Save Word Office Document In DAISY Format For People With Hearing, Sight or Reading disabilities

If you know a person with hearing, sight, or reading disabilities you would know what we are talking about, SaveAsDAISY is a plugin which allows you to  convert Word Open XML files to the Digital Accessible Information System (DAISY) format. DAISY powers digital talking books and compatible software and Braille readers for people with print disabilities or limited vision. This beta supports Office 2003, 2007 and 2010

.

How Does SaveAsDAISY Really Help People On Ground Level?

Donna Platt, a Seattle-based advocate for people with hearing disabilities, trains emergency personnel on how to help 911 callers who have hearing loss. She’s deaf herself. Here’s what she expects from STAMP:
"Now that video clips in PowerPoint 2010 can be closed captioned, I’ll experience a huge time savings since I won’t have to use multiple programs to conduct a presentation for my trainees. STAMP allows me to caption my own videos for 9-1-1 call takers–some of whom might not understand sign language–bridging the gap between our two methods of communication seamlessly." 
As for DAISY? Here’s what Michael Mello has to say. Michael is an adaptive technology specialist with the Washington State Department of Services for the Blind:
"As an adaptive technology specialist for the Washington State Department of Services for the Blind, I work with blind individuals on all aspects of technology related to their career planning. This includes job site evaluations to determine the level of accessibility of the employer’s equipment, software and assistive technology. I also conduct in-house evaluations for clients to determine what software and devices would be an appropriate fit for them.
And, I am blind myself. It is important that I have the same access to complex information as my sighted colleagues have, so that I am able to do my job and help my clients land their dream jobs. Save as DAISY for Office 2010 provides me with the freedom to access many types of information both on my computer and on-the-go via text to speech. I am able to take the same document that I was working on at my computer and transfer it to a DAISY-compatible device to review as if I were working on it in Office 2010 on my computer–even complex files that include tables and photos. Providing the ability for anyone to author content using Save as DAISY for Office 2010 makes it easy for the general public to make information accessible to the blind–this is a valuable productivity resource."

How Does SaveAsDAISY Work [ How To Use It ]

The Open XML to DAISY XML Translator add-in for Microsoft Office Word 2010 helps content creators produce accessible documents for people who have visual disabilities. Installing this add-in allows Word documents in Open XML format to be saved into DAISY XML, which can then be converted into DAISY Digital Talking Book (DTB) format.

DOWNLOAD AND INSTALLING THE ADD-IN

Before you install the add-in, close all Office applications. Download the add-in from Open XML to DAISY XML Translator, and then follow the installation instructions on your screen.

GET ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

When you install the add-in, the DAISY Translator folder is added to your Start menu with the Instruction Manual as well as a Getting Started tutorial. To access these documents, do the following:

1. Click Start, and then click All Programs.
2. Click DAISY Translator

Save your Word document in Open XML format

In order to translate your document into a DAISY XML file, you must ensure that your document is in Open XML format by following these steps:

1. Click the File tab, and then click Save As.
2. In the Save As dialog box, click the arrow to the right of the Save as typelist, and then click Word XML Document.
3. In the File name box, type a name for the file.
4. Click Save.

Save As DAISY features

After you have installed the Office XML to DAISY XML Translator add-in, an Accessibility tab is added to the ribbon.

To save your file as a DAISY XML file, do the following:

1. On the Accessibility tab, in the Save as Daisy group, click Save as Daisy.

1. Choose one of the following:

• Save as DAISY XML from a single Open XML document.
• Save as Full DAISY from a single Open XML document.
• Save as DAISY XML from multiple Open XML documents.
• Save as Full DAISY from multiple Open XML documents.

1. Choose a location for the output files.

You can get more information about DAISY on DAISY Consortium web site. For the DAISY add-in, you can download it from SourceForge