Grand Prairie, TX - 29 January 2008 - Origin Instruments Announces Expanded Sip/Puff Product Line to Benefit People Affected by Motor Disabilities

Origin Instruments Corporation, a leading global provider of assistive technology, today announced it is adding new offerings to its popular Sip/Puff Switch product line.  The Sip/Puff solutions are ideal for people who have limited or no motor skills enabling them to operate switch activated devices, including computers, augmentative communication devices, voting machines, adapted toys, environmental control systems and devices accessed or controlled by scanning.  Sip/Puff technology is also popular for wheel chair navigation.

For people effected with severe motor disabilities, manipulating a standard switch can be difficult, tiring and in some cases impossible.  With Origin Instruments Sip/Puff offerings users can easily activate and have control over devices through a simple “sip” and/or “puff” into a mouth tube.

Origin Instruments announces availability of two new switch offerings and user interfaces for sip/puff switch users.  These products are offered individually and as packaged solutions to users, individual entities, contract manufacturer’s, vendors and integrators.

• Sip/Puff Switch($160.00 Suggested Retail Price) – The Sip/Puff Switch translates sips and puffs into independent switch closures. The rugged electro-mechanical design requires no external power. Test buttons are integrated to assist in application testing. Electrical interface is provided through a choice of connectors for two standard mono cables or a single stereo cable. A twist-on pneumatic interface provides for direct connection to a range of available user interface options, including Origin Instruments Headset and Gooseneck.

• Breeze ($180.00 Suggested Retail Price) – Breeze is an advanced USB sip/puff switch in an extremely compact package. It connects directly to standard USB ports on computers, laptops, and AAC devices and provides hardware emulation of mouse buttons or joystick functions.  For special applications, sensitivity is selectable and dynamic pressure readings can be directly accessed through the USB interface. The integrated pneumatic port connects directly to a range of available user interface options including Origin Instruments Headset and Gooseneck.

• Sip/Puff Headset ($150.00 Suggested Retail Price) ­– Sip/Puff Headset is a comfortable, adjustable head frame. The padded headset slips over the ears and behind the head. This head-referenced design maximizes compatibility with other assistive technologies - like HeadMouse® - that employ head movement as an input interface. A replaceable mouth tube is held in position with an integral stainless steel forming wire. The tube and wire can be bent and cut to adapt to individual needs. A thin, pliable connecting tube interfaces to Sip/Puff Switch or Breeze with a simple twist connector.

• Sip/Puff Gooseneck ($150.00 Suggested Retail Price) - Strong, lightweight and versatile, the Sip/Puff Gooseneck features a universal clamp that securely attaches to table tops, beds and wheelchairs. The flexible steel gooseneck and the ball-and-socket mount enable easy and secure mouthpiece positioning. The filtered mouthpiece is replaceable and a thin, pliable connecting tube interfaces to Sip/Puff Switch or Breeze with a simple twist connector.

• AirVoter™ ($395.00 Suggested Retail Price) - Is the leading sip-puff peripheral for accessibility used by voting systems for individuals with motor disabilities and limited dexterity. AirVoter's disposable mouthpiece includes an in-line aseptic filter to enable hygienic, worry-free voting by a succession of voters. AirVoter interfaces to accessible voting machines via single stereo cable or USB connection.  AirVoter is packaged in a compact case for storage and transport. In short, AirVoter is a simple and cost-effective access solution in support of HAVA.

• Multi-User Sip/Puff Switch ($399.00 Suggested Retail Price) – A special package similar to AirVoter for assessement centers, heathcare institutions, testing facilities, schools, etc.

“We are pleased to announce the availability of these new offerings, bringing additional capabilities and benefit to those with motor disabilities”, said Steve Bain, President of Origin Instruments Corporation.  “Our goal is to provide users choice to select the best switch offering and interface to meet their needs and capabilities”. 

Click here to learn more about the product features and technology behind these new offerings. 

Both the new Breeze and Sip/Puff Switch are perfect companions for Origin Instruments HeadMouse Extreme®, wireless headpointing device for computer mouse emulation.  

