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Home » News » Software Internet & Software » Microsoft Looks Out For The Disabled
Microsoft Looks Out For The Disabled
By: Tech2.com News Staff   |   May 07, 2008

Microsoft has joined with industry and advocacy group leaders worldwide to launch new software that will make it easier for anyone to create documents and content that will be accessible for blind and print-disabled individuals.

The new "Save as DAISY XML" add-in, designed for Microsoft Office Word 2007, Word 2003 and Word XP, will allow users to save Open XML-based text files into DAISY XML, the foundation of the globally accepted DAISY Standard for reading and publishing navigable multimedia content.

The "Save as DAISY XML" add-in was created through an open source project with Microsoft, Sonata Software Ltd. and the Digital Accessible Information SYstem (DAISY) Consortium and can be downloaded by Microsoft Office Word users for free at http://www.openxmlcommunity.org/daisy.

Also released today is the newest version of the DAISY Pipeline, a free downloadable transformation suite that supports the seamless conversion of DAISY XML into DAISY Digital Talking Book (DTB) format. Together these technologies provide a solution for converting text documents into accessible formats for people with print disabilities. Users can download the DAISY Pipeline. Information about other technologies that can convert DAISY XML into DAISY DTB format and other products that support the DAISY standard is available on the DAISY Web site.

Groups such as the World Health Organization and the World Blind Union estimate that more than 160 million people throughout the world are either blind or have a significant impairment to their vision.

Global access to the "Save as DAISY XML" add-in for Microsoft Office Word is an important step forward for people with print disabilities around the world, because it will support access to information contained within billions of Microsoft Office Word documents, helping them to lead more independent and productive lives.

"This new 'Save as DAISY XML' functionality for Microsoft Word has the potential to break down barriers for millions of visually impaired individuals around the world and enhance the experience for virtually anyone who loves to read," said Chris Capossela, senior vice president of the Information Worker Product Management Group at Microsoft. "We are proud of our collaboration with the DAISY Consortium and Sonata Software to deliver valuable benefits for people with a visual impairment. This tool will make it easier for anyone — from a child writing to his or her grandparent, to a government agency providing vital information to its citizens — to create accessible content."
 
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ya this is i think good start for disabled peron because most of the part of world are disabled so this technology helpes them and this develop theirs self confidence as well . It aslo beneficial because in the market people always trying to produce new helps products for disabled person by the cuming of this microsoft looks for disabled it will make disabled person to stand on their feets
vijay Thapa @ May 08, 2008
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