Accessible Information: An Overview

In our modern society, increasingly complex media and technology are being used to transmit information. However, to participate and enjoy the benefits of the information revolution requires a continual familiarity with the new developments, so it is important that this area remains accessible to the visually impaired community. This chapter opens with a review of the principles and technologies of low vision aids that are used to access print. Sections on audio transcription and Braille as access routes to print information then follow. It is the recent developments in speech processing and speech synthesis technology that are drivers in the wider use of audio as an information interface for the visually impaired. Major sections of the chapter describe the accessible computer and the accessible Internet. Both are extremely important in the processing and provision of information and there are many interface options to make these systems accessible to the visually impaired. Finally, since mobile telephony is increasingly accruing computer and Internet capabilities, the chapter closes by reviewing accessible communications technology.