The Grid 2: buried treasure - right click to hear a preview

Posted by 14 on the 14th September, 2009

I like The Grid 2 software for pupils who have really complex communication and writing difficulties. Amongst its many good features, I especially like the symbol supported prediction, for users who really have barely any spelling ability at all, maybe just initial letters - but who still want to speak out and get their thoughts down on paper - and who are building their confidence to bridge from symbols to keyboard and words. (You can do this with Clicker and Penfriend combined but it can be a bit fiddly.) The Grid 2 does everything that Clicker does - and more - in some ways more elegantly and with more versatility. But one criticism I've heard voiced is that The Grid 2 doesn't allow you to do that much-loved Clicker 'right click' trick - ie you 'right click' to get the spoken preview of the word in the cell, to check what it is, before you decide whether to select it or not (and then hear it spoken out 'properly' as it is sent up into the document/message bar.

Well - you CAN!! It's just ridiculously well hidden as a feature, in The Grid 2. Here is how to do it:

• Go to User settings
• select Input settings>pointer>tooltips
• select "right click to speak tooltip" (it may already be selected)

You will also then need to go to Speech Settings, to select a private voice, as this is the speech that will be used on a right click. (I think this is the bit that most people don't know - I didn't!) If you can, discuss with your user whether he /she'd like the right click prompt to speak in the same or a different voice as the left click select.

Also discuss whether the volume should be the same or different. Clicker doesn't allow you to vary these, but The Grid 2 does (so the user can have a quiet little prompt that nobody else can hear). I suggest you set the volume on the Private voice at about 50% (if the volume on the Public voice is 100%) - this can be changed to suit.

Learn more about The Grid 2