A Few Notes on Buying a Computer

A Few Notes on Buying a Computer

The

Braille Monitor

December,

2003

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A Few Notes on Buying

a Computer

by

Curtis Chong and Steven Booth

Curtis

Chong

From the Editor: Every

year thousands of people ask the staff of the NFB Technology Department for

advice in buying just the right computer. Before he left the Center staff, Curtis

Chong, then NFB director of technology, compiled his advice into one short handout.

Steve Booth has updated the information because we thought that everyone would

be interested in reading it. Here it is:

The

International Braille and Technology Center for the Blind (IBTC), which is operated

by the National Federation of the Blind, receives thousands of calls each year

from blind people who want to buy a computer. Most of our callers want a computer

to write letters, keep records, send and receive email, and surf the Web. Some

people want to use their computers as reading machines, which can scan and speak

printed material.

While

most people will want voice output from their computers, others would prefer

screen magnification. People who need to read highly technical material or

who

are deaf-blind might prefer reading their computer screens using refreshable-Braille

technology. As a totally blind computer user I find that voice output works

well for me. Many of my friends with enough vision to read print prefer to

have

both voice output (to save on eyestrain and dramatically increase reading speed)

and screen magnification (to provide visual verification when desired).

If

you cannot read your computer screen because of your vision, in addition to

the basic computer you will need to add software called screen-access

technology. You should start by purchasing a computer that runs the Windows

operating system. The following specifications can be used as a guide to determine

which built-in features you should get for your new system: at least 128

megabytes of RAM (random access memory), preferably 256 or greater; at least

20 gigabytes of hard-disk space (most hard disks have at least this amount

or more storage capacity); an internal 56K modem with V.90 capability; an ethernet

card if you plan to connect to the Internet using a cable or DSL Internet service;

no less than a 500-megahertz processor speed (nothing slower is sold these

days); and a Creative Labs Sound Blaster Live or Turtlebeach Montego card.

While almost any video card will work with screen-access technology for

the blind, the blind person using speech output should bear in mind that the

more

sophisticated, three-dimensional card used for video games is not necessary.

Steven

Booth

Why do you need the Sound

Blaster Live or Turtlebeach Montego sound cards? You will need a multichannel

sound card that will allow screen-access technology and other Windows

applications to generate sounds at the same time. Without a multichannel sound

card, sounds generated by Windows or other programs often conflict with your

screen-access program's ability to talk to you through your computer's

speakers, and one or the other will generate an error message. In our experience

the Sound Blaster Live or the Turtlebeach Montego work well as multichannel

sound cards. However, you can acquire another multichannel sound card if

you

wish.

As

for software, computers (as of this writing) are sold with the Windows XP operating

system. Two versions are available, XP Home or XP Professional. If you plan

to use your computer at home and do not plan to connect to many other devices,

XP Home is sufficient. Otherwise consider buying XP Professional since it

offers

better networking capability. Email and Web-browsing software (Outlook

Express and Internet Explorer, respectively) come free with the Windows operating

system, but you get only a fairly simplified free word processor (WordPad for

Windows). While you can use WordPad to write letters and other simple documents,

you may want to consider buying Microsoft Office if you are interested in spell-checking

your material.

A

word processor that works fairly well with screen-access technology is

Microsoft Word. Some computer dealers will try to bundle a package called Microsoft

Works with your system. While we cannot say for certain that Microsoft Works

is not compatible with screen-access technology for the blind, we can

say that our experience with it is limited and that we are more confident in

the ability of Microsoft Office to work with access technology than we are

with

Microsoft Works.

The

next software item that must be given serious consideration is a screen-access

program. Most blind people would prefer to acquire one which converts the

information

on the screen into speech. Others will want screen-magnification software,

and many will want a combination of speech output and screen magnification.

See the last page of this article for information about how to contact the

appropriate

screen-access technology vendor.

If

you want your computer to be able to read and speak printed material, you will

need to buy a piece of hardware called a scanner (for about $200) and a

software

product which actually speaks the text on the page. You should be prepared

to spend at least a thousand dollars to acquire the blind-friendly

systems--especially if you do not consider yourself a relatively sophisticated

user of Windows.

There are two noteworthy products to consider: Open Book from Freedom Scientific

and Kurzweil 1000 from Kurzweil Educational Systems. Both of these programs

come with their own speech and can thus operate without screen-access

technology.

