suggestion?

[Doug]

Java is not inherently GUI ... there is a GUI building API
(Swing), but you can compile java on the command line.
There is also an accessibility API for Java, which is
supposed to allow alternative access to the graphical
Swing world, although I haven't tried it.

BTW Java applets are only one facet of Java, which I
think is over emphasized. Applets have a numver of real
problems, especially browser implemnentations of the
necessary APIs (inconsitencies). I work on Java all the
time and I never recommend applets. Instead I recommend
servlets generating web pages for most user interfaces.

One nice thing is that FreeTTS implements the JSAPI
(Java Speech API) with the help of Flite, so it's easy
to make talking Java apps. However, this is onlt speech
synthesis, the recognition stuff is not done yet. Last
I heard there are plans to implement the recognition
part of JSAPI using Sphinx.

I used to work for Sun, JavaSoft no less, they are
good engineers ... if you think that Java is lacking
in accessibility, I encourage you to try contacting
their accessibility folks ...

Keep in mind that Java does not equal applets nor
GUI ... Swing is just part of java ... most of the
Java I have done is not graphical ... See this ...

http://java.sun.com/products/jfc/accessibility.html



   -- Doug