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JAWS Tandem DAISY Book Released

Have you ever installed a software program that you wanted to show to a friend, but your friend lives across town, or maybe even in another state or country? Have you ever tried to help someone who just doesn't understand computers to accomplish a task on a computer while talking to them on the telephone? Perhaps you are interested in doing training for people but you cannot physically get to their home or office, for whatever reason. Maybe you're a consultant and one of your client's teenagers installed a new software game, which in turn caused a cascade of bad things to happen to the programs you had installed for the client originally. Do you want to do it now, without the hassle and expense of travel? Well if so, JAWS Tandem™ is for you!

JAWS Tandem is a feature that lets you access another computer running JAWS, so that you can provide hands-on technical support, write scripts from a distance, or perform remote JAWS training. It is used by support personnel, distributors, dealers, consultants, trainers, and friends. Any two people who have JAWS can connect their computers together over the Internet and accomplish any or all of the above.

Use the JAWS Check for Updates, located in the JAWS Help menu, to find the new book. You can also visit the Training Downloads page to get either the Tandem DAISY book or the Tandem MP3 file.

Voice Profiles DAISY Book Released

What is a voice profile? A voice profile is a collection of different speech settings such as rate, pitch, language, punctuation levels, and other speech options that have been saved as a group with a specific name. For example, you could create a "leisure reading" profile with a nice sounding RealSpeak™ Solo Direct voice that has a slower speed and that speaks no punctuation. You could create a "Proofreading" profile that checks for all punctuation. You could create a Spanish (or other language) profile to switch quickly and easily to have text that is written in another language pronounced correctly when you are reading it. The possibilities are almost endless! You can have as many voice profiles as you want, with as many languages or synthesizers as you want to use. You can instantly switch between existing voice profiles by using the keystroke INSERT+CTRL+S for JAWS. For MAGic use CAPS LOCK+F11.

Word Index DAISY Book Released

Word Index, the latest DAISY book from the Freedom Scientific Training Department, is now available.

Do you need to find sentences that contain a certain word? Which words occur the most in a document or Web page? With Word Index, JAWS® screen reading software builds a list of words that appear in a document or on a Web page. You can easily have JAWS display the sentences containing the word you are interested in, and then move directly in the document to a sentence that interests you.

Word Index (INSERT+CTRL+W) is an ideal tool for those who do a lot of reading for study and research purposes. The words are sorted so that the highest occurrence appears first, followed by an alphabetical list of words that only appear once.

Use the JAWS Check for Updates, located in the JAWS Help menu, to find the new book. You can also visit the Training Downloads page to get either the Word Index DAISY book or the Word Index MP3 file.

Research It DAISY Book Updated

Research It, the newest DAISY book from the Freedom Scientific Training Department, has been updated to reflect changes coming in JAWS 11 Update 1. This text and audio DAISY book demonstrates how to use Research It. The book also shows how the new and improved Research It dialog box works.

Research It, included with JAWS® screen reading software, is a versatile tool that provides quick access to data while also making it easy to return to your primary task. If you have JAWS 11 or later (whether you are using the full version or a demo version) and an Internet connection, you can begin using Research It. It uses a lookup source to find information and then posts it in the Virtual Viewer. Some examples of things you can look up quickly with Research It include:

  • Dictionary definitions using Wiktionary
  • Amazon product search
  • Bookshare book search
  • Yellow pages (business) or white pages (people) search
  • UPS tracking
  • Health search on WebMD
  • Weather forecasts
  • Top news stories
  • Sports scores and game listings
  • Stock prices
  • Encyclopedia articles
  • Area codes and time zones
  • And many other things

Using just a few keystrokes, you can start Research It from any application on your computer. In addition, you can easily set which lookup module to use as the default for all applications. You can even create a default lookup for a specific application. This book examines some of the basic lookup sources included with JAWS, and also explores the different ways to launch and use Research It.

Visit the Training Downloads page or choose the Check for Updates item in the JAWS help menu to get your copy of the Research It DAISY book. It is also available on the Training Downloads page in MP3 format.

