Visually Impaired Can Now 'Surf' Internet Thanks to Indian Software
From: Channel NewsAsia - 02/26/2004

More than a hundred visually-impaired children in India are using software
that lets them surf the Internet. The software product, called Vachantar, is
being used by students at the Government High School for Blind Girls in the
south Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Developed by the Center for Development
of Advanced Computing and Webel Mediatronics, Vachantar enables users to
browse the Internet by listening, a strategy that lessens the need for using
keys. Vachantar, which does not take long to learn to use for email, makes
use of a text-to-speech system and text-Braille embossing, which aids tactile
reading. "We can take out the printouts and read on our own," explains
Parveen Begam, a blind student in the 10th grade. The software also makes use
of the software series for Learning Indian Languages through Artificial
Intelligence. Vachantar was on display at the recent Asian IT Minister's Meet
in Hyderabad, and is gaining some interest from other countries. 

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/southasia/view/72776/1/.html