Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Many thanks to everyone who contacted me, either directly or through the list. I now have plenty of places and ideas to check out to help get my stepfather online. At the moment, I'm leaning towards getting him a Mac (since it has a real operating system under the hood) and a suite of text/keyboard friendly apps. Since I've starting looking into this I've come to realise how much having good eyesight is taken for granted, what with context sensitive menus, touch screens and the (ab)use of Flash. Be kind to your retinas and corneas. They are more useful than you might realise. Thanks again for all the help. Barbara ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On Mon, 26 Mar 2012 18:50:06 -0400 Robert Huff articulated: Polytropon writes: Speech recognition requires training. Both the user and the system have to learn from each other. But you have a learning curve everywhere, be it typing, talking, or reading from a Braille output. In the case of speech recognition, that's a curve many might be willing to travel if they had reason to believe it was effort wisely invested. There are a couple of ports that cleim to do speech recognition. Does anyone have experience with them? When it comes to speech recognition, the only two applications that seem to work reliably at all levels are Siri on iPhone 4S and Dragon NaturallySpeaking, neither of which are obviously available on FreeBSD. I don't believe that there is even a *nix/BSD version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking in production. In any case, I do have a friend who is severely vision impaired that uses that software with amazing results. She can definitely dictate a letter faster than I can manually create one. I did try two different ports two years ago and they were sadly lacking in their ability to achieve any true speech recognition. They were painfully slow to even get configured. I gave up within a few hours on the project. It was only an experiment anyway. I sincerely hope you can find a truly useful application to suit your needs. By the way, in the US anyway, there are many foundations that will give you financial assistance or grants to purchase software that will make your PC more readily available to you. I am not sure if that kind of support is available in your locale. -- Jerry ♔ Disclaimer: off-list followups get on-list replies or get ignored. Please do not ignore the Reply-To header. __ ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On 03/27/12 20:41, Jerry wrote: On Mon, 26 Mar 2012 18:50:06 -0400 Robert Huff articulated: Polytropon writes: Speech recognition requires training. Both the user and the system have to learn from each other. But you have a learning curve everywhere, be it typing, talking, or reading from a Braille output. In the case of speech recognition, that's a curve many might be willing to travel if they had reason to believe it was effort wisely invested. There are a couple of ports that cleim to do speech recognition. Does anyone have experience with them? When it comes to speech recognition, the only two applications that seem to work reliably at all levels are Siri on iPhone 4S and Dragon NaturallySpeaking, neither of which are obviously available on FreeBSD. I don't believe that there is even a *nix/BSD version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking in production. In any case, I do have a friend who is severely vision impaired that uses that software with amazing results. She can definitely dictate a letter faster than I can manually create one. The biggest contender in ports is sphinx- libraries are used as a basis for siri and the google offering. This is apparently used by phone companies, etc. Each of which use teams of developers to get it working the way they want. Getting it to work on an individual basis... Apparently the results will primarily vary based on the dictionaries that are supplied, so it does mean one may work better than the other. ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Jerry writes: There are a couple of ports that claim to do speech recognition. Does anyone have experience with them? I sincerely hope you can find a truly useful application to suit your needs. In my case, it's want, not need. (But that's the want of gee, there's this whole list of things which might be easier using voice recognition.) Robert Huff ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Polytropon writes: That's correct. However, unlike a Braille readout which gives tactile information (through the reader's hands), synthetic voice cannot easily accomodate to the reader's habits and reading speed. Scanning text is not possible as the generated voiced text is played in linear time, which means you cannot easily skip forward and backward, re-read a certain passage, and you basically do not come down to the letter level, you only have a word level. You are absolutely right on all counts. I was speaking from the standpoint of the amount of work and or extra expense that one would need to go through to get the interface fully operational. Nobody has yet figured out how to build a Braille display that is affordable, let's say 100 US Dollars or less for even one line of Braille much less a whole page or better yet a graphical screen that could display shapes and possibly textures that are not Braille characters. Prices of 5000 Dollars are not uncommon and single-line displays sell for well over 1000 Dollars anywhere you go. What is needed is a way to accomplish a