Make Python Talk(2021)[Liu][9781718501577]

236 Pages·2021·11.024 MB·English

by  Liu

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NO S TARCH PRESS
E ARLY ACCESS PROGR AM:
FEEDBACK W ELCOME!
Welcome to the Early Access edition of the as yet unpublished Make Python
Talk by Mark Liu! As a prepublication title, this book may be incomplete and
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enjoy!
MAKE PY THON TALK
MARK LIU
Early Access edition, 3/30/21
Copyright © 2021 by Mark Liu.
ISBN 13: 978-1-7185-0156-0 (print)
ISBN 13: 978-1-7185-0157-7 (ebook)
Publisher: William Pollock
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4
Make Python Talk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
5
CONTENTS
Speaking Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
17
6
Web Scraping Podcasts, Radios, and Videos . . . . . . . . . . .
39
7
Building a Virtual Personal Assistant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
61
8
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Know-it-all VPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Part I: Getting Started . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83
Chapter 1: Install Python via Anaconda and Spyder . . . . . . . . . . 9
Chapter 2: Python Refresher . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Graphics and Animation with the turtle Module . . . . . . . . .
Part II: Learning to Talk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95
Chapter 3: Speech Recognition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Chapter 4: Make Python Talk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1 Tic-Tac-Toe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 5: Speaking Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 115
Chapter 6: Web Scraping Podcasts, Radios, and Videos . . . . .39 11
Chapter 7: Building a Virtual Personal Assistant . . . . . . . . . . .61 Connect Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 8: Know-it-all VPA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83 133
Part III: Interactive Games . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
Chapter 9: Graphics and Animation with the turtle Module . . .95 guess-the-word Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 10: Tic-Tac-Toe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .115 153
Chapter 11: Connect Four . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .133 13
Chapter 12: guess-the-word Game . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153 Smart Games: Adding Intelligence . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 13: Smart Games: Adding Intelligence . . . . . . . . .167 167
Part IV: Going Further . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Chapter 14: Financial Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .195 Financial Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Chapter 15: Stock Market Watch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .219 195
Chapter 16: Use Other Languages: Translator 15
Chapter 17: Ultimate VPA Stock Market Watch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Appendix A: Useful Speech Modules 219
Appendix B: Answers to End of Chapter Exercises
Index
The chapters in red are included in this Early Access PDF.
Make Python Talk (Early Access) © 2021 by Mark Liu
4
MAKE PY THON TALK
In this chapter, you’ll learn how to make
Python talk back to you in a human voice.
You’ll first install the text-to-speech mod-
ule based on your operating system, and then
teach Python to speak aloud whatever you enter on
your computer. You’ll also add the speech-recognition
feature you learned in Chapter 3 and get Python to
repeat your own speech. Finally, you’ll build a real-
world application to use voice inputs to ask Python
to calculate the area of a rectangle and tell you the
answer in a human voice.
To save space, you’ll put all text-to-speech-related code in a self-made
module. Once you know how to do that, you can import the module into
any script that needs the text-to-speech feature.
Make Python Talk (Early Access) © 2021 by Mark Liu
You’ll also learn how to ask Python to read a long text file such as a
news article aloud. Before you begin, set up the folder /mpt/ch04/ for this
chapter.
NEW SKILLS
• Installing speech-related modules depending on your operating system
• Adjusting properties of your text-to-speech module
• Learning how to create a module that is portable cross-platform
• Combining the text-to-speech module with speech recognition so a com-
puter can repeat what you said
• Making the computer solve a problem and answer you in a human voice
Install the Text-to-Speech Module
Python has two commonly used text-to-speech modules: pyttsx3 and gTTS.
If you use Windows, you’ll install pyttsx3 and use it throughout the book.
In the Windows operating system, the pyttsx3 module works offline, has a
human-like voice, and lets you adjust the speech properties—namely, the
speed, volume, and gender of the voice output.
However, the pyttsx3 module works differently in Mac and Linux. The
voice sounds robotic, and the speech properties are not easily adjustable.