 

Amsterdam - 11 September 2007- Infovox iVox New French Female Voice and Price Promotion

Acapela Group and AssistiveWare today announced the excellent new Alice text-to-speech voice that will be available as part of Infovox iVox's French voice pack. With the new Alice and existing Bruno, Julie and Claire voices the Mac has never sounded so great and so French! Until the end of October the updated French voice pack is available at a 55% introductory discount.

The new Alice voice is used by graphic designer Leigh-Anne Tompkins in the just released amazing new video "We can because we think we can" (the French edition uses Alice, the English edition uses Heather). The new video is available as episode 6 of the "Exploring the Frontiers of Assistive Technology" video podcast series, which can be found in the iTunes store's podcasts section and at http://www.frontiersofassistivetechnology.com?video=Leigh-Anne

Infovox iVox provides naturally sounding voices that work with virtually any Speech Manager compliant Mac OS X application, including Preview, TextEdit, AssistiveWare VisioVoice, ConvenienceWare GhostReader, and Adobe Acrobat. The voices also work great with the leading educational software, such as Kurzweil 3000 for Macintosh Version 3.0.4 and 4.0 and TextHelp's Read and Write Gold for Mac version 2.1.0 and later. This means that teachers can now use this best-of-breed software with the industry leading Infovox iVox voices to enhance the learning experience of their students.

Until the end of October, Infovox iVox with the French voices is available for 99 euro/USD excluding tax and includes the high quality French voices Alice, Claire, Julie and Bruno as well as the high quality Heather US English voice as a bonus (this constitutes a 55% discount on the regular price and a 34% discount on the "Give Your Mac a Voice Promotion" prices). The French Infovox iVox is also available as a discounted bundle with GhostReader for 109 euro/USD.

Infovox iVox is Universal Binary and can be used on PowerPC and Intel Macs and requires Mac OS X 10.3.9 or higher.

The product include all voices available for a language of choice. Available languages include: American English, British English, French, Canadian French, German, Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, American Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish.

For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product page: Infovox iVox

Listen to Alice:
http://www.assistiveware.com/ivoxsamples.php?voice=Alice_iVox_HQ

Amsterdam - 23 August 2007- Infovox iVox New British Male Voice and Price Promotion

Acapela Group and AssistiveWare today announced the brilliant new Peter text-to-speech voice that will be available as part of Infovox iVox's British voice pack. The already available naturally sounding Graham and Lucy voices have been significantly improved as well. With these voices the Mac has never sounded so great and so British! Until the end of October the updated British voice pack is available at a 55% introductory discount.

Infovox iVox provides naturally sounding voices that work with virtually any Speech Manager compliant Mac OS X application, including Preview, TextEdit, AssistiveWare VisioVoice, ConvenienceWare GhostReader, and Adobe Acrobat. The voices also work great with the leading educational software, such as Kurzweil 3000 for Macintosh Version 3.0.4 and 4.0 and TextHelp's Read and Write Gold for Mac version 2.1.0 and later. This means that teachers can now use this best-of-breed software with the industry leading Infovox iVox voices to enhance the learning experience of their students.

Until the end of October, Infovox iVox with British voices is available for 99 euro/USD excluding tax and includes the high quality British voices Peter, Lucy and Graham as well as the high quality Heather US English voice as a bonus (this constitutes a 55% discount on the regular price and a 34% discount on the "Give Your Mac a Voice Promotion" prices). The British Infovox iVox is also available as a discounted bundle with GhostReader for 109 euro/USD. For prices for other languages as well as for school and classroom licenses, see our web site. The updated British voice pack is a free update for existing users.

Infovox iVox is Universal Binary and can be used on PowerPC and Intel Macs and requires Mac OS X 10.3.9 or higher.

The product includes all voices available for a language of choice. Available languages include: American English, British English, French, Canadian French, German, Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, American Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish.

