[nabs-l] FW: Blind Orgs Make PowerPoint Support a Reality in NVDA

[Wasif, Zunaira]

From: info_focb [mailto:info_focb at bellsouth.net] 
Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2013 3:31 AM
To: Undisclosed-Recipient:;
Subject: Blind Orgs Make PowerPoint Support a Reality in NVDA

 

Blind Orgs Make PowerPoint Support a Reality in NVDA

	April 24, 2013 6:09 am 

	Michael and James on stage with projecter screen showing "Gala
dinner WBU-ICEB 2012"

	Thanks to the support of several key blindness organisations,
soon blind and vision impaired people will be able to gain access to
Microsoft PowerPoint through NVDA, enabling them to both create and
present presentations along with their sighted peers. People have long
waited for PowerPoint support in NVDA, but it was at a gala dinner held
at the WBU-ICEVI 2012 General Assembly in Thailand where it all became
possible. 

	Over US$40,000 was contributed that night to add support for
Microsoft PowerPoint to the NVDA screen reader. Funding was pledged from
blindness organisations all over the globe, including from Australia,
the U.s, Israel, Germany, Spain, Thailand and others. 

	It was an extremely proud night for us to see the blindness
community and its organizations pull together and take ownership of
equitable access to technology.

	NVDA may have been created by NV Access, but it is most
certainly now owned by the blindness community at large.

	Support for Microsoft PowerPoint will be included in the next
release of NVDA (2013.1) which is due out very shortly.

	We would like to thank the following organisations for their
financial contribution to this work: National Organization of Spanish
blind people (ONCE), Vision

	Australia, National Federation of the Blind (U.S.), Christian
Foundation for the Blind (Thailand), Thailand Association of the Blind,
Overbrook school for the blind, The Society of Blind and Dyslexic
Students in Israel, and RNIB.