AssistiveWare products

AssistiveWare today introduced two new products for Mac OS X: VisioVoice and Infovox iVox. VisioVoice is a product for blind and vision-impaired Mac users providing a number of speech and vision related features to enhance access to Mac OS X, including (1) the conversion of Text, Word, HTML, PDF and RTF files to audio files or iPod-ready iTunes tracks; (2) a document and selection reader with fast forward and rewind functions; (3) large cross-hair and target cursors; (4) Text and Image zoom windows; (5) spoken interface elements as the user navigates across the screen; and (6) multilingual support to Apple's excellent VoiceOver technology (initially French and Dutch). In addition, VisioVoice is bundled with InfoVox iVox, a new product from Acapela Group created in collaboration with AssistiveWare. Infovox iVox is available at an introductory price of $150 (US English), $270 (Scandinavian languages), or $165 (other European languages), while a bundle of Infovox iVox and VisioVoice is $185 (US English), $290 (Scandinavian), or $185 (other European).

InfoVox iVox allows the naturally sounding, high quality voices of the Acapela Group to be used by any Speech Manager compliant application on Mac OS X, including applications such as TextEdit, Preview, Acrobat Reader, Proloquo and AppleWorks, as well as many educational titles. Infovox iVox, which is distributed worldwide by AssistiveWare, can also be used with Mac OS X Tiger's built-in VoiceOver screen reader, and Dutch and French users now have the possibility to hear all the VoiceOver menus and messages in their own language by using Infovox iVox together with VisioVoice.

"We are extremely pleased with these new products," said David Niemeijer, AssistiveWare's CTO. "Thanks to our collaboration with the Acapela Group, Mac OS X users around the world get access to the best voices ever on the Mac."

Both products are Universal Binaries and can be used on PowerPC- and Intel-based Macs. The products include all voices available for a language of choice. Initially, the following languages will be available: US English, UK English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, Portuguese, Norwegian, and Swedish. For most languages male and female voices are available (certain languages include multiple male and/or female voices). The US English also includes two child voices. All non-American English languages include one American English female voice as a bonus.

"Acapela Group is very proud to be the partner of an innovative and renown player such as AssistiveWare. Both companies have teamed up on projects for several years and the ensuing solutions - such as Proloquo- have been successfully validated by the market." said Antoine Kauffeisen, VP Marketing Director of Acapela.

Through the end of October, any customer purchasing AssistiveWare's Proloquo speech and communication software will receive a free copy of Infovox iVox (offer only valid if the selected language is available for Infovox iVox). Proloquo and Infovox iVox form a powerful speech team for any PowerPC and Intel Mac. Proloquo has a suggested retail price of $250.

by MacNN Staff