From mboxrd@z Thu Jan 1 00:00:00 1970 Return-Path: Received: by befuddled.reisers.ca (Postfix, from userid 65534) id BB9381EF7BC; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 09:15:39 -0400 (EDT) Received: from mailer.coolip.net (mailer.coolip.net [54.165.87.160]) by befuddled.reisers.ca (Postfix) with ESMTPS id 6F4EE1EF7AF for ; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 09:15:37 -0400 (EDT) Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by mailer.coolip.net (Postfix) with ESMTP id CEE9C610BF for ; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 08:15:36 -0500 (CDT) Received: from mailer.coolip.net ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (mailer.coolip.net [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10032) with ESMTP id TM2QV6kMiqJI for ; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 08:15:36 -0500 (CDT) Received: from localhost (localhost [127.0.0.1]) by mailer.coolip.net (Postfix) with ESMTP id 177F2610BE for ; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 08:15:36 -0500 (CDT) X-Virus-Scanned: amavisd-new at mailer.coolip.net Received: from mailer.coolip.net ([127.0.0.1]) by localhost (mailer.coolip.net [127.0.0.1]) (amavisd-new, port 10026) with ESMTP id KbVgMv1mP_3J for ; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 08:15:36 -0500 (CDT) Received: from arch (50-82-205-199.client.mchsi.com [50.82.205.199]) by mailer.coolip.net (Postfix) with ESMTPSA id C42F9604A1 for ; Fri, 10 Oct 2014 08:15:35 -0500 (CDT) Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 08:15:23 -0500 (CDT) From: Kelly Prescott To: "Speakup is a screen review system for Linux." Subject: Re: a little sysadmin story In-Reply-To: <20141010125646.GS1044@opera.rednote.net> Message-ID: References: <86a956i23h.fsf@vibrator.pk5001z> <20141009125200.GI1044@opera.rednote.net> <86ppe1gyed.fsf@vibrator.pk5001z> <543691D1.9050000@tysdomain.com> <543693B5.9060601@tysdomain.com> <5436A145.30001@verizon.net> <478C3EC865774707826A4B0E156AE72B@your2c061f0461> <5436AA7E.7030808@raspberryvi.org> <9BB45DB8ACB5452BB988DBFEE96594BB@your2c061f0461> <1412911271.3408239.177306073.210519F2@webmail.messagingengine.com> <20141010125646.GS1044@opera.rednote.net> User-Agent: Alpine 2.03 (LNX 1266 2009-07-14) MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed X-Bogosity: Ham, tests=bogofilter, spamicity=0.000000, version=1.2.4 X-BeenThere: speakup@linux-speakup.org X-Mailman-Version: 2.1.18 Precedence: list List-Id: "Speakup is a screen review system for Linux." List-Unsubscribe: , List-Archive: List-Post: List-Help: List-Subscribe: , X-List-Received-Date: Fri, 10 Oct 2014 13:15:39 -0000 Janina, the Speaqualizer I owned was a old ISA card and it actually just read the ordinary text stream. There was not OCR on it so far as I know, it just intercepted the character output system. So, it worked well for old dos stuff, but thats all. Now, with that being said, It should be possible to now build a better system, but the problem I see is who would pay for development. The Cubox might be a good computer to start with, it should have the processing power, and is certainly flexable enough. On Fri, 10 Oct 2014, Janina Sajka wrote: > The more we talk about this, the more I remember things long forgotten > ... > > Appropos a stand alone box for Speakup ... > > APH once sold a device called a Speakqualizer. It was a PCI card that > grabbed VGA and, if memory serves, ran OCR on it---all on a PCI card. > > Janina > > Tom Fowle writes: >> The idea of a stand alone screen reader hardware box with video input is >> intreaguing and has >> been tried by several folks including Dean Blazie. but that was years >> ago. >> I suspect actual screen text would be no problem, if perhaps a bit slow, >> but >> finding focus and defining/dealing with actual graphics could be a real >> headache. >> >> I think you'd need at least two processors, one to do the OCR and the >> second >> to run the screen reader and speech. Don't guess the Raspbery pi would >> have >> the "MIPS" for the ocr task. >> >> BTW, the optacon actually connected to a mac's serial port and you could >> read the screen directly with some kind of reader that Berkeley systems >> had >> as a prototype. the company died before it could be brought to full >> operation >> >> For many years I kept seeing brags about optacon being restarted, but so >> far as i know none ever came to reality. >> >> Tom Fowle >> wa6ivgtf@fastmail.fm >> >> >> On Thu, Oct 9, 2014, at 08:49 AM, Glenn wrote: >> > I do a little of that. >> > I do know a little, enough to know what is possible. >> > I studied and got a HAM license a long time ago. >> > Glenn >> > ----- Original Message ----- >> > From: "Mike Ray" >> > To: >> > Sent: Thursday, October 09, 2014 10:32 AM >> > Subject: Re: a little sysadmin story >> > >> > >> > >> > Get your soldering iron out then Glenn :-p >> > >> > >> > >> > On 