Therefore, you’ll install gTTS if you use Mac or Linux. The gTTS module
requires an internet connection since it uses the Google Translate text-to-
speech application programming interface (API). Further, gTTS does not
play the sound directly. It saves the voice as an audio file or file-like object.
You’ll have to use your own audio player to hear the voice. The voice gen-
erated by gTTS is very human-like.
In Chapter 2, you built a virtual environment called chatting for speech
recognition. You’ll install the pyttsx3 or gTTS module in the same virtual
environment so your script will have both the speech-recognition and text-
to-speech features.
Set Up
If you are using Windows, go to the “Install pyttsx3 in Windows” section
and skip the “Install gTTS in Mac or Linux” section. Otherwise, skip the
“Install pyttsx3 in Windows” section and go to the “Install gTTS in Mac or
Linux” section.
Install pyttsx3 in Windows
The pyttsx3 module is not in the Python standard library, so you’ll need to
install it via pip.
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Make Python Talk (Early Access) © 2021 by Mark Liu
If you haven’t already set up your chatting virtual environment, go back
to Chapter 2 now and follow the instructions to do so. Then activate the
virtual environment chatting in the Anaconda prompt by executing the
following:
conda activate chatting
With your chatting virtual environment activated, enter this:
pip install pyttsx3
Follow the instructions onscreen to finish the installation.
Install gTTS in Mac or Linux
The gTTS module is not in the Python standard library, so you’ll need to
install it via pip.
If you haven’t already set up your chatting virtual environment, go back
to Chapter 2 now and follow the instructions to do so. Then activate the vir-
tual environment chatting in a terminal by executing the following:
conda activate chatting
With your chatting virtual environment activated in your terminal, enter
this:
pip install gtts
Follow the instructions onscreen to finish the installation.
Test Your Text-to-Speech Module
Before beginning, you’ll check that your text-to-speech module is properly
installed and working. Based on your operating system, skip the sections
that don’t apply to you.
Run a Sample Script in Windows
With your virtual environment activated and Spyder open, copy the script
test_pyttsx3.py into your editor and save it in your chapter folder. If you pre-
fer, you can download the file from the book’s resources through https://
www.nostarch.com/makepythontalk/.
import pyttsx3
1 engine = pyttsx3.init()
2 engine.say("hello, how are you?")
engine.runAndWait()
First import the pyttsx3 module to the script. Then use init() to initiate
a text-to-speech engine in the pyttsx3 module and call it engine 1. The say()
function in the pyttsx3 module converts the text to a speech signal, and
Make Python Talk   3
Make Python Talk (Early Access) © 2021 by Mark Liu
prepares to send it to the speaker 2. The runAndWait() function then sends
the actual speech signal to the speaker so you can hear the sound. The
runAndWait() function also keeps the engine running so that when you want
to convert text to speech later in the script, you don’t need to initiate the
engine again.
Run test_pyttsx3.py line by line by using the F9 key to help you under-
stand how each line of code functions.
NOTE The say() function in the pyttsx3 module only converts the text to a speech signal
and prepares to send it to the speaker. It does not do the actual speaking. To hear the
sound, use runAndWait(), which sends the speech signal to the speaker.
If the module is correctly installed, when you finish running the whole
script, you should hear a voice saying, “Hello, how are you?” If not, recheck
the instructions and make sure that the speaker on your computer is work-
ing properly at the right volume. I’ll discuss later in this chapter how to cus-
tomize the speed, volume, and the voice gender associated with the pyttsx3
module.
Run a Sample Script in Mac or Linux
We’ll use the gtts-cli tool (cli stands for command line) to convert text to
speech, instead of converting text to an audio file, and then play it. The
gtts-cli tool is faster than the alternative method. Once you install the gTTS
module, the gtts-cli tool is available in the command line in your virtual
environment. The gtts-cli tool converts the text to a file-like object, and you
have to choose which audio player to play it. I find that the mpg123 player
works well.
