In addition to using the links at the top of this page, users of screen readers may use heading navigation commands to jump from section to section within this document.
You can keep up with what is going on at AccessWatch as well as throughout the Blind community by visiting the AccessWatch blog.
You may subscribe to the AccessWatch blog from within your favorite news aggregator by using the following URL:
http://feeds.feedburner.com/accesswatch
Do you sometimes wish you knew whether or not that really
popular mainstream program worked with speech
before you laid down the money for it? Perhaps
you'd just like some tips and tricks for making a favorite
program work even better. Now you can read
software reviews from other blind
computer users like yourself who have already blazed the trail
for you! After you have read several reviews of a particular
program, feel free to
set up a
free account with us so you can submit a review yourself. If
you don't see a particular program in our database, you can add
it to the list and be the first to write a review. You may also
set up e-mail alerts in order to be aware of new programs and
reviews as they are added to the site.
AccessWatch Review System Version 2.2 is a free, colaborative effort and is not sponsored by any organization.
As with any web site, there are some costs associated with keeping AccessWatch up and running. If you would like to make a donation to AccessWatch, it would be most appreciated.
There are currently two screen readers that support cell phones which run on the Symbian operating system. The oldest of these is Talks which can be purchased in the United States from several dealers includin
Beyond Sight and EnableMart. The newer offering is Mobile Speak which can be purchased in the United States from
Optelec.
Mobile Speak also works with Pocket PC phones and SmartPhones. Check out their Web site above for more information.
Nokia 60 series phones are most popular for use with these screen readers. You can find audio information on using Talks from the Blind Cool Tech podcast, as well as The Blind World Podcast. You can also join the Talks Users mailing list where you can ask questions regarding the use of the software with various phones.
Another possibility is the Owaysis 22C, which is a cell phone designed especially for the blind that has no visual display. All of the screen readers as well as the Owaysis 22C are carrier-independent, but are most widely used in the United States with Cingular and T-Mobile.
Nuance has provided a guide to installing Talks which might prove quite helpful.
The LG phones available from Verizon and Alltel also provide some degree of accessibility, although the user must rely on information spoken by the phone rather than being able to use a screen reader to read the display of the phone.
Another option for using a screen reader with a Smart Phone is Smart Hal.
One excellent Bible program is Theophilos. You can download a free version of the software, or purchase a more robust version of the software on CD.
An excellent web-based Bible Program is Bible Gateway.
You can find free text-adventure games all over the Internet, but the modestly-priced games available from
Malinche Entertainment are some of the very best. You can receive hints, walk-throughs, post questions on message boards, purchase the games on CD, or purchase a downloadable version of each game. Get a free game from the site and test drive all games for 30 days.
Visually impaired users will want to download the text-to-speech version of
Windows Frotz 2002.
Purchase more excellent games from L-works.
A new and very promising site is Blind Adrenaline.
For more information about accessible games, visit
AudioGames.net.
Visit the home page of
Winamp to acquire the latest version of the software.
Learn about Jaws for Windows 9.0 by visiting the
Freedom Scientific
site.
Two more sites that a Jaws user should know about are
the Jaws Users home page and
the
Blind Programming
site.
Jim Snowbarger offers some excellent scripts for Jaws which make many off-the-shelf programs come alive.
T and T Consultancy also offer scripts for Jaws as well as configuration files for other screen readers.
Visit
GW Micro for information
about Window-Eyes 6.1.
NVDA (Nonvisual Desktop Access) is an open-source free screen reader. Another free screen reader is Thunder!
This first AccessWatch tutorial covers the use of the
Rhapsody music service. There are seven MP3 files provided in the .zip archive, totaling some 63 minutes of information. Topics include:
An HTML document is also included in the zip archive. This file lists the table of contents for the tutorial and gives a brief description of each lesson. A list of Rhapsody keyboard shortcuts is also included.
The cost of the tutorial is $9.95. After you click on the Pay Pal button below, you will immediately be taken to a new page where you can download the zip file. Contact information is also provided on this page in case you have difficulty downloading the file.
Anyone who purchases the tutorial will be eligible for any and all updates that come out in the future. You will be notified by e-mail when these updates become available and will be given a link to download them.
John wilson provides some free user guides on home appliances, free mini-tutorials on software programs and several free in-depth tutorials on mainstream software programs in several formats, such as plain text files, audio cassettes and on CDs as audio MP3 files.
Top Dot Enterprises has a tutorial entitled "Jaws For Windows and the Real World Web." Dean Martineau has produced top-quality tutorials for years; I am certain this one is in the same tradition.
Contact
Gene Asner for information
regarding his Internet Explorer tutorial.
Read the Table of Contents for Gene's tutorial.
Access Technology Institute provides a wealth of information from free minitutorials to certification for access technology trainers.
The Iowa Department for the Blind's
Project Assist
offers low-cost but very thorough tutorials on a variety of
subjects including the use of Microsoft Office with various
screen readers.
Don't forget to check out computer-related reference works from the following:
There is no better way to learn about computers and software than by networking with other blind individuals. They can save you a lot of frustration.
Accessible Computing is moderated by the author of this web site and is designed for everyone from the beginning computer user to the experienced user who enjoys sharing with others in a spirit of friendship. This is a small list so you will not be inundated with messages each day. To subscribe, send us a blank message.
The Victor Reader Stream discussion list is also moderated by the author of this site. This list generates quite a bit more traffic than AccessComp, but considering the excitement
Human Warehas created among the blind community with the release of the Victor Reader Stream, that is no surprise. To subscribe, send a blank message to
vrstream-request@freelists.org
with the word "subscribe" in the subject without the quotes.
