Dear EASI friends:
I am forwarding this newsletter I received as there are several items that
will interest many of you.  This is not an endorsement of any of the
products.  There are several items related to tactile graphics.  This topic
interests me right now as EASI is preparing some special webcast material
on how to produce tactile graphics which we will webcast late in the spring.

Norman Coombs
CEO EASI

>Date: Sat, 17 Feb 2001 17:17:34 -0500
>From: Peter Duran <[log in to unmask]>
>Subject: WYFIWYG Newsletter February 2001
>X-Sender: [log in to unmask]
>To: [log in to unmask]
>X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Version 4.3.2
>Original-recipient: rfc822;[log in to unmask]
>
>                      WYFIWYG EMAIL NEWSLETTER
>                           February 2001
>
>Copyright February 2001 by Peter Duran
>All rights Reserved
>
>                         Table of Contents
>
>Note: The * (Shift+8) character precedes topics in this news
>letter so you can search for a * to jump to the next topic.
>
>* Microsoft in the News
>* They Got Fired
>* New Flexible Voice Synthesizer
>* New Simple and Powerful Tactile Graphics Program
>* New Low-Cost Braille Display
>* New Web Browser
>* Another New Web Browser
>* New Mouse for the Blind
>* FREE Low Vision Book Available (Large Print)
>* Editorial Comment
>* WYFIWYG Newsletters Online
>* WYFIWYG Download Center
>* Windows Me Accessibility
>* Dimensional Printer Corporation
>* Subscription Information
>
>End of Table of Contents
>
>* Microsoft in the News
>
>Windows 95 is no more!  Microsoft has told its OEM (Original
>Equipment Manufacturers) that it will no longer supply Windows
>95.  Microsoft has changed its support policy for technical
>support for users.  Now, you are permitted 2 free calls
>(instances) on a particular product; thereafter, you can pay $35
>per call if you like.  (I guess the Verbal View tutorials I write
>will be even more in demand now.)
>
>* They Got Fired
>
>Dean Blazie and Ted Henter were recently fired by Freedom
>Scientific, Inc.  Dean Blazie will consult 3 days per month with
>Freedom Scientific, Inc., but Ted Henter's plans are unknown.
>
>* New Flexible Voice Synthesizer
>
>Triple-Talk PCI
>
>This is an internal speech synthesizer designed for use with an
>IBM or compatible computer.  Triple-Talk PCI runs on the PCI bus
>and therefore is extremely responsive.  The Triple-Talk PCI
>utilizes advanced DoubleTalk technology to produce excellent
>text-to- speech.  With support for DOS and Windows 3.x/95/98/2000
>and Me, the TripleTalk PCI works with most screen access programs
>such as Vocal-Eyes and Window-Eyes and JFW.  Triple-Talk PCI
>comes with an external speaker with volume control, earphone
>jack, and all software needed for proper installation.  The price
>is $395.00.
>
>Triple-Talk External
>
>This is an external speech synthesizer designed for use with an
>IBM or compatible computer.  Triple- Talk External runs on the
>USB port and therefore is extremely responsive.  The Triple-Talk
>External also can be used on a conventional serial port without
>any loss of performance.  It utilizes advanced DoubleTalk
>technology to produce excellent text-to-speech.  With support for
>DOS, Windows 3.X/95/98/2000/Me and DOS boxes, the Triple-Talk
>External works with most screen access programs such as
>Vocal-Eyes and Window-Eyes and JFW.  Triple-Talk External comes
>with a built-in speaker with volume control, earphone jack,
>rechargeable built-in battery, A.C. Adapter, and all software
>needed for proper installation.  The price is $495.00.
>
>Please call BRL, Inc., to order either synthesizer or to ask
>questions.
>
>* New Simple and Powerful Tactile Graphics Program
>
>Most of you find it difficult (or impossible) to produce tactile
>graphics of high quality in a reasonable amount of time.  Now
>there is a tactile graphics program, Letter Art, which sighted
>users can employ to generate precise tactile graphics either with
>"swell paper" or on the Tiger Advantage embosser.  Letter Art is
>a long-established and widely-used graphics program employed by
>the sign industry to produce print and engraved signs as well as
>ADA compliant tactile signs with braille and raised symbols.
