Home Page Reader 3.0

Home Page Reader for Windows is a browser for blind and visually impaired users that reads aloud the information on Web pages. It also makes it easy to navigate the Internet, and has many other features, including integrated E-Mail.

Home Page Reader now supports nine languages including U.S. English, Brazilian, Portuguese, Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), French, Italian, German, Spanish, and Japanese. The browser will automatically switch languages as it encounters them on the page; i.e., pages presented in Spanish are read in Spanish, etc. Home Page Reader uses IBM's ViaVoice OutLoud text-to-speech technology to speak the information clearly. It even recognizes HTML tags and is able to translate text, tables, graphic descriptions, text in column format and data fields, giving blind people the same access enjoyed by sighted users.

Home Page Reader uses IBM's exclusive fast-forward skim reading feature so that visually impaired people may obtain information from the Web as quickly as the sighted.

Additional features of the latest release include support for JavaScript, Graphics/Text read-along highlighting, and integrated search functions.

Home Page Reader bears a suggested price of $149; The English variant of version 3 is expected in December of 2000 with other languages becoming available in March. Free upgrades are available for users who currently have versions 2 or 2.5.