JAWS 12 Sneak Preview

JAWS version 12 is due out later this year, and we've got the latest scoop on its most exciting changes!
The JAWS Configuration Manager is replaced with the Settings Center, where you can search for the setting that you want to change and simply change it, with no need to hunt through a variety of menus to track down where, for instance, you can change the level of punctuation that JAWS speaks or increase the JAWS speech rate. Also, the Settings Center remembers your last 25 changes and displays them at the bottom of the tree view, making it easier for you to fix a setting that you might have adjusted incorrectly or adjust settings that you change frequently.
Braille display users, take note! JAWS 12 lets you operate your computer from the Braille keyboard of any connected refreshable Braille display. Using the Braille keys, you can enter any character that would be entered through a standard QWERTY keyboard, and this includes all JAWS commands, too. If you're a whiz at Grade II Braille, you'll also be able to enter text in contracted Braille and have the result reverse-translated to text on the fly.
Finally, if you just can't seem to make your way around Office 2007 or 2010's new Office Fluent User Interface (OFUI) without getting frustrated and saying oh phooey!, JAWS 12 lets you choose whether to use the Office ribbon as is or to use a Virtual Ribbon interface that feels more like the old traditional Office menu system.
Stay tuned, and EmpowerTech will bring you the latest details on these and other exciting developments as we receive them.

Sendero Maps by Tom Lange

Sendero Maps is the recently-released PC-based counterpart to the Sendero GPS software package that runs on a BrailleNote. I use Sendero GPS to keep track of where I am when I'm traveling around. Sendero Maps is essentially Sendero GPS in virtual mode. Using maps that Sendero gives you with the package, you can virtually explore any area on a map, calculate pedestrian or vehicle routes from point A to point B, as well as retrieve point-of-interest information. So, on the PC, I could open Sendero Maps, tell it that I'm located at 6234 W. 87th Street, calculate a route from here to an address such as 333 Wilshire Boulevard (a DOR office), , and explore the route. Or, I could doo a point-of-interest search for banks, schools, restaurants, or other points of interest and get addresses and phone numbers. Using the address info, I can set that as a destination and calculate how to get there. It's a great tool.