For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product page: Infovox iVox

Listen to Peter: http://www.assistiveware.com/ivoxsamples.php?voice=Peter_iVox_HQ

 

Amsterdam - 5 July 2007 - Introducing GhostReader Text-to-Speech for Mac OS X

AssistiveWare(R) / ConvenienceWare(tm) today announced the release of GhostReader(tm) text-to-speech software for Mac OS X. GhostReader 1.1 replaces TextParrot 1.0 and introduces a number of new features with an enhanced user interface. Just as ghostwriters write for other people, GhostReader can read for you!

GhostReader is a Universal Binary, multilingual speech solution for Mac OS X that allows users to listen to their documents with naturally sounding voices in a language of choice. It also allows users to create their own personal podcasts or audio books by exporting to iPod-ready iTunes tracks. Or, users can just use it to speak selected text in a handy reader window with play, fast forward and rewind functionality. In some applications, such as Safari, GhostReader enables users to listen to text by just pointing the cursor at the text. Now users can sit back and relax while GhostReader reads the text under the cursor.

Voices are currently available for the following languages: US English, UK English, Czech, Finnish, French, Canadian French, German, Icelandic, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, American Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Norwegian, Turkish and Swedish. GhostReader itself is localized in English, French and German.

GhostReader 1.1 offers the following new features:

- New languages with high quality female voices: American Spanish (Rosa) and Canadian French (Louise)

- New languages with medium quality voices: Turkish, Icelandic and Czech

- New high quality voices for Dutch (Max) and British English (Peter)

- Adds a German localization (English and French were already available)

- Enhanced listening experience with buttons to re-listen the current paragraph or sentence or to skip to the next one

- For school use preferences can now be locked and the content of the reader window can be exported to an RTF document

- Many other interface and usability enhancements

- Expanded Help facility

GhostReader is a free and recommended update for registered TextParrot users (users can simply enter their TextParrot activation codes).

GhostReader educational licenses start at US$/euro 599 for a classroom (up to 50 computers) and US$/euro 999 for a school (up to 150 computers).

GhostReader is also available as a bundle with Infovox iVox. Infovox iVox provides naturally sounding voices in multiple languages for use with almost any Mac OS X application that uses speech. The GhostReader and Infovox iVox bundle pricing starts at US$/euro 109.

For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product pages:

Infovox iVox
GhostReader

GhostReader requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later.

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Amsterdam - 8 May 2007 - AssistiveWare and Acapela Group today announced a number of new educational offers for their Mac OS X speech solutions.

Infovox iVox, the naturally sounding voices that work with any Speech Manager compliant Mac OS X application, and TextParrot the powerful and affordable document and selection reader have made a profound impact in the classroom since their release last year. To give even more teachers and students at all levels of education access to the software attractively priced classroom, lab and school licenses are available starting today.

Additionally, AssistiveWare and Acapela Group have worked closely with the leaders in educational software, Kurzweil Educational Systems in the US and TextHelp Systems in the UK to ensure that their upcoming versions are fully compatible with Infovox iVox. Kurzweil 3000 for Macintosh Version 3.0.4 and 4.0 are fully Infovox iVox compatible and TextHelp's Read and Write Gold for Mac version 2.1.0, due for release in late June, is also fully compatible with Infovox iVox. This means that teachers can now use this best-of-breed software with the industry leading Infovox iVox voices to enhance the learning experience of their students.

Suggested retail pricing for classroom and school licenses (in US$):

TextParrot Classroom License:

• Monolingual - $599.00
• Bilingual - $899.00
• Trilingual - $1125.00

TextParrot School License:

• Monolingual - $999.00
• Bilingual - $1499.00
• Trilingual - $1875.00

Infovox iVox Classroom License (First language) - $1649.00

Infovox iVox Classroom License (Additonal languages) - $824.50

Infovox iVox School License (First language) - $2199.00

Infovox iVox School License (Additonal languages) - $1099.50

Educational licenses for TextParrot and Infovox iVox are for internal educational use. For school licenses they permit use by all students and teachers in the school with installation on up to 150 computers.

For classroom licenses they permit use in one specific classroom or computer lab with installation on up to 50 computers. Educational licenses do not allow publication of audio files outside the classroom or school (not even for free or for online courses).

