Questions about DOS (sorry if off-topic)

Wed Aug 26 18:55:32 EDT 2009

It took me a while to get used to the Jaws way of doing things with the 
numeric keypad, but I'm used to it now. During our DOS days, we always used 
Automatic Screen Access Program, or ASAP. The main reason was that we ran 
Computersmith Enterprises, and sold ASAP for a while, and also developed the 
Laptalk speech synthesizer. So it took me a bit of time to adjust from the 
ASAP way of doing things to the JFW way of doing things. Then, when I got 
into Linux, I found they did things the ASAP way.
     We used to use OSCAR also. The problem with it now is that it was copy 
protected. Unless TSI released a free version or something before they went 
under, I assume if you could find a copy, it would be protected. The 
particular protection scheme they used was one that Jaws also used in early 
days, and I never found a way to make an actual copy or image of such 
protected disks. Believe me, I tried.
Jayson

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Glenn Ervin" <GlennErvin at cableone.net>
To: "Speakup is a screen review system for Linux." <speakup at braille.uwo.ca>
Sent: Wednesday, August 26, 2009 6:35 PM
Subject: Re: Questions about DOS (sorry if off-topic)


> My speech program has always been Jaws, because it is the only one to 
> which
> I felt the keyboard commands with the number pad made sense, and that is 
> one
> of the reasons which I still prefer Windows to Linux, that is, all of the
> screenreaders for Linux use that weird keyboard command structure, IMHO.
> But when I was using DOS, to which I did virtually all of the commands
> either in batch files, or individually, I always wanted a good software
> synth solution.
> I used a SoundBlaster card, and there was a software driver for use with a
> screenreader, and it sounded quite good, but computers back then could not
> handle the overhead of the synthesizer.
> I wonder if it was called SbTalker?
> I'll bet it would work with a sound blaster card much better with Jaws for
> DOS, which has been free now for some time.
> I wish I could use my Artic215 card now, as I would still use it if I had 
> an
> ISA slot on my computers.
> HTH.
> Glenn
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Eleni Vamvakari" <magkisa83 at gmail.com>
> To: <speakup at braille.uwo.ca>
> Sent: Wednesday, August 26, 2009 2:44 PM
> Subject: Questions about DOS (sorry if off-topic)
>
>
> Geia sas/hello,
>
> I'm a totally blind 25-year-old college graduate who adores DOS.  I've
> been into it for 11 years now, beginning in 1996, when it was already
> considered obsolete by most people.  I tried to teach myself all that
> I could, but eventually got dragged into the world of windows and then
> got a Macbook..   Well, 13 computers and several operating systems
> later, I'm returning to my first tech love, DOS.  For the record, I've
> never used unix or Linux.  I recently found FreeDOS but it seems that
> it hasn't been updated in awhile.  Then, I discovered Enhanced DR-DOS
> (EDRD) and was amazed.  Here's a system that's still being updated and
> whose developers want to make it a truly modern os.  I downloaded the
> latest stable version and am planning on installing it as the only os
> on my Compaq Armada.  I know that there's at least one other blind
> person on the EDRD forms so will also pass these questions onto them.
> But I found a thread here about using an open source screenreader on
> DOS.  So I'm hoping I can get answers for the following questions.
> Feel free to email me if you think it'll cause a problem.
> 1. Which screenreader works best with EDRD?  I have Vocaleyes, JAWS,
> Provox and Tinitalk.  I also know there are one or two leser-known
> readers out there, though I haven't got them yet.  I'm mostly a
> VocalEyes user in DOS and have used JAWS in Windows so am familiar
> with it through that os.  But are there any compatability issues
> between MS-DOS and EDRD that would make one screenreader work better
> than another?
> 2.Is it possible to use a software synthesizer with EDRD?  I recently
> heard of a program called Interface that works with the MBROLA
> synthesizer, JAWS and MS-DOS but am not sure if it's compatible.  If
> not, can I use the standard synths that work in MS-DOS?  I heard here
> that ESpeak is compatible with DOS too.  Is this true?  If so, what
> program does it use and what versions of DOS can handle it?
> 3. What's the most accessible web browser?  I've heard Nettamer and
> Lynx are pretty good but can they handle the web today?  Is there a
> more modern one that we can use?  What are some of the most accessible
> DOS programs in general?
> 4. Can DOS screenreaders handle the multitasking capabilities in EDRD?
> They sound great but how are the menus in the task manager read?
> 5. What's the best ocr program and scanner to use?  Do drivers and
> software exist for more modern scanners or should I stick with an
> older one like the Pagescan and Omnipage or Recognita and whetever it
> supports?  Does anyone know where I can find OSCAR?
> 6. Is there a way to create a backup disk once the os is installed so
> that I can install it on my own with speech?  I highly doubt it but
> figured I'd ask.
> 7. How do I create a bootdisk for EDRD?  they say you're supposed to
> use a disk formatted to work with Enhanced DR-DOS but how do I do that
> when I haven't even installed the os yet?  Alternatively, has anyone
> done an install purefly off a cd rom?
> 9.  What's the best wireless card to use?  I've got Verizon Fios if it
> makes a difference.
> 10. I have a 10 gb hard disk.  Will this cause a problem with the os
> because it's larger than 7 gb?
>
> Thanks,
> Eleni
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