How to implement a talking website

[geroid]

Hi

I'm looking into designing a website that will speak its contents to the user. So if they hover the mouse over a word, it would speak that word to them. At the moment I'm just looking for ideas of how to implement this. I understand that the words would have to be recorded and the files stored on the server accessible through a database search link. What I'm interested in right now is

1. What format would the audio file be in (that is for best quality and minimum size)

2. A click/hover of the mouse by a user results in a search of the database and retrieval of the appropriate audio file but how would this be sent to them and how would the web site play it.

 

I'm just looking for ideas now but would appreciate any help.

 

If anyone wants to look at the following web site they'll see exactly what I mean. It speaks the result to the user. How would I go about doing this?

 

http://www.howjsay.com/index.php?word=hellishly&submit=Submit

 

[ToonMariner]

http://www.w3.org/TR/CSS2/aural.html

[geroid]

Hi ToonMariner

Thanks for the reply. Do you think this is the way the example site that I gave is done. I was thinking that all the sound files would be in a database and retrieved as requested by the user. If it was a speaking dictionary, for example, would every word not have to be recorded as a sound file and retrieved from the database as needed?