MAGic and Me – a serious thread

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Baiting Guru Joined: 03 Mar 2006 Posts: 7103 Location: Yes

Cheers Titania. Rather than putting in the icon: thumbs up!

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 2:24 am

Wow, Titania, that's really amazing.

My grandparents live in Palm Desert and they have a friend with a microscope-like thingy that enlarges words like 50 times.

It also makes us people who don't have a handicap and our petty complaints about life in general seem like we are nothing. Sad

And I could imagine what it was like in the earthquake to be in your situation. And you said in that post that you were in a wheelchair and that was an experience? Wow; I could not even imagine it not being able to see what was going on. Confused

And how does it pronounce British words, like "programme"? Is it like "pro-gram-ee"? And "five-imba"? Does it see the "S" as a "5"? That's kind of a problem. Very Happy

And it doesn't self-destruct after reading ladspeak. Good for it. I'll bet it wasn't made in America! Wink

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 3:10 am

I can see somewhat - I'm not totally blind, and I'm doing everything I can to keep it that way Smile

The emoticons aren't a problem if I hit ESC, so you don't have to be afraid to use them, but I do appreciate the consideration you are showing. If I really didn't want to deal with them, I'd disable them. But I think they're fun.

SherlockHolmie, As long as you capitalize the H, MAGic sees your id as two words and pronounces them properly. Pictures are simply referred to as "image." But since I can see some, I don't have a lot of problems, except with documents sent by lads - the contrast is not always good enough for me to read their handwriting. I hope my lads never send me forms!

"Programme" is pronounced "program." I could have it speak with a British accent if I wanted to - I've done it for fun, and it's pretty good. I have a choice of several voices, and it actually speaks with some intonation. For instance, it knows what question marks and exclamation points do to the way sentences are spoken.

I visited a website that is apparently from France, although with English text. MAGic actually spoke in a French accent! Crazy!

It takes run-on sentences in stride, although I sometimes wonder why it doesn't gasp for breath in the middle.

I have a magnifier for reading books and papers, too. It has a flat bed that I can move around, a CCTV, and a big screen. I can view in full color, black and white, reversed (white on black), and a couple of other color combinations. I can even write checks and fill out forms with it. A great boost to my independence.

Yes, I'm in a wheelchair. I am an above-knee amputee (right leg). Unfortunately, the fact that I have no depth perception and poor vision oveerall made it impossible for me to learn to walk with a prosthesis.

I don't see any reason to throw myself a pity party. They don't do any good, and other people don't care to join in, so they're a lonely place to be. I'd rather be the life of the party. Very Happy

Well, get me going on this subject and I could write a book! But if you want to know more, just ask.

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 6:09 am

Thanks for posting this, Titania, and I'm delighted that you're having no problems at Eater, both with reading the posts and with the reception you've been getting. Very Happy

The information on your reading program is fascinating. Was it the first one you tried, or have you tested alternatives?

As you know, anything that makes members here more prone to use accurate spelling and not leet-speak is fine with me. Smile

I hope people will think about that and try to make Eater even more welcoming for those who do not have English as their first language or are in similar circumstances to Titania. Getting the lads to spell properly is much more of a challenge, I'm afraid, Titania. Very Happy

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:54 am

Titania,

Thank you for sharing this with us. I believe you are an amazing lady.

I enjoy reading your posts. I would never have guessed you had visual problems.

Scarlett

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 8:20 am

Thanks, that is very interesting. Sorry to bug you with more questions, but I am curious by nature. Is MAGic compatible with every programme? What does it do for instance with the advertisements in Gmail? Do you need to select the text you want to read or does it do that for you?

Can I ask you were you are from? Are you in the States? Do you feel there are enough resources and considerations in your country that will help you do the things you would do without your handicap? Do you for instance have some kind of transportation contract that will allow you to use taxis at a cheaper rate?

