Personal Technology Solutions

Working off campus brings its share of new challenges. Check out the list of personal technology solutions listed below to make sure you can have access to technology you need at home. For information around apps/resources for studying, check out Tutorial Services' Learning Supports pages.

Teaching and Learning Services is also providing professors and students with help on the tools that are being promoted at McGill. Please visit their website section entitled “Disruption to classes” regularly for updated content.

Text-to-Speech Support

Chrome Web browser extensions (Windows and Mac) — Search for these within the chrome web store:
- Readerview – Use this to simplify the presentation of online text, invert colours, change spacing and font sizes. This tool estimates the remaining reading time of the time required to complete the reading is generated. Use the text-to-speech feature to follow along with the highlighted text.
- Read aloud – Use this to: Extracts the text from the main window and displays it in a teleprompter-style side-window. Choose from many high-quality voices.
The immersive reader in the Windows 10 Edge Browser provides access to many layout options along with text to speech output.
- You can also find the immersive reader within all Microsoft products under the "View" tab.
Firefox Browser's built-in reader view
Balabolka - free text-to-speech software that allows you to save text as an audio file.
Natural Reader - an online tool that allows you to upload text and documents and convert them to mp3.
Seeing AI
Speechify
Purchase e-books with built-in text-to-speech software: Vital Source

Writing Support

Grammarly - a free extension for your browser that corrects spelling, grammar, punctuation and sentence structure.
Microsoft Word and pages both offer an Outline View that helps you jot down keywords, organize them into a structure and reorganize them into a coherent document.
Activate more grammar checking features within Microsoft Word.
Word365 offers the “ideas” tab that can help refine your writing by highlighting issues of clarity, conciseness and conventions.
A free 30-day demo version of WordQ is available for download. This software allows a text to speech read out of the work you have written. It can help you hear certain syntax errors and identify unclear or wordy sentences. The Word Prediction feature helps you minimize spelling errors and may increase typing output by reducing the number of keystrokes necessary to type words.
Cordial - French grammar corrector.
BonPatron - Helps you correct your French texts.

Free versions of software I use at the OSD

The following vendors are providing extended free trials of licenses based software:

Reminders and Focus

MacOS - talking alerts, calculator, clock, reminders app
Windows 10 – built-in focus assist reduces pop-up notifications
Windows 10 – visual notifications instead of sound
Apps
- Forest
- BearFocusTimer
Site Blockers
- Freedom ($) - Windows, Mac, iOS and Android
- Self-Control (Mac) - Leechblock (Firefox & Chrome)
- Leechblock (Firefox & Chrome)
- StayFocusd (Chrome)
- FocusMe ($)
- BlockSite (Chrome)

Dictation Support

Mac: Enable the dictation feature (the shortcut is Fn-Fn).
Word365: a microphone icon within the toolbar allows you to dictate using your computer’s microphone. Try using earbuds with a built-in microphone for better results. Click here to learn more about Word365's Dictation feature.
Speech Notes (Chrome)
Dragon Dictation - also available for iPhone/iPad and on GooglePlay.