[blindkid] Why JAWS?

[Steve Jacobson]

You have received a lot of advice already so I will only add a couple of quick points.  Please be aware of the fact that Microsoft 
Office products on the MAC do not work with VoiceOver unless something has changed recently.  Therefore, if a school makes heavy 
use of Microsoft Office on the MAC, one has to consider which is more important, access to the MAC or access to Microsoft Office.

Second, the choices can be confusing.  In all of this, we should not loose sight of the fact that what a school uses for other 
students should be taken into consideration.  In my kids' school system, Windows computers were by far the most common.  At some 
point, I believe a child should be using what his or her classmates are using when possible.  When this should happen depends on a 
lot of things.  At some point, though, if a school is using Microsoft Word, it makes sens for a blind student to use Microsoft 
Word rather than trying to create the same formats using a note-taking device.  This doesn't all happen at once, though.

Best regards,

Steve Jacobson

On Wed, 6 Mar 2013 15:28:03 -0700, Brandon and Sarah wrote:

>I'm trying to make sense of a recent conversation with our daughter's
>TVI, who I realize is not up speed on technology - to be fair, neither
>am I. We were discussing a braille notetaker vs. braille display +
>computer. The TVI thinks she can justify the cost of a notetaker to
>the district by not having to get JAWS. Her impression is that JAWS is
>only for screenreading of internet material, which a notetaker can
>theoretically do. Here is my question for those who are ahead of us on
>this issue: If you have a notetaker at the elementary level and home
>computer access with Voiceover, is there a strong reason to have/learn
>JAWS? We have the MS Office for Mac on the home computer, so I'm less
>concerned about Emilia missing out on the Windows experience than I am
>about her getting more acquainted with accessing school curriculum,
>doing school work, etc. by electronic means. Thanks. Brandon

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