I was blind, but now I see

Recently, the Westonaria Public Library hosted the launch of an e-book service for all Gauteng libraries.

Gauteng Library Services, in partnership with the Westonaria Public Library and the American Corner, was proud to host this launch on Wednesday, 7 September, during National Book Week.

To make this e-book service as inclusive as possible, three workstations for blind and visually impaired people were installed. These workstations will enable visually impaired persons to scan printed material, read texts in Braille using a Braille keyboard, and print out texts using either a Braille printer or an ordinary one.

Blind and visually impaired persons will also be able to search the internet, as each workstation is equipped with a PC and Windows 7 operating system. The workstations will allow users to write texts on a mechanical Braille typesetting machine, and have content displayed on the screen in a large format using Magic Software.

Other functions include having texts transferred to a connected screen where they can be magnified at the reader’s convenience, as well as out loud reading of screen content, with the help of the program known as JAWS (Job Access with Speech).

“We aim to snowball this launch by delivering more workstations to libraries, so that all blind and visually impaired people in the country have access to the program. With this week being National Book Week, we want to focus on books, reading and getting books into homes, regardless of whether they’re hard copies or e-books,” said Koekie Meyer, director of the Gauteng Provincial Library Services.

The workstations make it possible for visually impaired people to visit the library too.

“If you do not read, you lose out in life. Countless visually impaired people have hungered for access to books and have struggled to get them. But now, this has changed – thanks to these workstations. This is an absolutely historic event for all visually impaired people,” said Cathy Donaldson, president of Blind SA.

Jace Nair, CEO of Blind SA, who also attended the launch, aims to create awareness among visually impaired and blind people. “We aim to create a culture of reading among blind people and to encourage them as we now have the privilege of obtaining books in accessible formats,” he said.

Not only were the workstations at the library made available for the visually impaired, but an online library service, called Overdrive, was also announced and made available to those who don’t necessarily feel like going to the library.

Overdrive is a leading distributor of e-content such as e-books, audio books, music and videos for public libraries, schools and retailers. This online service is readily available in 40 countries world-wide, in over 30 000 libraries. Library users will be able to access Overdrive e-books at their own convenience if they have a public library membership number, and access to the internet via a desktop computer, laptop, notebook or netbook, or via any mobile device.

Libraries are no longer just shelves with books – they’re a boundaryless portal to information and technology.

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