[Athen] And more information about the iPad...

[Shelley Haven]

Apple's webpage on iPad Accessibility (http://www.apple.com/ipad/features/accessibility.html 
) details a number of accessibility features that are similar to those  
in Mac OS X -- Voiceover, Zoom, White-on-Black, etc.  It appears from  
the picture of the Accessibility settings panel that VoiceOver is  
simply an on-off function.  It's not clear if it allows the additional  
configuration found on the Mac.  In particular, I would love to see  
the VoiceOver Cursor (which would serve the same function as  
highlighting text as it's read) and the Caption Panel (which pulls out  
that text into a separate overlaying window).  This would give it  
definite advantages over the text-to-speech functions found in Kindle  
or other e-readers.

Of particular note, it also says:
Apple also enables software developers to create applications for iPad  
that work with VoiceOver.
Hmm-m... (my mind reels with possibilities).

BTW, here's Apple's webpage on the iBooks app (VoiceOver mentioned  
toward the bottom):
"iBooks works with VoiceOver, the screen reader in iPad, so it can  
read you the contents of any page."
http://www.apple.com/ipad/features/ibooks.html

Makes me wonder if books for the iPad are more expensive than for  
Kindle because Apple negotiated the audio rights as well.  (As you  
recall, this is what got Amazon into hot water with the publishers  
last year when they first released the Kindle 2 with TTS.)

- Shelley

_____________________________
Shelley Haven  ATP, RET
Assistive Technology Consultant
www.TechPotential.net



On Mar 12, 2010, at 1:14 PM, Jeffrey Dell wrote:


> Now we only need to worry about how accessible the ebook files they

> create are.  I also hope that the voice over functionallity is better

> than reading documents in the document viewer that opens from safari

> and their mail app.  I would like to read increments less than the

> whole document at a time or more than word by word.  I hope there is a

> happy medium or something more like reading in safari.

> Jeff

>

> On 3/12/10, Shelley Haven <ShelleyHaven at techpotential.net> wrote:

>>> "Also on the books front, it was clarified today that the iPad can

>>> indeed use VoiceOver screen-reading for reading pages of books out

>>> loud..."

>>

>>

>> I wrote an e-mail to Steve Jobs a few days ago asking precisely this

>> question -- I'd like to believe this clarification was in response to

>> that.  (Well, I can dream, can't I? ;-)

>>

>> _____________________________

>> Shelley Haven  ATP, RET

>> Assistive Technology Consultant

>> www.TechPotential.net

>>

>>

>>

>> On Mar 12, 2010, at 11:09 AM, Sean J Keegan wrote:

>>

>>> While I do believe that it will require a test-drive to determine

>>> what accessibility features and functionality are truly present on

>>> the iPad, there is additional information being released about

>>> iBooks and VoiceOver.

>>>

>>> Short URL:

>>> http://tinyurl.com/yhk2r97

>>>

>>> Full URL:

>>> http://www.engadget.com/2010/03/12/ipad-mute-switch-magicked-into-a-screen-rotation-lock-overnigh/

>>>

>>> From the article at Engadget:

>>>

>>> "In other news, it's been confirmed that iBooks will be able to sync

>>> free (non-DRM'd) ePub titles in from iTunes, which is good news for

>>> people who want to use an existing ePub stash of theirs with Apple's

>>> fancy page-flipping interface. Also on the books front, it was

>>> clarified today that the iPad can indeed use VoiceOver screen-

>>> reading for reading pages of books out loud -- we knew the screen

>>> reading tech was on the iPad, but now it sounds as if it will be

>>> more directly integrated into iBooks."

>>>

>>>

>>> Take care,

>>> Sean

>>>

>>> <skeegan.vcf>_______________________________________________

>>> Athen mailing list

>>> Athen at athenpro.org

>>> http://athenpro.org/mailman/listinfo/athen_athenpro.org

>>

>>

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>

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