Schools interested in producing audio files for publishing should contact Acapela Group directly to purchase appropriate licenses. For installation on more than the maximum number of allowed computers, multiple classroom or school licenses need to be purchased. In the case of colleges or universities a department, chair, or building is considered equivalent to a school.

Both products are Universal Binary and can be used on PowerPC and Intel Macs. The products include all voices available for a language of choice. Available languages include: US English, UK English, French, Canadian French, German, Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, American Spanish, Portuguese, Brazilian Portuguese, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish.

Individual teachers and students can make use of our "Give Your Mac a Voice Promotion", with discounts of 25 to 34% on individual Infovox iVox licenses and bundles with TextParrot until 31 October 2007.

Suggested retail pricing for individual licenses during the "Give Your Mac a Voice Promotion" period excluding VAT:

• Infovox iVox (US English) $149.00
• Infovox iVox (non-Scandinavian) $212.00
• Infovox iVox (Scandinavian) $359.00
  
  

Additional languages are half the price of Infovox iVox for that language.

For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product pages:

Infovox iVox
TextParrot

For more information contact AssistiveWare directly or one of our distributors such as Origin Instruments Corporation (http://orin.com) for North America or ordiTICE (http://orditice.com) for France.

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Amsterdam - 21 February 2007 - Acapela Group and AssistiveWare today announced the release of Infovox iVox 1.1

Infovox iVox, a product from Acapela Group created in collaboration with AssistiveWare 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, TextParrot and AppleWorks, as well as many educational titles. Infovox iVox, which is distributed worldwide by AssistiveWare, can also be used with 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 AssistiveWare's VisioVoice.

Infovox iVox is a Universal Binary and can be used on PowerPC and Intel Macs. The products include all voices available for a language of choice. Version 1.1 adds American Spanish and Canadian French. The following languages were already available: US English, UK English, French, German, Italian, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, Portuguese, Norwegian, and Swedish. All non-American English languages include one American English female voice as a bonus.

Version 1.1 contains the following enhancements:

• New languages: American Spanish and Canadian French
• New high quality Dutch male voice: Max
• Added support for less commonly used Speech Manager functions
• Improved handling of complex sentences for French
• Improved handling of compound words for Swedish
• A number of other fixes and enhancements

Infovox iVox is also available as part of three value bundles:

• Bundled with TextParrot, a document and selection reader and audio file generator
• Bundled with VisioVoice, a solution providing people with vision impairments enhanced access
• Bundled with Proloquo, a speech feedback and communication solution

Infovox iVox, VisioVoice, and Proloquo will be demonstrated at the CSUN conference in Los Angeles (March 21-24, 2007) in the Origin Instruments Booth (Hilton, Booth 122/125) and during a number of sessions. For more information on the sessions click here.

Infovox iVox requires Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later.

PAST NEWS

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VisioVoice 1.0.1 improves access to Mac OS X for vision impaired users

Amsterdam - 3 October 2006 - AssistiveWare today announced the release of VisioVoice(R) 1.0.1. VisioVoice is an award-winning product for blind and vision impaired Mac users providing a number of speech and vision related features to enhance access to Mac OS X. These include: (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; (6) Multilingual support to Apple's excellent VoiceOver technology (initially French and Dutch).

Version 1.0.1 contains the following enhancements:

- The Document Reader works with encrypted PDFs
- The Text Zoom and Talking Interface are more responsive and accurate
- The Selection Reader is more reliably with text selected in Safari
- Voice volume and speech rate settings work correctly [fix]
- Highlighting of spoken words works correctly with accented characters [fix]
- Several other fixes and improvements.

VisioVoice is bundled with Infovox iVox, which 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 Tiger's built-in VoiceOver screen reader. Infovox iVox includes all voices available for a language of choice. The following languages are available: US English, UK English, French, German, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Flemish, Spanish, Portuguese, Norwegian, and Swedish.