tactile matrix that doesn't require precision machining or hand assembly for each pixel. That's why today's displays are so incredibly expensive and delicate. There are lots of neat ideas such as stimulators you might ware on your fingers as you move your hand over a large area, but making a tightly-packed matrix at almost microscopic level is still a pains-taking task. By the way, math done by any method other than Braille is darn next to useless. Equations in Braille can be formatted very much like they are in print and there is a whole Braille system for reading and writing math. So, I am not disagreeing at all with what you wrote here, just clarifying why I made the statements I made. While this has benefits in unconcentrated reading (e. g. reading an article or literature, it can be problematic with scientific or technical text where a (healthy) reader would let his eyes jump within the text stream. The thing I hate the most these days is the lost art of the linear declarative sentence. If the output of a program is some full-screen form in which the information one wants is in check boxes, you have to listen to the whole !%#%00--- thing just to find out whether or not it worked. There are usually one or two things we really wanted to know and the rest is unchanged but must be endured to get the one or two grains of wheat in all that chaff. Since it's full-screen stuff, it is hard to pipe to a script so I guess the artists are happy and the rest of us are just tapping our feet impatiently waiting for the water torture to end. Fortunately, unix operations are still relatively free from the worst GUI parlor tricks, but I use safari on a Mac to access some Windows-centric web sites related to work and they make me want to straighten out a horse shoe without a forge I get so mad at listening to the minutes of audio with the results of what I did always at or near the last of the text and there seems to be no way to stanch the deluge without loosing the gold nuggets. In conclusion, FreeBSD has been another wonderful open-source platform as far as I can say. Many of the systems I run it on here do not have sound cards and are either on virtual boxes, in other buildings or towns and so a speech or Braille console directly on the system isn't possible so I have always used some other device to provide accessibility and never been disappointed. After all, it's unix which means one can expect certain behaviors regarding standard devices. Martin ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Jerry je...@seibercom.net wrote: When it comes to speech recognition, the only two applications that seem to work reliably at all levels are Siri on iPhone 4S and Dragon NaturallySpeaking, neither of which are obviously available on FreeBSD. I don't believe that there is even a *nix/BSD version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking in production. The Windows version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking is, however, reputed to work well on wine, which is in ports. One of the D-NS developers (or maybe it was a tech support person) was helping out on the wine-users forum for a while; I don't recall having seen her post there recently, but this _might_ be because D-NS is working so well with recent wine versions that no one needs help with it. ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On 03/28/12 15:28, per...@pluto.rain.com wrote: Jerryje...@seibercom.net wrote: When it comes to speech recognition, the only two applications that seem to work reliably at all levels are Siri on iPhone 4S and Dragon NaturallySpeaking, neither of which are obviously available on FreeBSD. I don't believe that there is even a *nix/BSD version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking in production. The Windows version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking is, however, reputed to work well on wine, which is in ports. One of the D-NS developers (or maybe it was a tech support person) was helping out on the wine-users forum for a while; I don't recall having seen her post there recently, but this _might_ be because D-NS is working so well with recent wine versions that no one needs help with it. That would be really useful. Keeping that one in the memory banks... ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On Tue, 27 Mar 2012 08:21:04 -0500, Martin McCormick wrote:
By the way, math done by any method other than Braille
is darn next to useless. Equations in Braille can be formatted
very much like they are in print and there is a whole Braille
system for reading and writing math.
Interesting, I didn't know that. However, LaTeX allows
writing (and typesetting) math on a pure text basis
which may be interesting to authors who are unable to
access a GUI-driven formula editor. Of course there is
another learning courve here. But nothing does prohibit
a blind scientist to write his stuff himself, read it
himself; things as $\bar{x}=\frac{\sum_{i=1}^{n}({x_i})}{n}$
can be quite easily be used if you have learned few
relatively simple things: typing on the keyboard,
using a powerful editor, the LaTeX language, and
maybe Braille. This way, an author can concentrate
on content, while the tools step into the background
and let him just do his stuff.
After all, it's unix which means one can expect
certain behaviors regarding standard devices.
As long as the devices play nice... :-)
--
Polytropon
Magdeburg, Germany
Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0
Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ...
