[Ham-Computers] Know A Blind Person Who Needs To MakeTheir Computer Talk?

[Duane Fischer, W8DBF]

Linux is not supported by "any" of the adaptive technology third party 
developers Jeff. Unless it becomes a major OS, it never will be.

It is incredibly complicated to write a program to read a CRT display, 
interface with the user and allow full user/machine interaction. It is 'NOT' 
like simply using a text reading program to read text off a screen etc. That 
is easy. However, the user has no control unless the software is designed to 
allow the user the ability to specify what to read, what to ignore, whether 
to read new text if any scrolls onto the screen or to ignore it, where you 
are X/Y on the display with the mouse pointer and screen reading cursor etc.

It took five years of development after Windows was first introduced before 
any of the blind could use Windows with a screen reading program! It is also 
very expensive. The screen reading software I am using sells for $895 and 
the speech synthesizer sells for $1000. Now to scan text and read that? That 
adds another $1,500 to the cost. Reading a CRT and reading OCR code are very 
different, so a totally different system is needed.

The sad part is, while anyone can buy a nice computer for $400 to $600, plus 
a CRT, the blind have to double that cost just so they can use the computer. 
Contrary to popular thoughts, niether the state or federal government 
provide computers, or other adaptive technology, to the handicapped N/C. If 
you can not pay, then you go without.


Duane Fischer, W8DBF/WPE8CXO
dfischer at usol.com
HHI: Halligan's Hallicrafters International
http://www.w9wze.net
HHRP: Historic Halligan Radio Project
hhrp.w9wze.net

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "jeff" <jeffv at op.net>
To: "Computers (or other) used for amateur radio, communications, or 
experimenting" <ham-computers at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Tuesday, February 19, 2008 7:17 PM
Subject: Re: [Ham-Computers] Know A Blind Person Who Needs To MakeTheir 
Computer Talk?


> and it can probably be run under linux, using a virtual machine or 
> something like Freedos.
>
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