JAWS 11 Basic Training Released

The Basic Training for JAWS 11 has been revised and updated to include the latest in new JAWS 11 features. The newly-revised training is available in both text and audio DAISY format as well as individual MP3 modules.

Updated items include:

  • Changes in the JAWS user interface
  • Basic training now consists of nine separate DAISY books
  • And much more

Use Check for Updates to Download Training Materials

The new JAWS 11 Basic Training is included on the new JAWS program DVD. It is also available now on the Training Downloads page. JAWS users can also use the JAWS Check for Updates feature to find it. Here's how to use the Check for Updates feature:

  1. Go to the JAWS Help menu and press P to choose Check for Updates. A dialog box appears that contains a list of check boxes for all updates that are available, including any DAISY training materials.
  2. Press UP or DOWN ARROW to move through the list.
  3. Press SPACEBAR to check any items you want to download and install.
  4. Then press ENTER to activate the Install button. The download begins and when finished, a new dialog box appears that asks if you want to install the files, with a Yes and No button.
  5. Choose Yes. After the installation is complete, the final dialog box appears that tells you that the updates were successfully installed.
  6. Choose the OK button, and the dialog box closes. Now you can use FSReader to read the newly installed book. In FSReader, just choose CTRL+O to reopen the File Open dialog box and choose the new book.

New Workshop for Web Page Testing with JAWS

Learn to use JAWS to test Web pages and other HTML or PDF documents for accessibility and usability. This two-day hands-on workshop is designed for Web page authors, Web masters, accessibility testers, and anyone else who is interested in learning how JAWS can be used to test and validate accessible Web page design.

Emphasis is placed on being able to use JAWS to gather information from the visual appearance of Web pages as well as from the virtual HTML environment, where some text and attributes may not be visible on the screen.

Equal emphasis is placed on testing for usability, and not just accessibility.

Visit the Freedom Scientific Workshops page for the schedule of workshops and more information on these and other upcoming training opportunities.

Online Learning Now Available from the Freedom Scientific Training Department - NEW

Learn to use JAWS, MAGic, PAC Mate Omni™ accessible Pocket PC, and more from the convenience of your home or office. With travel expenses on the increase, working online to learn new skills makes even more sense than ever. Visit the e-Learning Webinar page of the Training Department for more information on this new learning opportunity from Freedom Scientific. View the schedule and register now for upcoming Webinars.

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Power to Work - Power to Learn - Power to Grow

Free Software for Saint Petersburg Workshop Attendees

The Training department at Freedom Scientific offers hands-on workshops throughout the year at our Saint Petersburg, Florida, headquarters. As an added value, those who attend training workshops at our headquarters in 2010 will receive a free copy of TypeAbility, the outstanding talking typing tutorial from YesAccessible!, as well as a free copy of
J-Tools from T&T Consultancy, Ltd.

TypeAbility 3.0 for JAWS is compatible with JAWS 6 and higher and with MAGic® screen magnification software 10.5 or higher. To read more about TypeAbility, visit YesAccessible!

J-Tools is an exciting new suite of software tools for users of JAWS 9 and higher that assists when working with word processing, e-mail, calendar, and the Internet. T&T Consultancy Ltd (UK) is well-known for developing products reliant upon the world’s most popular screen reader, JAWS for Windows and more recently, MAGic screen magnification software. Equipped with easy to use documentation and tutorials, the products are developed by and for visually impaired people.

In addition to J-Tools, their product range includes:

  • J-Say, a joining of JAWS for Windows and Dragon® NaturallySpeaking™, allowing complete control of the computer using the human voice with no keyboard input required.
  • Say-MAGic, providing a fantastic range of features to give low vision users of MAGic access to Dragon NaturallySpeaking. This is the newest product in the range.
  • J-Tunes, provides high quality access to Apple iTunes. iTunes is a complete music management system, and J-Tunes is by far T&T’s most popular product and is being updated on a very frequent basis.

To read more about J-Tools, visit T & T Consultancy, Ltd.

