Abstract
This paper presents the outcomes of an ongoing research project aimed at systematic identification, analysis and testing of available open source and commercial software systems that could significantly benefit college and university students with visual impairments in highly technological learning environments—smart universities. We analyzed dozens of software systems available for students with visual impairments, including JAWS, VoiceOver, Emacspeak, Orca, NVDA, ChromeVox, Duxbury Braille Translator, Kurzweil 1000, ZoomText, DesktopZoom, Microsoft Narrator, MAGic, ZoomText, Microsoft Magnifer, RoboBraille, OpenBook, Mind Manager, SensusAccess, Index Everest D, Focus 80, FreedomScientific Topaz, VisioBook, TSI Voyager XL, Opti Lite, Optelec ClearView, and other systems. Based on a careful analysis of available open source and commercial products we identified the top software systems that we recommend for implementation in smart universities to benefit students with visual impairments.
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Bakken, J.P., Putta, P., Uskov, V.L. (2021). Smart Universities: Assistive Technologies for Students with Visual Impairments. In: Uskov, V.L., Howlett, R.J., Jain, L.C. (eds) Smart Education and e-Learning 2021. KES-SEEL 2021. Smart Innovation, Systems and Technologies, vol 240. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2834-4_39
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-2834-4_39
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