not really, it won't work with linux. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Henry Yen" <blinux-mail@AegisInfoSys.com> To: <blinux-list@redhat.com> Sent: Wednesday, September 04, 2002 4:52 PM Subject: .PDF's for blind users This is interesting: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A13536-2002Aug29.html * "'Talking' Tax Forms for Blind Developed" Washington Post (08/30/02) P. A21; Rumbelow, Helen The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has rolled out new technology that allows blind people to use their screen text readers with PDF (Portable Document Format) files. The IRS, along with many other government agencies, commonly posts documents on the Web in PDF format, developed by Adobe Software. Adobe contributed funds to the research, which attaches hidden markers to the PDF file that screen reader programs can then use to make sense of the document and read it aloud to users. Otherwise, screen readers and other assistive technology for the blind treat a PDF file as a single image that cannot be interpreted. Converting PDF files into a readable format requires some specialized work and software from Plexus Scientific. Advocates of the blind laud the new technology, and it helps the IRS meet Section 508 requirements, an equal-access-to-technology law mandated for federal agencies just over one year ago. "It may seem like just a tax form, but we've hit what we believe is a true breakthrough, important because blind people want to be independent," declares the IRS' Michael Moore. By the next tax season, the IRS plans to have 50 of the most commonly used forms converted to an audio format. There are 14 million visually impaired people in the U.S., and PDF files have long been a big problem for blind Web users, says Curtis Chong, the National Federation of the Blind's director of technology. _______________________________________________ Blinux-list@redhat.com https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/blinux-list _______________________________________________ Blinux-list@redhat.com https://listman.redhat.com/mailman/listinfo/blinux-list