Since the issue of library access for the blind in Pittsburgh was raised
prior to the creation of the vicug-l mailing list and because those who
might have joined in recent months might be unfamiliar with the topic, I'm
passing this along.  The special mouse mentioned is the Vista screen
enlarger from TeleSensory.  A copy of PW WebSpeak was installed in April.

From the December 1996 minutes of the Electronic Information Network of
allegheny County:



                 NEW BUSINESS
                 (96.12.4) EIN ACCESS FOR THE VISUALLY IMPAIRED: Mark
                 Senk, Joyce Driben, Samuel Master, Carol McGoldrick,
                 Jane Leone and Gene Rossi addressed the Board about the
                 concerns of the blind and visually impaired residents of
                 Allegheny County concerning equal access for all
                 residents to the EIN resources.
                 Iddings reviewed the steps that the EIN has taken to
                 provide access including voice synthesizer software
                 called Oscar. The EIN is monitoring and working with the
                 equipment to make sure that it works as consistently as
                 possible. Three locations of CLP have cctv now, they are
                 CLP Main, Downtown Business, and the South Side branch.
                 The EIN is working with Sue Murdock on administering the
                 LCSA grant that was awarded for this purpose. Garrick
                 Sobeski, EIN Computer Technician, did a demonstration of
                 the equipment that the EIN is currently working on. The
                 equipment is set up on a Deskpro 5133 machine. Sobeski
                 demonstrated dec talk, Oscar's ability to scan a
                 document and read it out loud, and a special mouse that
                 will enhance the screen and enlarge text. Sue Murdock
                 emphasized that staff needs to be trained in order to
                 show patrons how to use the equipment. Iddings stated
                 that the EIN is committed to placing accessible
                 workstations in every EIN location.
                 Croneberger explained to the audience the funding
                 distinctions between the EIN, LBPH and CLP.
                 By the next Board meeting there will be a timetable
                 concerning the implementation of the equipment for the
                 visually impaired. In order to facilitate communication
                 between the EIN and organizations representing visually
                 impaired citizens, a list of names and phone numbers was
                 compiled by Sue Murdock. Sardone reiterated that any
                 assistance would be appreciated and welcomed.
                 MOTION: Kimmel moved that the Board ask for volunteers
                 to form an advisory committee to address the issues
                 involved with access for the visually impaired.
                 Speigelman seconded the motion. Motion passed
                 unanimously.