The Dr. Bill Takeshita Foundation

Last Modified: Thu, 16 Aug 2007

There are many software programs that are designed to help students and sdults with low vision to access the computer. To simplify the decision of what a person may need, we can suggest that those with mild low vision will benefit from the Big Shot Magnifier while those with moderate vision impairment may benefit from Magic or Zoom text. Lastly, those with very low vision or who are totally blind will benefit from Jaws. low vision may benefit from using Zoom Text will In the

Software

Big Shot Magnifier

The Big Shot Magnifier is an affordable screen magnification program that works well with Windows XP computers. The Big shot magnification program can magnify from 1.0X to 2.0X in 0.1 increments. It is very easy to use and can be an affordable solution for students and adults who have difficulty reading the text even after running the Windows Accessibility Wizard. To learn how to use the Accessibility Wizard in Windows, please see "Solutions to help you use the computer.” MSRP: $99 To download a free trial, please visit http://www.aisquared.com/Products/BigShot/BSFreeTrial.cfm

Zoom Text

Zoom Text is an excellent screen magnification software program that can magnify images up to 32X on Windows based computers, including Windows Vista. Zoom Text allows users to customize the colors of the background and the text, making it easier for students and adults with low vision to read the computer screen. Zoom Text also has cursor and mouse features that enlarge the size of the cursor and pointer. The mouse pointer can be modified to display a large circle around the pointer or a cross to help users to locate the pointer very easily.

Zoom text also has the ability to read text aloud. It uses the Neo Speech synthesizer, which sounds very human-like. Users can modify the voices, rate of speech, and even the accents very easily. With the optional large print keyboard, users can quickly view and listen to all information on the computer.

We evaluated Zoom Text to find it to be an excellent program for partially sighted students and adults. The clarity of the magnified images was excellent, event at the highest levels of magnification. Although Zoom Text was able to magnify the text 32X, it was very difficult to read text at this high magnification because the field of view became so small. Above the level of 12X magnification, we found Zoom Text to be difficult to use and we relied on the speech portion of the program. The speech was very clear and pleasant to listen to. We especially liked the mouse reader feature that allowed us to simply move the mouse pointer over the text and Zoom Text read the line aloud.

MSRP: $595 for magnification and speech; 395 for speech alone; $99 for large print keyboard. To download a free trial version, please see http://www.aisquared.com/Products/zt9/Z9FreeTrial.cfm

Magic

Magic is an excellent screen magnification program made by Freedom Scientific, the maker of Jaws screen reading program for the blind.

Magic is able to magnify the text up to 16X. One of the best features of Magic is that it can magnify in 0.1X increments between the power of 1X to 2X. This is extremely helpful because it allows users to have the widest view of the screen. Other magnification programs magnify in 0.25X increments between 1X and 2X, which often magnifies the screen too much, thus reducing the amount of viewable screen. In addition to providing excellent magnification, Magic can alter the colors of the text and background, enlarge the size of the pointer and cursor, and also position a circle, oval, and cross around the mouse pointer for easy viewing.

Magic is very easy to use. It has many shortcut keys that are similar to those used on Jaws. This similarity is very helpful for students and adults with progressive vision conditions and may later prefer to use Jaws screen reading program.

Magic has excellent voice output. It uses the same voice synthesizer as Jaws and this provides excellent speech output. Users can simply move the mouse pointer over a word or sentence and Magic will read it aloud. It also has a document reader, which will read the entire document aloud while displaying the text in a magnified view on the screen.

We evaluated Magic and found it to be an outstanding choice for children and adults who prefer to use speech with their magnification. The screen reader was very responsive and this was extremely helpful. We especially liked the greater numbers of magnification between the range of 1.0X and 2.0X. These additional magnification sizes allow users with fairly good clarity of sight and narrow visual fields to see more of the screen. Thus, Magic may be extremely beneficial for patients with glaucoma and retinitis pigmentosa. MSRP: $545 for magnification and speech; $345 with magnification only. To download a trial version, see http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_downloads/index.asp

JAWS

Jaws is a screen reading software program that runs on Windows XP, Me, 2000, and 98. Jaws has computer-generated voices that are very easy to understand and users have the option of customizing the voice. Jaws is extremely helpful for people who are blind or have very low vision. It has easy to access help which provides users with the short-cut keys needed to access the Internet, read word processing documents, spread sheets, Power Point presentations, and virtually all software applications.

