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SOFTWARE


JAWS

Jaws is a very popular screen reader for Windows that enables easy access to the web, e-mail, and many other software applications. It uses its internal speech synthesizer or the computer’s sound chip to generate spoken words of whatever text is shown on the screen. It can also translate to refreshable Braille displays in either computer or grade 2 Braille. Jaws is also fully capable of reading image descriptions, HTML, links, and is fully compatible with all preinstalled Windows applications such as Internet Explorer and Outlook, and separate software as well. Included in the package is an easy-to-use installation disc that even provides spoken step-by-step instructions for installation and tutorials on how to navigate Windows using Jaws.


http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_jaws.asp


FSReader

FSReaser is a new DAISY format Audio e-book reader for a PC or a PAC Mate. It is capable of reading audio books from RFB&D and all DAISY 2.0 or DASY 3.0 formats that are either downloaded, or purchased as a CD. FSReader also allows you to create your very own bookmarks and even give them names to quickly return to them later. It offers complete control over narration speed, fast forward, backtrack, and chapter and heading skipping. With JAWS used in conjunction with FSReader, you can quickly switch between spoken audio, and synthesized spoken text and follow along on screen or on a refreshable Braille display as it is spoken.


http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_FSReader.asp


MAGIc

MAGIc is an extremely versatile screen magnification tool for Windows that enables magnification of anything on the screen up to 16 times and also has the option to synthesize speech from text. MAGIc is compatible with JAWS and can work together to give you superb flexibility. It includes numerous viewing options where you can adjust the appearance of the mouse cursor for easy locating, choose whether you want the whole screen magnified, half of it, or only the section where the mouse points to, and it features text highlighting facilities for keeping track of placement when reading. In addition, it also includes a spoken step-by-step installation disc and an online help service. With its available enhancements to the mouse cursor, colors, contrast, and multiple magnification modes, it is one of the best tools out there for PCs.


http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_magic.asp


OpenBook

OpenBook is a quality text-to-speech conversion application that enables you to translate any text shown on the computer screen into synthesized speech on your computer. It allows the use of RealSpeak and ViaVoice (two popular voice synthesizers) to playback the text, and even allows you to save the spoken text as an MP3 or WAV audio file with the exact narrating speed and pitch you want for quick and easy playback on a notetaker or iPod. OpenBook is not only for use with digital text, it includes an OCR (optical character recognition) engine that converts scanned text documents into digital text. Detailed adjustments can be made to the scanned text, such as character spacing, font, color, and size. It also has a useful skimming tool that reads aloud the first and last sentences of any paragraph you select to quickly find the place you are looking for. A multi-user interface is available for educators of the visually impaired because it creates libraries of each user’s documents, and remembers the settings each user has set to help them see the screen.


http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_open.asp


More Accessibility with Mac OS X Leopard

One of the world’s most advanced and easy-to-use operating systems, Mac OS X Leopard, boasts several new facilities that take accessibility for the visually impaired to a new level. Leopard features all the same accessibility tools that were available on Tiger, but picks up where it left off. A new, highly advanced synthesized speaking voice named “Alex” has been added that is much more accurate and understandable than the others that have existed in Mac OS for years. The biggest Improvement of all is the new Braille capabilities, which allow for quick and setup-free use of compatible USB Braille displays. It is so easy to use, it is literally plug in and go. There is no installation required and the Braille displays can even be used to aide in the installation of Leopard itself. So far, it is compatible with 30 different USB Braille displays. The built-in Voiceover screen reader and speech synthesis now work together better than ever with more options and capabilities that allow you to make much finer adjustments to screen navigation, the content that it speaks, and voice commands. Even better, all Apple computers now come preinstalled with Leopard, which makes it very convenient to have these powerful tools at your disposal straight out of the box. This means, that unlike PC computers, all of these capabilities come on board Leopard, saving you hundreds of dollars on additional software purcheses. Click on the link below to see a list of all the compatible USB Braille displays.


http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=306815