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Volume 16, No. 3, Summer 2008 |
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What’s New at CSUN?
Dan Fendler
Sussex County AT Specialist
DATI
For me, one of the draws of the California State University at Northridge’s (CSUN) Annual International Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference is the opportunity to hear Ray Kurzweil speak. In case you’ve never heard of Ray Kurzweil, he is known as a fairly prolific inventor and visionary who created the first Optical Character Recognition (OCR) reading machine in 1976—the precursor of many of the text-to-speech software packages that are sold today. The title of the keynote this year was The End of Handicaps, which focused “on the accelerating pace of technology, the handicaps associated with disabilities, and the role of technology as a great leveler in bridging the communication and mobility challenges associated with sensory and physical disabilities” (excerpt from Business News Wire). If you’re interested in learning more about Ray Kurzweil, check out the Kurzweil Technologies website (http://www.kurzweiltech.com).
There’s a lot of chatter about how fast technology is changing, but one of the devices that Mr. Kurzweil developed and introduced at the conference this past March clearly demonstrates the incredible pace of development. Kurzweil, teamed with the National Federation for the Blind, introduced the knfb Reader (www.knfbreader.com) in June 2005 as a portable reading device prototype for people with visual impairment. The kfnb Reader hit the market shortly after that with a price tag of approximately $4,000. It was the size of a PDA (personal digital assistant) with an external camera attached that was used to “scan” text and convert the text into speech. While quite remarkable, the device was expensive and bulky to carry around. This year, the same functionality of the original reader was packed into a Nokia N82 mobile phone for about half the original price. It’s portable, fits into many pockets, and can also be used as a mobile phone with a camera. If you would like to see a demo of the knfb Reader, please call your local ATRC to set up an appointment.
There were a number of other products on display at CSUN designed to help people with low vision. The Clarity Lynx (found at www.clarityusa.com) is a portable magnifier featuring a camera that swivels (for both close-up and distance use), and a camera mouse that can be used for reading. The Lynx folds into an easily portable form and, with its rechargeable battery, can be used practically anywhere.
The portability factor of the Lynx is nice, but it limits the size of the viewing screen, which measures about 8.5 by 6 inches. If you are interested in a device that can be used with large screen televisions, you may be interested in the Acrobat by Enhanced Vision. This magnifier is designed as a camera on a long, adjustable swivel arm that can be attached to any LCD-type screen, including large-screen TVs (provided they have a VGA-type connector). If you have a large screen LCD or plasma television with a VGA connector, you can magnify to the size of your display screen. If you have a 50-inch display, you can magnify anything to a grand (and very legible) scale.
If you need a device that can be attached to a laptop computer, you may be interested in the Optelec ClearNote+ (go to www.optelec.com, click on US, then products, electronic-low-vision, and clearnote). Designed with a classroom setting in mind, this portable magnifier can be attached to a computer and used to magnify close-up or to view objects in the distance (a blackboard, for example).
Some additional features of the ClearNote+ include:
- Reading and writing support
- Near and distance viewing
- Compatible with laptops and VGA monitors
- Compatible with ZoomText and other software
- Color, black & white, and negative viewing modes
- Auto-Focus
- Runs on battery or AC power
- Picture-in-Picture capability
Last, but not least, is an unusual device called the Zoom-Twix, by ABISee, Inc., which can be used for close-up or distance magnification, and it can be used as a text-to-speech reader. The manufacturer claims that the Zoom-Twix can scan 20 pages of a book per minute by simply turning pages. It is portable, attaches to a computer through a USB port, and draws power from the USB connection.
All of the devices discussed above are now available for demonstration at our resource centers. If you’re interested in learning more about any of these items, or anything else that may help make your life a bit easier, please give us a call. We’re here to help. ■