___
freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list
http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions
To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On 03/25/12 23:33, Barbara La Scala wrote: Apologies for the off topic posting but my stepfather is blind and he wants my advice about how to get online. I have no idea where to start looking for information on hardware and/or software for him. However, I vaguely remember someone on this list saying they were visually impaired. If I'm remembering correctly, I'd really appreciate it if that person would get in touch with me. This link might help. It's the RNIB page on using technology when blind or partially sighted. The link to the beginner's guides is where you should start. http://www.rnib.org.uk/livingwithsightloss/computersphones/Pages/computers_mobile_phones.aspx However, as Polytropon said in his mail, there are far too many web pages with no real accessibility for anyone with less than perfect faculties, in spite of the fact it's a legal requirement in many countries. A friend of mine is an accessibility consultant and has regular rants about this. ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Op 26 maart 2012 09:42 heeft Arthur Chance free...@qeng-ho.org het volgende geschreven: On 03/25/12 23:33, Barbara La Scala wrote: Apologies for the off topic posting but my stepfather is blind and he wants my advice about how to get online. I have no idea where to start looking for information on hardware and/or software for him. However, I vaguely remember someone on this list saying they were visually impaired. If I'm remembering correctly, I'd really appreciate it if that person would get in touch with me. This link might help. It's the RNIB page on using technology when blind or partially sighted. The link to the beginner's guides is where you should start. http://www.rnib.org.uk/livingwithsightloss/computersphones/Pages/computers_mobile_phones.aspx However, as Polytropon said in his mail, there are far too many web pages with no real accessibility for anyone with less than perfect faculties, in spite of the fact it's a legal requirement in many countries. A friend of mine is an accessibility consultant and has regular rants about this. Maybe this can help too : http://www.brlspeak.net/ and its creator Aldo info at brlspeak.net Beni ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On 25/03/12 23:33, Barbara La Scala wrote: Apologies for the off topic posting but my stepfather is blind and he wants my advice about how to get online. I have no idea where to start looking for information on hardware and/or software for him. However, I vaguely remember someone on this list saying they were visually impaired. If I'm remembering correctly, I'd really appreciate it if that person would get in touch with me. Thanks Barbara ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org I know this is the FreeBSD forum, but there is a Linux ready made live distro that might help. It is called Knoppix Adriane, was conceived for the authors blind wife. It can be found at www.knoppix.net. I hope I haven't upset anyone for talking Linux here. :) Keith PS Re sent as it seemed to get blocked before: have changed email address. Apologies if it gets duplicated. -- Sent from Free Open Source Software (FOSS). Debian GNU/Linux ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On 03/26/12 19:32, Keith McKenzie wrote: On 25/03/12 23:33, Barbara La Scala wrote: Apologies for the off topic posting but my stepfather is blind and he wants my advice about how to get online. I have no idea where to start looking for information on hardware and/or software for him. However, I vaguely remember someone on this list saying they were visually impaired. If I'm remembering correctly, I'd really appreciate it if that person would get in touch with me. Thanks Barbara ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org I know this is the FreeBSD forum, but there is a Linux ready made live distro that might help. It is called Knoppix Adriane, was conceived for the authors blind wife. It can be found at www.knoppix.net. I hope I haven't upset anyone for talking Linux here. :) I'm going to have to dredge up my copy and check that out - it sounds very interesting primarily because the techniques could be easily adapted here :P ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On 26/03/12 11:12, Da Rock wrote: O I'm going to have to dredge up my copy and check that out - it sounds very interesting primarily because the techniques could be easily adapted here :P On version 6; not sure if it came earlier. Keith -- Sent from Free Open Source Software (FOSS). Debian GNU/Linux ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
There may be several people on this list who are blind, meaning no usable vision to see a screen. I definitely fit that description so I will gladly try to answer questions which breaks my usual practice here of asking beginner-level questions even though I have been using FreeBSD for almost ten years. The easiest and most economical interface for computer users who are blind is spoken speach. I am not talking about speech recognition where you speak to the computer and it does things, but speech synthesis where the computer runs an application to read what is on the screen back to the person using the system. One can learn to type and touch-typing was tought in schools for the blind for scores of years before computers ever even came on the scene. We pounded on typewriters and our poor suffering typing teachers were the feedback mechanisms that told us how we were doing. So, a person who is blind needs to know how to type. Almost every operating system has a screen reading program or several that one can install that reads the screen back to you. There is a good screen reader for the Macintosh which is included on every single Mac that runs OSX10.X. I like it and the Mac's do run a customized version of BSD unix. The screen reader for the Mac is called voiceover and you can activate it by Command-F5 and then Command-F5 again to turn it off. The only drawback to voiceover is that for those of us who do a lot of tinkering and compiling of source code on unix systems, the screen reader makes listening to the stream of consciousness almost