Official Holiday Present Thank You for the Demo Copy of Zoomtext Fusion

Please note: RantWoman is expressing extreme gratitude for an early holiday present. The Friendly Neighborhood Center for Extreme Computing  has received a demo copy of Zoomtext Fusion !


Zoomtext in a RED box

Zoomtext Fusion  is a new software product from AISquared that marries the screen magnification of Zoomtext with the screen reading capability of WindowEyes.

RantWoman has really wanted to try this product.

RantWoman now really likes Zoomtext's clear visual presentation but is hoping for big improvements in the screen reading compared to previous versions.

RantWoman also really likes the idea of Braille support but has not read enough to know what that means in this product.

Zoomtext has come a long way. The first time RantWoman tried it was long ago when she could still officially see and had an IT decision support / report writing  job. RantWoman demo'ed Zoomtext as an alternative to getting by on the magnification she could squeeze out of the Windows XP control panel.  That was awhile ago. Zoomtext crashed 3 times in 10 minutes and RantWoman decided that was nowhere near reliable enough to add to the other things she needed to run. Silly RantWoman?

(For the record at the time, RantWoman probably also needed to know how to make better use of the terms "reasonable accommodations" and "job retnetention. Such is the dance of software and workplace realities. Sigh.)

RantWoman uses both Zoomtext screen magnification and JAWS screen reading; RantWoman really appreciates specific features of both, but RantWoman is also interested in the idea of people easing into screen reading as vision loss progresses, that is where vision loss is slow and people have the option to adjust to limitations while making efficient use of remaining vision.

To be honest, RantWoman will be looking for a product where the advantages of screen reading are easy to find and easy to practice. Using a screen reader involves a learning curve and comes with additional headaches as one interacts with content that may or may not be designed with screen reader accessibilty in mind. Over time RantWoman has gotten better and distinguishing between issues that reflect her skill vs features of different websites, but RantWoman is very glad to have time to figure and not, say, to be trying to sort that out with a more aged brain after some kind of medical crisis.

RantWoman also keeps a couple other screen readers on her home machine and keeps meaning to fuss more than she actually does to compare features. RantWoman is also really grateful for a route past some headaches about getting the demo version for her home personal machine.

When the new software is installed and RantWoman has had some time to fuss with it or check out the links for online training, The Friendly Neighborhood Center for Extreme Computing  will be happy make it available for members of the public to try too. At that point, RantWoman will happily repost with the Friendly Neighborhood Center's better-known branding, contact info and hours for members of the public too.

RantWoman also offers the suggestion, possibly helpful for holiday shoppers that gift certificates might be just the perfect gift. Order today! Email and printed copies available.
Call or email sales at 802-362-3612 opt 2 or sales@aisquared.com.

Christmas Tree with a
Menorah on top

RantWoman also expects interest in Zoomtext to pick up over the next few months as the Seattle Public Library  Seattle Public Library rolls out accessibility software and training about the software to all its branches, not just to the downtown library.

But right now, RantWoman is just sending an early thank-you letter

News of the present came in a conversation about both Hanukkah and Christmas. Hence the choice of graphic.

Disclaimers: This blog is a natural product. Zoomtext enables RantWoman to do many things more quickly and to do better visual presentation than if she relied only on a screen reader. Proofreading is not one. Nor is summoning the patience to find the right key strokes to apply trademark symbols everywhere they would be appropriate. RantWoman urges the trademark owners please to bear with the problem. RantWoman also acknowledges taht tighter editing might be desirable. RantWoman acknowledges that but needs to move on and has tired eyes to boot.