Should Your Maps Talk?

Back inward 2014 I used the fairly novel (at the time) Web Speech API to exercise a uncomplicated Speaking Map. That map used contrary geocoding to speak the address of a place every fourth dimension soul clicked on the map.

What I neglected to add together to my Speaking Map was jokes. Which is where Alex wins out. Alex is a talking map which tin sympathize a publish of dissimilar spoken commands. You tin enquire Alex to zoom inward as well as out on the map or to switch betwixt aerial as well as topographical map layers. You tin fifty-fifty say Alex a place as well as it volition marrow the map on that area. Alex's best feature, however, is its powerfulness to say Dad jokes. Ask Alex to say yous a joke as well as yous tin listen a actually bad cartographically themed joke.

In the post accompanying my 2014 Speaking Map I mentioned how the Web Speech API could locomote used amongst driving directions to render a uncomplicated navigation application. You could also role the Web Speech API inward information visualizations to narrate approximately of the of import facts that yous desire to impart amongst your visualization.

The Flourish visualization tool of late added a novel characteristic they telephone phone 'Talkies' which allows yous to add together well recordings to information visualizations. You tin read to a greater extent than close Talkies inward the weblog postal service Why information visualisation needs a play button. Of shape instead of using well recordings yous could role the Web Speech API instead. At the 2d the artificial voices of the Web Speech API mightiness locomote also annoying to role for narrating stories amongst maps. As the voices larn to a greater extent than natural sounding this volition belike alter as well as Web Speech narration could larn approximately other valuable tool to add together to your storey maps as well as map information visualizations.