AssistiveWare, a division of Niemeijer Consult
Laurierstraat 183Amsterdam, 1016 PL
Netherlands
Fax: 011-31-20-6128266.
Web: http://www.assistiveware.com.
Email: info@assistiveware.com.
Products manufactured by AssistiveWare, a division of Niemeijer Consult (listed alphabetically)
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GHOSTREADER
GhostReader is a voice output program designed for use by individuals with low vision or reading disabilities. This text-to-speech utility enables text files or e-mail to be read aloud with human-sounding Acapela voices. The program can read text, Word, HTML, PDF, and RTF files, or to speak selected text in any application. Words are highlighted onscreen as they are read. The user can cause onscreen text to be read by pointing the cursor at it. The program can also convert text to MP3 audio files and to create bookmarkable audiobooks. It comes with Acapela Voices in one of the following languages: American English, American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, British, Canadian French, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, Flemish, French, German, Icelandic, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish, or Turkish. OPTIONS: Second language. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIRMENTS: Mac OS X Tiger 10.4 or later.
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KEYSTROKES 3
Keystrokes 3 is an on-screen keyboard program designed for use by individuals with fine motor, upper extremity, neurological, and severe physical disabilities or spinal cord injury. It is a virtual on-screen keyboard program that allows the user to type with a mouse, trackball, head pointer, or other mouse emulator to enter characters into any standard Macintosh application. The program provides multilingual word prediction, including word completion, next word prediction, and multi-word prediction in any Roman language and other languages. Dictionaries can be edited, and new dictionaries can be added for additional languages or dialects. The program learns the user's vocabulary as the user types or through text files; on Mac OS X learned text can be spell-checked automatically to prevent learning typos. For those who can position a pointer, but not click the mouse buttons, a dwell utility allows mouse button clicks to be entered by holding the cursor motionless for a programmable period of time. The on-screen keyboard floats above other applications, and can be automatically shown and hidden as needed. The program provides visual and audio feedback, including voice output for text entered in English, configurable auto-spacing and auto-capitalization features for a number of languages, and various key designs, selectable font, and adjustable key spacing. The program works with US and international keyboard layouts and includes five interactively resizable keyboard models. A Simple Mode is available to limit a student's access to more advanced features. OPTIONS: Also available in French. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS 9 or higher or Mac OS X 10.1.3 or higher (OS X 10.2 recommended); minimum 800 x 600 pixel screen resolution; 10 megabytes (MB) of free memory. The program comes with a copy of an earlier version, KeyStrokes 2.2, for use on older machines running Mac OS 7.1 and up.
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LAYOUTKITCHEN
LayoutKitchen is a direct selection and scanning communicator program designed for use by individuals with communication or speech disabilities. This program is a layout editor for on-screen communicator panels in Proloquo and scanning panels in SwitchXS (see separate entries). It supports coloring of panel background, button labels, and buttons, including full-color images of any size on buttons in graphic formats such as .png, .tiff, .jpg, .psd, and .pdf. It adjusts text font, size, and style on individual buttons; provides drag and drop editing of buttons, colors and images; organizes and arranges buttons; and allows a wide range of functions to be assigned to buttons, from speech to text to AppleScripts and keyboard macros. The program includes a quick-access image browser. It works with Picture Communication Symbols from Mayer-Johnson. OPTIONS: PCS for LayoutKitchen, with over 8,000 Mayer-Johnson Picture Communication Symbols. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Apple Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS X 10.2 or higher (Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger is recommended) and screen resolutions of 800 x 600 pixels or higher.
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PROLOQUO
Proloquo is a communicator and voice output program designed for use by individuals with communication, learning, or speech disabilities or low vision. This program enables a computer to function as an alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) system for people who cannot speak. Text typed into the program is spoken, and words and phrases can be custom set to be spoken with a mouse click or keystroke. The program can also speak messages associated with image-based speech panels designed with AssistiveWare's LayoutKitchen using Picture Communication Symbols from Mayer-Johnson (not included). The program speaks text and other keystrokes typed in any application, and speaks screen objects such as buttons, menus, and text below the cursor in most applications. It provides very large icons and resizable toolbars, and can convert text to audio files or iPod-ready iTunes tracks. A basic text editor is included that can speak as the user types, and can also speak individual words, sentences and paragraphs. The program also provides a multilingual speech engine for AssistiveWare's KeyStrokes on-screen keyboard and SwitchXS switch access (not included; see separate entries). It works with all the built-in voices of Mac OS X, and includes Acapela voices for one of the following languages: US English, UK English, German, Dutch, Flemish, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, or Brazilian Portuguese. OPTIONS: Acapela voices for additional languages and a bundle with Infovox iVox, which provides voices that work both in this program and system-wide. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Apple Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS X 10.3 Panther or Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger operating system and minimal screen resolution of 800 x 600 pixels.
