Largest Electronic Library for the Blind Launched
23/03/2002
A new online service has been launched to provide more than eight thousand books that users can download and print in Braille or listen to using software that reads text aloud.
www.bookshare.org is expected to become the largest electronic library for the blind and visually impaired on the internet.
The reading material will be maintained by individuals who donate electronic copies of books that they have scanned.
"Bookshare.org will revolutionize the quantity and usability of books available to blind people," said Paul Edwards, immediate past President of The American Council of the Blind. "This service will enable our community to help each other access far more books."
To qualify for Bookshare.org, individuals with disabilities such as blindness and dyslexia, as well as those with mobility impairments, must submit written proof of their condition, signed by a certified professional, such as a physician. Upon verification and payment of an initial $25 set-up charge, members will be given access to Bookshare.org's collection, enabling them to download as many of its books as they want for an annual fee of $50.
Publications are organized just as they would be at your local library - by title, author, subject, and genre. Users can download and print books in Braille or use their software DAISY players to listen to an electronic reading.
One of the distinguishing features of Bookshare.org is that individuals with different disabilities can easily use it. Blind members can log on to the site using talking screen reader software, and choose books to download from the online catalog. Members with dyslexia can use software that presents the text visually and/or audibly to meet their needs.
Designed to operate at "break-even" the project was designed with input from The Association of American Publishers, The American Council of the Blind and The National Federation of the Blind.
Managing Information
http://www.managinginformation.com/