Jaws is arguably the most powerful screen reading software program. It has short-cut keys that can alter the rate of speech, adjust the amount of punctuation spoken; skim read the text, and many more features to allow blind students and adults to access digital information.

I personally use Jaws and I would not be able to perform my work without it. It is a very powerful program that can be customized very easily. I especially enjoy the quick response of the speech. Also, the easy access to help makes Jaws very easy to use. MSRP $995 for Basic edition and $1095 for XP Professional For a free trial download, see http://www.freedomscientific.com/fs_downloads/index.asp

Overview

Magic and ZoomText are two of the most popular screen magnification programs available for Windows based computers. It is not available for Macintosh computers. They both offer many features that can help patients with low vision to type, surf the Internet, and access digital information by magnifying the text or reading the text aloud.

Installation

MAGic and ZoomText both install very easily with speech guided installation. The program will speak to the user to help with the installation. Both programs installed very easily on our Windows XP computers.

Magnification

MAGic and ZoomText both offer sufficient magnification for patients with low vision. MAGic can magnify from 1X to 16X while ZoomText can magnify from 1X to 32X. Although they both offer very high levels of magnification, most patients with low vision will use between 2X and 10X magnification.

MAGic offers more levels of magnification at the lower powers. This allows users to have the widest possible field of view while enlarging the text to a level that allows users to read the print. MAGic increases the level of magnification in 0.1X increments from 1.0X to 2.0X (i.e. 1.2X, 1.3X, 1.4X,).

ZoomText changes the level of magnification in 0.25X increments. Thus, between 1X and 2X, users can set the magnification at 1.25X, 1.5X, 1.75X, and 2.0 X. Although ZoomText does not offer as many magnification settings between 1X and 2X as MAGic, it has a very useful 2.5X magnification setting, which can be very helpful for some patients.

At magnification levels above 3X, MAGic offers magnification that increases in 1X steps, including 4X, 5X, 6X, 7X, 8X, 9X, 10X, 11X, 12X, 13X, 14X, 15X, and 16X. ZoomText increases in 2X steps after 6X up through 32X. We found the clarity of the images from ZoomText to be much sharper than MAGic at levels higher than 6X,

Color, Mouse, and Cursor Enhancement
MAGic and ZoomText both provide easy visibility of the mouse pointer, cursor, and both are capable of changing the color of the background and text extremely well. Both programs provide users with similar options to display a high contrast circle, box, or cross around the mouse pointer for quick location of the mouse. They were both able to modify the color of the background and text equally well.

Speech

MAGic and ZoomText both offer versions that include speech. This is very helpful for users who tire easily when reading or those with progressive eye conditions. Both programs offer a variety of voice synthesizers that allow users to listen to text read aloud. Both programs have mouse echo, which allows users to place the mouse pointer on a word, and the program can read the entire sentence or a single word instantaneously. MAGic and ZoomText both offer type echo which allows users to hear feedback of what they are typing as well as document readers that will read the entire document.

ZoomText uses the NeoVoice synthesizer and TrueVoice synthesizer, which provide very easily understandable voices. The female voice of ZoomText is especially clear and easy to understand. MAGic uses the ViaVoice synthesizer, which is the same synthesizer, used by JAWS, the leading screen reading program for the blind. Because the same company makes MAGic and JAWS, they use many similar keystrokes and thus MAGic is an excellent choice for those who have progressive eye conditions or who simply want to use JAWS to perform extensive writing and computer work.

Summary

ZoomText

• 1X-32X magnifications
• Excellent edge clarity of letters and text at all levels of magnification
• Recommended for users who require moderate to high levels of magnification
• Speech is very good

MAGic

• Excellent for users who do not require high levels of magnification
• Recommended for users with progressive eye conditions and will use speech
• Excellent speech and screen reading program

Recommendations

MAGic and ZoomText are both superb software magnification programs that work extremely well on computers that run Windows 98, Me, XP, and 2000. MAGic offers more options for patients who do not require high levels of magnification as well as for those who will use speech to read. MAGic works very well as a precursor to JAWS and is recommended to those who have progressive vision conditions as well as those who will use speech very often. The speed and fluency of the screen reader is very good.

ZoomText provides extremely sharp images at all levels of magnification and is recommended for patients who require moderate to high levels of magnification. We encountered problems using ZoomText with Adobe Photoshop and also found the speech to be slightly sluggish at times. However, users who will primarily use their vision to read will be extremely happy with the clarity of the images magnified by ZoomText.

Before purchasing either if these programs, patients should install both programs on their own home computer to determine how much magnification they actually need to read.