>
>You can "draw pictures" or "import pictures" in Letter Art and
>add text to these graphics.  You then pick a font style for the
>text.  Pick a "print font" to get raised print; pick a "braille
>font" to get braille (in Grade 1 or 2).  The user doesn't need to
>know braille, for the translation is accomplished by Letter Art
>in the background as soon as a braille font is picked for the
>text.  The text is translated and redisplayed as braille dots --
>which are "output" just as they look.
>
>Letter Art lets you draw and layout graphics and text and print
>"rough drafts" on plain printer paper.  You can, when you are
>satisfied, use the very same on-screen presentation to drive an
>Engraver or the Tiger  Advantage Graphics embosser or to make
>"swell paper" reproductions.  Unlike all other graphics programs
>available for braille embossers, Letter Art is able to create
>huge maps -- 10 feet wide and 6 feet high -- if you wish.  This
>is accomplished with a "panel production" method used in the sign
>industry to make large signs to be produced on standard small-bed
>engravers.
>
>Till now, it was a nightmare to make maps, pictures and the like
>with print and braille properly placed -- so the print matched
>the braille.  Letter Art lets you produce a print-braille layout
>with proper alignment.  You print the item and then run it
>through a Tiger Advantage embosser.
>
>You can see a demonstration of Letter Art with the Tiger
>Advantage at the CSUN conference in March.  Detailed information
>and specifications for Letter Art are available upon request.
>Call us at 877-993-4994 or email us at [log in to unmask]
>(BRL, Inc., is a dealer for Letter Art and for the Tiger
>Advantage.)
>
>* New Low-Cost Braille Display
>
>Researchers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) in Pasadena, CA,
>are developing an active tactile display device that presents
>textual and graphical information to a blind person.  The concept
>for the device comes out of research on the use of electroactive
>polymers that generate forces and displacement in robotic
>actuators.
>
>The display is a planar array of small cones or "reading pins".
>Under computer control, the pins are lowered individually or in
>groups to present highs and lows according to the information one
>wants to convey to a blind person.  The pattern is read by
>scanning it with the  fingertips,
>just like reading conventional Braille print.
>
>The pins are lowered by use of an electroactive polymer that, in
>film form, has been found to contract by as much as 30 percent
>when subjected to an electric field.  See the February issue of
>NASA Tech Briefs (page  37)
>for more information on this device.
>
>* New Web Browser
>
>"A generic Web sonification tool and its application to a Web
>browser for blind and visually impaired computer users..."
>
>We are happy to announce that a free download version of WebSound
>is now available at :
>
>http://websound.unige.ch/
>
>WebSound is an extended visual WWW browser for visually impaired
>and blind computer users.
>
>In conjunction with a graphic tablet or a touch sensitive screen,
>blind users can perform an "audio-haptic exploration" of an HTML
>document in order to understand not only its content but also its
>2D visual information (i.e., the document layout).
>
>* Another New Web Browser
>
>Freedom Scientific just released a cut-down version of JAWS for
>Windows, called Connect Outloud, to serve as a dedicated web
>tool.
>
>http://www.hj.com/Connect/CO.html
>
>The demo gives you 24 hours of actual use, as opposed to the 40
>minutes per session you get with Jaws.
>
>* New Mouse for the Blind
>
>An Israeli firm said that it has developed a computer mouse and
>operating system that can help the blind "see" computer graphics,
>claiming a world first.
>
>VirTouch Ltd said it has signed a deal with a Dutch venture fund
>to secure $1,25 million in equity financing to expand its
>operations following the signing of several deals for the system
>in Europe and Israel.  Company spokesperson Art Braunstein said
>there was no comparable product in the market for reading text
>and graphics on a computer by touch. "The system opens the
>computer and the Internet to millions of blind people,"
>Braunstein said.
>
>The system, which is the brainchild of two Russian immigrants,
>enables the blind to use touch to recognize graphics, read text
>and Braille and play tactile computer games through special pins
>on a computer mouse.
>
>* FREE Low Vision Book Available (Large Print)
>
>Book Title: "What You Should Know About Low Vision"
>
>Hurry - only 200 copies of this Large Print Book available (FREE
>Shipping)
>
>Call For Your FREE Copy Today!