In

addition to the staff of the International Braille and Technology Center, the

National Federation of the Blind has thousands of members willing and able

to

answer your questions. I urge you to call the president of the NFB affiliate

in your state and introduce yourself to him or her. If you do not know how

to

reach your NFB state affiliate president, call the NFB's general information

staff in Baltimore at (410) 659-9314 (8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Eastern Time).

Now

for those who want large print. We are not experts on low-vision software

but have heard good things about ZoomText from a company called Ai Squared.

This software is particularly helpful if you want to use screen magnification

as your primary means of reading information displayed on the computer screen.

ZoomText comes with speech which can increase your speed when reading text.

For

those who want speech output most of the time but need some visual verification

every once in a while, the combination of JAWS for Windows and the MAGic magnification

software (available from Freedom Scientific) seems to work well. There are many

other possibilities, so you would be wise to start networking with other blind

people. Again, call our NFB state presidents to meet people already using computer

systems you'd like to have yourself.

Sometimes

people new to using computers hire someone to build them a computer. This can

include lessons which teach the buyer how to get started once the computer is

assembled and ready for use. Such experts often know how to buy good basic equipment

during sales or at a reduced rate on Internet Web sites. If you know some blind

computer experts, I would suggest you ask what fee they would charge for assembling

a system in addition to the cost of the computer parts. Remember that sighted

experts may help to build a computer but are unlikely to know how to instruct

you to use keyboard commands instead of the mouse. Again, I highly recommend

locating local blind computer users to help you through the frustrating early

days of learning to use your new system.

At

present the average cost for a full system can be broken down like this:

$1,200,

Intel-based computer with Windows operating system

$1,000,

Reading software (optical character recognition software) will let you use your

commercial scanner. First it scans any typeset print you've placed on the scanner;

then it will recognize the document and read it aloud to you.

$900,

Screen-access technology, such as JAWS for Windows or Window-Eyes,

will see your computer screen and articulate what is there.

$200,

A typical commercial scanner

$200,

A typical commercial color printer

$300,

Estimated: state tax, an electrical power surge protector, computer supplies

(printer paper, CDs or disks, and computer application programs), computer user

manuals in Braille or on cassette, Internet service provider fees, ($100 to

$200 per year), and other such incidentals

$3,900,

Total best estimate (October, 2003)

References

and Contact Information

While

JAWS for Windows from Freedom Scientific appears to be the best-known screen-access

program for the blind, we should call to your attention another program,

Window-Eyes.

Each program has a unique set of features. The decision about which screen-access

program to buy should be based partly on the features important to you and

partly

on the amount of money you have to spend. You should consult with the screen-access

vendor to obtain the most current information about features and prices.

JAWS

for Windows by Freedom Scientific, 11800 31st Court North, St. Petersburg,

Florida 33716-1805. Telephone: (800) 444-4443, (727) 803-8000; fax:

(727) 803-8001; email: <[email protected]>; Web site: <http://www.freedomscientific.com>.

JAWS for Windows ($895) provides speech and Braille access to Windows 98, Windows

Millennium, and Windows XP Home Edition. Another version of JAWS for Windows

($1,195) provides access to Windows XP Professional Edition and Windows 2000.

JAWS for Windows is shipped with the Eloquence software speech synthesizer,

meaning that it can generate speech through your computer's sound card.

Window-Eyes

by GW Micro, 725 Airport North Office Park, Fort Wayne, Indiana 46825. Telephone:

(260) 489-3671; fax: (260) 489-2608; email: <[email protected]>;

Web site: <www.gwmicro.com>. GW Micro offers Window-Eyes Home Edition

for use with Windows 98, Millennium, and XP; and Window-Eyes Professional for

use with Windows 2000 and XP Professional for $795. Both versions come with

the Eloquence Synthesizer.

ZoomText,

available from Ai Squared, P.O. Box 669, Manchester Center, Vermont 05255. Telephone:

(800) 859-0270; fax: (802) 362-1670; email: <[email protected]>; Web

site: <www.aisquared.com>. This screen-magnification program sells for

$395 without speech and $595 with speech.

Kurzweil Educational Systems,

14 Crosby Drive, Bedford, Massachusetts 01730, Telephone: (800) 894-5374; fax:

(781) 276-0650; email: <[email protected]>; Web site: <www.kurzweiledu.com>.

Kurzweil 1000 is available at $995.

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