I had a pupils who was blind from birth. School never had a blind student before and the first few weeks we had regular meetings with her and her parents on what kind of rules and assistance we can put in place to allow her to study without too much inconvenience. For instance we arranged that she did not have to change classrooms more than absolutely necessary and we instructed pupils to leave her guidance dog alone, no matter how cute he looks. How was school for you? Or did you become blind at a later stage in your life?

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 9:02 am

I just want to know if we can refer to Simba as Five-imba from now on?

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 9:24 am

Fascinating info Titania. I'm sure the technology you have makes your life much easier in so many ways that the rest of us take for granted I bet you can't imagine life without it now.

So YW comes out as "eiewww" eh? [insert suitable emoticon]

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 11:08 am

This is actually a really interesting read for me Titania as I'm currently making sure my company website is as accessible as possible for the visually impaired. It's invaluable to be able to hear this straight from some one who experiences this on a day to day basis. Thank you for sharing.

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:22 pm

I am finding this interesting because of the software. I have seen the magnifying screens you can put over TVs but this software sounds incredible. I am just imagining the work it would take just to get it to recognize words. I have seen some similar programs on the internet. Where you can enter words into a field and it will read them back. They just always amaze me because I know the programming behind it all.

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 12:27 pm

Thanks for sharing Titania, I would have never Known if you didn't tell us.
Is good to see first hand how todays technology helps.
My late brother Frank had lost his eye sight at about 28 ( he would have been 43 this year) a couple years before he died he was getting in to computers for a little fun. and he had a thing that more or less typed out in bralle on his finger tips what he was reading. he had some peripheral sight. so if he held something up to his side of his eye he could see it some what. He like you didn't let things get in the way.
He built a 88 mustang with a small block chevy engine, all by feel. I use to drive him around in it and we raced it at the dragstrip. kind of interesting driving a high 11 second car built by a blind guy.

419Eater is my life Joined: 11 Apr 2005 Posts: 365

I enjoy reading posts such as yours. It actually makes me think that there is hope for mankind. I know to many people that would use a medical condition such as you to their advantage. They would sit on their ass all day long, collect Government benefits and expect people to wait on them hand and foot.
I'm glad to see that you consider this only an obstacle in life and not a handicap.

Baiting Guru Joined: 04 Dec 2005 Posts: 3551

Titania, that was very interesting information. Thank you for sharing it.

Elite Baiter Joined: 16 Jul 2008 Posts: 1407

I must commend you on your opennes with your disability. It is great to have you on eater.

I must confess to wondering how many times the audio playback of some of our baiter names / hijinks has caused you to blush.

I sure hope you don't visit eater during work if you get your new job! (I hope you get the job).

Not sure how many times your cube mates want to hear audio playback of some of the more racous baits!

Baiting Guru Joined: 07 Jul 2006 Posts: 5727

Pastor Frank wrote:

Thanks for the thread Titania, very interesting. I have to ask, how does the software pronounce Usm4n B3ll0?

It pronounces it as "He who shall not be named", of course! Very Happy

Thanks for sharing. I used to teach on a part-time basis at a University, and I once had a legally blind student that walked with a cane in my class. He still had some sight left, but it was leaving him quickly and he wanted to get his mba before his sight was totally gone. He would sit in the very front of class and record every lecture. He also had a large magnifying glass that he would use the scan the board. We had two other people take notes for him.

The University had software in the library that would magnify any spreadsheet for him. I don't know how large the magnification was, but I do know it was much more than three times. I would put the exams in Microsoft word, and he would take the exams in the library.

His homework and exams were interesting to grade, as he wrote very big, and would have about ten times the number of pages as the rest of the class.

I was really hoping he would make it through the program, but he dropped out. He got a "B" in my class though. The guy worked his butt off.

Kudos to you Titania for how you are handling this!

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 4:21 pm

Thank you all again. I hope I don't forget any questions - you were busy while I was asleep. Smile

I lost my vision about three and a half years ago. After a year and a half of fighting for my benefits I finally hooked up with the State Department of Rehabilitation (California), and got a new computer with the software, the magnifier, and other nifty stuff, like a watch that literally tells me the time. They are also working with me on the job front.

