It depends what format the student wants at the end point, Penny. If
enlarged text is the hope, photocopying would be better. If Braille is
what is trying to be achieved, I think you'll have to convert the
formulae into words (there is an RNIB guide, or a mathematician could
articulate the formulae) then these words could be Brailled (or put in
electronic format).
As Bernard says, perhaps the scanner gonks have invented a
formula-reading programme, but I haven't heard of it.
Iain
On Mon, 13 Oct 2003 16:44:17 +0100 Bernard Doherty
<[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> Dear Penny
>
> I've looked into this problem several times and there doesn't seem to
> be any workable, commercially available solution. OCR Scanning
> software seems to read line by line, complex equations and formulae use
> several lines simultaneously, hence the failure. One method is to use
> something like Omnipage and set the equations as a figure or
> illustration rather than text characters. In reality, this is how
> Equation 3 in Word or Mathtype work. This will succeed up to a point,
> but it increases the time it takes to scan material, it can't be made
> automatic and, if successful, the equation can't be managed by any of
> the standard speech engines. I know there have been a number of
> research projects into developing IT tools for blind and partially
> sighted maths students, but none of them seem to have produced
> deliverables (as they say in project-application speak). I would be
> really glad to hear that I've missed some common piece of software or
> of other ways of working, especially methods that students can manage
> independently.
>
> Regards, Bernard
>
> On Mon, 13 Oct 2003 15:18:25 +0100 Penny Roper
> <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> ----------------------
> Bernard Doherty
> Student Adviser
> ACCESS Centre
> Anglia Polytechnic University
>
> Tel: 01223 363271 x2534
> Fax: 01223 417730
> Minicom: 01223 576155
> [log in to unmask]
----------------------
Iain Hood
Senior Student Adviser, Learning Support
[log in to unmask]
Student Support Services
Anglia Polytechnic University
East Road
Cambridge
CB1 1PT
01223 363271 ex 2316
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