Introductory suggested retail pricing (25% discount) until 31 December 2006:

Languages	VisioVoice (includes Infovox iVox)
US English	$185
Scandinavian Languages	$289
Other European Languages	$185

Additional languages are half the price of Infovox iVox for that language. Volume licenses are also available.

VisioVoice is a universal binary and requires Mac OS X 10.4 or later. For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and voices samples please consult the product page: http://www.orin.com/access/visiovoice/.

AssistiveWare (http://www.assistiveware.com/) is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes(R) and TouchStrokes(R) virtual keyboards, SwitchXS(R) scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen(R) panel editor, Proloquo(R) multi-purpose speech solution, and VisioVoice(R), the award-winning solution for vision impaired Mac users.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult in The Netherlands and other countries. VisioVoice, SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult in The Netherlands and other countries. Infovox iVox is a trademark of Acapela Group. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

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VisioVoice gives Mac OS X new voices and low vision support

Amsterdam - 6 September 2006 - AssistiveWare today announced that together with Acapela Group it introduced two new products for Mac OS X: VisioVoice and Infovox iVox. There are also some very attractive introductory offers.

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. These include: (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; (6) Multilingual support to Apple's excellent VoiceOver technology (initially French and Dutch).

VisioVoice is bundled with InfoVox iVox, a new product from Acapela Group created in collaboration with AssistiveWare. 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 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 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). US English even 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.

Introductory suggested retail pricing (25% discount):

Languages	Infovox iVox	Infovox iVox + VisioVoice
US English	$149	$185
Scandinavian Languages	$269	$289
Other European Languages	$165	$185

After 31 December 2006:

Languages	Infovox iVox	Infovox iVox + VisioVoice
US English	$199	$249
Scandinavian Languages	$359	$389
Other European Languages	$219	$249

Additional languages are half the price of Infovox iVox for that language. Volume licenses are also available.

Additional introductory offer:

- Until 31 October 2006: 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 249 US$/Euro excluding VAT.

Infovox iVox and VisioVoice will be demonstrated in our booth at the Education Solutions Center at the Apple Expo in Paris (September 12 though 16).

Infovox iVox requires Mac OS X 10.3.9 or later, VisioVoice requires 10.4 or later. For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product pages:

http://www.assistiveware.com/infovox_ivox.php
http://www.assistiveware.com/visiovoice.php

AssistiveWare is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes(R) and TouchStrokes(R) virtual keyboards, SwitchXS(R) scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen(R) panel editor, and Proloquo(R) multi-purpose speech solution.

Entirely dedicated to developing and deploying natural language interfaces, Acapela Group is the European leader in speech solutions. Acapela Group speech solutions have already been deployed in many services and applications: voice portals, unified messaging services, CRM and contact centers, talking web, interactive games, edutainment software, e-learning tools, public address, assistive tools for the disabled, navigation aid, embedded systems, and much more.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult (The Netherlands). VisioVoice, SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult (The Netherlands). Infovox iVox is a trademark of Acapela Group (Sweden). All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

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AssistiveWare announces VisioVoice® for Mac OS X, a multilingual companion for VoiceOver

Amsterdam - 17 March 2006 - AssistiveWare today announced the future release of VisioVoice for Mac OS X. VisioVoice is a product for blind and vision impaired Mac users that adds multilingual support to Apple's excellent VoiceOver technology as well as providing a number of other speech and vision related features to enhance access to Mac OS X.

AssistiveWare's mission is to take away all barriers to Mac OS X. With our KeyStrokes and SwitchXS software we have removed the physical barriers. With Proloquo we have taken away language and speech barriers. With VisioVoice we want to remove visual barriers by making it possible for non-English vision impaired users to make use of Apple's VoiceOver while boosting access for all vision impaired users. VisioVoice will also enhance VoiceOver with the naturally sounding, high quality voices of the Acapela Group.

VisioVoice will be demonstrated at next week's CSUN conference in Los Angeles. For more information on booth and sessions see http://www.assistiveware.com/events.php

VisioVoice is expected to ship in June. Initially, a limited number of languages will be supported and we are accepting user input regarding which languages to support through a small survey.

