iPads bring accessibility to the disabled at a far lower costIt's only been half a year since its introduction, but the iPad has already become a major player in the field of assistive technology, helping disabled people communicate. A number of studies are underway (and many more are in the planning stages) to offer much-needed data on the effectiveness of the iPad and other iOS devices in this area. A few days ago, The New York Times ran a piece about the implications of the iPad to the disabled community.
The Times tells the story of Owen Cain, a victim of a degenerative disease called spinal muscular atrophy. He acquired the disease as an infant, and there is no known cure for it. Although his parents bought him a number of computer devices to make his life more pleasant, they were all failures -- until he met the iPad.
With his arms in slings, Owen was able to touch an icon on an iPad and run Gravitarium, an inexpensive app that plays soothing music while displaying colorful stars. It doesn't take lot of strength to swipe a page or tap a button on the iPad -- certainly less than if a device had hard buttons. Now, Owen is using Proloquo2Go to communicate, reading books such as Alice for the iPad (shown in the video after the break), and his repertoire of app-enabled abilities is growing. Interacting with the iPad has improved Owen's life to a large degree.Continue reading iPads bring accessibility to the disabled at a far lower costiPads bring accessibility to the disabled at a far lower cost originally appeared on TUAW on Thu, 04 Nov 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments
http://www.tuaw.com/2010/11/04/ipads-bring-accessibility-to-the-disabled-at-a-far-lower-cost/
