanks!

 

[affected]

we also used predictable and iPad.

my reason for choosing it was because it is switch compatible. It's not bad as an app, but some people seem as happy or happier with cheaper apps.

interestingly when I bought Chris the iPad and predictable we didn't have a switch as his hands were ok. by the time he needed the jelly bean switch IOS7 was out and the entire iPad is switch compatible and in fact we had to turn OFF predicatables switch stuff and just let the IOS do it lol

So sad we didn't voice bank as by the time we even thought something was serious his speech was bad.

 

[MaxEidswick]

>So sad we didn't voice bank as by the time we even thought something was serious his speech was bad.

Okay Katrina what is the best way to start this process?

 

[mupslee]

The speech pathologist at our ALS clinic gave us a questionnaire of things to record that included comfort things like "my nose itches" to the names of everyone we could think of (family and friends) to places to go and things to do. The SP had us get a high quality microphone, and we used it to just create a whole bunch of .wav files that we later imported into Predictable. That part is tedious - they have to be imported one at a time, categorized, and a description created. Importing them into the Dynavox appeared to be an even slower process, but my sister decided she didn't really care about the voice banking, so we didn't do it.

By the time we started recording, she was already having a fair amount of trouble talking, so her recordings don't really sound a lot like her.

Some of the communication packages allow you to record directly into them, so it's not so tedious to import the recordings, but then you are stuck with just that package. That might be a problem since as things change, so do the tools and techniques needed. The SP suggested we create .wav files and not use a specific communication package for the recordings.

My sister has slight FTD as well, so she likes only the keyboard in Predictable, not categories of phrases, so that is another reason we aren't actually using the banked messages. They are in there, but she has chosen not to use them.

 

[lgelb]

Proloquo2Go and Proloquo4Text are both switch-compatible in iOS7 and have word prediction. I have not used them but have used some of the company's other products (they have comparable/complementary apps for the MacOS, e.g. a switch-compatible virtual keyboards, mouse emulators and layout editor).

I have heard "state of the art" voice-banked output and it did not motivate me to consider advocating the effort of voice banking. I would put that effort into flat-out content -- recording audio and/or video for specific people with specific goals in mind. YMMV.

 

[affected]

hey Max, since we didn't start I'm not sure, but it seems like .wav is the important thing.

And it's so true that voice banking for your own app is a huge undertaking. It could be nice to record lots of common phrases though.

I think it could be nice to think about recording messages to people you love for them to have to listen to, either when you lose your voice, or after you have gained your wings.

I know Chris hated all the voices in the apps - but you know what, they are stringing words together to make sentences, I am certain that even using your own voice you would end up with a mechanical sounding you. We used the same word many times a day with different inflections to add true humanity to our voice, but in a text to speech app, only one version of a word is recorded.

Take 'sorry' - think about how many ways you could say that word!

 

[MaxEidswick]

>Take 'sorry' - think about how many ways you could say that word!

I think I put it off too long anyway ,:-(

 

[opsy135]

just keep going on you will get good app

 

[opsy135]

make sure that every thing should be in correct manner