AssistiveWare is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes® and TouchStrokes® virtual keyboards, SwitchXS® scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen® panel editor, and Proloquo® multi-purpose speech solution.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult. VisioVoice, SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

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AssistiveWare announces Proloquo® 1.1 with speech to iPod-ready iTunes tracks and quick voice access

Amsterdam - 13 March 2006 - AssistiveWare today announced the release of Proloquo® 1.1. Proloquo is a groundbreaking multi-purpose and multilingual speech and communication solution for Mac OS X that provides a full-fledged Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) for people who cannot speak, a talking interface for people with visual impairments, speech feedback in any application while typing, and can read text aloud.

Version 1.1 is a major update with the following main new features:

• Converts text to audio files and to iPod-ready iTunes tracks
• Quick voice access menu for changing voices and languages
• Updated voices from the Acapela Group

Proloquo's suggested retail price is $299, including High Quality and/or High Density Acapela voices for a language of choice. The languages currently include US English, UK English, German, Dutch, Flemish, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Russian, and Brazilian Portuguese. Acapela voices for additional languages can be purchased as a language pack for US$ 119. Proloquo also works with all the built-in Mac OS X voices. Version 1.1 is a free update for current users.

Proloquo can be used to create a complete personalized Augmentative/Alternative Communication (AAC) system using simple drag and drop of phrases into lists organized by topic. Proloquo can also be combined with LayoutKitchen (suggested retail price of $119. With LayoutKitchen users can design their own speech panels for Proloquo with colorable and resizable buttons containing text and/or images in a variety of formats. Optionally, LayoutKitchen can be combined with PCS for LayoutKitchen, which contains a collection of over 8000 Picture Communication Symbols™ licensed from Mayer-Johnson that can be used with LayoutKitchen to design speech panels for Proloquo as well as scanning panels for SwitchXS. It is available for a suggested retail price of $199.

Proloquo is available in English, French, and German, but works fine with most other languages. Proloquo requires Mac OS X 10.3 or higher, while Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) is recommended. For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product page.

To see Proloquo in action watch the 4 minute video in pristine H.264 (requires QuickTime 7 or Mac OS X Tiger) or several other formats (mp4, QuickTime 6, Real) in English or French. The video shows how Marie-France, who has lost her voice and can only move a jaw muscle because of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Motor Neurone Disease (MND) or Lou Gherigs Disease, uses AssistiveWare's Proloquo, KeyStrokes and SwitchXS to access her computer and communicate with others.

Proloquo, as well as the other AssistiveWare software, will be shown at the CSUN conference, March 20-25, in Los Angeles in the Origin Instruments booths (527 & 528 in the Pacific Ballroom at the Hilton). David Niemeijer, AssistiveWare's Lead Developer and CTO will also provide an introductory and an in-depth lab session at CSUN. For details see http://www.assistiveware.com/events.php

AssistiveWare is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes® and TouchStrokes® virtual keyboards, SwitchXS® scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen® panel editor, and Proloquo® multi-purpose speech solution.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult. SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

 

 

ARCHIVED NEWS

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SwitchXS® 2.2 now speaks Japanese, saves efforts, and helps beginning switch users

Amsterdam - 20 December 2005 - AssistiveWare today announced the release of SwitchXS® 2.2. SwitchXS is a switch access solution that provides virtually complete access to Mac OS X and all standard Mac applications for people who cannot use a mouse or keyboard. SwitchXS provide the best access solution ever on the Mac (and beyond) for people who are, for example, quadriplegic due to an accident, or suffering from neuromotor diseases such as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) or Cerebral Palsy (CP) with very limited limb movement. It offers full mouse and keyboard emulation by means of a so-called scanning mode. With each click on the switch the user selects an action, such as "move the cursor up" or "type B", from a "scanning" menu.

