Talking Desktop Clock

All operating systems provide clocks, but they are plain and uninteresting. If you want a better looking clock, with more functions, then you should definitely try Talking Desktop Clock. As the name implies, it is a clock for your desktop, which announces the hour, using a narrator and an animation. The software places many customization options at your disposal, so you can make your clock look and sound in various ways.

Talking Desktop Clock is offered free of charge and it works on Windows XP, Vista, Win 7 and Win 8. It takes about a minute to install the application on any modern day computer. When the process is complete, a second setup wizard will launch, to install MS Double Agent. Installing Double Agent is not mandatory, but it is needed for the clock's talking animations.

When launched, the application will immediately display an analog clock in the lower right area of the screen. Double clicking the application's system tray icon will display a user interface, on which you can customize the clock. The available customization options are organized in three different sections. Talking Desktop Clock allows you to choose from a wide variety of clock styles and adjust their appearance and behavior, select a chime and a speaking animation.

Besides generic analog and digital clocks, you can find other ones, which are made to look like classic mantel clocks or wall clocks, as well as modern ones. Additionally, you can set a transparent or colored background, set the clock to behave differently when you hover with the mouse cursor over it and make other adjustments. Customizing your own clocks is another possibility.

The application comes with many chimes and you can add your own sounds, if you have them in WAV format. Talking Desktop Clock can be set to play the selected chime every hour, half or quarter hour. You can also set it to play a chime every few minutes at all times or between certain hours. The same settings can be made to the talking animations. You can choose a different character, select a narrator and decide when the animation should talk.