HearLingo Companion Service (Windows x64)
==========================================

WHAT IS THIS?
The HearLingo browser extension reads video subtitles aloud in your
language. This companion program provides the speech and translation
engine locally on your computer.

HOW TO USE
1. Extract this folder anywhere (e.g. C:\HearLingo).
2. Double-click HearLingoService.exe.
   - Windows may show "Windows protected your PC" (Microsoft Defender
     SmartScreen) for first-time downloads of apps without a long install
     history. The app is not blocked - click "More info", then
     "Run anyway".
   - Some browsers show a milder dialog instead: "cannot verify the
     publisher" - tick the checkbox "Always ask before opening" OFF or
     simply click "Run".
   - Allow through the firewall if prompted.
   - The app runs entirely silently: no window, no pop-up dialogs.
     You are ready when the extension's floating ball turns green
     (the extension popup shows the connection status).
     If it does not turn green, check the logs (see NOTE below).
3. The extension's floating ball turns green when connected.
   Afterwards the extension starts the service automatically
   whenever needed - no manual steps required.

NOTE: no window stays open while the service runs - it works entirely
in the background. Logs are written to %LOCALAPPDATA%\HearLingo\logs.

WHY THE WARNING APPEARS
The program is not code-signed yet. SmartScreen judges apps by how many
people have run them before: a brand-new download from a small publisher
gets the warning regardless of what the app does. It is a reputation
signal, not a malware finding. It disappears once the publisher builds
install history or ships a signed build.

HOW TO STOP
- Click "Stop" next to the green status in the extension popup, or
- End HearLingoService.exe in Task Manager.

HOW TO UPGRADE
1. Stop the service first (see HOW TO STOP above) - otherwise files
   are locked and cannot be overwritten.
2. Extract the new zip to the same location (overwrite all files).
3. Double-click HearLingoService.exe. Your settings are preserved.

TROUBLESHOOTING
- Port 8790 already in use: stop the running service first
  (see HOW TO STOP).
- SmartScreen: see "WHY THE WARNING APPEARS" above - it is a
  first-download reputation notice, not a malware finding.
- Logs: %LOCALAPPDATA%\HearLingo\logs

PRIVACY
- Speech synthesis: subtitle text sent to Microsoft Edge TTS cloud.
- Translation: subtitle text sent to online providers (Google, MyMemory).
- OCR: runs 100% locally, no frames leave your computer.
- No analytics, no personal data collected.

License: Proprietary. (c) 2026 HearLingo. All rights reserved.