SwitchXS 2.2 is a major update with the following main new features:

• SwitchXS now speaks Japanese when the user has the Japanese DTalker application installed on their machine. This way, SwitchXS can provide voice cueing during scanning in Japanese. What is more, when combined with the PCS for LayoutKitchen communication symbol collection SwitchXS can now be turned into a complete switch accessible communication solution for Japanese Mac users who cannot speak. For English, French, German, Spanish and other languages SwitchXS can be combined with our Proloquo software for the same purposes.
• To save efforts, SwitchXS now remembers which panel was last used in each application and can (optionally) automatically load that panel each time a particular application is used.
• For beginning switch users, a "simplified scanning" feature was added that instantly scans any panel linearly instead of applying traditional row-column scanning. This is great for beginning switch users and at the same time saves parents and educators time, because they do not have to make dedicated linear scan panels, but can turn on linear scanning for all scan panels.
• The color of the rotating cursor beam can now be set by the user.
• Includes LayoutKitchen 1.0.4.
• An expanded user manual.

SwitchXS works with any HID compliant USB gamepad, joystick and keyboard, and starting with Mac OS X 10.3 also with any HID compliant USB mouse or trackball. SwitchXS also works with USB switch interfaces emulating any of the above devices.

SwitchXS is currently available in English, French and Japanese but works fine with most other languages. The suggested retail price is $299. Version 2.2 is a free update for current users. SwitchXS requires Mac OS X 10.2 (Jaguar) or higher. Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) or higher is recommended. For more information and a fully-functional downloadable demo please consult the product page.

PCS for LayoutKitchen contains a collection of over 8000 Picture Communication Symbols™ licensed from Mayer-Johnson that can be used with LayoutKitchen to design scanning panels for SwitchXS as well as speech panels for Proloquo. It is available for a suggested retail price of $199.

AssistiveWare is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes® and TouchStrokes® virtual keyboards, SwitchXS® scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen® panel editor, and Proloquo® multi-purpose speech solution.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult. SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

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AssistiveWare lowers price of TouchStrokes on-screen keyboard for Mac OS X by 40-percent

Amsterdam - 8 December 2005 - AssistiveWare today announced that it has lowered the price of its powerful TouchStrokes on-screen keyboard for graphic designers and touch screen kiosks. Customers can now purchase TouchStrokes for $59. This constitutes a price reduction of 40-percent.

TouchStrokes provides a fully-functional virtual keyboard for Mac OS 9 and Mac OS X (including Tiger) that works by drawing a keyboard image on the display and allows the user to type characters into any normal application using a mouse, touch screen, electronic white board, graphic tablet, trackball, head pointer or other mouse emulator. This includes the Wacom Graphire and Intuos tablets and Cintiq displays. It also includes Mac OS X compatible touch screens such as those from TrollTouch or just about any touch screen using the drivers from Touch-Base. Such touch screens are a great combination with a Mac mini and TouchStrokes to create a touch screen kiosk, station, or home media center.

TouchStrokes works seamlessly with all standard Mac applications (including those running in the Classic) allowing you to type virtually anywhere a hardware keyboard can be used. TouchStrokes automatically adjusts to US and international keyboard layouts and has multiple resizable keyboard models. It handles command-key combinations, dead-keys, and modifier key - click combinations. It offers a quick access toolbar and has many customizable settings, including a special password protected kiosk mode.

For more information see the product page at: http://www.orin.com/touchscreen/touchstrokes

AssistiveWare (http://www.assistiveware.com/) is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes(R) and TouchStrokes(R) virtual keyboards, SwitchXS(R) scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen(R) panel editor, and Proloquo(R) multi-purpose speech solution.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult. SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

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AssistiveWare announces version 1.0.1 of Proloquo(R), a groundbreaking speech and communication solution for Mac OS X

Amsterdam - 16 September 2005 - AssistiveWare today announced the release of Proloquo(R) 1.0.1. Proloquo is a groundbreaking multi-purpose and multilingual speech solution for Mac OS X that provides: (1) a full-fledged communication system (AAC) for people who cannot speak; (2) improves accessibility of Mac OS X for people with visual impairments; (3) provides speech feedback in any application while typing for children and people with learning disabilities; (4) can serve as a talking word processor; (5) provides text to speech for people who prefer listening to reading; (6) can be used as a tool to learn the pronunciation of foreign languages; (7) provides an advanced, multilingual speech engine for our KeyStrokes(R) on-screen keyboard and our SwitchXS(R) switch access solution.

