This article describes the Mac Access Passport (MAP) and provides examples of the third-party companies and products contained in it. This article provides information about non-Apple products. Apple Computer, Inc. is not responsible for any content referring to these third-party products. Please contact the vendor of each particular product for additional information.

Mac Access Passport Database

MAP includes information on tools for individuals with physical motor impairments, blindness, hearing and speech difficulties, and learning disabilities. The database can be searched by keywords, product name, developer name, disability type, and description text. MAP is based on the Macintosh FileMaker Pro search engine by Claris Corporation.

You can view the Mac Access Passport on the WWW at http://www2.apple.com/disability/welcome.html. You can download the Mac Access Passport database from ftp.info.apple.com or ftp.apple.com. Or you can request a copy by calling Apple's Worldwide Disability Solutions Group at 800-600-7808 (voice), or 800-755-0601 (TTY).

The following information is distributed by Apple Computer's Worldwide Disability Solutions Group. Mention of a particular product does not represent an endorsement, either expressed or implied, by Apple Computer, Inc.

Learning and Speaking Disability Solutions

Special Education Software

Without knowing more about a particular student (What are his reading skills? spelling skills? comprehension skills? What are her academic and personal goals? interests? abilities?) it's difficult to recommend specific software.

But it is possible for teachers and parents to make that decision once they have enough information about what software is available. Below are four companies that offer a wide selection of educational software for the Macintosh. We encourage you to contact them to find out about their various Macintosh education software solutions.

Dyslexia

In addition to the Macintosh's ease-of-use, there is software that can help you structure and organize your ideas, check your spelling as you type (using your own list of frequently misspelled words), and analyze your written documents for grammatical errors. There is even some software that can anticipate the word you're about the type, and type it for you!

When it comes to managing your daily activities, personal information management software can help manage different areas of your life: keeping an updated TO DO list, maintaining your address book, and scheduling and reminding you of upcoming appointments.

Speech Communication

Using "text-to-speech" software, the Macintosh can create synthetic speech from typed-in words, allowing your PowerBook to speak out loud any word or phrase. The Macintosh also has the ability to record and playback a person's own voice (somewhat like a tape recorder), which results in a very high-quality sound.

Special software can help you manage computerized speech so that you can access the appropriate words on demand. Libraries of pictures, symbols, and graphics are often used to build "picture communication boards," enabling speech samples to be selected quickly and easily.

Physical Disability Solutions

Keyboards

The right keyboard for you may be the kind that looks like a traditional keyboard, but has large, touch-sensitive keys to help make typing easier. Or maybe your keyboard is the kind that has only seven keys and uses a typing technique called "chording," originally designed for one-handed typists. The Apple Adjustable Keyboard, another possibility, splits into two sections and conforms to the natural position of your arms to make typing comfortable.

Other products include switch-operated, on-screen keyboards that let you type with almost any part of your body, and "smart" keyboards that allow you to customize each key's position, size, and function. We suggest you contact the following companies to learn about, and perhaps sample, their keyboard products.

Pointing Devices

If so, there are many from which to choose: head-controlled mice, trackballs (in effect a mouse turned upside down), joysticks, mice of different sizes and speeds, writing pads that function as mice, touch-sensitive screens that act as mice, and even remote-controlled mice.

Another solution is Easy Access, a software program that comes with every Macintosh. The MouseKeys feature of Easy Access lets you use the keyboard to control the cursor's movements.

How do you determine which pointing device is the most appropriate for your needs? First you need to find out what's available (beyond the contacts listed below). Try visiting your local newsstand and browsing through a computer magazine devoted to Macintosh technology; there you'll find new and different pointing devices being advertised regularly.

Input Systems

Keyboards and mice are traditionally used to control personal computers. Although you may not be able to use these devices, you can choose between a number of alternatives, including: a voice recognition system that allows a person to control the computer by talking to it; an on-screen keyboard that facilitates typing without physically touching the keys; and a head-controlled keyboard/mouse that lets a person type using head movements.

There are, in fact, a number of possibilities that will allow people to use a Macintosh for whatever they want. Contact the following companies to learn more about their access products.

Visual Disability Solutions

Speech and Braille

When it comes to navigating the Macintosh's screen, software called outSPOKEN gives audio cues to on-screen visual images such as icons, windows, menus, and cursor location (the numeric keypad replaces the need for a mouse). outSPOKEN is compatible with virtually all Macintosh applications, so blind people can use a Macintosh just as sighted people do- in the office, at home, at school, anywhere. Another program called Duxbury Braille Translator converts text to Braille and formats printing on a Braille embosser.

For more information, contact the following companies:

Magnification

Other magnification solutions range from monitors that display images in multiple resolutions to magnification lenses that attach to the outside frame of the Macintosh's monitor. You may also want to consider using software that reads text aloud, so that instead of looking at the words on your computer, you can listen to them. Contact the companies below to learn more about their access products for people with vision impairments.

[Previous] [Top] [Next]