🚀 go-pugleaf

                            THE BLIND NEWS DIGEST

                                 Issue # 1060

                           Thursday, July 14, 1994

Today's Topics:


                                ******


                        Re: Speech recognition help n
                            Re: Special Keyboards
                Re: Braille output devices for PC compatibles
                              Blind Web Access
                             Re: Info for friend
                           Braille Blazer Forsale
           announcing Vendors of Assistive Technology mailing list
                   Screen magnification development effort
                 Re: Computers for blind people in Thailand?
                           Braille Scanner/Printer
                 Re: Screen magnification development effort
                         Blind and Foreign in Japan
                        Reader for Visually Impaired
                       Re: Blind Athlete Association?
                        Help on video for low vision


                                ******


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                              Bill McGarry (Moderator)
                              (203) 926-6187



------



Subject: Re: Speech recognition help n
From: flip@sage.cc.purdue.edu (Phillip D. Russell)
Organization: Purdue University

In article <32850@handicap.news>, kate.kaul@ablelink.org (Kate Kaul) wrote:

> Index Number: 32850
>
> ET> Hello All,
> ET>         I need speech recognition capability for a duo powerbook or
> ET> whatever.  Any help on this is urgently needed.  I need to know price, and
> ET> if it exists.  Does it also work on my Mac Classic II ???
>
> Last time I checked, I was told there was nothing portable YET.
> I also don't know of anything that works on a Mac.  You need
> something that'll hold a sound card; can a laptop do this?

Speech Recognition works on ALL PowerMacs without any special hardware
(except for the microphone). The Speech Recognition software comes
with all AV PowerMacs, and has to be purchased separately for
non-AV PowerMacs.

When the PowerPC 603+ chip is ready for the PowerBooks (laptop macs),
then there will be portable speech recognition.

Flip

--
         __@    Phillip "Flip" Russell  | Purdue University      __@
  _ -_,_-\<,_   flip@sage.cc.purdue.edu | West Lafayette, IN  _ -\<,_
 (_)-----/-(_)           The important things...             (_)-/-(_)
                        My bikes and my Macintosh




------



Subject: Re: Special Keyboards
From: joec@hookup.net (Joe Clark)
Organization: HookUp Communication Corporation, Oakville, Ontario, CANADA

> I have a customer who has hired a visually impaired person, they are
> > looking for a black keyboard with white letters.  Any ideas on somewhere
> > I could send the customer?

Try 1-800-Lexmark. They're the IBM subsidiary that makes keyboards.

Key Tronic Corp. in Washington state, *the* biggest keyboard maker, may
have something.

I *know* I've seen ads for DOS compatibles with black keyboards. Head to
the library and flip through the pages of _PC_ magazine.

Also, though this is a religious issue, it is possible to order a standard
Macintosh keyboard in black. It's a replacement part for the Macintosh TV.
A dealer could dig that up. (The original poster should have specified a
hardware platform.)

Good luck!

--
                                           Joe Clark
                                        joec@hookup.net
                                     joeclark@scilink.org
                                     ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~




------



Subject: Re: Braille output devices for PC compatibles
From: ECZ5BUR@MVS.OAC.UCLA.EDU (Patrick J. Burke)

A few remarks as a braille user for nearly 25 years & a
braille display user for about 4 years (mostly 1 40-cell
Navigator).
Firstly, it should be noted that, since computer braille uses
an 8-dot system, most braille displays have 8 dots per cell. Thus a
40-cell device has 320 pins, not 240, so the problems with cost &
dot failure are that much more difficult.
Questions were also raised about the physical braille reading process.
I can read easliy with 3 fingers on each hand, but I usually use 2
each. The technique I was trained to use involves reading the
first half of a line with the left hand, which returns to the
margin while the right hand finishes the line. The left hand
then begins the next line while the right moves down one & back
to pick up the second half of line 2. And so on.