I also tried a program called Jaws, but I was more comfortable with MAGic. There is a magnifier built into every Windows-based computer, but it doesn't smooth the edges of letters, so the magnified letters and numbers are difficult to read. It also echoes each key you press. It was embarrassing at my last job - each letter would be quietly repeated, but when I made a mistake, the volume increased for BACKSPACE. Everybody around me knew when I'd made a mistake.

I live in southern California, probably the best place to be if one has disabilities. In addition to the many teaching hospitals and other medical services, transportation for those with disabilities is great. Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego Counties have a service called Access Paratransit. For a small fare ($1.80 to $2.25) I can go anywhere within the county. And I can transfer to the next county's Access with no difficulty. It's a great place for someone like me to be independent.

Usm-four-N B-three-L-L-zero. And you can call Simba whatever you like - just check with him first. Wink

MAGic doesn't play well with every program out there. For some reason it messes with Yahoo Messenger, although I can use MSN Messenger with no problem. I dunno - maybe because it's geared specifically for Windows programs.

I wish I could remember the name of the site where you can submit your websites to be graded on accessibility. It checks for things like labels on images - you know, where when you drag the cursor over the image a little box comes up with a description of the image. MAGic and other reading software programs will read those boxes.

Oh yes - I can direct where it starts reading. By placing the cursor on a line of text, the program reads that line. I can also make it just start reading where the cursor is and continue reading until I tell it to stop. Dangerous when reading long, long blocks, though, as I tend to fall asleep. Embarassed

This topic is timely, I think, because there is a certain Governor who is showing many people that being legally blind is no barrier.

I tell people I have disabilities - I am not disabled.

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 5:44 pm

Quote:

I tell people I have disabilities - I am not disabled.

How do you feel about the term "differently-abled"? Smile

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 5:47 pm

^^^That's neat!

Titania, you are one awesome individual. Cool

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 6:07 pm

Thanks for the info Titania . I have some idea how the world must look like through your eyes because i wear glasses . If i put them off i can't read one single bit on this forum , not even a quote from a lad with caps lock and bold font . And even with your disabillities you still have a sense of humor because without humor you can't bait the lads in my opinion . Have fun !

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2008 8:09 pm

Titania wrote:

I tell people I have disabilities - I am not disabled.

That is a wonderful response Titania. and you have a great attitude. Thumbs up

Wannabe Baiter Joined: 20 Jul 2008 Posts: 87

Titania wrote:

But since I can see some, I don't have a lot of problems, except with documents sent by lads - the contrast is not always good enough for me to read their handwriting. I hope my lads never send me forms!

I'm sure if you ask, just about anyone here would be more then happy to help and type out their responses for you. From some of the forms I've seen, I would need to get help reading them too.

Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 2:09 am

Titania - You could turn your difficulties with lad forms into a baiting modality and ask them to return the forms to you in a MASSIVE font?

Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 2:26 am

Hi Titania,

Thank you for sharing with us. I wish I had known about MAGic when I was looking at email services for my 85 year old Mother who has macular degeneration. It would have been wonderful for her. Instead I went with Presto.com which is a very good service. She uses her Kurzweiler machine to read her emails.

When she was first diagnosed my family immediately went into action. Our concern was that she be able to live her life to the fullest as she had before her diagnosis. The state she lives in has a very agressive program for the visually impaired. They have given her all her equipment and tools as well as have monthly classes for the visually impaired in her small community. And all this is free of charge.

I am amazed at all the technology and equipment available to her. They even gave her a visually impaired Scrabble board which she uses to whip my behind in Scrabble. I am sure that you have gone through a similar program.

Please keep us informed of the technologies that you use. I am sure that many can benefit from it.

Thanks, Titania!

Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 2:37 am

Chapeau Ma'am,
proud to know you a little bit now and I already loved the name you chose for here. Thanks for sharing.
Regards
Bill2

Posted: Fri Aug 08, 2008 1:59 pm

I am really glad you posted this. I found it rather informative. Thanks!

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