[bksvol-discuss] Which software is best for proofreading?
- From: "Deborah Armstrong" <debee@xxxxxxxx>
- To: <bksvol-discuss@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sat, 7 Feb 2009 18:13:32 -0800
I haven't read this list since 2003, but I have kept up with understanding
the new volunteer responsibilities. In the past, I simply gave bookshare a
DVD full of tiff files, but now I'm trying to proofread some of the other
people's scans. Also since bookshare has standardized on RTF files, I assume
they are no longer interested in images.
I'm proofreading a book now and am curious what software other screen reader
users find most efficient for fixing errors.
I work for a college and have access to plenty of choices. I love working
in K1000, but am a bit worried about where paragraph breaks are located and
if they're accurate. When I read myself, I don't care about paragraphs, and
now I'm trying to be more thorough.
In Microsoft Word, I can tell exactly where its paragraph marks are, but I'm
concerned it might be adding unwanted page breaks. Also in Word, I have to
spell-check chronologically; the ranked spelling in K1000 is more efficient.
K1000 announces pages by number when you move there, with word it takes more
keystrokes to locate the number Word thinks the page is.
In both Word and K1000, it takes three keystrokes to delete a line; I kind
of wish I had an editor that would do this with a single stroke. Truth is, I
do a lot of editing in emacs, but that won't work for RTF files.
I'm leaning towards Word, but I don't get the ranked spelling there. But in
K1000, can I trust the RTF files it saves? Will they be as good as an RTF
saved from Word? And there is still the paragraph concern in K1000.
I use JAWS together with a Braille display. I use speech to read, and
Braille to check anything that does not sound right. In a pinch, I can use
an Optacon to check the book, if I have access to it, as well.
I actually have never found the keystrokes for selecting text to be
particularly quick or efficient in Windows. Oh for the DOS days were editors
were more keyboard friendly!
Maybe some of you use a program that's even more effective than either Word
or K1000. What's your favorite?
I scan and spot validate books for a living, so I know how to do it; just
not how bookshare wants it these days. Also, in my job, I typically keep the
files in Kurzweil or convert the files to text. Overall just shipping
bookshare a DVD full of images was easiest, but I decided I should be less
lazy.
--Debee
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