---- Original Message ------
From: Charles Crawford <[email protected]
Subject: [leadership] Fwd: Announcing OfficeConvert and
EasyEncode - free,open source utilities for common file
conversions
Date sent: Mon, 14 Nov 2011 16:39:00 -0500
Hi NCAC members and friends,
Here is an announcement from Jamal Mazrui who has been a
great supporter of accessibility for blind and otherwise disabled
people. If you have a need to use the software being announced,
then
please feel free to visit Jamal's website and see all the great
applications and information he has available.
-- charlie Crawford.
Original message...
Now available at
http://EmpowermentZone.com/OfficeConvert.zip
and
http://EmpowermentZone.com/EasyEncode.zip
OfficeConvert and EasyEncode are two sets of free, open source
utilities under Windows that I have recently developed for
conveniently converting files among common formats and
encodings. They can aid the production of alternative formats in
order to maximize accessibility for readers with
disabilities. Batch processing is possible, allowing multiple
files
to be converted with a single command.
These command-line utilities are stand-alone executables,
operating
in console mode, without a graphical user interface (GUI). They
are
distributed as zip archives rather than Windows
installers. Programming knowledge is not required to use them,
but
basic familiarity with the Windows command prompt is needed. The
utilities may be used either manually at the command line, or
programmatically by applications that call them to prepare files
in
a chain of processing steps.
OfficeConvert is a set of utilities for converting file formats
using the COM-based APIs of Microsoft Office applications,
including
Word, Excel, and Powerpoint. Many file formats are
supported. Common file extensions may be used to specify the
formats desired. Conversions include going to and from formats
used
by other office suites, such as the Open Document formats
supported
by the cross-platform, Open Office suite.
Significant capabilities include conversions to plain
text: doc2txt, xls2txt, and ppt2txt. The conversion of a
PowerPoint presentation extracts text comprehensively, including
the
outline, notes, comments, and hyperlinks. Formats of Office 2007
and above are supported. The doc2pdf conversion can be an
effective
way of creating an accessible, tagged PDF from a well-structured
Word document.
EasyEncode is a set of utilities for detecting and converting
text
files among common encodings. Four encodings are supported,
accounting for most encodings in use today: UTF-16, UTF-8 with a
byte order mark (BOM), UTF-8 without a BOM, and ANSI. The
utilities
can smoothen the transition of text files from one operating
system
to another, where an inconsistent encoding can render a file
unreadable.
Character encodings are a complex subject. EasyEncode does not
eliminate a developer's need for knowledge in this area, but once
encodings are understood conceptually, the software eases work
with them.
The OfficeConvert documentation is also separately available
online at
http://EmpowermentZone.com/OfficeConvert.htm
and the EasyEncode documentation is available at
http://EmpowermentZone.com/EasyEncode.htm
Jamal
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ATI (Adaptive Technology Inc.)
A special interest affiliate of the Missouri Council of the Blind
http://moblind.org/membership/affiliates/adaptive_technology
