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Thread: RE: Looking for feedback,how will this affect currentaccessibility measures
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From: smithj7
Date: Sun, Jun 11 2006 4:50PM
Subject: RE: Looking for feedback,how will this affect currentaccessibility measures
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You were interested in getting comments about the "Blind inventor makes
web accessible" invention: SpeakOn. I asked a few of my friends that
use speech. His invention is going to be very interactive. In his own
words, according to the article: "You don't need to know that it's a
computer. People would maybe consider it to be more like a radio or a
tape player," said Mr Mairs.
Most of my friends say they use the internet for more than just reading
a site. They also use it for banking, buying stuff, applications, email
groups and so forth. Basically all 8 speech users want the power to
"surf" the web like a sighted person and not just have a tool read it to
them like a radio or tape player. Two people said that if they were not
already using Newsline (a telephone service that reads newspapers - that
allows readers to select news sections and read many popular newslpapers
by phone - free service) that they may have been interested in reading
news on line using such a device as SpeakOn. One of the 8 is also a
computer technie said that a deterent at least in the U.S would be that
broadband was required. He said something to the effect that folks like
him who were power user would have access to broadband but would want
the power of JAWS (that is his previous), and the older folks that might
benefit from something like SpeakOn, probably would only have dial-up.
Maybe if the voice is good for something like SpeakOn it could be used
for the Library for the blind and physically handicapped. They use
human readers. Just think of the number of books that could be READ by
many computers in a computer lab. He..he.. The pronucation of the
machine, though good, can still provide a good laugh now and then. Not
sure if Librarians are ready inexact readers.