Testimonials, Case Studies and Research Papers are available from the Kurzweil Educations Systems web site.
Example of a printed page scanned in to Kurzweil 3000
Documents are displayed in full colour exactly like the original, including photos, diagrams, charts and columns of text. This image can be magnified as required. As the system reads out loud the text, a coloured highlight moves through the text as seen on the screen so that the user always knows the context. It is possible to magnify in high contrast colours just the word being spoken, which reinforces the meaning and allows the user to see the spelling of each word and its pronunciation simultaneously.
There is a 175,000 word Dictionary function including synonyms, syllabification and phonetic spelling, and these functions can be invoked at any time on any word in the text, or for new words that the user types. A word-processing area allows the user to compose their own documents and save them in a variety of word-processing formats. Text and images from scanned documents can be easily pasted into the word-processing area, making this an ideal tool for students and researchers. The same vision- enhancing tools and Dictionary functions can be used with Internet Explorer, allowing World Wide Web pages to be read out loud.
The reading speed is completely under the control of each user, and can be self- paced by word, phrase, sentence or paragraph, with easy-to-use Rewind and Fast Forward controls. Each user can log on with their preferred settings and is allocated their own folder for saving material. Kurzweil 3000 has been installed in Libraries, Colleges of TAFE, Universities and Schools, where it is proving a valuable tool for children and adults with print disabilities. It's major advantage in education is that it allows teachers to use the same materials and resources for their special needs students as those generally provided.
There are a range of Study Skills tools, including embedded notes, bookmarks and the ability to highlight portions of the document in different colours. Kurzweil 3000 comes with a Tutorial, Study Skills Guide, and on-line help system.
ESL Module - English as a Second Language
There is an optional module available for Kurzweil 3000 that provides bi-lingual dictionaries, and customised voices for speaking non-English text for many of the European languages. Material which may include a foreign language can then be spoken out in an accent and phrasing natural to that language, and the dictionary function will give the English equivalent of the word, or, for English texts, the Other Language equivalent. This module will be indispensable for students whose first language is not English.