Publication > Newsletter > 6th Newsletter > Computer Assistive Technologies for Persons with Disabilities

Computer Assistive Technologies for Persons with Disabilities

Computer technology has become very familiar in our daily life. It seems without computer technology we cannot live our life in this contemporary world. It is very useful in communication as well as in our daily work.

Persons with disabilities have also benefited greatly from computer technologies, although they continue to face significant obstacles in accessing them. For example, persons with physical disabilities may have difficulty in typing with an ordinary keyboard; persons with visual impairments may not be able to see a screen and thus unable to operate a computer. To assist these persons with disabilities, thankfully, various types of computer assistive devices have been invented. Examples of these are:

Voice Recognition

Voice Recognition program

Voice recognition software recognizes the user's voice; whatever is dictated into the microphone will appear as an electronic, word-processed document. The users, thus, do not need to use a keyboard but speak into the microphone to write. This is particularly useful for persons with physical disabilities who are unable to use a keyboard and mouse. It is also useful for intellectual disabilities who cannot speak properly. The users need to train software to properly recognize their voice, otherwise the transcribed text will not follow what the users say and it could be unluckily, somewhat troublesome. Examples of voice recognition software are 1) IBM Via Voice and 2) Dragon Naturally Speaking, etc.

For further information, please refer to:
IBM Via Voice: www-306.ibm.com/software/voice/viavoice/
Dragon Naturally Speaking 7: www.scansoft.com/naturallyspeaking/

On-screen Keyboard

On-screen Keyboard

On-screen Keyboard program provides an image of a standard or modified keyboard on the computer screen. The user selects the keys on the screen with a mouse, touch screen or trackball, etc to type words. With this program, only persons able to use a mouse or pointing materials will be able to type. On-screen Keyboard often has a word prediction feature. If the users select one or two letters on the screen keyboard, they can easily find the word they want, which makes typing much faster.

Examples of the On-screen Keyboard program are:
Onscreen (IMG Inc.): www.imgpresents.com/index.htm
Softype: www.orin.com/access/softype/
Milo Soft: www.march-of-faces.org/resources/vkt.html

Word Prediction

Word Prediction

Word Prediction software interprets the users' syntax as they type and guesses what words might come next. When the user types the first letter of a word, the prediction software will guess the word. This is very useful for persons having difficulty typing with the keyboard, or able to use a mouse only. Persons able to use only a mouse are usually using a screen keyboard to type, which unfortunately is so slow. Therefore, this software will help the users by guessing the words that the user wants. Then the users just need to select the correct word.

Examples of Word Prediction software are:
SoothSayer Word Prediction: www.ahf-net.com/sooth.htm

Screen Enlargers/Screen Magnifiers

Screen Enlargers/Screen Magnifiers

Screen Enlargers/Screen Magnifiers work like a magnifying glass on the computer screen. They enlarge a part of the screen to clearly show the contents. This is particularly helpful for low vision users having difficulty identifying things on the computer screen. Since the contents are greatly enlarged, only a very small part of the contents can be seen on the screen.

Samples of Screen Enlargers/Magnifiers are:
Lunar-Screen Enlarger: www.labcomputers.net/lunar_screen_enlarger.htm
MAGIC: www.freedomscientific.com/fs_products/software_magic.asp

Screen Reader

Screen Reader

Screen Reader is software that works with a speech synthesizer to read aloud everything contained on a computer screen, including icons, menus, text and control buttons. There is also a text-based screen reader which only reads the text out loud. With this software, blind persons are able to operate the computer with voice instruction. However, it is not very easy to operate a computer by sound; blind users, especially computer illiterate blind, require training to use it.

Some Screen Readers available now are:
JAWS: www.hj.com/fs_products/software_jaws5intro.asp
Hal by Dolphin: www.dolphinuk.co.uk/
Home Page Reader: www-3.ibm.com/able/solution_offerings/hpr.html