Peter describes his impressions of two tutorials and a recent book on
adaptive technology.  Have you or members of your local vicug had the same
impressions?  This is from his monthly newsletter.  I have included the
subscription information at the end of the message.

kelly




From: Peter Duran <[log in to unmask]>

                      WYFIWYG EMAIL NEWSLETTER
                            January 2001

There is definitely too much for one person to research and learn
about access issues; so, I buy materials written by others, who I
admire and respect, to broaden my knowledge base.  Let me share
with you what I think is hot and what to avoid.  Please check out
these materials for yourself so you can make your own enlightened
decisions.

I opologize in advance for any biases I bring to these reviews.
It is hard to be totally objective when you also write tutorials
and books -- which you believe, of course, are the best.

* Cathy Anne Murtha Word 2000 Seminars

Email: [log in to unmask]
Web site: www.cathyanne.com

This author, as most of us know, is an expert in access
technology.  She sponsors many online seminars and answers many
questions by email for lots of newcomers.

Most of us know, from our college experiences, that many
professors, who are excelent researchers, are often poor
teachers.  The same applies to expert authors.  Murtha's 2 Word
2000 seminars are very disappointing; they are poorly organized
and topic selection is nearly ramdom.  Moreover, they were
apparently written in great haste, for capitalization and other
grammar errors abound.  Many topics are briefly presented, and
most readers would find it impossible to learn the material from
the cryptic discussions offered.  There is 1 notable exception:
the discussion of Custom Forms is thorough, clear, and well-written.  The
advanced tutorial is worth the nmoney if you need
to create custome forms.

There are occasional blunders.  Example: The discussion of the
placement of Comments in Word documents is muddled.  She
appearently misunderstands the use of the Comments item in the
View menu and forgot how to close the Comment pane.

* Iowa Project Assist with Windows Word 2000 Tutorials

Web site: www.blind.state.ia.us/assist

The 2 Word 2000 tutorials from the Windows Assist Project at the
Iowa Commission for the Blind are a far better investment of
money and time.  The presentation style is repetitive and
pooring, but the content is well-organized and clearly presented.
Most topics of interest to the blind are covered.  The discussion
of tables in Word 2000 is clear and very complete and so is the
discussion of mail merge.

Separate tutorials for Window-Eyes and for JFW are offered.  You
can purchase both to see which program does better in which areas
of Word 2000.

There are occasional blunders.  Example: You are told to use the
Alt+Up and the Alt+Down keys to jump between columns when a
document has newspaper column layout and when you are in the
Normal view.  A step-by-step procedure is offered to navigate
columns under these circumstances.  This process doesn't work!  I
checked with Microsoft Word 2000 tech support and confirmed that
these keys only work while in Print Layout view.

It is hard to make the documentation match the performance of
complex software.  The reader should always check out a procedure
to make sure that it really works.  (Even books from Microsoft
Press blunder occasionally.) Have sympathy for us poor authors,
for it is hard to write about an intrinsicly difficult subject
clearly and simply.  I spent, for example, a year to write the
Verbal View of Word 2000 tutorial; the hard part was to organize
topics so a reader wouldn't need to jump between tapes or braille
volumes.  I am on the third go-around with this book, and I am
still finding simpler ways to perform tasks.  (The second edition
will be released this Spring.) For example, consider this
undocumented trick:

Follow these steps to add a shortcut key to any tool button or
any menu item in Word 2000:

1.  Hold down the Ctrl key and then hold down the Alt key.

2.  Now, tap the Plus key on the numeric keypad with NumLock off.

3.  Release the Ctrl and Alt keys.

4.  Activate any button on any tool bar or activate any menu item
in any menu.

It doesn't matter how many steps it takes to reach and activate
the button or menu item.

5.  Up pops the Customize Keyboard dialog box as soon as you
activate the tool button or menu item.

6.  Type a key combination in the text box, activate the Assign
button and then activate the Close button.

Your key combination is assigned to the tool button or menu item.

7.  Just tap this keycombination the next time you want to
activate that tool button or menu item.

* CAPTURED BY THE NET
An Internet Guide for Blind Users
Written by Olga Espinola
Email: [log in to unmask]
Published by National Braille Press

Again, this author is expert in access technology, and this book
is well-written.  But, it is unclear who the intended audience
is.

You will be unable to access the Internet after you read this
book, for no step-by-step instructions are included.  No specific
access software is discussed.  The discussion is often
historical, abstract and pointless.  The book has lots of
interesting tidbits about the Internet which may be of interest
if you already have access to the Internet.

The 1 useful section is the Helpful Resources section.  It
includes hundreds of interesting web sites, reference materials,
and so forth and may justify the book's price.

[other content snipped[

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