Amazon Releases Kindle for PC with Accessibility Enhancements

Is anyone aware yet if its possible to read the books using a braille display? The website says that the read aloud feature is done through the program itself, and not the screen reader, so I'm guessing it wouldn't work with a braille display. Has anyone heard differently?

Awesome. They allow tts to be used in every book so long as there's a screen reader running... except that the Kindle app itself seems to be 100% inaccessible. None of the screen readers I have (and I have all of them except for Hal) can read a thing in that app. I can't even set it up (registration screen is completely blank according to every screen reader I've got). Is Amazon just trying to thumb their noses at us? Why even bother with this if the app itself can't even be used?

This new version of the Kindle app appears quite accessible with JAWS. Upon launching it, you register with your Amazon e-mail and password. I purchased a Kindle book and was able to read it without difficulty. The software uses its own TTS speech engine to read books you purchase, which explains its over 200 megabyte download. So far the only thing I find annoying is difficulty in utilizing the search function for quickly moving to a phrase in a book, not being able to navigate through the table of contents, and only being able to read one page at a time rather than read continuously. Of course, perhaps reading the manual will shed light on how to do this. As a consumer, my only real complaint with the Kindle, and most ebook platforms for that matter, is being limited to a proprietary format, as I would like to read lawfully purchased ebooks on whatever device and whatever medium I choose, be it PC, iPhone, or Braille notetaker. However, it's encouraging to see that ebooks which incorporate digital rights management schemes can indeed be accessed with speech. Hopefully other ebook manufacturers such as NFB Technologies and Google are taking notice.

I was able to login, and download and read a book.... using Jaws 10.0...

I was able to install it and register it ok. But what's up with the help! It took me to the Kindle Store. I wanted more information about reading keys, and couldn't find it. Also, that reading voice really is useful only in a pintch. Any nonstandard English word causes it to stumble.

I'm using the latest version of Jaws, and I installed and ran this app with no accessibility issues.

Ok, got it working. There was a conflict that wasn't immediately apparent between the QT libraries that come with the Kindle app and the ones on my system. I've resolved it, and have been playing with this for a while. My apologies for my knee-jerk reaction. This is certainly a step in the right direction and, given the approach being used, I don't see how the publishers can object this time around. Of course, this doesn't help those who'd like to read their books on their Braille displays, and that's a shame. Still, the fact that Amazon did this (let's hope they stick to it this time) is a good sign, and the irony that the Kindle app is mostly accessible while Blio is completely inaccessible just strikes me as funny in a sad way. In the mean time though, there are some books I've been dying to read... and now, thanks to the Kindle app, I won't have to scan them. Right now, that's more than we've ever had. iBooks is nice too, but Apple's catalog doesn't hold a candle to Amazon's.

For those who want to read their lawfully purchased books on Braille displays, this may be possible, although its legality may be questionable. I know of one program that can take a legitimately purchased Kindle ebook, strip it of its DRM, and turn it into a standard PDF file. From there you can use Adobe Reader's function to save the file as a text document. This program does cost around $30 US, and I haven't tried it, but appears like it would work. I neither advocate nor endorse breaking the law or engaging in piracy, but am just pointing out the technology exists. I personally think that as long as DRM exists and ebook publishers refuse to learn the lessons the recording industry did by allowing unrestricted mp3 files, there will always be an arms race between those seeking to protect their intelectual property and those who wish to read their ebooks on whatever device they choose.

Will this app let you spell words using the TTS? I don't know about y'all but my efficiency tanks when I can't use my TTS of choice. The Kindle TTS comes across like comic sans for my ears.

I have a solution for reading kindle books that does not involve kindle for pc and wil in fact allow you to read books on any device you choose. It's a bit unwieldy, but so worth it; i've gotten over half my book this semester through kindle, and it's so nice not to have to wait for them to be scanned! Also, depending on the file, the converted result is usually a very nice html file, with heading navigation and a table of contents with links that work. If you want more info, email me at tashiegirl@rcn.com. I agree that it's great that these companies are trying to make ebook platforms accessible, but I'd much prefer to read a book with my screenreader, using internet explorer or word. I've gotten used to the freedom and flexibility of reading in this way, so don't want to give that up.

@Chad: Cracking DRM for the sake of accessibility isn't illegal at least in the US. That specific case was added as a fair use exception to the DMCA (the worst law ever) a few months ago. So long as you do so for your own use, it's perfectly legal under the new rules and can't be termed piracy at all.

would converting kindle books to html still be considered legal, given theat amazon has technically provided an accessible version of the books? If this isn't illegal, does anyone have any suggestions for how to host the zip archive with the python scripts to convert the files, and the instructions? I didn't write them, but assembled the ones that work well and put them together for ease of use.

Amazon has offered the books in an accessible format to *some* blind people. Those that need to read on a Braille display, however, are not covered and, given the limited navigation possible in the Kindle app, HTML would still be more accessible. The books are accessible, but technically are not in an accessible format. Rather, Amazon's app will ignore the publisher's TTS setting if a screen reader is running. That also means that you must have a Windows PC in order to use Amazon's books accessibly, where as HTML can be placed and read on any device regardless of what it is.

@darknexus: would you like the info on converting kindle books to html?

@tasha: Thanks, but I already know how to do that.

I'm just going to go ahead and place in this comment a link to the archive with the scripts to convert the books, since these comments are screened and I'm assuming if there is a problem, this won't get posted. I'm not sure how much longer the sendspace link will last. Does anyone have a paid account? The process is a bit difficult the first time, so if you're having trouble, just email me. tashiegirl@rcn.com hi travis, here's the link to download the zip archive with the scripts to convert kindle to html, along with instructions. the process can be a bit tricky the first time, so if you need a walk through, i am tashigirl777 on skype. thanks, tasha http://www.sendspace.com/file/hjuuki

My son has a Kindle, and says many of the books do not have a text-to-speech option. Is this ignored for the accesibility option? Also, I assume that one is limited to the computer rather than a portable reading device such as a Victor Stream. I hate just sitting at a computer. Also, is the voice really that bad? Can you speed it up or anything like that? Thanks.

HI KATHY, I HAVE NO EXPERIENCE WITH THE KINDLE, BUT I suggest that he try out the method for converting kindle books as described above, since he won't have to deal with the kindle voice, and he won't be tied to the computer. If you need me to, I can also convert some books for you and you can just pay me back using paypal.

Hi. It's me who wants the books, but not for the Kindle. I just want to know how bad the voice is, and will it be possible to put them on a portable device other than the Kindle? I don't mind buying the books, but he says the text-to-speech option isn't there. If I'm tied to my computer, then that's the way it is. Thanks.

The beauty of converting kindle books to html is that you are not tied to your computer, or any device. you can put books on your stream, your notetaker, or basically any device you can possibly think of and you can use whatever speech you want. if you are using the kindle for pc application, the books will speak, regardless of their publisher settings, as long as you have an external screenreader installed. I'd still recommend the html route since you have way more flexibility.