Why use more than one finger? Probably for the same reason that 4 TV
stations have to cover the same crime story live. Actually it does
increase the chances of having direct contact with whole
words rather than isolated characters. The key principle (also
familiar to Optacon users) is that comprehension comes not only from
the dots immediately under the fingers, but from the effect of
moving the hands across the page. Thus, a single, scrolling braille
cell would be a very poor solution. A window of at least 5 & probably
more like 10 cells would be to be the minimum necessary for easy
comprehension. I would think that the dots should not scroll
continuously unless this could be done absolutely smoothly, since a
jumping display is very difficult to follow.
By the same token, I have found that 80-cell displays require
*too much* hand motion. In many situations, even a 20-cell device
is actually faster & still gives enough of a sense of what is
happening on the screen as a whole.
Finally, some braille printers can be used to produce some
graphics. These are, however, usually not much more than junk
on a single-line braille display. Icons would have to be converted
into words or unusual character strings, & fancy boxes & borders
would ideally just be stripped out.

Patrick Burke
!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!
s:   In the end it took me a diction'ry        s:
l_   To find out the meaning of "unrequited".  l_
<>   --Billy Bragg                             <>
%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%!%




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Subject: Blind Web Access
From: tholton@cabell.vcu.edu (Tara Kent-Holton)
Organization: Virginia Commonwealth University


Most of what I've heard about WWW seems to imply that you need a mac
or windows to access it.  But I have also heard that there are sites
where line editor access is available.  Can anyone give me
information on such access?  Thanks.




------



Subject: Re: Info for friend
From: ebohlman@netcom.com (Eric Bohlman)
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)

Robert Rea (rear@ritz.mordor.com) wrote:
: Index Number: 32891

: Hi, I have a friend whose lifeline has been email. Now he is becoming
: blind. What solutions are available to him? He has soem friends who might
: come and read his mail to him, but that is a stopgap. I just need basic

Thousands of blind people use email and other computer applications.
There are four basic ways for a blind person to access a computer
display.  The first, and not recommended, is the "snot-on-the-screen"
method in which the user presses his nose and eyes up against the
screen.  This is tiring and inefficient at best, and is impossible if the
user doesn't have enough vision to make out the display.  The second is
to use software or hardware to magnify (or, if the user has a problem
that results in narrow visual fields, shrink) the display.  The main
problem here can be that the bigger the characters, the fewer you can get
on the display at a time and you have to do a great deal of panning and
scrolling.  If large magnification is needed, this can result in a
process akin to reading the screen through a straw, which is also tiring
and inefficient.  In some cases, using an extra-large monitor can
overcome this problem.

The third possibility is speech output.  This involves using a speech
synthesizer (a piece of hardware) along with a program called a screen
reader, which is a memory-resident program that lets the user route text
from the screen to the synthesizer.  This is probably the most common
method.  The fourth possibility is to use a refreshable Braille display;
this is relatively uncommon because such displays are very expensive
(also, few people who lost their sight as adults have learned Braille,
and those who lost their sight to complications of diabetes (the most
common cause of adult-onset blindness) often have neuropathy that makes
Braille reading impossible).

Some people use more than one technique.  Some people might use speech to
skim text and then switch to magnified text when they come to an item of
interest.  Some people prefer to use speech for narrative text, and
Braille for tables or program listings.

With all these techniques, the blind user runs the same application
programs (such as mail readers) as a sighted person would.  The adaptive
software simply bridges the gap between the user interface presented by
the application and the user's senses.

As far as computer *input* is concerned, a blind user doesn't need any
adaptations unless something else restricts his ability to use a
keyboard.  The ability to touch-type is very helpful, of course.
Screen-reading software for speech users has the ability to read
keystrokes back to the user, and will usually announce shift states like
caps lock.  If your friend is a hunt-and-pecker, now is the time for him
to learn touch-typing.





------



Subject: Braille Blazer Forsale
From: kford@netcom.com (Kelly Ford)
Organization: NETCOM On-line Communication Services (408 261-4700 guest)

I have a Braille Blazer braille printer forsale.  The unit's in excellent
condition, having printed maybe 100 pages.  I'm asking $1,000 or best
offer (no reasonable offer will be refused).

