Can computers help me read books, magazines, and mail?

Absolutely! Printed material can be accessed primarily via two ways:

• Electronically, via the internet or email;
• By scanning it into your computer and reading it using screen reading or magnification programs.

With the rapid expansion of the internet, you can now access a large amount of digital material on the internet, including most newspapers and magazines and a growing number of electronic books, such as eBooks. Many newspapers offer free access to much of their content, while others charge subscription fees and/or offer different levels of access based on requested content.

Scanners and OCR Software

Relatively inexpensive scanners and OCR (optical character recognition) software can translate any page of printed material into spoken text on your computer. OCR packages designed to be used by people who are blind or have low vision can range from $200 to $1,000, depending upon the number of features you request. For everyday use, the OCR packages from[all links open in new windows] Premier Technologies [1] can certainly do the job for under $200. Other popular OCR programs include OpenBook (from Freedom Scientific [2]) and Kurzweil 1000 or the Kurzweil 300 which runs on both Windows and Mac computers and can print output on a braille printer (from Kurzweil Educational Systems [3]). The more fully-featured programs cost quite a bit more, in the neighborhood of $1,000.

Stand-alone OCR Hardware

These systems are portable units that scan and display documents using speech and sometimes a monitor. They have their own OCR software installed. They are more expensive than software that loads onto your computer, but the units are easier to carry with you. This is not an exhaustive list of all products available, just a sampling.

Examples include MobilEyes [4]. The professional model has full laptop services and your favorite Screen Reader or Magnification Software can easily be loaded onto MobilEyes Professional.

Guerilla Technologies has several models of Extreme Reader Reading Machine [5]. Three models serve readers of all computer comfort levels with ultra-reliable operation and clear, fluid speech output of today's popular media, including scanned print, text files on diskette, and DAISY-formatted CD books.

The Simon Reading Machine [6] is very light weight, easy to use, and has a powerful scanner.

Questions to ask before buying

• Do you need a portable, stand-alone OCR product or a software-based product to be used in your computer?
• If you want software, is the OCR system compatible with your computer's operating system?
• Do you also require screen-reading features?
• Is speech output all you require, or do you also want the text displayed on a monitor?
• Do you require braille output?
• Do you need printer and/or braille embosser/printer output?

Through your local rehabilitation agency, you may want to seek the services of an Assistive Technology Specialist who can help you decide on the best product for you, and provide you with resources to master your chosen option.