With TypeAbility priced at $100 per copy and J-Tools priced at £45 (approximately $85 USD), this adds great value to the hands-on instruction and dynamic training one receives by coming to a training workshop in Florida.

Visit the workshop schedule page for dates and more information.

Web Design and Using JAWS on the Internet

Bring greater accessibility to your Web site. Learn more about how JAWS works on the Web. Visit our Surf's Up Web site for examples of how to write effective HTML code and use JAWS and MAGic on the Web. Find more information on our Accessibility Tips and Web Design page, with links to free HTML tutorials, validation tools, guidelines, and other resources.

PowerPoint 2003 and 2007 Training with JAWS and MAGic

Learn how to create and give PowerPoint 2003 and 2007 presentations using JAWS and MAGic. This lesson teaches you how to use the keyboard to create and give presentations, and includes a link to practice files.

Some of the things you will learn include how to:

  • Use JAWS or MAGic and the keyboard to create and present slide shows
  • Set a background color for all slides in the presentation
  • Use a photograph as a background for an entire slide
  • Label pictures and objects with alternate text
  • Use design templates in PowerPoint to choose a variety of different slides
  • Navigate at the object as well as the text entry level of slides
  • Insert a button to play a sound on a slide
  • Use slide animation effects to fly in bullet points one at a time
  • Rearrange animation effects for a more effective presentation
  • Insert and be able to read speaker's notes during your presentation
  • And much more.

Go to the PowerPoint 2003 and 2007 with JAWS and MAGic training page now and get started, or use the link on that page to download the lesson along with practice files and work offline at your leisure.

Creating Accessible Forms in Excel Using Input Messages DAISY Book

This DAISY book teaches how to create accessible forms in Excel®.

Authors of workbooks using the Microsoft spreadsheet program Excel can use the Input Message feature of Excel to create accessible forms that provide outstanding feedback and instructions for users of JAWS and MAGic. Hyperlinks can be used to expedite navigation within the form for JAWS and MAGic users.

The book is available for download in the JAWS and MAGic sections of the Training Downloads page. The title of the book is Creating Accessible Forms in Excel Using Input Messages and is offered in a text-only DAISY format.

NOTE: An HTML version of the instructions for creating accessible forms in Excel is also available on the Training Department Accessibility Web page.

Introduction to Windows Vista for JAWS and MAGic

Be the first to get your copy of the free book that introduces JAWS and MAGic users to the Windows Vista® environment. The new book is formatted in both text and audio DAISY format, proven to be the best for all-around learning. Read it at your own pace with JAWS or MAGic, or sit back and relax as you listen to the narrated audio. One hour and 18 minutes in length, topics covered in this book include:

  • Installing JAWS or MAGic in Windows Vista (installation, authorization, activation, startup wizard, and RealSpeak™ Solo synthesizer installation)
  • User Account Control (UAC) - What is it? How do I enable or disable it?
  • Main parts of the Windows Vista Screen
  • Main parts of the Start menu (search edit field, all programs, right pane, tab order in the Start menu, turning off the computer)
  • Uninstall or Change a Program
  • Windows Vista Explorer
  • Volume Mixer
  • Sidebar and Gadgets

The installer puts our DAISY books in the proper place for either JAWS or MAGic users to find them. Please visit the Training Downloads page and look in the JAWS Training Downloads Section to download the appropriate version. Note that the books are exactly identical in content, they just install to the proper location for each product.

These books are also available on the Training Download page in MP3 format.



Take your magnification with you. The ONYX Deskset. Learn more.

Training Department Information

The Freedom Scientific Training Department's motto is, “Power to work, power to learn, power to grow.” We have grown over the years and have created some wonderful training materials that we want to share with you. Please take advantage of all of the training information and materials we have posted here on our site. We hope you will come back often to see what is new.

The Freedom Scientific Training Department
Contact us at 800-444-4443 or 727-803-8000, extension 1016
FAX: 727-471-7927

E-mail: training_info at FreedomScientific.com



Microsoft®, Excel®, PowerPoint®, Outlook®, and Windows Vista® are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.

JAWS®, MAGic®, and ONYX™ are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Freedom Scientific, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.