PC

Brief description

• Free text to speech program
• Works in Microsoft programs, webpages, PDF files and emails
• No copy and paste required: uses its own task bar
• Can also magnify text and change the font colour, style and size to aid reading

Who could benefit

• People who struggle to read
• People with visual difficulties

Brief description

• A color filter which puts a tint on the computer screen to make text more readable
• The filter can be configured to use any colour or opacity

Who could benefit

• People with visual difficulties
• People who struggle to see normal computer screen
   

Brief description

• Reading & writing tool designed for children but can be very helpful for people with aphasia who need help with writing & spelling
• Word prediction (can be personalised)
• Word & phrase banks by topic or A-Z (can be personalised)
• Written or picture supported word banks
• Hear words before selecting
• Listen back to what you have written
• Make voice notes to rehearse a sentence before writing it

Who could benefit

• People who have some spelling but who need writing & spelling prompts
• People who have no spelling but who would like to write letters/cards
  
   

Brief description

• Word prediction (in any web & Windows application)
• On screen keyboard
• List of up to 12 word predictions
• Can customise the dictionary to improve prediction
• Text to speech facility to hear the words predicted before selection
• Screen magnification
• Can listen back repeatedly to the sentence being composed
• Examples of word useage (for homophones)

Who could benefit

• People who can spell the first 2-3 letters of a word

Brief description

• A basic ‘line’ guide
• Isolates lines of text at a time. Can select the bar width to 25%, 50%, 75% or 100% of screen width and set the slot height to the required font size

Who could benefit

• People who struggle to read text when it is in large chunks due to reading or visual difficulties.
• People who skip lines of text

Brief description

• Free software which adds text to speech (in Microsoft Word only)
• It speaks aloud what you are typing

Who could benefit

• People starting to write in sentences but with some spelling and reading difficulties

Brief description

• Keyboard familiarisation tasks
• Spelling exercises
• 80 activities included or create your own
• Results are recorded
• Use standard keyboard or onscreen keyboard
• Prompts provided
• Can be used by lots of different users, each with their own exercise set

Who could benefit

• People needing to practise:
• Keyboard skills
• Spelling skills

Brief description

• Speech recognition program
• As the user speaks into the microphone, the speech is automatically turned into text
• Can read back &/or listen back to what has been typed

Who could benefit

• Someone with good speech & listening skills but compromised spelling &/or reading skills

Comments

• Need to train the program to recognise your speech
• Noise reducing microphones work best
• Requires good cognitive skills to remember commands & adapt speaking rate

Brief description

• Available as an app and/or software
• Word prediction (uses grammar smart word prediction & handles phonetic spelling, letter omissions & reversals)
• List of up to 9 word predictions
• Can customise the dictionary to improve prediction
• Text to speech facility to hear the words predicted before selection
• Can listen back repeatedly to the sentence being composed
• Customiseable, topic based on-screen word lists  to aid writing
• Use in social media, email, word processing documents

Who could benefit

• People who can spell the first 2-3 letters of a word

Brief description

• Word prediction, speech recognition & screen reader
• The program predicts to aid spelling, gives examples of word useage, reads aloud text on the screen (what you’re typing or what you’re reading).
• Can also use speech recognition to ‘type’ in words.
• Can customise the dictionary to improve prediction
• Screen reader, prediction & speech recognition works within all programs/web pages (e.g. can use within email, social networking sites & web searches)

Who could benefit:

• People who can spell the first 2-3 letters of a word before getting stuck
• People who can spell words but sometimes find it easier to say a word

Comments

• All parts of the program work on PC. Mac users only have access to the word prediction & screen reading parts of the program, not the speech recognition part
• Switch accessible only if using Wivick connection cable