For more information you can write me at kford@netcom.com or call (608)
263-0804.

--
                                             kford@netcom.com




------



Subject: announcing Vendors of Assistive Technology mailing list
From: robbie@KRAMDEN.PHAEDRAV.ON.CA (G. Robert Arrabito)
Organization: Arrabito Enterprises

For quite some time now, I've been looking for a mailing list that
caters to vendors of assistive technology.
As a blind consumer, I would like to know who the various vendors are in
my surrounding area. For example, about a few months ago, I found out of
a vendor of assistive technology near me. I'm told this vendor has been
in the business for about seven years but I never heard of it. Now I'm on
the mailing list and am impressed with the prices and services offered.
I'm sure that there are quite a few of you out there that have experienced
the same thing.

So, I am setting up an unmoderated mailing list called
VAT (Vendors of Assistive Technology).
This list is open to any vendor of assistive technology (e.g., products and
services for the blind, visually impaired, deaf, learning disabled, etc.) who
would like to make themselves known to the public at large.
Feel free to advertise your products and services.
Similarly, if you're a consumer, you can post to the list in order to find
the vendor(s) in your area who sells/repairs product X.

To subscribe to the VAT mailing list, send a message to:

        listserv@kramden.PhaedraV.on.ca

and in the body of the message say:

        subscribe VAT "firstname lastname"

For example, the following command will add John Doe to the VAT mailing list.

        subscribe VAT "John Doe"

Please circulate this announcement.


--
Robert Arrabito
e-mail: robbie@kramden.PhaedraV.on.ca




------



Subject: Screen magnification development effort
From: earlj@KDAT.ENG.SUN.COM (Earl Johnson)

Hi;

The purpose of this email is to obtain user level information on screen
magnification tasks and functions. Please email your responses to the
below questions to both:
        earl.johnson@eng.sun.com
        daxc@trace15.waisman.wisc.edu

This information will be used for the Disability Action Committee for X
(DACX) ScreenMag project. DACX is a group of Unix based computer
companies, access technology companies, research centers, and
individuals who have come together for the purpose of solving the X
Window system access challenge. Our projects, which are aimed at
standards bodies, include:
        - AccessX, keyboard enhancements for users with physical
          disabilities (shipping in the X11R6 version of the X Window
          server)
        - Screen reader hooks (shipping in X11R6) and libraries (a
          contrib item in X11R6)
                = These supply the framework neccessary for X based
                  screen reader development
        - An access chapter and input for the Motif toolkit styleguide
                = Application developers reference this during development

The input you provide will be combined with feedback from screen
magnification development companies in our effort to provide
standardized, platform based developer tools. The results of our
efforts will benefit all users of the X11R6 Window server. The X11
server is used in the DEC, HP, IBM, Sun, and Silicon Graphics
platforms.

Our questions are:
        - How do you use screen magnification in your everyday work?
                = Short real-life examples would be helpful

        - What specific tasks do you use screen magnification to accomplish?
                = What applications do you use to perform these tasks?

        - What types of tasks would you like to do with screen
          magnification, but are currently unable to do?
                = Why are you unable to do these tasks?
                = Short real-life examples would be helpful

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions,

Earl Johnson
Manager, Enabling Technologies
Sun Microsystem Laboratories




------



Subject: Re: Computers for blind people in Thailand?
From: hksbfred@ctsc.hkbc.hk (Hong Kong Society for the Blind)

Hi, Bill,

> here in Thailand is looking for computer equipment/program for the blind
> people to use. Do you know if I can get any information on the subject?
> Thank you and sorry to have bother you. -Pol-
>
If what Pol wanted was just info on how blind people could use computers, then
there would be a lot of related info to give, of course.  Such as speech
synthesizers, refreshable braille displays and screen review programmes etc.  If
he (sorry if Pol is a lady's name) was asking for used second-hand computers,
then he should contact Dr. Yvette Marrin, President, National Cristina
Foundation, 42 Hillcrest Drive, Pelham Manor, NY 10803, USA.  Phone: (914)
738-7494. Fax: (914) 738-1571.