09/10/2014 16:28, Glenn wrote: >> > > What we need is a piece of hardware that does OCR directly from the video >> > > port. >> > > It seems like that would be a relatively easy device to produce, given >> > > what >> > > we have these days. >> > > Glenn >> > > ----- Original Message ----- >> > > From: "Al Sten-Clanton" >> > > To: ; "Speakup is a screen review system for Linux." >> > > >> > > Sent: Thursday, October 09, 2014 9:52 AM >> > > Subject: Re: a little sysadmin story >> > > >> > > >> > > First, I thank Janina for raising certain issues better than I could. >> > > (I also thank others who've made valuable points from different angles.) >> > > >> > > Second, where is the equivalent code for kicking in the monitor when we >> > > boot up? Shouldn't the aim be to treat our access technology in the >> > > same or an equivalent way, to the degree possible? >> > > >> > > Al >> > > >> > > On 10/09/2014 09:55 AM, Littlefield, Tyler wrote: >> > >> I also wanted to point out that most companies and organizations are a >> > >> bit weird about installing anything. The fact that Speakup is in the >> > >> kernel, but the entire idea of installing a special program which >> > >> they're not sure of, be it screen reader or magnification bothers most >> > >> people, so this isn't just an issue of Speakup possibly being better. >> > >> There are reasons and there obviously is a need for speakup to get >> > >> better, perhaps that means coming out of kernel space. But a sad story >> > >> from once upon a time with a moral unrelated is not quite the point. >> > >> On 10/9/2014 9:46 AM, Littlefield, Tyler wrote: >> > >>> This whole story sounds like it needs another couple of bears to make >> > >>> it all interesting. So speakup crashed the kernel. I've had issues, >> > >>> but apart from known bugs I've never seen speakup panic the kernel all >> > >>> the time. Speakup caused a system to crash? Perhaps. People should >> > >>> also backup their work. >> > >>> On 10/9/2014 9:34 AM, Deedra Waters wrote: >> > >>>> Janina, >> > >>>> >> > >>>> speakup was the cause because when bossman came down to hook up a >> > >>>> monitor and look, the panick messages had something to do with speakup. >> > >>>> >> > >>>> As for backing up their work, they were trying to fix their fuck-up to >> > >>>> begin with. The initial problem wasn't with speakup. However when i was >> > >>>> helping them debug it, speakup made the kernel panick and crash. >> > >>>> >> > >>>> Debian i dont think likes people with root access on their box to begin >> > >>>> with, but i think they kind of didn't like speakup in their kernel to >> > >>>> begin with. >> > >>>> >> > >>>> I suspect on the other hand that if speakup was a user-space app, it >> > >>>> wouldn't have mattered to them so much. If a userspace program crashes >> > >>>> it doesn't take down the whole box. When speakup does though, it takes >> > >>>> down the whole box. >> > >>>> >> > >>>> >> > >>> >> > >>> >> > >> >> > > _______________________________________________ >> > > Speakup mailing list >> > > Speakup@linux-speakup.org >> > > http://linux-speakup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/speakup >> > > >> > > _______________________________________________ >> > > Speakup mailing list >> > > Speakup@linux-speakup.org >> > > http://linux-speakup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/speakup >> > > >> > >> > >> > -- >> > Michael A. Ray >> > Analyst/Programmer >> > Witley, Surrey, South-east UK >> > >> > The box said: 'install Windows XP, 7 or better'. So I installed Linux >> > >> > Interested in accessibility on the Raspberry Pi? >> > Visit: http://www.raspberryvi.org/ >> > From where you can join our mailing list for visually-impaired Pi hackers >> > _______________________________________________ >> > Speakup mailing list >> > Speakup@linux-speakup.org >> > http://linux-speakup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/speakup >> > >> > _______________________________________________ >> > Speakup mailing list >> > Speakup@linux-speakup.org >> > http://linux-speakup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/speakup >> _______________________________________________ >> Speakup mailing list >> Speakup@linux-speakup.org >> http://linux-speakup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/speakup > > -- > > Janina Sajka, Phone: +1.443.300.2200 > sip:janina@asterisk.rednote.net > Email: janina@rednote.net > > Linux Foundation Fellow > Executive Chair, Accessibility Workgroup: http://a11y.org > > The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) > Chair, Protocols & Formats http://www.w3.org/wai/pf > Indie UI http://www.w3.org/WAI/IndieUI/ > > _______________________________________________ > Speakup mailing list > Speakup@linux-speakup.org > http://linux-speakup.org/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/speakup