There are people among us who find it difficult to do what we consider simple. This can apply to any aspect of life, including interaction with a computer. And this can directly affect your loved ones, whom you can help. This text is addressed to you, because you are the one who can read it, there are no difficulties for you in typing and controlling the mouse. Let's figure out how to make working on a PC easier for those for whom all this is not so simple.

This review opens a series of instructions on MTS/Media for people with disabilities and, perhaps even more so, for those who can help them figure it out. We start with a personal computer and the capabilities that are built into the world's most popular PC operating system - Windows 7. Let's immediately say that the new sister OS Windows 10 has similar functions.

Windows 7 will help those who have visual impairments and those for whom standard methods of working with a mouse and keyboard are not suitable to operate a PC.

One window principle

Microsoft has put all the features we need in one place, so they're easy to find and easy to use. Click on the “Start” button, and in the menu that opens, click “All Programs”. In the Accessories category, find the Accessibility folder, and within that folder is the Ease of Access Center. It’s better to immediately create a shortcut for your desktop in order to avoid the menu quest in the future.

The window that opens is our starting point. The screenshot below shows how to access all the options that will be discussed next.

We must immediately warn that not in all cases the functions collected in the Ease of Access Center will make managing your PC easy. Sometimes it will be a transition from very complex to less complex, sometimes from impossible to somehow possible. One way or another, those for whom we are sorting all this out will need to be trained, and then there will be a difficult period of adaptation. Only then will there be a result.

For many functions, it is necessary to equip the computer with audio speakers and a microphone: this will allow you to hear what is difficult to see, and give commands by voice when it is difficult or impossible to use the keyboard and mouse for the same.

Learning to see

For people with low vision, the Windows interface with many small details is a real pain. By turning on the screen magnifier, you can increase the size of any part of the screen several times, and you can still move around it using the mouse. The screen magnifier control window is extremely simple, there are no pitfalls: the main thing is to select the desired magnification level using the “Plus” and “Minus” buttons.

The second function for people with poor vision is to change the appearance of the Windows interface to a more contrasting one. Try enabling this mode - by default, this is done with a keyboard shortcut Left Alt + Left Shift + Print Screen. Repeated use of the same keys disables the mode. Other minor changes to the display of Windows controls are available from the Ease of Access Center through the Screen Image Adjustment option.

The third function is the most radical, since it allows you to perform some operations on the computer without a screen at all or when almost nothing can be seen on it despite the use of the features already described. To do this, you can enable Narrator in Windows, which will read all the text displayed in the windows. Your PC will most likely not have any special software. To fix this, you will need to download three free modules from the Microsoft website.

From the link above you need to select the option for the Windows 7 version - 32 or 64 bit. To support the Russian language, you only need to download files from the link below MSSpeech_SR_ru-RU_TELE.msi and MSSpeech_TTS_ru-RU_Elena.msi.
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=27224

If everything is already installed, you need to select Russian in the Narrator settings.

Improving the keyboard and mouse

For those who find it difficult to find a common language with a mouse, you can help with this. First of all, go to the standard mouse settings and adjust the speed of the pointer, its size, and the speed of double-clicking. In the Ease of Access Center, you can also enable mouse control from the keyboard.

Surprisingly, you can do the opposite. Once you enable the virtual keyboard, you can click its keys using your mouse pointer.

A regular keyboard can be “pumped up” by enabling sequential key presses for their combinations instead of simultaneous ones. The “Sticky Keys” parameter is responsible for this. After enabling the option, for example, you will need to press Ctrl and C to copy not together, but in turn with not too much of a pause.

Do as I say

Windows 7 supports voice control, a very useful feature for those who have difficulty seeing or have difficulty using the mouse and keyboard. Unfortunately, Microsoft never adapted this feature to the Russian language. If the person who will use the PC is ready to operate it in English, they will first have to switch the operating system interface to this language in the Windows 7 settings, and only then will they be able to enable the “Speech Recognition” option in the Ease of Access Center.

If we return to management in Russian, then there are several third-party programs, for example, “Gorynych” or Vople, but they do not work very well, and there is no support from the developers. You can't even find the official website. We recommend that you beware of other sites offering to download these programs. The situation is approximately the same with dictation of text in Russian.

What to do? Perhaps the only thing left to do for now is to switch to Windows 10 and wait for the built-in voice assistant to learn Russian. According to rumors, this could happen as early as 2016. Follow the news.

1. Technologies for people with visual impairments

For disabled people, computers provide a good replacement for lost abilities; allow for more effective specialized training; provide access to information that is otherwise inaccessible to them; provide new opportunities for education, work, communication with people and leisure activities.

Blind people can use computers with programs and devices that can produce speech. Using a speech synthesizer, the computer pronounces any words that appear on the screen. This allows the blind to use most of the capabilities of computers.

