The latest news and developments on accessible publishing and reading.
DAISY Planet Newsletter - March 2024
Welcome to the DAISY Planet newsletter! First a quick reminder: you are receiving this message because you have previously subscribed to receive a DAISY Consortium Newsletter. If you would like to change how you receive these messages you can find links at the bottom of this page.
Reading by Telephone..?
Around the world there are many tried and tested methods for delivering audiobooks to people with print disabilities, but a new pilot service from the National Association for the Blind in Delhi, India, has been exploring how audio content can be delivered through a simple phone call.
Accessible Reading Barriers in Poorer Regions
A new DAISY article highlights interim results from an ongoing survey to assess and identify some of the challenges faced in the production and use of accessible format resources in the developing world. The article lists fundamental issues such as technology support for local languages together with a lack of training and government assistance. It illustrates some of the ways that DAISY and our partners are working to address these major barriers.
New Adobe InDesign Accessibility Features
Used globally as a leading tool for mainstream book design, the latest update to Adobe InDesign includes accessibility improvements for ebooks exported from the application. Thanks to expert advice offered from the Better EPUB from InDesign working group, which comprises DAISY Members, invited expert friends, and DAISY staff, Adobe have benefited from practical recommendations to improve the accessibility of the files created from their application. This is a wonderful step forward and what we hope is the first in a series of updates to continue to improve the EPUB output from InDesign.
Korean Converter Service for DAISY Content
A new conversion service created by BOINIT enables the conversion of Korean language Word documents to the DAISY Format using a dedicated online service. Five organizations in the region are currently using the system and reporting great results.
Remembering Monthian Butan
We are sorry to note the passing of Monthian Butan, Thai Senator and disability advocate, who, amongst an extensive portfolio of achievements, played a critical role in the early days of the DAISY Consortium. Our thoughts are with his family and friends. Read about his life and achievements in the Thai News article remembering Senator Monthian Butan.
Accessible CSUN Conference Resources
The CSUN Assistive Technology Conference is one of the largest AT events in the world, attracting a global audience including many DAISY Members. DAISY have been involved in the accessible format production of the conference resources for the last few years but this is the first year that we have used the Azure AI voices from Microsoft to produce both the DAISY format and EPUB text and audio conference resources. We look forward to receiving feedback from the conference delegates.
We would love to hear your suggestions and feedback to help shape what we do, and we're always keen to share your news, events and developments with the global DAISY community. Just send the details to: news@daisy.org
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