[Athen] Inspiration Brand Software

[Ron]

No based on my testing CoWritter does not work with any Windows based
screen readers.  I had hope for NVDA, since it is not as intrusive to the
OS as JAWS.

Ron Stewart

On Friday, April 24, 2015, Wershing, Alice D. <adwershing at pstcc.edu> wrote:


>  Originally CoWriter did work with Inspiration.  I attended a 2 week

> Literacy Course at Duke in the mid-90’s and if you launched Cowriter and

> then attached it to Inspiration it did work.   It could be that there have

> been changes made that does not allow CoWriter to do that anymore, but you

> might check with DJ tech support.

>

>

>

> I called recently and asked if CoWriter worked with JAWS and was told that

> it crashed.  That was about a month or so ago, so it may be time to call

> again.

>

>

>

> Alice Wershing, M.Ed., A.T.P.

>

> Technology Specialist

>

> Disability Services

>

> Pellissippi State Community College

>

> 10915 Hardin Valley Road

>

> Knoxville TN  37933-0990

>

> (865) 694-6751

>

>

>

> East TN Region Accessibility Specialist

>

> Tennessee Board of Regents-ROCC/RODP

>

>

>

> Access for All Blog

>

> http://blogs.pstcc.edu/access4all/

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>

>

> Accessible Format Facebook Page

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>

> https://m.facebook.com/psccdisabilityservices?refid=46&sld=eyJzZWFyY2hfc2lkIjoiNzhjYzY3MmVkNDg2ODkyMjVhY2ViMjUyOGQwNWJiYzUiLCJxdWVyeSI6InBzY2MiLCJzZWFyY2hfdHlwZSI6IlNlYXJjaCIsInNlcXVlbmNlX2lkIjoxOTU4NzAyNDk1LCJwYWdlX251bWJlciI6MSwiZmlsdGVyX3R5cGUiOiJTZWFyY2giLCJlbnRfaWQiOjczNDM1NjkxOTkzOTUxNywicG9zaXRpb24iOjAsInJlc3VsdF90eXBlIjo2NX0%3D

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>

>

> *From:* athen-list [mailto:athen-list-bounces at mailman13.u.washington.edu

> <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','athen-list-bounces at mailman13.u.washington.edu');>]

> *On Behalf Of *Ron Stewart

> *Sent:* Friday, April 24, 2015 12:08 AM

> *To:* 'Access Technology Higher Education Network'

> *Subject:* Re: [Athen] Inspiration Brand Software

>

>

>

> I like Nettie's suggestion but would also want to look at why you would

> use these tools.

>

>

>

> They have a  much significant higher cost, and the learning curve can be

> steep.  The other major consideration has been the accessibility of these

> products for folks with sensory disabilities and that cannot use a mouse.

> This is something the vendor has never been willing to fix because they do

> not feel that this is the market they are focused on. Perhaps that has

> changed recently, I sincerely hope so!

>

>

>

> Now that DJ has a HE version I have found that I really like it, but have

> not used Draft Builder in the past because I do not find it really suitable

> for the HE environment in such a personalized manner but more in a access

> manner.  The critical issue from my perspective is that the students need

> to be able to use these tools themselves, and like many of the product that

> have come from our K-12 partners that is not the orientation for use.  I

> think I would be very hard pressed to get most faculty to move to

> development with these kinds of products. A few maybe in our ABE/Dev. Ed

> areas and perhaps support programs like TRIO or SSS, but in the general

> curriculum, I am not really sure. Though it would be really cool to see.

>

>

>

> I would love to hear how you all are using these products in your work to

> support folks with disabilities on your campuses.

>

>

>

> There is not a suite tool option from our friends and Inspiration. I

> personally have found the standard program the best to use in the HE space

> since it gives the most flexibility as both an individual organization tool

> and as a group think tool.  I am getting ready to head off to the HTCTU to

> do a series of trainings for IT folks on AT and Inspiration or one of its

> analog products is a much have for any campus learning space just not as a

> part of the AT space.  I taught a course for several years with a team of

> faculty on creative problem solving, low tech and high tech, and found

> Inspiration invaluable to the process.

>

>

>

> Maybe EA will chime in as well because these kinds of tools are one of her

> passions.