In addition, pattern recognition devices and programs, combined with special output devices, allow computers to convert printed text into tactile form, Braille, or speech.

Externally, a computer for a blind person is no different from an ordinary one. The only special device is a Braille display. Tiny plastic pins stick out from the box, with the help of which you can translate ordinary words into the “language of the blind” (according to the rules of the Braille alphabet). By touching or pressing them, a person can read what is written and give a command. This is where the difference in hardware ends. The rest of the tricks are hidden in the software on the computer's hard drive.

By the way, well-trained blind people can work faster than a sighted person. Those who know how to type texts “touch” know that typing with ten fingers is much more convenient than with two. In addition, you don’t need to be distracted by working with the mouse - the same commands can be typed from the keyboard.

Modern technologies seem to open our full-color world to people deprived of vision. For example, the screen reader program JAWS speaks all keyboard actions. Click on the letter “A” - the computer pronounces this sound. I pressed PAUSE and the response was “Pause.” So blind people can do any work without outside help: for example, write letters, create databases and even program. Another program is designed for visually impaired people - ZoomText. With its help, you can use the mouse to zoom in on any “incomprehensible” object on the screen and work with the selected fragment.

Alas, there are no more devices in Russia that allow blind people to master computers. The All-Russian Society of the Blind does not have money to translate foreign programs into Russian. And various “pieces of iron” that make life easier for people with disabilities are often detained by customs officers at the border. Such products are not listed in their catalogs, and they do not know how to classify them.

A computer has been created in the USA that allows the blind to see. The camera in the form of glasses is connected to a mini-computer that can be worn on a belt or in a bag. The computer processes the video signal from the camera and, using 68 implanted platinum electrodes, transmits it directly to the brain.

In Israel, the production of computer mice has been established, allowing blind people to use a computer. On the back of such a mouse there are three panels with protruding movable rods that translate text from the monitor screen into raised Braille. In addition, the mouse can use a synthesized voice to report where the cursor is located on the screen and what object it is pointing at. The system allows blind people to read from the screen, do computer graphics, and play.

But specialists from the Japanese Space Agency have developed a monitor with 3072 retractable pins, which allows you to perceive images by touch by touching the screen with your hands. True, the clarity of the images is reduced by a hundred times compared to a conventional monitor.

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The first book in Russia dedicated to the use of computers by people with disabilities. Input tools for people with limited mobility, system and program settings that make it easier for people with limited vision and hearing are considered. Examples and tips on how to independently adapt computers and mobile devices in various situations are provided. Technical, legal and practical aspects of distance learning and remote work in Russian conditions are discussed. The book contains useful tips on the use of Internet technologies for purchases, calculations and payments, and a selection of links to thematic Internet resources. Particular attention is paid to devices, gadgets and programs that are suitable for Russian-speaking users.

Computer literacy.
Information technologies improve the quality of life only if people know how to use them. In this case, there is a “multiplier effect”. For example, video communication using a computer was invented quite a long time ago; back in Windows 98, the NetMeeting program was present among the standard applications. However, video calls have only become the norm in recent years. Of course, the prerequisite was the widespread proliferation of high-speed Internet connections. On the other hand, video communication via Skype began to gain popularity when some “advanced users” first became interested in it. They attracted their friends, who attracted their friends, and only then the circle of subscribers began to grow exponentially.
Thus, an accessible environment is not only technology, but also a sufficient number of people “on the other end of the line” who are able and ready to use such technologies. What does computer literacy consist of?

First of all, these are basic skills in working with a computer, mobile phone or smartphone. The growing generation acquires such skills from a very early age, learning them from their parents and peers.

The principle of mastering a computer today is very simple. It is assumed that the operating system has already been installed “from the store”, and a constant high-speed Internet connection has already been configured by the provider. Show the person how to turn on the computer, how to open the help system, how to launch the browser, how to use the search. In theory, he will learn everything else on his own! True, the habit of actively seeking answers must first develop.

Download the e-book for free in a convenient format, watch and read:
Download the book Computer for people with disabilities, Senkevich G.E., 2014 - fileskachat.com, fast and free download.

• MS Excel and MS Project in solving economic problems, Levina N.S., Khardzhieva S.V., Tsvetkova A.L., 2006
• Information technologies in teaching activities, Workshop, Pankratova O.P., Semerenko R.G., Nechaeva T.P., 2015

People with disabilities have always experienced many difficulties that prevent them from leading an independent and rich life. Crossing the road, preparing food, driving a car, reading a book or getting information from the Internet - this is not the entire list of problems that people with disabilities have to face. Rapidly updated modern technologies help them get rid of many restrictions and find their place in society.

In this article, we will tell you about 7 amazing and useful devices that can help disabled people facing various problems. This information will be useful to you, and perhaps the gadgets described in this article will help you or your loved ones.