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PROLOQUO2GO
Proloquo2Go is a direct selection communicator and voice output program designed for use by individuals with communication, learning, or speech disabilities. This program enables an Apple iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad to function as an alternative and augmentative communication (AAC) system for people who cannot speak or have difficulty speaking. Proloquo2Go displays a set of captioned SymbolStix symbols in a grid or list format, and the user selects a sequence of symbols to form a message. The program comes with a default vocabulary of 7000 words and phrases that are placed in categories for easy access and associated with one of the almost 8000 SymbolStix symbols included with the program. The user can augment the vocabulary using an on-screen keyboard and can create and store new symbols using imported photos or additional symbols stored on the host device. When the message is complete, the user can vocalize the message using one of the Acapela text-to-speech voices provided with Proloquo2Go. The program automatically conjugates verbs and converts nouns into plural or possessive forms as appropriate. Recently spoken items can be retrieved for later use. The app also allows the user to customize the size and color of the symbols and text and the color of the display background. COMPATIBILITY: For use with the Apple iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Apple iOS 3.0 or later.
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SWITCH XS
Switch XS is a mouse emulator and single switch keyboard modification program designed for use by individuals with upper extremity, fine motor, neurological, or severe physical disabilities or spinal cord injury. It enables individuals who cannot use a mouse or keyboard to operate a computer by pressing a single switch. It works with any standard Macintosh application and offers full mouse and keyboard emulation by means of a scanning mode. With each click on the switch the user selects an action, such as "move the cursor up" or "type B," from one of several predefined scanning panels. The user can set scanning speed and cycling, mouse speed, and whether the scanning panel becomes partially or fully transparent when no scan is taking place. In addition to switches, the program works with most USB joysticks and gamepads, regular keyboards, and switch interfaces that emulate any of these. The program works with US and several international keyboard layouts. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Apple Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS X 10.2 or higher operating system; minimum screen resolution of 800 x 600 pixels.
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TEXTPARROT
TextParrot is a voice output and audio file creation program designed for use by individuals with low vision or reading disabilities. This program enables the user to listen to Text, Word, HTML, PDF or RTF files with natural- sounding voices in a language of the user's choice. Selected text in any application can be spoken in a reader window with play, fast forward, and rewind functions. Text can also be selected for reading by pointing the cursor to it. Text can be converted to audio files for podcasts, and audio books can be created by exporting to iPod-ready iTunes tracks. The program uses voices from Acapela Group in one or two of the following languages: US English, UK English, French, German, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, Portuguese, Norwegian, or Swedish. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Apple Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS X 10.4 or later.
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VISIOVOICE
VisioVoice is a voice output screen reader and screen magnification program designed for use by individuals who are blind or have low vision. The screen reader can be used to listen to selected text in any application or to text, Word, HTML, PDF, or RTF documents. It has play, pause, stop, rewind and fast forward functions, and can highlight words or sentences on screen as they are spoken. The content of buttons, menus, and text entry areas can be read in applications that support Apple's Accessibility API, including Safari, Mail, Finder, TextEdit, and many third-party applications. An Image Enlarger window zooms the area around the cursor, and a Text Enlarger shows the title of buttons, menus, text entry areas, and other text in large type in a separate window. Other features include large, customizable cross-hair and target cursors; the ability to convert Text, Word, HTML, PDF and RTF documents to audio files or iTunes tracks; user-configurable system-wide hot keys; and translations of VoiceOver and VoiceOver Utility for French and Dutch. The program comes with Infovox iVox, which provides voices for the Mac. OPTIONS: Spanish, French, British English, or Brazilian Portuguese Spanish add-on. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Apple Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS X 10.4 or later operating system; G3/G4/G5 900 megaHertz (MHz) processor with 512 megabytes (MB) or any Intel Mac.
Products distributed by AssistiveWare, a division of Niemeijer Consult (listed alphabetically)
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INFOVOX IVOX
Infovox iVox is a speech synthesizer program designed for use by individuals who are blind or have low vision or learning disabilities. This program provides natural-sounding voices that can be used in any Mac OS X application that uses speech, including applications such as TextEdit, Preview, Acrobat Reader, Proloquo, KeyStrokes, SwitchXS, VisioVoice, and AppleWorks, as well as many educational titles. The program can also be used with built-in speech and accessibility features of Mac OS X, including Mac Os X Tiger's built-in VoiceOver screen reader. The program includes male and female voices in a choice of Danish, Dutch, English (US or UK), Finnish, Flemish, French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese (Iberian or Brazilian), Spanish, and Swedish. OPTIONS: VisioVoice bundle allowing VoiceOver menus and messages to be heard in languages other than English. COMPATIBILITY: For use on Apple Macintosh computers. SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later operating system (Mac OS X 10.4 Tiger recommended); G3/G4/G5 900 megaHertz (Mhz)processor with 512 megabytes (MB) or any Intel Mac.