Regards,

Fred



 Fred Leung            Internet :               Hong Kong Society for the
                         hksbfred@ctsc.hkbc.hk    Blind
                       Phone  :      7788332    248 Nam Cheong Street
                       Fax    :      7880040    Sham Shui Po
                       Country code: 852        Kowloon
                                                Hong Kong
                                                          ***
 Supervisor                                     Centralized Braille Produc-
                                                  tion Centre
 Adaptive Technology   Time : GMT +8.00         Technical and Advisory
   Co-ordinator                                   Services Centre





------



Subject: Braille Scanner/Printer
From: lepage@server.uwindsor.ca (Louis J. LePage)
Organization: University of Windsor, Ontario, Canada

        I am beginning my final design project and thesis report for
Electrical Engineering here at the University of Windsor.  I am looking for as
much information related to my topic as possible, especially contacts at the
CNIB or the American Institute for the Blind R&D facility.

        My main project encompases the design of a braille scanner for the IBM
compatible PC.  This will be a serial/parallel port peripheral controlled by
software.  The scanner will take in a braille document, scan it (with surface
scanning methods, not light intensity like standard hand/page scanners), and
then the software will convert the data to a text file using braille
conversion libraries.

        I would like to know the feasibility of this project, and any past
work or current devices which do the same thing.

        If time permits, I will extend the device to be able to work as a
stand-alone model.  This will output data to a 2x40 LCD screen and a text to
voice speech processor.  The model would then return data straight to the PC
like a modem connection, and standard communication software could be used.
The difficulty with this is the changing braille library.  I realize that
there are many short forms for words, contractions, etc.

        Also, I am looking for an entire North American braille standards
document with all possible words, abbreviations, characters, symbols, etc.

        Even further, I am interested in making a PC compatible peripheral for
printing braille.  This would use the same library to convert the standard
english document to braille.

        Thank you for all your replies in advance.  ;-)

--
/\=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=/\
\/  The Woodbine/2 BBS - BBS/Fax: (519) 254-2023 Voice: (519) 971-9774 \/
/\  Megs of OS/2 Files,  Maximus, Fido: 1:246/66    19.2 ZyXEL/14.4v32 /\
\/=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=\/






------



Subject: Re: Screen magnification development effort
From: earlj@kdat.Eng.Sun.COM (Earl Johnson)

Hi;

The purpose of this email is to obtain user level information on screen
magnification tasks and functions. Please email your responses to the
below questions to both:
        earl.johnson@eng.sun.com
        daxc@trace15.waisman.wisc.edu

This information will be used for the Disability Action Committee for X
(DACX) ScreenMag project. DACX is a group of Unix based computer
companies, access technology companies, research centers, and
individuals who have come together for the purpose of solving the X
Window system access challenge. Our projects, which are aimed at
standards bodies, include:
        - AccessX, keyboard enhancements for users with physical
          disabilities (shipping in the X11R6 version of the X Window
          server)
        - Screen reader hooks (shipping in X11R6) and libraries (a
          contrib item in X11R6)
                = These supply the framework neccessary for X based
                  screen reader development
        - An access chapter and input for the Motif toolkit styleguide
                = Application developers reference this during development

The input you provide will be combined with feedback from screen
magnification development companies in our effort to provide
standardized, platform based developer tools. The results of our
efforts will benefit all users of the X11R6 Window server. The X11
server is used in the DEC, HP, IBM, Sun, and Silicon Graphics
platforms.

Our questions are:
        - How do you use screen magnification in your everyday work?
                = Short real-life examples would be helpful

        - What specific tasks do you use screen magnification to accomplish?
                = What applications do you use to perform these tasks?

