How do I change a button's image, label, and speech message?

Communication systems should be personalized to the user, and editing buttons is one of the many ways to make that happen!  This article will cover how to edit a button's image, label, and speech message.

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Navigate to "Edit Mode."  
Note:  All subsequent sections will assume that you are in "Edit Mode."

1. Navigate to the page you would like to edit.
2. Enter edit mode by choosing Menu in the upper left corner, then Edit. You can also hit F2 if you have a keyboard connected to the device or are editing on a desktop.

3. Choose the button you would like to edit. The right-hand panel will display editing options for the button you selected.

   

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Changing the Button Image

The "button image" is the picture that is on each button.  

1. Select the image icon

2. The Choose image pop-up will appear.

   

3. Type to search for a symbol. To choose a symbol, scroll through the available symbol options and click to make your choice. You can also select Choose symbol sets to select which symbol sets to search.
   1. Other image options in the top bar of this pop-up include:
      1. Web Search to search web images
      2. Gallery for images already uploaded to the pageset
      3. From disk to upload images saved to the WinSlate or USB
      4. Screenshot to screen capture outside of Mind Express
      5. Camera to use the WinSlate camera to take a photo

   2. Once you select an image, you can edit certain aspects of its appearance by clicking the pencil tool in the upper right corner of the window.

      

   3. From here, you can edit the picture in a variety of ways.

      

      1.  Draw freehand onto the image
      2.  Erase a portion of the image.
      3. Draw a line onto the image
      4.  Fill a portion of the image and/or the background with a specific color
      5. Rotate the image
4. Once you have made your image selection, click the green OK button. The selected button will now have the image you chose.

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Changing the Button Label

The button label refers to the written text that is on each button.

1. In the editing pane under label, type the text you wish to be displayed on the button.

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Changing the Button Message

The "button message" is what the device will speak aloud and what will appear in the speech display bar when the button is pressed.  Usually, the button message matches the button label (i.e. when you press the "please" button, the device says "please"), but in cases where a single button is representing a longer message (i.e. scripts, presentations, providing information, etc.), the two may be different from each other.  For example, if you have a button that says, "My favorite foods are macaroni and cheese and pepperoni pizza!" when pressed, you may not want that whole sentence written as a label the button.  Instead, you may just want "Favorite Foods" to be the label.

1. Change the button message under Actions next to the speech bubble.  Type directly into the text box or press the pencil on the right side of the box top open up a larger window.

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Once you have finished editing your button(s):

• Select the green checkmark in the bottom right corner to finalize your changes.
• Select the "Save" button in the upper left corner of the screen

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Questions?  You are more than welcome to reach out to your local Assistive Technology Specialist:  Find a Specialist | Forbes AAC | Augmentative Communication