CALLING ALL DIGITAL NERDS – Want to be a hero and solve a problem that other nerds can’t?

Maybe this has happened to you? or someone you know? Maybe you know the answer that has confounded my usual squad of digital nerds. Even if you can just point me to the right person/place to take it to be fixed, I’d be supremely grateful.

A few days ago, I turned on my Lenovo laptop running Windows 10, and it’s talking out loud to me – reading every word, dot, dash and bullet point in a highly annoying monotone. Plus putting a bright orange circle around whatever section he’s reading.

I search some info about turning off the narrator, follow those directions (“windows key” + “control” + “Enter”) -- nothing happens. Sometimes I get an option box that lets me choose to switch Narrator from “on” to “off”, but it does nothing to shut him up. They built this guy to be very persistent, but very annoying.

Of course, when I’m working alone, I can just turn him down to “zero” or “off”. But when I’m on a Zoom call or any other time I have to hear someone else, switching the sound off is not an option. I can’t have them fighting over each other to be heard.

A good friend who’s been working with computers for decades worked hard on it – going deep into places on my computer that I'm afraid to think about -- and he had no luck. He also kept getting the message the narrator had been turned off, but when we tried again, that voice was still there … droning on.

It may be tied to the “Ease of Access” tools that are available for those with disabilities – this would be for blind people, I suppose. I may have several disabilities, but none that require me being read to … not yet
anyway.

I’m hopeful there is someone else out there who has found their way out of this quandary successfully. Apparently following the online instructions is getting me nowhere.

The gauntlet is thrown…….

TIA.


i don't remember how it works with 10, but with earlier versions, windows automatically saved a restore point, and you could do a system restore back to that point (usually a day or 2 ago).  One of the versions didn't do this...I don't remember if it was 10.

system restore doesn't affect files.

Recovery options in Windows 10 - Microsoft Support

support.microsoft.com › en-us › windows › recovery-o...Restore from a system restore point In the Control Panel search box, type recovery. Select Recovery > Open System Restore. In the Restore system files and setting box, select Next. Select the restore point that you want to use in the list of results, and then select Scan for affected programs.


Following...

My camera on my Yoga (which I love)

Has just disappeared! No zoom for me!


Here are a few ways to turn off narrator.

https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-turn-off-narrator-on-windows-10

The person helping you may have to track down the registry entry and flip it to zero.

I found two different ways:

  1. Navigate to System32. (under the windows directory)
  2. Locate Narrator.exe. 
  3. Right click on the file to bring up properties, go to security
  4. Disable execution permission.

Or

Go to Control Panel > Ease of Access > Ease of Access Center > Use the computer without a display to show the main Ease of Access config settings.

  • In the Hear text read aloud section, turn off all Narrator / Audio Description settings.
  • You could also rename the program to Narrator.sav.

    Could it be this?  One person had an issue with Google responses:

    http://ccm.net/faq/36795-google-how-to-turn-off-spoken-answers

    Regards,

    RCH


    jmitw said:

    i don't remember how it works with 10, but with earlier versions, windows automatically saved a restore point, and you could do a system restore back to that point (usually a day or 2 ago).  One of the versions didn't do this...I don't remember if it was 10.

    system restore doesn't affect files.

    Recovery options in Windows 10 - Microsoft Support

    support.microsoft.com › en-us › windows › recovery-o...Restore from a system restore point In the Control Panel search box, type recovery. Select Recovery > Open System Restore. In the Restore system files and setting box, select Next. Select the restore point that you want to use in the list of results, and then select Scan for affected programs.

    this is a good idea, though I'm not sure what it actually restores. you'd have to go back to a point where you didn't have the narrator problem.


    i've used system restore a few times when odd things happen and it worked...yes it has to be at a point from before the problem started.


    Since Win + Ctl + Enter hasn't worked, is there some kind of Ease of Use setting that bundles in the narration activity? Something like that could have made changes you didn't realize were happening at the time. I doubt it though. That narration sounds comprehensively annoying. It appeared when you started up, huh? I'd look down jmitw's avenue of thought, myself.

    I run MacOS so I am not up to date on Windows. Do you recall what happened concerning your Lenovo more than few days ago? Anything odd you remember? Can you look up the laptop's specific model online somewhere? Maybe someone else has run across the same thing.

    https://www.tenforums.com/general-support/119983-narrator-voice-randomly-speaking-windows-10-a.html

    Some entertaining banter on there.


    Answer to all above issues: get a Mac.  cheese


    bikefixed said:

    Since Win + Ctl + Enter hasn't worked, is there some kind of Ease of Use setting that bundles in the narration activity? Something like that could have made changes you didn't realize were happening at the time. I doubt it though. That narration sounds comprehensively annoying. It appeared when you started up, huh? I'd look down jmitw's avenue of thought, myself.

    I run MacOS so I am not up to date on Windows. Do you recall what happened concerning your Lenovo more than few days ago? Anything odd you remember? Can you look up the laptop's specific model online somewhere? Maybe someone else has run across the same thing.

    https://www.tenforums.com/general-support/119983-narrator-voice-randomly-speaking-windows-10-a.html

    Some entertaining banter on there.

    that thread raises an interesting question - is it actually windows narrator that is speaking, or is it some other program? 


    bikefixed said:

    Since Win + Ctl + Enter hasn't worked, is there some kind of Ease of Use setting that bundles in the narration activity? Something like that could have made changes you didn't realize were happening at the time. I doubt it though. That narration sounds comprehensively annoying. It appeared when you started up, huh? I'd look down jmitw's avenue of thought, myself.

    I run MacOS so I am not up to date on Windows. Do you recall what happened concerning your Lenovo more than few days ago? Anything odd you remember? Can you look up the laptop's specific model online somewhere? Maybe someone else has run across the same thing.

    https://www.tenforums.com/general-support/119983-narrator-voice-randomly-speaking-windows-10-a.html

    Some entertaining banter on there.

     True, I have read much of that "banter" in the forums.  Though tit may not happen that often, it seems to drive everyone as crazy as it's driven ne


    I think I'm out the woods now, and Sprout, you may have hit the nail on the head.  We found something called "Reader" rather than "Narrator" and turned that off.  All seems to be back to normal now (cross your fingers).

    Thanks to all for the time you took to help get to the bottom of this!  Hip, hip, HOORAY, MOL!


    Juniemoon said:

    I think I'm out the woods now, and Sprout, you may have hit the nail on the head.....

    hip, hip, HOORAY, MOL!

     Yay!


    Any tips on recovering the  camera function on Lenovo's?



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