        - What types of tasks would you like to do with screen
          magnification, but are currently unable to do?
                = Why are you unable to do these tasks?
                = Short real-life examples would be helpful

Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions,

Earl Johnson
Manager, Enabling Technologies
Sun Microsystem Laboratories




------



Subject: Blind and Foreign in Japan
From: jdresner@husc.harvard.edu (Jonathan F. Dresner)

Being Blind and Foreign in Yamaguchi, Japan

     I am a graduate student of Japanese History who will be doing
research on emigration and Meiji social history for a year in Yamaguchi
City, Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. My wife, who is blind, will be
accompanying me. I have lived in Japan before, but always in large cities
(Nagoya, Tokyo), and those stays predate our relationship, so I never made
any attempt to find out anything about what it would be like to be blind,
much less blind and foreign, in Japan. Nor have I experience at living in
a fairly isolated city of 126,000 people; even in the US I am used to
cities like Washington DC, San Francisco and Boston.

     I have done a bit of investigation about blindness in Japan, but the
sparse references I have found relate to education of the blind (and the
best of it is at least 6 years old), rather than the lives of adults,
attitudes of Japanese towards the blind (or people with other physical or
mental handicaps). Aside from references to the traditional occupations of
masseur, newspaper stand vendor and piano tuner, I can find very little
detail.

     I have also done considerable research on the history of
Yamaguchi prefecture and city, but that doesn't help me much in
knowing how to live there.

     SO, if anyone has information about either subject, or
references to people who do, or to publications (even fiction,
but spare me the _Zatoichi_ stuff) in either English or Japanese
(or Russian, which my wife reads), please post it (if you think
anyone else is interested in hearing about this) and send replies
to me (jdresner@husc.harvard.edu) or my wife, Woody
(abauer@tyrell.net).

     Thanks in advance!





------



Subject: Reader for Visually Impaired
From: triqua@telerama.lm.com (True Heart)
Organization: Telerama Public Access Internet, Pittsburgh, PA

For Sale: Xerox/Kurzweil Personal Reader

     In excellent condition.  Scans printed materials and reads them
aloud in any of nine clear voices.  Features volume, reading speed, and
intonation controls, dot-matrix recognition, hand and automatic,
book-edge scanners, compatibility with most Dos machines for text storage
and retrieval, ability to act as speech synthesizer, and much more.

     Machine is compact, main unit is portable and has headphone jack for
privacy in libraries and classrooms, and no understanding of computers is
needed.  Even children can use the KPR with ease.  Comes with
high-quality carrying case and manuals in print, braille, and on
cassette.  I will also answer any questions the new owner may have.

Asking price: $2700 or best offer.  Please E-mail
Triqua@Telerama.Lm.Com.  Thank you.
--
"What else could I write?
I don't have the right..."





------



Subject: Re: Blind Athlete Association?
From: 19410gmd@ibm.cl.msu.edu (Gail M. Dummer)
Organization: Michigan State University

In article <32901@handicap.news>, cp0k+@andrew.cmu.edu (Claire Rene Palmgren)
says:
>
>Index Number: 32901
>
>Does anyone have a contact name for the Blind Athlete's Associaton? I
>don't know the formal name of the association, but I am interested in
>the organization which involves visually impaired people pairing up with
>a sighted person on tandem bikes.  Any info would be greatly appreciated.
>
The organization is as follows:

Charles Huebner, Executive Director
U.S. Association of Blind Athletes
33 North Institute Street
Brown  Hall, Suite #015
Colorado Springs, CO 80903




------



Subject: Help on video for low vision
From: Benjamin.Littenberg@Dartmouth.EDU (Benjamin Littenberg)

I am a medical researcher doing work on patient's attitudes towards various
health states (How bad would you feel if you went blind or had a stroke?).
My interview instrument is a Mac Hypercard stack.  I just got a grant from
the US National Eye Institute to do these studies on patients with visison
impairment.  We want to use equipment that will allow patients with very low
vision to participate.  Therefore, I am looking for information on video
monitors and other output equipment for the vision impaired.  Can you help?

Many thanks.
===========================
Benjamin Littenberg, MD
Technology Assessment Program
Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center
Lebanon, NH USA 03756
voice:  603-650-8785
facsimile:  603-650-8972
internet:  benjamin.littenberg@dartmouth.edu




------






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                 End of Issue # 1060 of the Blind News Digest

                                ******