Just as literacy is a right for all, so too is graphicacy. Literacy and graphicacy should be linked. Some tools that may improve graphicacy levels are outlined. They are designed to enable visually impaired and sighted people to create, read and exchange graphical Information. The tools are a suite of programmes and integrated hardware called TAGD (DOS) and TAGW (WINDOWS), where TAG stands for Tactile Audio Graphics. A brief description of the main tools is presented.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
' Cranmer, T. (1995) "Technology, the Common Denominator," The World Blind, 12, pp.27-31.
2.
D'Alfand, S. (1997) "Turn of the Century, Good-bye to Illiteracy," The World Blind, 14, pp.38-40.
3.
Dodds, A.G., Howarth, C.I. & Carter, D.D.C. (1982) "The Mental Maps of the Blind: The Role of Previous Visual Experience." JVIB, 76, 1, pp.5-12.
4.
Gide, A. (1963) La Symphonie Pastorale and Isabelle. Translated by Dorothy Bussy, Penguin Press, Harmondsworth , pp.26-31.
5.
Hinton, R.A.L. (1988) New Ways with Diagrams. Thermoform Tactile Diagrams - A Manual for Teachers and Technicians. RNIB, London.
6.
Nemeth, A. (1990) In : Parkes, D.N. & Brull, M. (1997) "It May Not Be Easy, But It Is Possible, A New Form of Literacy," The World Blind, 14, pp.48-50.
7.
Parkes, D.N. & Brull, M. (1997) "It May Not Be Easy, But It Is Possible, A New Form of Literacy," The World Blind, 14, pp.48-50.
8.
Parkes, D.N. (1991) "Nomad: Enabling Access to Graphics and Text Based Information for Blind, Visually Impaired and Other Disability Groups", Conference Proceedings, Volume 5, World Congress on Technology , Arlington, Virginia, pp.690-714.
9.
TAG tool kit information can be obtained from the web site www.tactile-audio.com.
10.
Wild, G., Hinton, D. & Hinton, R.A.L. (1997) "The Design of Microcapsule Diagrams for Visually Impaired Students on Distance Learning Courses, BJVI, 15, 1, pp.23-29.