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Create custom spoken text alerts in iChat 4 Apps
In iChat 3, we had the ability to set spoken text alerts for certain actions, i.e. when someone logs in. However, this was removed in iChat 4, though it's possible with AppleScript. For lack of a clear explanation of how to do this already on macosxhints.com, I submit the following code:
using terms from application "iChat"
  on buddy became available bud
    say "whatever you want to say"
  end buddy became available
end using terms from
Save this as an AppleScript in your user's Library » Scripts » iChat folder. Select a buddy in your list. Hit Command-I to open the Show Info dialog. In the Alerts tab, pick Run AppleScript from the pop-up menu, then select the file you just created. This is just a modification of a script I found here.

[robg adds: I'm not sure why the (anonymous) author claims that spoken text alerts have disappeared in iChat 4; they're still available via the 'Announce when event occurs' checkbox on the Alerts tab of iChat's Preferences. However, what you can't do is set your own alert text to be spoken, and that's what this hint allows you to do. Change the text in the say line to your desired phrase (leave the quotes), and that's what will be spoken. You can add other events, too. Just create new on... loops for each. To figure out what's available, open Script Editor, select File » Open Dictionary, and open the iChat dictionary. Select the iChat Event Handler Suite in the leftmost column, and the next column will show the terms to use with on in the script.]
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Create custom spoken text alerts in iChat 4 | 2 comments | Create New Account
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Create custom spoken text alerts in iChat 4
Authored by: codyj on Aug 11, '09 09:18:53AM

robg: i think you mean "iChat Preferences," rather than "System Preferences"
:)



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Create custom spoken text alerts in iChat 4
Authored by: robg on Aug 25, '09 09:25:41AM

Thanks; fixed!

-rob.



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