Device No. 1 – high-tech cane for the blind

Blindness can be congenital or acquired. The loss of this sensory function of our body can cause significant difficulties in the daily life of every person. Now, thanks to The Aid cane gadget - with a built-in health sensor and a connected GPS navigation system - many obstacles can be overcome.

This interactive navigator cane from the Japanese company Fujitsu can not only serve as a support for a person who has difficulty walking. A person relying on it can use the 3G wireless interface, Wi-Fi and GPS module. These modern technologies allow you to navigate in space, and this is exactly what The Aid cane was created for. It will help a blind person who has difficulty moving due to problems with the musculoskeletal system.

In addition, the cane gadget is capable of monitoring the following vital health indicators:

• arterial pressure;
• heart rate;
• temperature.

If there is any change in the above parameters, the cane will send a message to relatives indicating the reason for concern about their loved one and their location. By using this feature of the gadget, they will be able to take the necessary measures to provide assistance.

The cane is also equipped with an SOS button, which the person using it can press if their health suddenly deteriorates. The receipt of this signal to the ambulance dispatch service will allow you to respond to the call in time, and a team of doctors will go to the place recorded by the navigator.

The Aid cane can help many people with disabilities. The ability to implement all its functions depends on the location of the consumer, but if all the parameters of its technical capabilities are successfully combined and there is access to 3G, Wi-Fi and an ambulance dispatch service, such a gadget can become a guarantee of safety and health.

Device No. 2 – wheelchair TOYOTA I-REAL

The inability to move for people with paralyzed or missing legs can turn life into a life full of difficulties and obstacles (literally at every turn), danger and a source of emotional distress. Thanks to the TOYOTA I-REAL luxury wheelchair, completely new horizons of convenience and mobility are opening up for people with disabilities.

This means of transportation for disabled people was created by TOYOTA in the best Japanese traditions of quality and functionality. Thanks to the technical capabilities of this stroller, a person can not feel awkward in front of the people with whom he greets, works and communicates, and can practically stand in front of them, despite the interlocutor looking down.

In addition, the I-REAL chair is mobile and allows you to move smoothly, avoiding various obstacles. It is completely safe for a person moving in it, because he cannot fall out of it, making even the most unimaginable turns and maneuvers. With all these characteristics, the stroller can move at speeds of up to 32 km/h.

Device No. 3 – Braille interpreter with Bluetooth

Not all visually impaired people are familiar with Braille. For example, in 2014, only 10% of blind people mastered it, since not everyone is able to learn dotted relief font. Thanks to a Bluetooth font interpreter, a person can “read” Braille text by wearing a special glove with a touch analyzer on the index finger. The result obtained goes into a special interpreter located at the base of the palm of the glove and is transferred to a Bluetooth device located nearby. From this device, the result goes to the headset and is converted into sound.

Using this device, a blind person can read books and study without spending time learning Braille. In addition, the interpreter is compact and easy to use. It can be used in any position of the human body and wherever it is convenient for him.

Device No. 4 – tablet with Braille for reading books with paper pages

Previously, a blind or visually impaired person could not independently read books with paper pages. Thanks to the advent of a tablet that converts letters into Braille, people with severe vision problems can lay the device on a paper page and read it.

Such a gadget helps visually impaired people independently choose the literature they would like to master, because the range of books in Braille is not able to satisfy all the desires of people with poor vision or blindness.

Device No. 5 – electric car for a wheelchair with a rear door

Moving people with limited mobility due to various illnesses or injuries has always been a challenge. Such people experience many restrictions on their freedom of movement outside the home, and the ability to use a car can solve many of the problems that arise. An independent trip to a medical facility, to meet with friends, or a walk outside the city can not only provide an opportunity to achieve the necessary or desired result, but also relieve a person from the feeling of dependence on the people around him.

For these purposes, the electric car is equipped with a rear door that opens upward, through which a disabled person can enter it. He will not need to think about where to place the stroller during the trip and how to cope without it, getting to the place he needs. The speed of such a car is 45 km/h.

Device #6 – Gaze-Controlled Computers

Many people with disabilities find it difficult or impossible to operate a computer using their hands. For this purpose, several variants of special systems have been created, but many of them are inaccessible to users due to their high cost. The solution to this problem was made possible thanks to a device that can be attached to any laptop. After this, a person will be able to use his gaze like a computer mouse.

The settings of such a device are selected individually for each person so that it is convenient for him to use it. The eye tracking system emits an invisible beam of infrared light with a specific pattern that is reflected from the eyes. The system built into the camera analyzes it and converts it into specific commands. The computer can then be used to obtain information or play games.

Device No. 7 – controlled kitchen

People with disabilities often have difficulty preparing food. It is possible to minimize their efforts with the help of controlled kitchens specially designed for this purpose, the surfaces of which move to the required level.