>

>

>

> Ron Stewart

>

>

>

> *From:* athen-list [mailto:athen-list-bounces at mailman13.u.washington.edu

> <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','athen-list-bounces at mailman13.u.washington.edu');>]

> *On Behalf Of *Nettie Fischer

> *Sent:* Thursday, April 23, 2015 5:38 PM

> *To:* Access Technology Higher Education Network

> *Subject:* Re: [Athen] Inspiration Brand Software

>

>

>

> Solo Suite is another option you might want to consider.  The one thing I

> like about their word prediction program (Co:Writer)  and their mapping

> program (Draft:Builder)  is that you can use the word prediction option in

> the mapping option.  When I  explored this with inspiration, I was not able

> to use a word prediction option.  I did not explore all the word prediction

> options but, if you are looking at a suite type program, I do not know if

> their is one available with Inspiration, etc.   As I mentioned, I did not

> explore this extensively,

>

>

>

> Nettie's nickel

>

>

>

> On Thu, Apr 23, 2015 at 11:56 AM, Aldrich, Holly <haldric2 at lesley.edu

> <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','haldric2 at lesley.edu');>> wrote:

>

> Hello, ATHEN List,

>

>

>

> Our office is currently looking into updates and changes for our assistive

> technology and educational software. We are considering purchasing an

> Inspiration software package such as WebspirationPRO, Webspiration

> Classroom, or Inspiration. We are hoping that the visual thinking,

> organization, and concept mapping aspects are especially useful for

> students with various types of disabilities. We also see a number of

> students from the College of Art and Design for whom the creative and

> aesthetic aspects might be helpful. If you have any experience, insight, or

> recommendations with the Inspiration brand, I would love to hear from you!

> Below is an explanation of what we are considering.

>

>

>

> Ideally, the specifications we would like to target are

>

>

>

> 1.       The Inspiration suite of tools, images, and document formats -

> available on WebspirationPRO, Webspiration Classroom, or Inspiration

>

> 2.       Web-based access from any computer through an account login -

> available on WebspirationPRO and Webspiration Classroom

>

> 3.       Volume account licensing for our student base - available on

> Webspiration Classroom and Inspiration

>

> 4.       Tools meant for higher education and/or the workplace -

> available on WebspirationPRO and Webspiration Classroom

>

> 5.       Options for real time group and collaborative work - available

> on WebspirationPRO and Webspiration Classroom

>

>

>

> By this breakdown, it seems like Webspiration Classroom fits all of our

> specifications. However, the standard version is Webspiration Classroom

> Managed. This means that it works much like a Learning Management System

> such as Blackboard. In addition to the learning tools included with all

> Inspiration products, it has workflow management tools (instructors posting

> assignments, students submitting their work, grading, message centers,

> etc.) and a centralized administrative platform for  management of student

> and teacher accounts.

>

>

>

> We wouldn’t really need this type of managed service because we already

> use Blackboard, and we aren’t really interested in providing accounts for

> instructors. This would likely cause complications for students,

> instructors, and tech staff.

>

>

>

> There is a Basic vs. Managed option for Webspiration Classroom to

> consider. With the Basic option, account codes are provided to individual

> students who then set up and manage their own accounts. This approach lacks

> the centralized administration and control of the managed option and seems

> to be a good solution when managing the accounts is less important, but

> paying for access for students on a volume basis is more important. I

> understand that the Basic package is not typically offered, but it could

> work best in this case.

>

>

>

> I would like to make the most informed and appropriate purchase choice,

> and sorting through all of these differences has been interesting. Here are

> some questins for you.

>

>

>

> 1.       Do any of you work with students using Inspiration brand

> software?

>

> 2.       Is Inspiration still usable beyond K - 12?

>

> 3.       If you use WebspirationPRO or Webspiration classroom, how useful

> are the features of any time/anywhere access via online login and group and

> collaborative work?

>

> 4.       Alternately, are there any other programs for visual learning

> and outlining that you would recommend?

>

>

>

> Thank you all for your consideration and thoughts. I look forward to

> hearing from you!

>

>

>

> Best,

>

> Holly

>

>

>

>

> *Holly Aldrich, M.S., CRC *Disability Access Specialist

> Access Services for Students with Disabilities

>

> Lesley University

> 11 Mellen Street

> Cambridge, MA 02138

> 617.349.8655 voice

> 617.349.8544 TTY

> 617.349.8558 fax

>

> haldric2 at lesley.edu <javascript:_e(%7B%7D,'cvml','haldric2 at lesley.edu');>

>

>

>

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>

> --

>

> *Nettie T. Fischer, ATP*

> *Assistive Technology Professional*

>

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