First, you need to install the mpg123 player on your computer. If you
are using Mac, run the following command on a terminal:
brew install mpg123
If you are using Linux, run the following two commands on a terminal:
sudo apt-get update
sudo apt-get install mpg123
Once you’re finished, with your virtual environment activated, run the
following command in a terminal:
gtts-cli --nocheck "hello, how are you?" | mpg123 -q -
If you have correctly installed everything, you should hear a voice saying,
“Hello, how are you?” If not, recheck the instructions and make sure that the
speaker on your computer is working properly at the right volume. Further,
since you have installed the gTTS module in your virtual environment, you
have to run the preceding command with your virtual environment acti-
vated. Otherwise, it won’t work.
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Make Python Talk (Early Access) © 2021 by Mark Liu
The nocheck option in this command is to speed up execution. The q
flag instructs the module not to display copyright and version messages,
even in an interactive mode. Make sure you don’t miss the hyphen at the
end of the command.
Next, you’ll use the os module in Python to execute commands in a
subshell.
Copy the test_gtts.py script into your Spyder editor and save it in your
chapter folder. The script is also available at the book’s resources through
https://www.nostarch.com/makepythontalk.
import os
os.system('gtts-cli --nocheck "hello, how are you?" | mpg123 -q -')
First import the os module to the script. Then use system()to execute a
command in a subshell to achieve the same effect of running the command
in a terminal. As a result, the gtts-cli tool is used to convert text to a file-like
object. After that, the mpg123 player plays the sound object so you can hear
a human voice.
NOTE You don’t need to explicitly import the gTTS module in test_gtts.py because you use
the gtts-cli tool in the command line, even though the gTTS module is used.
If you’ve done everything correctly, you should hear a voice saying,
“Hello, how are you?”
Convert Text to Voice in Windows
Now let’s practice converting written text input into a human voice in
Windows. With your virtual environment activated and Spyder open, copy
the script tts_windows.py, as shown in Listing 4-1, into your editor and save
and run it.
import pyttsx3
engine = pyttsx3.init()
1 while True:
2 inp = input("What do you want to covert to speech?\n")
3 if inp == "done":
print(f"You just typed in {inp}, goodbye!")
engine.say(f"You just typed in {inp}, goodbye!")
engine.runAndWait()
break
4 else:
print(f"You just typed in {inp}")
engine.say(f"You just typed in {inp}")
engine.runAndWait()
5 continue
Listing 4-1: Converting text to voice in Windows
Make Python Talk   5
Make Python Talk (Early Access) © 2021 by Mark Liu
After importing the pyttsx3 module and initiating a text-to-speech engine,
start an infinite loop to take user text input 1. In each iteration, the script
asks for text input at the IPython console 2. If you want to stop the script,
enter done 3, and the script will print and say in a human voice, “You just
typed in done; goodbye!” After that, the loop stops, and the script quits
running.
If the text input is not done, the else branch runs 4, and the script speaks
your text input out loud in a human voice. After that, the script goes to the
next iteration and takes your text input again 5.
The following is sample output from the script (user input is in bold):
What do you want to covert to speech?
Python is great!
You just typed in Python is great!
What do you want to covert to speech?
Hello, world!
You just typed in Hello, world!
What do you want to covert to speech?
done
You just typed in done; goodbye!
Convert Text to Voice in Mac or Linux
Now we’ll practice converting written text input into a human voice in Mac
or Linux. With your virtual environment activated and Spyder open, copy
the script tts_mac_linux.py (Listing 4-2) into your editor, and save and run it.
import os
while True: 1
inp = input("What do you want to covert to speech?\n") 2
if inp == "done": 3
print(f"You just typed in {inp}, goodbye!")
os.system(f'gtts-cli --nocheck "You just typed in {inp}, goodbye!" | mpg123 -q -')
break
else: 4
print(f"You just typed in {inp}")
os.system(f'gtts-cli --nocheck "You just typed in {inp}" | mpg123 -q -')
continue 5
Listing 4-2: Converting text to voice in Mac and Linux
After importing the os module so you can run commands in a subshell,
start an infinite loop to take user text input 1. In each iteration, the script
asks for text input at the IPython console 2. If you want to stop the script,
enter done 3, and the script will print and say in a human voice, “You just
typed in done; goodbye!” After that, the loop stops, and the script quits
running.
6   Chapter 4