This was passed along to me by a list member. > CNET News > Tuesday, November 13, 2007 > > Microsoft Word files to serve as talking books > > By Elsa Wenzel > > Microsoft and open-source site SourceForge http://www.sourceforge.net/ > will offer a free plug-in early next year that will convert Office 2007 > files to the DAISY format that translates text to speech. > > The free tool will add a "Save as DAISY" option within Word 2007, 2003 and > XP software. DAISY XML files can be read aloud by speech synthesizers, > paired with audio narration and used to create electronic Braille. Users > can navigate open-standard DAISY documents quickly by jumping between page > elements, such as headers and indexes. > > The DAISY Consortium of 70 nonprofits has aimed since 1996 to make all > published information available to people with visual impairments and > learning disabilities. The acronym stands for Digital Accessible > Information System. > > http://www.daisy.org/ >
> Digital narration serves computer users with visual impairments, people > with learning challenges like dyslexia, as well as those with Parkinsons > disease and other conditions that make it hard to type or hold a book. > > With the release of the Office 2007 suite in January, Microsoft shunned > the popular, XML-based Open Document Format for its own, new Open XML > format. The OOXML documents, which include Word files with the DOCX > extension, are easier to retrieve if corrupted than the older DOC files. > > Versions of Word prior to 2007 can open OOXML documents after a one-time > download of a free converter from Microsoft. However, critics gripe that > Microsoft's format change was unnecessary and clumsy. Microsoft maintains > that the new format enables greater flexibility, such as accessibility > features. Richard Justice-list moderator Richard Justice-website ownner www.blind-computing.com Visit the Blind Computing List home page at: http://www.blind-computing.com Address for the list archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/ To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] For help from Mailman with your account Put the word help in the subject or body of a blank message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Use the following form in order to contact the management team http://www.jaws-users.com/BlindComputing.php If you wish to join the JAWS Users List send a blank email to the following address: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