>800-440-9476 ext. 41
>
>* Editorial Comment
>
>I have received many congratulatory comments on the products I
>recommend in this newsletter.  In particular, many of you have
>tried Window-Eyes and have switch from your other screen reader
>to gain "rock solid" stability and a simpler user interface.  I
>am pleased that you like this and other products recommended
>herein.  It would be greatly appreciated if you would consider
>purchasing products like Window-Eyes from BRL, Inc., so sales can
>support this free newsletter.  Typically, we offer products with
>free add-ons -- Window-Eyes with a free user manual in braille as
>an example.
>
>* WYFIWYG Newsletters Online
>
>All of the newsletters in text format have been zipped up and
>placed on the WYFIWYG web site.  Just download the zipped file to
>find a newsletter you wish to read again.
>
>* WYFIWYG Download Center
>
>Well, this is a month late, for most of us had the flu most of
>January.  Soon, you will be able to download Verbal View
>tutorials and key guides from the WYFIWYG web site.  Stay tuned!
>
>* Windows Me Accessibility
>
>There has been lots of e-mails on the various lists to which I
>subscribe.  They mostly bad-mouth Windows Me stability and
>compatibility with device drivers and discuss other technical
>issues.  No discussion is given to its accessibility to the blind
>and the disabled in general.
>
>Don't worry much if you buy a new computer with Windows Me
>already installed; there are few real problems.  Problems may
>arise, however, when you upgrade a computer with Windows 98 to
>Windows Me.  It seems best to buy the full Windows Me version
>instead of the upgrade version and install everything.  You may
>need to re-install some applications if they don't work after you
>upgrade.  I have had no trouble whatsoever with my Window Me
>systems.
>
>Now, to the issue of accessibility.  Windows Me is, in my
>opinion, far more accessible than Windows 98 and Windows 98 SE.
>Examples: the system tray, where all those pesky icons live on
>the far right of the taskbar, is now keyboard friendly.  You tab
>over to it and activate icons with the Enter key.  Now, it is
>simple to create and place a shortcut for any file, folder or
>program on the desktop.  Just highlight the item's icon; tap
>Shift+F10 or right click; and pick the Place Shortcut on Desktop
>command.  Now, you can have the Start menu either cascade as you
>open submenus or display items in a list format -- which is
>usually easier to navigate for screen reader users.
>
>Also, the Microsoft development staff is continuously making
>improvements when they receive suggestions or complaints.
>Example: The radio tuner option in the Media Player program
>(shipped with windows Me) is unaccessible with a screen reader.
>Microsoft fixed this problem when made aware of it, and a usable
>update is available as a free download from their Update web
>page.  I have found dozens of other small and large improvements
>in accessibility as I write the Verbal View of Windows Me
>tutorial -- to be available sometime in March.
>
>* Dimensional Printer Corporation
>
>Braille and tactile graphics are produced on devices that emboss
>ddots to make the braille and the graphics.  These devices have 3
>major limitations: dots are all of the same size so it is
>impossible to make lines finer or smoother; dots are all of the
>same height so it is impossible to make maps with features with
>different elevations; and dots are separate so it is impossible
>to make continuous lines and curves.  Now, a company exists to
>develop and manufacture an ink jet printer without these and
>other limitations.
>
>DPC was founded a year ago by Peter Duran (yours truly) and James
>Myres to create an ink jet printer that can produce 3-dimensional
>print, tactile graphics and of course good-old braille.  We have
>shown the feasibility of this effort and can produce braille on
>various materials.  Now, we are negotiating with firms to provide
>venture capitol and mass market distribution.  DPC printers are
>intended to make braille, but they are designed to do many other
>tasks so they are marketable to mass markets -- the print
>graphics industry, the toy industry, and more.  The primary goal
>of DPC is to sell 3-dimensional ink jet devices with mass market
>uses so braille writers and braille printers become as affordable
>as regular printers.
>
>Firms can request detailed information about DPC printers and the
>targeted markets if there is a genuine interest in a potential
>investment or distribution agreement.  A confidentiality
>agreement must be executed by the company before any proprietary
>data is released by DPC.
>
>* Subscription Information
>
>WYFIWYG Newsletter Distributed by:
>BRL, Inc.
>110 Commerce Drive
>Suite 210
>Fayetteville, GA 30214
>Tel: 770-716-9222
>Fax: 770-716-9599
>
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>                         End of Newsletter
>
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>