useless because it resets itself each time new output is detected. There is also a lot of really neat things going on in Linux. We have Orca which is the GUI environment and some very good software speech synthesizers for both the GUI and the command line worlds. They tend to handle bursty output from compilers and log tailings better than voiceover but you find that both Mac and Linux screen readers shine in some things and don't do so well in others so there is no clear winner. Finally, there is the Windows world. Microsoft may be actually trying to improve their narrator application to where it is a serious screen reader, but up to now, there is one free screen reader that some people like to use plus several commercial applications that cost an arm and a leg and are always one upgrade away from being snuffed out and causing their owners much grief. None of these screen readers are perfect, but most computer users who are blind end up being reasonably happy with one of them. I personally like Linux and the Mac because there is no additional charge to install the screen readers and they generally won't let you down. There are also Braille displays which some people use but they are extremely costly. I mentioned the speech recognition systems. Many of those actually present problems for those who are blind because you need to train them on your speech and the feedback is graphical so a good old keyboard is still the best input device. So as not to get totally off topic, I haven't heard of any of the Linux screen readers being ported to FreeBSD. That could be a problem for some people and not an issue at all for others. Right now, I am typing on a Linux computer running a software speech engine and I am editing this message on a FreeBSD9.0 system via ssh and using vi on the actual message file. It works great. If that Raspberry Pie Linux system turns out to be able to support one of the Linux screen readers, we're talking about a talking terminal for less than 100 US Dollars. We'll just have to see what happens. Martin McCormick WB5AGZ Stillwater, OK Systems Engineer OSU Information Technology Department Telecommunications Services Group ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Martin McCormick wrote: There may be several people on this list who are blind, meaning no usable vision to see a screen. I definitely fit that description so I will gladly try to answer questions which ... Hi Martin, cc questions@ Might you be prepared to write a page for the FreeBSD handbook ? http://www.freebsd.org/doc/en_US.ISO8859-1/books/handbook/index.html It could go under V. Appendices ? Having someone who is blind as author of such a page would make it more authoritative useful for other blind people I assume. I guess you could start by correlate previous posting on this thread, + add your knowledge, keeping text short linking to tools equipment manufacturers ? ( inc. a URL to the Knoppix blind version) There's been a few people who have asked me over the years, I've never really known where to point them. PS A near blind person in Germany told me a decade or more back: - each country has a different Braille !? - one line display systems in Germany are extremely expensive. Cheers, Julian -- Julian Stacey, BSD Unix Linux C Sys Eng Consultants Munich http://berklix.com Reply below not above, cumulative like a play script, indent with . Format: Plain text. Not HTML, multipart/alternative, base64, quoted-printable. Mail from @yahoo dumped @berklix. http://berklix.org/yahoo/ ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On Mon, 26 Mar 2012 14:21:08 -0500, Martin McCormick wrote: The easiest and most economical interface for computer users who are blind is spoken speach. That's correct. However, unlike a Braille readout which gives tactile information (through the reader's hands), synthetic voice cannot easily accomodate to the reader's habits and reading speed. Scanning text is not possible as the generated voiced text is played in linear time, which means you cannot easily skip forward and backward, re-read a certain passage, and you basically do not come down to the letter level, you only have a word level. While this has benefits in unconcentrated reading (e. g. reading an article or literature, it can be problematic with scientific or technical text where a (healthy) reader would let his eyes jump within the text stream. One can learn to type and touch-typing was tought in schools for the blind for scores of years before computers ever even came on the scene. I also learned typewriting (mandatory!) in school, and believe it or not, it comes handy every time I have to deal with a computer. :-) We pounded on typewriters and our poor suffering typing teachers were the feedback mechanisms that told us how we were doing. So, a person who is blind needs to know how to type. A good keyboard can help here. Keep in mind that a keyboard, being a means of input, provides tactile feedback as output. So without any visual confirmation you can detect when you made a typing error, activating a motor program to correct it on the fly. At this point, I typically recommend using an IBM Model M keyboard. But the Sun USB Type 7 is also good, as it provides programmable keys for volume control, application interaction and Braille readout control. (I use those keys primarily for dealing with the window manager - no need to use the eyes!) None of these screen readers are perfect, but most computer users who are blind end up being reasonably happy with one of them. Especially in combination with web browsers, they are prone to fail. Where there's no text (as content) in a web page, there's nothing to read to the user. The use of the HTML tags alt= and longdesc= is a long forgotten art, and when Flash enters the scene to replace few lines of HTML (as for links or simple text), there's no easy way to determine _what_ currently is on the screen. There are also Braille displays which some people use but they are extremely costly. Sadly, that is correct. In my opinion this is because they are a niche market. When purchasing one, you have to pay attention to if it can capture normal text screen content. How is it attached to the computer? Does it require proprietary drivers? How long can it be used before an OS revision breaks the