[orca-list] Really! Strange behavior with Orca and Speech-Dispatcher

["Chris Gilland" <cgilland1 carolina rr com>]

I posted this question a while back but didn't get even one single response, 
so I figured I'd ask again.  I was having a really really strange issue with 
Orca, Speech-dispatcher, and Voxin.  I know, I know, Voxin is gross to a lot 
of people, but hear me out.  I wonder if you all can help me brainstorm, and 
figure out why this broke, as well as why! what I did fixed it.  This has 
gotta be one of the most bizarre things I've ever seen!

Basically, I downloaded Ubuntu 10.04 Lucid.  Maybe I got it from the wrong 
source, but I got it from ubuntu.com under the downloads section.  I just 
grabbed the standard 32 bit i386 iso.  burned the iso, and booted to the 
disc.  Well, it came up, and the installer automatically launched, but there 
is no language menu, nor is there a place to fit f5 for accessibility, 
followed by option 3 for screen reader, like in previous builds.  I know 
it's not me just not seeing it and it going by before I know it, as I had a 
sighted person look about 3 times, and not even once did they see anything 
of the sort.  So, I guess my first question is, once that installer comes 
up, what's the procedure with Lucid to get Orca talking on the live CD, so I 
can install the distro correctly.  Because of this, my delimma was created. 
So, with no further do: here we go!

I hopped up on

http://vinux.org.uk

All that I was able to find was the Libra I think is how you say it, version 
of Vinux 3.0.  I installed this from the CD iso.  I didn't use the dvd iso, 
as I don't have any blank DVD's.  I need actually to get some.  At any rate, 
so, escentially, I get Vinux installed, great.  all works fine.  I install 
voxin.  Great! that works fine, too.  NOw, here is where the gotcha! comes 
into play.  I editted both the ~/.speech-dispatcher/conf/speechd.conf as 
well as the /etc/speech-dispatcher/speechd.conf files.

I uncommented the line for AddModule ibmtts, or something of that effect. 
The line's quite obvious when I see it.

I also changed the default module from espeak over to ibmtts

I then restarted speech-dispatcher with:

sudo /etc/init.d/speech-dispatcher restart

That worked perfectly.

At this point though, I still had ESpeak talking, not Voxin.  That's 
understandable though, as I'd not restarted Orca.  So, I orca+q, confirm, 
then went to run, and typed orca, and hit enter.  Boom!  NOrmally! Voxin 
would come right up talking no questions asked.  Well, here is the weird 
thing.  ESpeak still! came up!  Orca+Space, speech page, reveals absolutely 
no speech synth for IBMTTS.  Default is still giving me Espeak.  I have this 
exact? same issue with the Wubi installation build of Lucid.

Now, here's where things get totally! cluster effed, excuse the language. 
Watch, this!  Now listen to what I did, then, you? tell me! if this is not 
totally! Cock-eyed!  I go to a terminal.  Not a t t y terminal, just the 
graffical gnome-terminal.  I then did:

speech-dispatcher --version

I'm on the latest build, rc2, just like normal.  Just like I should be.  Now 
granted, orca! wasn't totally yet upj-to-date with the latest from git 
clone, but I'm getting ahead a myself here.  Once I saw that was up to date, 
I'm gowen: Well? Hmm!  I wonder then if orca is out of date, which it 
probably is.  so, in that same window, I did:

orca -v

Now, watch this!  I get an error, don't remember it, but something about me 
not having permissions to access the command.  However then! as soon as I 
did that, orca -v, and hit enter.  My Voxin starts working!  now how? 
blessid screwed up? is, ðð'ððat!  I was like: Ow'w? Kayyy!... ehh, like, um? 
Wut?  Rauight!  What? ever!  So, does anyone! have the slightest idea? what! 
in the, hell! caused it to start working just! by issuing a version? 
command?  I tell you guies: I've seen some weird things in Linux before, but 
this! tops 'em all!  I rebooted.  Guess what.  I still? get Voxin!  It now 
even is showing up in my speech page, unlike before.  To get rid of that 
permission denied thing, I just ran an Orca update and rebuilt it from git, 
and that solved that problem perfectly.  ONe thing worth noting is, when 
Vixin didn't work in Wubi, or in Vinux 3.0 Libra, I did! add the Vinux 
repository... well, with wubi I did.  With Libra, it was already there so 
though I tried, nothing really happened.

sudo add-apt-repository ppa://vinux/vinux-lucid

sudo apt-get update

Then I installed the scripts:

sudo apt-get install vinuxscripts

Finally, I converted my system.  I even did this with Libra, which even 
though I already was really on! Vinux, it still! did work.

buildvinux

Once this was done, that's! when, without first restarting the computer, 
that I checked the version of both sd, as well as Orca, at  which point on 
the orca -v I got the permission denied however that woke up Voxin somehow.

I guess my ultimate question in all this is, why if I use Wubi, then get the 
vinux scripts, and convert my wubi over to Vinux, does Voxin then work right 
straight no problem.  Yet, in Wubi just by itself, or in Voxin Libra, does 
it not work at all unless you do this really twisted hack a mine, even then, 
I don't know if I had to reinstall things if I could replicate this again 
and get it working again.  That may a just been pure luck.  I know Libra was 
kind a stripped down, and doesn't have any of the closed propriatary 
packages in it, that the older build of 3.0 Vinux had that was non-Libra 
based.  Unfortunately, I cannot find that iso any more and I gave my disc to 
a friend and never have gotten it back sinse.  I thinky lostit, knowing him. 
Anyway, with the Vinux non-libra 3.0 build, again not the dvd, just the 
plain cd-r image, Voxin again! worked flawlessly right out of the box.  This 
almost makes me thus wonder if there is something in those Vinux scripts 
that gets installed or upgraded/downgraded, that is making voxin work after 
being applied.  I'm totally! perplexed!  I'd! L'l'l'luvv! to hear what you 
all have to say about this one!

Chris.