Version 1.0.1 fixes a few bugs and now, on request, permits users to test drive Proloquo with a high quality voice in their own language (the standard test drive only uses the Mac OS X built-in English voices).

Proloquo's suggested retail price is $299 including High Quality and/or High Density Acapela voices for a language of choice. The languages currently include US English, UK English, German, Dutch, Flemish, French, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Swedish, Norwegian, Russian, and Brazilian Portuguese. Acapela voices for additional languages can be purchased as a language pack for $119 In addition, to offer users even more choice, registered Proloquo users can contact us for a discount coupon to purchase Cepstral voices that work not only in Proloquo but system-wide. Finally, Proloquo of course works with all the built-in voices of Mac OS X.

Proloquo can be used to create a complete personalized Augmentative/Alternative Communication (AAC) system using simple drag and drop of phrases into lists organized by topic. Proloquo can also be with colorable and resizable buttons containing text and/or images in a combined with LayoutKitchen (suggested retail price of $119. With LayoutKitchen users can design their own speech panels for Proloquo variety of formats. Optionally, LayoutKitchen can be combined with PCS for LayoutKitchen, which contains a collection of over 8000 Picture Communication Symbols(TM) licensed from Mayer-Johnson that can be used with LayoutKitchen to design speech panels for Proloquo as well as scanning panels for SwitchXS. It is available for a suggested retail price of $199.

Proloquo is available in English, French, and German, but works fine with most other languages. Proloquo requires Mac OS X 10.3 or higher, while Mac OS X 10.4 (Tiger) is recommended. For more information, a fully-functional downloadable demo and to listen to samples of the voices please consult the product page at http://www.assistiveware.com/proloquo.php

To see Proloquo in action watch the 4 minute video at http://www.assistiveware.com/videos.php in pristine H.264 (requires QuickTime 7 or Mac OS X Tiger) or several other formats (mp4, QuickTime 6, Real) in English or French. The video shows how Marie-France, who has lost her voice and can only move a jaw muscle because of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Motor Neurone Disease (MND) or Lou Gherigs Disease, uses AssistiveWare's Proloquo, KeyStrokes and SwitchXS to access her computer and communicate with others.

AssistiveWare (http://www.assistiveware.com/) is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes(R) and TouchStrokes(R) virtual keyboards, SwitchXS(R) scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen(R) panel editor, and Proloquo(R) multi-purpose speech solution.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult. SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

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AssistiveWare announces an amazing video: Paralyzed Mac user still active thanks to Mac OS X and SwitchXS®

Amsterdam - 7 September 2005 - AssistiveWare today announced the release of an amazing video. Marie-France lives in Paris. Ten years ago she was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), also known as Motor Neurone Disease (MND) or Lou Gherigs Disease. She gradually became paralyzed and lost her voice. Now she can only move her eyes and a jaw muscle. Thanks to that jaw muscle, Mac OS X and AssistiveWare's SwitchXS® she still plays a pivotal role in the household by managing the bank accounts, doing the shopping, and keeping in touch with friends. She also uses AssistiveWare's KeyStrokes® for word prediction and AssistiveWare's Proloquo® for communication. Watch the 4 minute video in pristine H.264 (requires QuickTime 7 or Mac OS X Tiger) or several other formats (mp4, QuickTime 6, Real) in English or French.

AssistiveWare is the worldwide leader in innovative assistive technology software for Mac OS X that gives people back their lives. This includes award-winning KeyStrokes® and TouchStrokes® virtual keyboards, SwitchXS® scanning on-screen keyboard, LayoutKitchen® panel editor, and Proloquo® multi-purpose speech solution.

AssistiveWare is a trade name and registered trademark of Niemeijer Consult. SwitchXS, KeyStrokes, TouchStrokes, LayoutKitchen, and Proloquo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Niemeijer Consult. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.

 

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