Corey Stokes

I stumbled across this one night and very glad I found it.  Hopefully it can help you as well.  Adobe has the capability to read to you!!!!  Don’t believe me, here it is straight from Adobe.  This article can be found at http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/tutorials/acr6araccessibility.html.

Excerpted from “Adobe Acrobat 6 Visual QuickStart Guide” by Jennifer Alspach.

Accessibility features in Adobe® Acrobat® can be valuable alternatives for accessing information in a PDF document. For example, users can hear a PDF document read aloud, or scroll a PDF document automatically. These and other accessibility features help users with motor and vision challenges to use PDF files with relative ease.

Reading out loud The Read Aloud feature converts text to spoken words. You can choose to have one page read, or the whole document, and you can choose the reading order. While a PDF is being read out loud, you can always pause or stop the reading.

To set the Read Aloud options: 1.Choose Edit > Preferences (Windows®), or Acrobat > Preferences (Mac).

2.Choose Reading from the list on the left. This displays the default reading preference settings.

The default reading preferences.

3.Set desired volume level.

4.Choose a voice. On Windows you only have the default voice. On the Macintosh, choose from a variety of voices. Keep in mind that some voices sound better than others. You can set the pitch and words per minute as well, on both Mac and Windows.

5.Choose a reading order from the pop-up menu.

Select a reading order.

•Infer Reading Order is generally the best method for reading a document. This option reads in the order that the document was tagged. If the document isn’t tagged, it will use the most logical reading order.

•Left to Right/Top to Bottom Order will read the PDF strictly from left to right and top to bottom, regardless of how the document was created.

•Use Reading Order in Raw Print Stream reads the words in the order they were recorded in the print stream.

•Check Read form fields to read aloud text fields, check boxes and radio buttons in forms (Acrobat 7).

6.Click OK.

Other Accessibility Options There are a number of other simple things you can do to make your document more accessible to all readers. You’ll find some of these features in Preferences, some in other areas of the program.

Visibility One of the quickest ways to make your PDF more readable for people with vision challenges is to change its viewing options. When you first open a file, change the Default Zoom in the Page Display panel of Preferences.

Set the magnification of your document to something that will be helpful to visually challenged users.

In the Accessibility panel of Preferences, you’ll find other options that increase the visibility of text and graphics on your pages by changing the Document Colors Options. For example, you can choose to replace the page background and text colors.

The Accessibility area lets you set your document colors to be more visible than they might normally be.

Automatic scrolling Using the Automatic Scrolling feature lets you move through a PDF without relying on the mouse.

To scroll automatically: 1.With the document open, choose View > Automatically Scroll. The document will start scrolling slowly down your screen.

You can choose to automatically scroll through documents, using the keyboard to control speed and direction of scrolling.

2.Use the number keys to control the speed of the scrolling, with 9 being fast and 0 being slow.

3.Use the up and down arrow keys to change the direction of scrolling. You can also use the hyphen or minus key to go backward.

4.To go to the previous or next page, use the left or right arrows.

Making Your PDF Accessible You can check how accessible your PDF is. Acrobat will report on the following accessibility features: alternative text for figures, specified languages for text, reliable character encodings, and logical structural tree referencing for the contents of the PDF file.

Check for accessibility: Choose Advanced > Accessibility > Quick Check. A window appears, with a brief report on the accessibility of your document.

This window shows the result of Acrobat’s Accessibility Quick Check.

To make your PDF accessible:

1.Open the PDF you want to make accessible.

2.Choose Advanced > Accessibility > Make Accessible. Your document won’t look any different: The tagged areas are hidden in the background.

Acrobat can automatically make your document more accessible

Reports have been received reports of malicious messages
appearing to originate from NATO. These bogus e-mail’s contain hyperlinks
directing the recipient to “additional information” regarding current
operations in Africa. Once accessed, these links download Malware that
could compromise the victim’s workstation; and by extension, the network.

Ensure you have the proper countermeasues in place to protect your systems and safe guard you from malicious attacks. All PC users are remined to never open unsolicited messages from unknown sources;
especially those containing untrusted links. Recipients who do not routinely work with NATO or otherwise expect to receive such messages should either delete the correspondence or check with your Administrator for assistance.

How to ensure your computer is secure.  This artical is specific to Virginia Tech’s computers however all computers can benefit from these steps.

to see the original Article go to http://security.vt.edu/lockitdown/vtsecuritynew.html

Think your computer is safe? Think again!

Computer hackers are compromising Windows machines all over the world. Virginia Tech is not immune to these hackers or their attacks. In almost all cases, they are exploiting known security holes that you can close. Here are eight steps you can take to protect your computer.

8 Steps to secure a Windows computer: Use a firewall Use strong passwords Install security patches Share files correctly Use antivirus software Minimize network services Analyze your security Backup your files

Hundreds of Windows computers on the Virginia Tech campus running Windows 7, Vista, or XP are compromised every year simply because they have Administrator accounts with no password! Or, the file sharing setup allows hackers to connect over the network and make changes to your computer system. If you put your computer on the network with open accounts or other security holes, it can be compromised within hours/minutes. Unlike corporations with tight firewalls, Virginia Tech’s network is open to the entire Internet. This allows easy access to any network service, but also makes it easy for hackers to scan our network for vulnerable computers.

Hackers usually leave a "back-door" program in your computer which allows them to control your computer and attack other computers on the network. If this happens, you will lose your network connection until you "clean-up" your computer. This may mean removing a virus or completely wiping all data from the disk by reformatting and reinstalling Windows, plus any private software packages you own. This is a great waste of your time and the 4Help consultants can not help you reinstall any operating system. Remember, a malicious hacker can wipe out your important documents and e-mail.

One method used to get a "back-door" is a Music Sharing peer-to-peer program like KaZaa, BearShare, LimeWire or Morpheus. Virginia Tech suggests you not run these programs on your computer. See the file sharing section for more information. Other methods, like email attachments and AIM links, also allow "back-doors", DO NOT OPEN either until you know the content.If you use a computer with a network connection, please take these simple steps described below to help secure it against hackers.