What can one expect, from stories that should start
with "once upon a time". There was a company named
"Big Blue"; and an off -the- shelf, general operating
system called "OS2". The platform was new, with
"multi-tasking" too, and its' own "adaptive"
applications made for you. Planned, packaged and
delivered brand new. They just forgot what Windows
can do! Perhaps you remember the paradigm?
Let Us Not Forget IBM's OS2s Come With Their Own Adaptive Applications.
Here Is A True Computer In -A- Box. Order Your Applications Pre- loaded.
Just Open And Plug -It- In.
This is an alternative to Microsoft Dos and Windows.
I assisted a blind friend by installing OS/2 Warp and Screen Reader/2 on his system a few days ago. He had been using DOS and JAWS previously. Yesterday, I spent the afternoon with him to see how he was progressing and to find out what his feelings were about the new operating system and screen reader. He is one HAPPY CAMPER. He had already rearranged his desktop and made other modifications to the default settings that the install program had set up. He is still getting familiar with the separate screen reader keypad, that he got with Screen Reader/2, and hasn't learned all of the key sequences yet. This will come to him, given some time. He is a diabetic, who has lost 90% of his tactile senses in his right hand and 50% of his tactile senses in his left hand. He is limited to using one hand for general typing. When he is faced with a situation that requires multiple keys being pressed, he will use his left hand to locate one key and then guide his right hand to hold that key, while he locates the second key. Needless to say, the graphical, menu driven environment presented by OS/2 is a blessing to this man. This coupled with the fact that Screen Reader/2 works as advertised, right out of the box, has made the transition relatively easy for him. The introductory audio tapes that came with the package are thorough and follow a logical sequence of
introduction to the screen reader program. He is still working his way through the tutorial, learning the use of the
screen reader keypad, and asked me "Why would anyone not like OS/2 and Screen Reader/2? It runs rings around DOS and JAWS. It's telling me everything that I need to know. All the documentation is on line and it is clear and doesn't bounce around." What he is referring to by "bounce around", is that the documentation doesn't make references to "section xx of chapter xx" when discussing a subject. If there is a related topic, the help, or documentation, has direct links to that subject that do not require anyone to look it up. Help is only a single
keystroke away, when he has any questions about what any menu item will do by pressing the F1 key.
Bill
It seems that Microsoft and the many companies that supply software for
DOS based systems [ I classify Windows 3.x and Windows 95 in the DOS category ],
have missed the boat on this. From what I have seen of Windows screen readers,
they have not been developed to handle or recognize icons effectively.
Those that do recognize icons, are limited to the ones that are hard coded into the
software. This makes me question Microsoft's true commitment to the blind community.
IBM, on the other hand, has a proven track record of support for the entire
hadicapped community and has a seperate division dedicated to serving those
with special needs. I do not have any idea if their DOS based screen reader is
any good, but I am very impressed with what I have seen and experienced with
their OS/2 screen reader. I have had my first exposure to this during the last
month, as I have assisted a blind friend install OS/2 and Screen Reader/2 on
his system. He has just started to learn some of the mouse functions of the
dedicated screen reader keypad. He does not have a mouse connected to his
system at this time. We temporarily connected a mouse to his computer to
experiment with the different mouse functions. He's discovered that the
screen reader can be taught to recognize icons that it has never encountered
before. He can assign any word, or phrase to that icon. With mouse tracking
turned on, the screen reader sends out coded tones and phrases that can be
used to determine where the mouse pointer has moved. Since we only
discovered this a couple of days ago, and experimented with it for a few hours
only, I cannot give any more detail on it. He will have to add another serial
port to his system to add the mouse permanently to his system to learn more
about the mouse capabilities of Screen Reader/2. All, in all, this is the first
PC based system that is anywhere near as friendly to the blind user as the
Macintosh system, I referred to earlier.
I'm not going to get anything from IBM, but I have to say that if anyone
wants to introduce any blind person to the wonderful world of computers and
the internet; OS/2 and Screen Reader/2 are ideal. OS/2 Warp comes with
a complete set of internet utilities and Screen Reader/2 comes configured
to use these utilities. Screen Reader/2 has a retail price of $600 and $100
for the dedicated keypad
Bill Smith
MORE OS2 COMMENTS BY BILL SMITH
I have to comment on these issues, since they are very real and are
a big obstacle to the non sighted person. I recall seeing a demonstration
of a Macintosh [YUK] system designed for the blind community that would
speak the icon that the mouse cursor was on. I saw this on a TV show some
3 or 4 years ago! The mouse moved from one icon to the next, in the same
direction that the mouse was moved. This was the first time that anything
that a Macintosh did, impressed me in any way. I don't want to get into
a Macintosh - PC debate. I only want to use this as a reference for the rest
of my comments.
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