All district central libraries in the State will have an exclusive section for visually challenged visitors as in Tiruchi.
The District Central Library in Tiruchi, a member of book-share organistion, has created 3,500 audio books with help of volunteers. A good number of visually challenged youth visit the audio section of the library on a daily basis to further their careers. At a meeting of such volunteers hosted by the DCL recently, a discussion took place on the way forward for empowering visually challenged readers.
The meeting was conducted in the wake of the State government’s announcement that a section for visually impaired would be opened in all district central libraries. Visually impaired persons will be trained to use computers and other devices to access to talking books and audio books, District Library Officer A.P. Sivakumar said.
Last year, the library conducted a training programme on ‘Access and Use of Digital Talking Book for Visually Impaired’ teaming up with Rotary Club of Tiruchi Elite.
The participants were apprised of the latest technologies and tools such as Digital Accessible Information System (DAISY), a technical standard for digital audio books, periodicals and computerised text; Bookshare, an online library for people with print disabilities; and Plextalk, a DAISY player that would help visually impaired persons acquire necessary knowledge and skills.
DAISY has been designed to be a complete audio substitute for print material and for use by people with print disabilities, including blindness, impaired vision, and dyslexia.
