Speech Dispatcher setup

Waterfox displays this page when a website tries to use speech synthesis and the browser detects a problem with Speech Dispatcher.

Some Speech Dispatcher versions have a bug that can leave the default configuration without a working voice even when the required packages and voices are installed. The issue was fixed upstream. Releases after 0.11.2 should include the fix, and Linux distributions may backport it to earlier package versions.

Error messages

• “You can’t use speech synthesis because the Speech Dispatcher library is missing.”

  Install Speech Dispatcher with the distribution’s package manager.

• “You can’t use speech synthesis because Speech Dispatcher needs to be updated.”

  Install a version that meets the requirements below.

• “You can’t use speech synthesis because the Speech Dispatcher library is broken.”

  Waterfox found a compatible library version, but the library lacks a required feature.

• “You can’t use speech synthesis because Speech Dispatcher won’t open.”

  Waterfox cannot communicate with the service. Snap or Flatpak packaging can cause this problem.

• “You can’t use speech synthesis because voices aren’t available in Speech Dispatcher.”

  Waterfox can access Speech Dispatcher, but its configuration does not provide a working voice.

Waterfox requires Speech Dispatcher 0.8.2 or later. Most Linux distributions provide suitable packages.

Install Speech Dispatcher

Debian and Ubuntu

Install Speech Dispatcher with Synaptic Package Manager and include the suggested packages, or run:

sudo apt install speech-dispatcher

Fedora

Run:

sudo dnf install speech-dispatcher speech-dispatcher-utils

Test Speech Dispatcher

Run:

spd-say hi

A working setup speaks the word “hi”. If there is no sound, fix the Speech Dispatcher configuration before trying speech synthesis in Waterfox again.

Speech Dispatcher fails to open

Waterfox may find the required library but be unable to communicate with the service. The service may have failed to start, or a Snap or Flatpak package may not support a required feature such as systemd socket activation.

Systemd socket activation requires a Speech Dispatcher release later than 0.11.4, unless the Linux distribution has backported the support. Consult the distribution’s support documentation if the service still does not open.

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