textweaver

License: GPL-3.0-or-later · Language: Rust · source

textweaver is a document reader and writer that speaks. Open a Word document, PDF, EPUB, Markdown file, or plain text and it reads aloud while a highlight follows each spoken word; switch to writing and it echoes the letters and words you type. It remembers where you were in every file and picks up there next time.

It is designed first for people who use a screen reader or a Braille display, and for students with print disabilities. It comes in two forms that share documents, settings, and keys: a graphical app, and a terminal reader, tw, that needs no mouse and draws no graphics — the form many screen reader users prefer, and a dependable fallback anywhere the app is awkward. The keys are the same on every platform: Space to read and pause, Alt+Up and Alt+Down by sentence, H to the next heading, F2 for a palette listing every command.

textweaver can speak with its own voice or leave the speaking to your screen reader. On Windows it works with NVDA and JAWS, and that is the combination tested by ear, with a 40-cell Braille display; VoiceOver on macOS and Orca on Linux have had basic testing so far, with more planned. The interface and the speech come in English, Spanish, German, French, Portuguese, and Arabic — the first two reviewed by native speakers, the others not yet, and the project says so.

It is in beta. The documentation keeps a page of known limits stating what does not work yet, so you can decide what to rely on before you use it for something that matters. Settings, keys, and file formats may still change between releases.

textweaver grew out of star, the Python reader on this same page, and now stands on its own: a fresh codebase, built for the same people. The two are developed side by side.

Rust, all of it — the interface is drawn with Masonry and Vello and speaks to assistive technology through AccessKit — with one self-contained download per platform: Linux (x86-64 and ARM), macOS, and Windows, each holding the app, the terminal reader, the speech helpers, and the full documentation. Code and documentation: github.com/leavesofgrass/textweaver.