[Blindmath] The LEANMath Editor, making math really accessible

[John Gardner]

Hello all, I've been on this list for years hearing over and over and over
the difficulties of blind people who need to read math and most particularly
who need to write and manipulate math.  So last year I finally just decided
to do something about it.  I'm not a software engineer but I can write
simple scripts, so I set about to create a reading/authoring application
that was usable and affordable by anybody.  This new LEAN Math application
can be a stand-alone editor but is most useful as an interface to mainstream
math apps.  The first implementation is as an interface to MS Word+MathType,
the most popular scientific authoring software in the world.  A preliminary
manual is available at:

http://www.access2science.com/mathml/LEANMath_Manual.html

 

Today I am announcing that the beta period will open later in June and would
like to have about a dozen volunteers to beta test it.  If you have a
Windows computer with MS Word and a recent (version 6.5 or later) version of
MathType, and are struggling with reading/writing math, I hope you will
volunteer to beta test it.  LEAN is a descendant of the Triangle and LAMBDA
projects in the sense that there is a special intuitive compact linear
notation.  I believe that anybody who uses a speech screen reader will be
delighted with LEAN.  If you use Braille, well maybe yes and maybe no.
Because LEAN Braille is not a conventional math Braille.  If it was possible
to adapt a conventional math Braille to LEAN I would do it, but it just
isn't.  I'll leave it to the list experts to explain why.  LEAN Braille is
modeled on European computer Braille and has "dot-six" numbers that are easy
to learn if you want to.  It has symbols for special LEAN characters that (I
think) are pretty intuitive but that will have to be learned.  A Braille
lexicon will be included as reference.  One can use either 6 or 8 dot
Braille, which can be derived from each other and can even be mixed. The
8-dot version is very compact.

 

LEANMath will soon be a commercial product available from ViewPlus.  No cost
licenses will be given to individuals for personal use.  Clearly ViewPlus
cannot afford to provide any support to free software, and I am hoping that
this list can become a forum for helping individuals with LEANMath.

 

I'm happy to start signing up people for beta testing.  I need to thanks
several people for various bits of help with LEAN including Courtney
Christensen, Kyle Keane, Yuemei Sun, and most particularly Michael Whapples.
Michael and Yuemei have made the software that connected my simple-minded
Python script with Word and MathType as well as write the UI.

 

John Gardner

 

 

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John Gardner        

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