GUI-Talk, sponsored by
The National Federation of the
Blind is an excellent list for discussing various subjects
related to the Graphical User Interface. Windows, software,
screen readers, and peripherals are just some of the topics
discussed.
Every Thursday, Dean Martineau of
Top Dot Enterprises sends
out an announcements-only E-mail called Top Tech Tidbits. It is
absolutely packed with useful information.
Send him a blank
message. to subscribe.
Blind Tech is possibly one of the oldest of these lists. Be
aware that it is a "high-traffic" list; you will receive many
messages per day. Because of this, the moderator is quite strict
about keeping messages "on topic." To join the list,
send a blank
message.
PC-Audio is, as its name suggests, devoted to all things audio.
The Blind Programming Site has several mailing lists to choose from, including Jaws Lite, a list related to writing Jaws scripts, and a list discussing Windows-related issues, just to name a few.
Access Technology Institute also has various mailing lists which supplement their study courses.
Blind Cool Tech has become quite a phenomenon in the blind community. There is now a mailing list associated with the podcast. A wide range of fascinating topics relating to blindness are discussed freely on this list.
Stay abreast of everything happening at GW Micro by joining the GW-info list.
Freedom Scientific offers links to various mailing lists of interest.
The Victor Reader Stream is the first commercially available player to support digital talking books from the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped in the United States. Visit Human Ware for more information about this exciting product.
If you are computer-savvy enough to navigate busy web sites
and download programs to your computer,
Audible.com is an excellent
resource for reading audio books. You can subscribe to the
service on a monthly basis with several plans available. Jonathan Mosen did a review of the
service on
ACB Radio's Main Menu
program. Visit the "Shows On Demand" page and do a search for
Audible.
Bookshare.org is a service that provides scanned books to visually impaired subscribers. Become a volunteer and submit or validate scanned books in order to obtain credit toward membership.
Braille.com is an excellent site for purchasing Braille products from
National Braille Press.
Borrow Christian literature from the Assemblies of God
National Center for the Blind.
AccessWorld is a free,
web-based magazine produced by The
American Foundation For The
Blind. The articles in this magazine rival the quality of any
mainstream computer magazine.
Another high-quality magazine is Infotech produced by T-and-T Consultancy.
Sound Computing is back! In one of the most innovative approaches to producing a magazine I've ever seen, you can subscribe to 50 articles for $9.00. A username and password will give you access to all available articles in the series. Articles will appear on a "more or less weekly basis," says Dean Martineau, the magazine's creator.
Purchase a
DVS enhanced DVD of Ray from
Amazon.com. You can also
purchase the DVD online from
Walmart.com, or call
Wal-Mart at 800-966-6546.
View a monthly schedule of described TV programming from
Tv-Now.com.
Learn about DVS (Descriptive Video Service from WGBH in Boston.
Skype is a high-quality Internet Telephony program that has
become very popular in the blind community. Visit the
Skype Home Page for more
information.
If you are using Jaws For Windows, download
scripts that enhance the program's accessibility.
Whether you are needing a Podcatching client, wanting to find some good podcasts to listen to, or want to learn how to start your own podcast, Jeff Bishop's
Desert SkiesPodcast is a great place to start.
Listen to a review of iPodder, an accessible podcatching client on the April 27, 2005 edition of
ACB Radio's Main Menu program. The software has since been renamed to Juice Podcast Receiver.
Browse a list of Podcasts produced by blind individuals as well as other podcast directories on
Whitestick.
Blind Cool Tech is a really unique podcast produced by Larry Skutchan. You can also download a zipped file entitled "Best of the Best" from his site which you can import into Juice Podcast Receiver in order to subscribe to some of Larry's favorite podcasts.
Dancing Dots offers a wide range of high-quality music production tools designed with the visually impaired in mind.
Read what they have to say about their products.
If you're on a budget,
Quick Windows Sequencer is a great free program for making music on your computer.
Finally, there is a winner in the bank account management market where visually impaired computer users are concerned. If you are looking for an affordable, feature-rich product, check out Money Talks from
The American Printing House for the Blind. You can learn more about Money Talks by reading the
product brochure.
The Blind Geek Zone is an excellent site that features a host of audio tutorials as well as other documentation and links to various mailing lists and web sites of interest to the blind.
Earn a little cash back when you shop on the Internet by signing up with
Ebates. You can earn $5 just by signing up. They have over 800 stores to choose from.
Check out the Assisstive Technology News Portal.
Stay abreast of the latest in accessibility advocacy by visiting
The Blind Access Journal.
Visit AudioGames.net for a wealth of information regarding accessible games.
Check out Wayne Merritt's
Wayneisms. There is bound
to be something of interest there for you. The same is true for
Tom Lorimer's
Whitestick site.
Ferguson Enterprises has much to offer including the SCANACAN bar code scanning package.
Buy most anything from
Independent Living
Aids.
Visit NFB's new site,
The Voice of the
Nation's Blind.
Receive a free Braille Bible from
Braille Bibles
International.
Purchase almost anything related to assistive technology
from
chirpingbat.com.
The name
Braillepaper.com says
it all! The same is true for
blind-help.com.
Download many Jaws scripts, accessible programs, and read program reviews at the
Accessible Programs site.
To say that there is a lot of information on Jamal Mazrui's
Empowerment Zone is
like saying that there is quite a bit to read in the
Encyclopedia Britannica. Check it
out for yourself and see what I mean.
Purchase a talking clock/reminder program among other products
from
BlindSoftware.com.
Flying Blind is a site where you can download technology-related podcasts as well as purchase assistive technology products at very reasonable prices.
BlindBargains.com is the Outpost.com of the blindness industry. Get great deals from this site.
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