Those who have noticed this text-only version of this web site probably realize that I have always been somewhat interested in the accessibility of technology. However, it has recently become personally important to me and that's why this page exists and is written in the first person.
Someone very near and dear to me, D. Light, has AMD--Age Related Macular Degeneration. She has all but lost the sight in one eye and is losing her sight in the other eye. Although I cannot do anything to restore her vision, and I am on a mission to find ways of maximizing whatever vision is remaining.
This page is the precursor of a new web site that will be dedicated to Accessibility with an emphasis on vision loss. The new site will be found at visionrehabilitation.org. (Don't bother checking it yet as there is nothing there as of this writing in late November, 2002).
Why am I doing this? It's not that there is a lack of information about vision loss on the web. It's not that there are no organizations dedicated to this problem. It's not that there are no devices or gizmos to help people who are blind or who have low vision. In fact, it could be said that there is a plethora of these on the web.
However, this page and the eventual site are here as a way for me to share what I have learned. I want to
Modern technology has been a real blessing for those with vision impairments. From the use of laser surgery to help stem the progress of AMD, to hardware and software that help maximize the remaining vision, technology has had an huge impact on vision loss.
AMD affects central vision, leaving a darkened or blank area in the central vision. Seeing details is no longer possible. As a result, reading, viewing a computer monitor, watching television, and doing handicrafts are all impossible without assistance.
Fortunately, D. Light has been a computer user for over four years; she started at the age of 80! Although a latecomer to the computer age, she has become comfortable with surfing the web, sending and receiving email, and using Microsoft Word. More importantly, she has been an avid book reader for her entire life. With AMD, these activities are no longer possible without her using new equipment and learning new techniques.
The following is just the beginning of what will become a more comprehensive listing:
Note: These links tend to change and disappear. We appreciate your letting us know of broken links so we can fix them. All sites open in a new window. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list, just personally recommended products.
APHont Regular is a free TrueType font designed for low vision computer users. (I originally tried to find fonts that were naturally bold or thicker than normal but those fonts did not display well at all.)
Rabe's Big-Cursors for Windows is a wonderful collection of freeware mouse pointers. They use the largest possible image (32x32 pixels), are bordered by a background-inverting outline (for good visibility regardless of the background color), and are animated for easy findability.
ZoomText is a screen magnifier and screen reader for Windows.
If you've read this far, then you probably share this interest in accessibility. I invite you to contact me with your comments, criticisms, and/or kudos, learn, and contribute.
Note: This page is part of a text-only, scaled-down version of the main GUIguy web site which is located at http://guiguy.com. The reason for creating this mini-site is so that people with disabilities and people with older browsers could still learn about the GUIguy and his company. This message will be near the end of each page in this mini-site.
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