Adaptive Software & Equipment

I. Low Vision  ZoomText Plus CCTV II. Screen Readers Jaws III. Specialized Word Processing Software HandiWord Wivik IV. Blind Student Adaptive Devices Screen Readers software Braille Output TeleSensory Versapoint

Braille Translator Megadots Tactile Image Enhancer Reading Machines Kurzweil V. Pointing Devices Head Master Wivik Gyro Mouse VI. Speech Recognition Dragon Dictate Naturally Speaking

I. Low Vision Students with vision impairments may not be able to read the characters displayed on the screen because of their size or color. This category of software modifies the video process in the computer enabling the student to control the size of the text generated on the screen. Most software in this category allow for flexible control of text size. The larger the text becomes however, a smaller portion of the entire screen the student is able to see, requiring the student to control a scrolling process which provides access to the entire screen. Also, color contrast can be used to increase legibility. The display colors can be inverted so the text is white and the background is black. < return to top of page > ZoomText Plus (Win): Ztwin is a standard Windows application program. Ztwin is a software based large print display program, which magnifies both text and graphics. It is compatible with the majority of commonly used Windows applications. Ztwin can adjust text magnification to l6x either horizontally, vertically or both. Also, it is able to track the movement of the mouse cursor, the text caret, menus, or keyboard-controlled selection of Windows controls, such as buttons, check boxes, and radio buttons. The tracking options may be used separately or in combination. The program contains a wide array of options that benefit persons with low vision. Scrolling of enlarged text is smooth and very controllable. Closed Circuit TV (CCTV): Text magnifier. < return to top of page > II. Screen Reader They work in conjunction with either a speech synthesizer or certain sound cards to provide verbalization of everything on the screen including menus, text, punctuation, and graphical buttons. This software makes a computer accessible to limited or no vision students, for it can be used with a scanner to provide access to printed material, confirm keystrokes, and commands without needing to look at the screen. Jaws: Jaws for windows provides the information that is needed by visually impaired PC users to easily navigate in the Windows environment. Jaws is a powerful set of screen reading tools that opens the world of Windows and provides access to the latest software applications. < return to top of page > III. Specialized Word Processing Software Many disabled students are very slow using the keyboard. Generating a word processing document may be an extremely time. consuming process as a result. Software exists to help with this problem. Whether as a stand alone word processing program, or as a word prediction program which works on top of an existing word processing program, this type of software reduces the keystrokes necessary to produce a document. With this software running, as a student types, based on the keystrokes entered, the program "guesses" what word the student is trying to type, and displays these guesses at the top of the screen. If the student notices one of the guesses is the actual word that they are trying to generate, a single keystroke selects and enters it into their document. It is claimed that such software reduces keystroking by 75%. HandiWORD (Win): HandiWORD is a statistically weighted word predictor which can save keyboard input time. HandiWORD learns what words are used most often and adjusts itself to predict those words first. The more HandiWORD is used, the more it learns to "think" like the user. In addition to the extensive dictionary that is provided with HandiWORD, the user can add and remove words. WiVik Rate Enhancement Pak (Win): this is a word predictor much like HandiWORD. However this is an option which blends with the on-screen keyboard WiViK. < return to top of page > IV. Blind Student Adaptive Devices There are several hardware and software solutions available for blind or severe sight impaired students. Braille Output: The High Tech Center has the equipment to produce Braille documents. TeleSensory Versapoint: This Braille Embosser prints at a rate of 40 characters per second, and it allows for various paper sizes and weight. Its memory can hold up to 30 Braille pages. And, it can print sideways. Braille Translator: This software transfers computer generated text into Braille data. It creates a Braille version of the original text file, which can be embossed. Megadots: This is a word processor that is also a Braille translator. It can be used with a screen reader for typing. The text can be printed as Braille or ink print. It contains a user-friendly spell check and can import and translate DOS and Windows word processor documents. It offers grade I and 2 Braille. It contains Braille paragraph style help menus. Tactile Image Enhancer: This is a high quality graphical embosser. It raises images so they can be felt. It can be used to raise images, which can not be translated into Braille like pictures, or music scores, or mathematical graphs. < return to top of page > Reading Machines A reading machine transforms printed material into an electronic data form that is read by a speech synthesizer. Kurzweil: This is a stand-alone reading machine, which incorporates a scanner, speech synthesizer, and other components into a single unit. It has voice type and speed control as well as punctuation and tone control. It can easily read books, handouts, and printouts. But it cannot read hand written papers or notes. It can scan, recognize, and store up to thirty pages before beginning to read. Its control pad is the size of a numerical keypad. < return to top of page > V. Pointing Devices Students with severely limited hand mobility or limited speech may be able to use a pointing device to access a computer. A pointing device or typing aid is typically a wand or stick used to strike keys on the keyboard. They are commonly worn on the head, held in the mouth, strapped to the chin, or held in the hand. They can be used with alternate keyboards such as an on-screen keyboard which can be accessed with a track ball or a head mouse. < return to top of page > Head Master: Head master is for students who are unable to use their hands but have good head control. Head master replaces the mouse with a head set. The headset moves the mouse cursor on the screen. All mouse actions can be performed with it. A puff switch or other switches perform the mouse button clicks. In order to enter text, an on screen keyboard like WiViK is needed. WiViK: WiVik is an on screen keyboard that enables students to type with any Windows pointing device (such as a Headmaster, track ball, mouse, etc) in any Windows application. Keys are selected by pointing to the keyboard and clicking or dwelling. The keyboard is a movable, resizable window. It has word predication with the rate enhancement package. Gyro-Mouse: This device is designed to provide reliable mouse manipulation for people with disablities. VI. Speech Recognition DragonDictate for Windows: DragonDictate is a large vocabulary, speech-recognition system. It lets you enter commands and dictate text with speech. DragonDictate can be used with most Windows applications and Windows itself It can work with a keyboard, mouse, or completely hands free. The dictation is done with short pauses between words. It can reach dictation speeds of up to 35 words per minutes. Dragon Naturally Speaking: Dragon Naturally Speaking is a speaker dependent, continuous speech recognition system. The active vocabulary size is 30,000 words with a 230,000-word dictionary, which allows for accurate word prediction and spelling. Text can be dictated at around one hundred words per minute at very high levels of accuracy. This program is recommended for persons with repetitive strain injury or moderate to severe physical disabilities. < return to top of page >