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   JAWS bridges employment and educational gap
   By BRADLEY L. JOHNSON
   For AccessLife.com
   (Posted Sept. 1, 2000.)

   JAWS 3.7, the newest version of a screen-reading software, lets people
   with visual disabilities access a variety of popular Windows
   applications and close the technology access gap with other computer
   users.
   Education Theme Link

   The Henter-Joyce Co., a division of Freedom Scientific Blind/Low
   Vision Group, recently released version 3.7 of its Job Access With
   Speech (JAWS) software.

   JAWS 3.7 uses a voice synthesizer in conjunction with a computer sound
   card to provide the user with voice output of the content displayed on
   the computer screen.

   The 3.7 version of JAWS for Windows (JFW) includes features, such as
   talking CD install, Windows millennium (ME) support, enhanced Braille
   capabilities, audio programming capability, dedicated software speech
   synthesizer, online registration, graphics list, JAWS merge utility
   and other enhancements.

   JFW supports a variety of applications, including those that are
   standard for Windows, Quicken 2000, Sun Microsystems's Java Access
   Bridge, WinZip 8.0, Cakewalk 9, output to refreshable Braille displays
   in computer or Grade 2 Braille, Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 and
   lower, as well as several additional applications.

   Besides that, the JFW screen reader uses its own script programming
   language, providing the user with the option of customizing JFW for
   use with non-standard Windows applications.

   Catalyst for evolution
   JAWS is considered by some to be the catalyst in the evolution of
   assistive technology in mainstreaming people with disabilities into
   the workforce, said Ed Eillingson, president and rehabilitation
   engineer for Zerrecon Inc. in Milwaukee.

   JAWS allows the user to access popular applications in Microsoft
   Windows 95/98/ME and Windows NT 2000, which are used by many
   corporations. Such corporations as Honeywell, McDonnell-Douglas, AT&
   T-Bell Labs, Federal Express, Pizza Hut and many others are currently
   using this user-friendly software.

   Besides access to computer applications, JAWS provides people with
   visual disabilities job opportunities requiring computer skills. UCLA,
   Harvard , MIT, Stanford and other universities use it.

   JFW's design empowers people with the ability to gain access to most
   computer programs that would otherwise be inaccessible, stated Lois
   Peyton, a counselor and user of JFW, with the Florida Division of
   Blind Services in Tampa, Fla.

   "It does require that the user learn the keyboard and command strokes
   in order to execute the computer voice output requests," said Peyton.

   For example, to open a Windows application such as Microsoft Word, the
   user simply presses the appropriate keystroke identifying the program,
   and the computer locates and opens it. These keystroke commands are
   made up of the first letter of the program. If there are other
   programs that begin with the same letter, spelling of the program name
   is continued until the computer indicates that it has been found.

   Keyboard, voice commands work in tandem
   Once inside the program, the user will be able to perform any computer
   task after following the computer voice output instructions and by
   giving the appropriate keyboard command.

   Depending on the person's computer knowledge, basic computer training
   may be required for people with visual disabilities that are
   unfamiliar with computers, said Troy Hergert, technician and
   instructor at the Badger Home for the Blind in Milwaukee.

   A user who is preparing a Word document and desires to use the spell
   check tool, can launch this feature and the spell check box will
   appear on top of that document. The computer voice output
   automatically states that the spell checker is open, then says the
   misspelled word, the spelling options and requests a command from the
   user.

   "Without training, this multi-dimensional aspect of a Windows
   application can be difficult for some visually impaired people to
   conceptualize, unless they have seen or gained knowledge of computers
   through some other means," Hergert said.

   Hergert, who has retinitis pigmentosa (a progressive loss of field of
   vision and retinal response), uses JFW 3.5 at work, but admitted that
   at home, he uses a less-expensive screen reading program known as
   Window Eyes.

   However, Hergert emphasized that it is a matter of preference because
   JFW provides greater access to a larger variety of computer programs.

   Compatibility with voice software
   Another important feature of JFW is its compatibility with the voice
   input software known as Dragon Dictate to provide computer access to
   people with visual disabilities who also have a physical disability
   that limits their ability to use a keyboard.

   "The creation of the JFW software has leveled the playing field" and
   boosted job opportunities for people with visual disabilities, said
   Hergert.

   "JFW allows the user to approach a perspective employer and be
   confident with the knowledge that he/she can produce the same computer
   work product as a person with vision," he said.

   While JFW is a revolutionary software development, it does have a few
   drawbacks.

   JFW does not work well with non-Windows computer applications and has
   difficulty reading pictures on the Internet, Hergert emphasized.

   Although it broadens the number of computer applications accessible to
   a person with a visual disability, it does require extensive
   customization in order to be used with non-Windows computer
   applications, he noted.

   However, the programs that are compatible with the JFW software seem
   to exceed those that are not.

   Bradley L. Johnson is a freelance writer for AccessLife.com in Tampa,
   Fla. You can reach him at [log in to unmask]
     _________________________________________________________________

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     _________________________________________________________________

   Related links

   Freedom Scientific Blind/Low Vision Group
   Job Access With Speech
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