How to Prevent Jumping from App to App

If you use TapToTalk on an iPad, iPhone or iPod touch, here is a helpful tip:

In the current version of iOS you can use a sidewards motion with a hand to switch between open apps. Kids seem to discover this quickly.

Most people don’t know how to close apps or just don't bother. So you may inadvertently have apps open.

This can cause a child to switch away from TapToTalk. Here is how to prevent this:

1. Go to the Settings app of the device
2. Select "General"
3. Turn “Multitasking Gestures” to “OFF”

Happy Mothers Day to TapToTalk Moms Everywhere

(Originally posted for Mother's Day 2010, it is as true today as it was then.)

Dear TapToTalk Mom,

It has been a privilege to get to know hundreds of you over the last year. A few face-to-face, more over the phone, and even more in email conversations, mom blogs and on Facebook. Nine out of ten of the parents we have contact with are moms.

You told us that when you found out you had a special needs child, your life changed in ways you'd never imagined. You found the strength and courage to carry on, to figure out how to get your child's needs met in a world that often did not seem to be able to respond, or even want to. Love is indeed a powerful force.

When we designed TapToTalk, you and your child were on our minds. We wanted to give you a tool to help your child communicate that was affordable and that your child would want to use. Now, we hear from you all the time. You tell us what we are doing right and what we need to improve. Your voice is heard in every one of our meetings, as we make decisions. We call it the TapToTalk Mom Test: “How will this work for the moms?”

Some of you told us that "you aren't good at computers," yet you wasted no time figuring out how to use TapToTalk Designer. You added pictures of your family and your child's favorite foods. You learned and worked hard for your child.

You have stunned us with your creativity in the ways you use TapToTalk to meet your child's needs. You bring smiles to our faces, and very often tears to our eyes, when you tell us how TapToTalk has helped you, your child, and your family.

You make what we do feel incredibly worthwhile every day. Please keep your feedback coming. We, and especially your child, could not do it without you.

Sincerely,
Lenny Greenberg and Phil Bookman
Founders of Assistyx, the TapToTalk Company

Why one Password and ID is not enough

You log in to TapToTalk Designer with your email address and Designer password.

You set up your device to play your TapToTalk with your TapToTalk ID and TapToTalk password.

Why don't we use the same login ID and password for both?

There are two reasons:

Reason 1-Security: If someone knows your Designer ID and password, they have complete access to your account. They can change anything, including the account information, like email address and password. They can see personal information and, possibly, change or delete albums or designs that you created.

However, if they only know your TapToTalk ID (a 10 digit number that is automatically created for each TapToTalk) and password (which you control in Designer), they can only download and play your albums on a device. If someone has your TapToTalk ID and password (for example, if you share the TapToTalk with them), they cannot use it to access your Designer account.

This is why we recommend that you not use the same password for Designer and your TapToTalk.

Reason 2-Designer Accounts with several TapToTalks: A single TapToTalk Pro or Agency account can have many individual TapToTalks. Each of those TapToTalks needs its own unique ID and password. That's how your device knows which one to play.

The good news is that you only need to enter the TapToTalk ID and password once, when you initially set up a device to use them. Unlike your Designer login information, you do not need to remember the TapToTalk ID and password. If you ever need them, you see them using the TapToTalks link in Designer.

TapToTalk Does Languages

At a recent conference for SLPs, a presenter confidently stated, "AAC apps don't do languages."

We beg to differ. As of this writing, we have heard from customers in more than 40 countries who are using TapToTalk in more than 20 languages.

With TapToTalk Designer, you can record the sounds played when a picture is tapped in any language. Anyone can do the recording. You are totally in control of the language, accent, voice and vocabulary. Similarly, wherever text is used, you can enter it in any language.

Designer also lets you use text-to-speech to generate the sounds in five languages (English, Spanish, French, German and Italian). But you can record the sounds in any language.

So at least one AAC app does languages--TapToTalk.

Here's more information.