Techniques and tools are described for converting incoming and/or outgoing communications to usable and convenient formats. For example, a user selects a desired profile from a group of available profiles, and the selected profile is activated. If a first profile is selected and an incoming communication having a textual component is received while the first profile is active, then the textual component is converting to an audio format and recited. If a second profile is selected and an incoming communication having an audio component is received while the second profile is active, then the audio component is converted to a textual format and displayed.