drivers? Those Braille readouts can be placed infront of the keyboard, the primary means of input. Reading and writing isn't far away from each other (finger travelling distance). Classic Braille readouts didn't seem to require any driver. I've seen such devices in the past. A slider on the side simply defined the row of text which was then displayed on the readout - one out of 25. I think it was plugged into the VGA chain (PC - readout - screen), but I'm not that familiar with this technology; I've seen it on a DOS PC. However, as FreeBSD's default screen mode is 80x25 text mode, it should be possible to use such a device. Maybe it's possible to get a used one for cheap... I mentioned the speech recognition systems. Many of those actually present problems for those who are blind because you need to train them on your speech and the feedback is graphical so a good old keyboard is still the best input device. Speech recognition requires training. Both the user and the system have to learn from each other. But you have a learning curve everywhere, be it typing, talking, or reading from a Braille output. -- Polytropon Magdeburg, Germany Happy FreeBSD user since 4.0 Andra moi ennepe, Mousa, ... ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Polytropon writes: Speech recognition requires training. Both the user and the system have to learn from each other. But you have a learning curve everywhere, be it typing, talking, or reading from a Braille output. In the case of speech recognition, that's a curve many might be willing to travel if they had reason to believe it was effort wisely invested. There are a couple of ports that cleim to do speech recognition. Does anyone have experience with them? Robert Huff ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
Apologies for the off topic posting but my stepfather is blind and he wants my advice about how to get online. I have no idea where to start looking for information on hardware and/or software for him. However, I vaguely remember someone on this list saying they were visually impaired. If I'm remembering correctly, I'd really appreciate it if that person would get in touch with me. Thanks Barbara ___ freebsd-questions@freebsd.org mailing list http://lists.freebsd.org/mailman/listinfo/freebsd-questions To unsubscribe, send any mail to freebsd-questions-unsubscr...@freebsd.org
Re: Off-Topic: Computing for the Blind
On Mon, 26 Mar 2012 09:33:05 +1100, Barbara La Scala wrote: Apologies for the off topic posting but my stepfather is blind and he wants my advice about how to get online. I have no idea where to start looking for information on hardware and/or software for him. However, I vaguely remember someone on this list saying they were visually impaired. If I'm remembering correctly, I'd really appreciate it if that person would get in touch with me. The old-fashioned way to enable blind persons to use a computer for getting online involves a way to read text. This can be done basically in two ways: a) The user has a Braille readout right infront of his keyboard. This is usually a one or two line combination of 40 or 80 characters width, with electromagnetic Braille mountain matrices (6 or 8 dot code). This line can display one line of screen text. Which line (out of the 25 on the screen) can be selected by a slider on the side. +--+ | Suche Bilder Videos Maps News| | | | Google | | Deutschland| ---selection---+ | | | | __ | | | Search Good luck! | | | | | | | | | H)elp O)ptions P)rint G)o| | +--+ | | __ . ...| .. __ ... | .. __ ... | .. _...__ | .. __.___ . | .. __._.._.__ ... __.. | | | :::###: ---output--+ (Deutschland) b) The user uses a similar selection mechanism as with the Braille readout, but a synthetic voice will read the text. Speed and volume can be controlled. (This is also available as a pure software solution!) Most blind persons (I've met) seem to be fine with variant a) as it fits their reading habits, their speed, their experience. The input method of choice is the keyboard, as it (obviously) does not need any visual confirmation. The travelling distance for the fingers from typing to reading (and back) is acceptable. For purchasing the hardware, I would suggest to consult the web for some search, and then maybe attend a local specialized store to obtain the devices. They tend to be a bit expensive. Make sure to get hardware specs: How is it connected? Does it require proprietary drivers? Does it work with normal text screens? Niche market... :-( Now for the software. In order to get the text to the Braille readout, you need software that runs in text mode. On FreeBSD, this is the default mode (unless you install GUI tools). Getting online is very easy (see The FreeBSD Handbook), and everything you now need is a web browser. Recommendations: links, lynx, w3m. For participating in email, I may recommend alpine (pine), but there are many other powerful text mode mail clients that one could try and find the most comfortable one. Other services, such as IRC, News, or messenger services can also be used. Just to throw some program names into the wild: irc, BitchX, tin, elm, centericq. The ports collection offers a wide choice of programs for FreeBSD. Configure the OS to accomodate to the needs of the Internet connection (DHCP, PPPoE, dial-up, WLAN - whatever is present). A confortable dialog shell is also useful to quickly communicate with the computer and launch the programs that the user wants to use. Maybe a preconfigured environment (with selections such as mail, web, news, chat as command words) is a good idea. One last thing: Regarding the modern web, don't assume you'll find many pages that are accessible by blind persons. Just try some average web pages in one of the text mode web browsers mentioned. They only work well when the person who has made the web page did pay attention to make it accessible by handicapped users. This is something that is mostly forgotten today, and the tendency with rich web applications is that unrestricted access to _content_ will be less and less common. Artificial barriers are raised by teh Interwebs progammerz abusing tools (e. g. Flash as a replacement for few lines of HTML). The tendency is that it's just getting worse and worse, sadly... I hope I could give you some inspiration on where to start
