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Document Conversion

Alternative print formats (audiotape, Braille, electronic, and large print) allow individuals with vision impairments and other disabilities to have access to standard print materials Disability Services/Student Support Services provides document conversion services, which are described below, free of charge to the university community.

1. RFB&D (Audio CD) - Many textbooks, novels, and periodicals are available on audiotape and can be obtained from public libraries, the Library of Congress, and Recordings for the Blind and Dyslexic. If determined appropriate by Disability Services, Student Support Services will investigate these resources for students requesting taped materials. Documents that are not available on audiotape may be submitted to Student Support Services for recording. Audiotape recording takes a significant amount of time, depending on the size of the print document. Requests should be made at least two weeks in advance of when the material is needed.
2. Braille - Original documents may be submitted to Disability Services preferably two weeks in advance. Documents in electronic format can be transcribed quickly; print materials require more time because they must be scanned or entered by hand.
3. Electronic - Many people have access to computers with synthesized voice or Braille output devices and may request an electronic version of material. Anyone can provide an electronic version of a document simply by copying the document onto a computer disk for the person making the request. Documents can also be made available by placing them on Internet (in an accessible format) thereby benefiting all students who have access to a computer network.
4. Large Print - Anyone with access to a computer or copy machine can create large print documents by following one of the procedures below (ask the person making the request how much enlargement is needed).

With a computer:
If a document has been created using a standard word processing program (either IBM or Macintosh), it can easily be enlarged before printing. Geneva or Helvetica fonts are the clearest. An eighteen-point type is generally the best. When the type is larger than eighteen points, fewer words appear on each page, making it difficult for a person to make sense of the document. Bold characters also make the print clearer. The following example illustrates the difference between standard and large bold print.

Standard print

Reasonable accommodation leads to equal access.

Large print (Times, 18 point, bold)

Reasonable accommodation leads to equal access.

With a copy machine:
Documents can also be enlarged by duplicating them on a copy machine that can print on eleven-by-seventeen inch paper. This is a useful procedure for course packets or articles in periodicals or books. The quality of the enlarged version will depend on the clarity and condition of the original document.