CapturaTalk

Last updated

CapturaTalk was an assistive technology software developed by Mobispeech, a joint venture by Iansyst Ltd and Raspberry Software Ltd. When installed on a mobile phone or tablet device, CapturaTalk allowed the user to take a picture of a text heavy image to have it converted to speech and read aloud. [1] The Mobispeech software was primarily designed to aid people who either required literacy support [2] for disabilities such as dyslexia [3] or for students learning English.

Apart from capturing pictures containing text that a user required converted to speech, CapturaTalk also incorporated the Oxford English Dictionary and was able to read out documents, text messages, contacts, internet pages, PDF files and e-mails received or opened on the phone or tablet.

CapturaTalk won the Handheld Learning Award for Innovation in the Special Needs & Inclusion Category at the Handheld Learning Conference 2009 [4] [5] and was also featured by the BBC in 2009. [6] [7]

The software was compatible with devices operating on Windows Mobile Professional (touchscreen, 2 megapixel camera, 65 MB storage) and Windows Mobile 5.0 or higher.

CapturaTalk version 3 was released in March 2010, following its preview at the BETT show in January 2010. A free upgrade was available for users who purchased version 2.

While CapturaTalk for Windows has since been halted, an Android version was released in January 2012 [8]

Related Research Articles

The graphical user interface, or GUI, is a form of user interface that allows users to interact with electronic devices through graphical icons and audio indicators such as primary notation, instead of text-based UIs, typed command labels or text navigation. GUIs were introduced in reaction to the perceived steep learning curve of command-line interfaces (CLIs), which require commands to be typed on a computer keyboard.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pocket PC</span> Obsolete type of computer, similar to smartphones

A Pocket PC is a class of personal digital assistant (PDA) that runs the Windows Mobile or Windows Embedded Compact operating system that has some of the abilities of modern desktop PCs. The name was introduced by Microsoft in 2000 as a rebranding of the Palm-size PC category. Some of these devices also had integrated phone and data capabilities, which were called Pocket PC Phone Edition. Windows "Smartphone" is another Windows CE based platform for non-touch flip phones or dumber phones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Smartphone</span> Handheld mobile device

A smartphone is a portable computer device that combines mobile telephone functions and personal computing functions into one unit. They are distinguished from older-design feature phones by their more advanced hardware capabilities and extensive mobile operating systems, which facilitate wider software, access to the internet, and multimedia functionality, alongside core phone functions such as voice calls and text messaging. Smartphones typically contain a number of metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) integrated circuit (IC) chips, include various sensors that can be leveraged by pre-installed and third-party software, and support wireless communication protocols. More recently, smartphone manufacturers have begun to integrate satellite messaging connectivity and satellite emergency services into devices for use in remote regions where there is no reliable cellular network.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windows Mobile</span> Discontinued family of mobile operating systems by Microsoft

Windows Mobile was a family of mobile operating systems developed by Microsoft for smartphones and personal digital assistants.

A voice-user interface (VUI) enables spoken human interaction with computers, using speech recognition to understand spoken commands and answer questions, and typically text to speech to play a reply. A voice command device is a device controlled with a voice user interface.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tablet computer</span> Mobile computer with integrated display, circuitry and battery

A tablet computer, commonly shortened to tablet, is a mobile device, typically with a mobile operating system and touchscreen display processing circuitry, and a rechargeable battery in a single, thin and flat package. Tablets, being computers, have similar capabilities, but lack some input/output (I/O) abilities that others have. Modern tablets largely resemble modern smartphones, the only differences being that tablets are relatively larger than smartphones, with screens 7 inches (18 cm) or larger, measured diagonally, and may not support access to a cellular network. Unlike laptops, tablets usually run mobile operating systems, alongside smartphones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BumpTop</span> Desktop application

BumpTop was a 3D desktop environment that simulates the normal behavior and physical properties of a real-world desk and enhances it with automatic tools to organize its contents. It is aimed at stylus interaction, making it more suitable for tablet computers and handheld PCs. It was created at the University of Toronto as Anand Agarawala's master's thesis. Agarawala also gave a presentation at the TED conference about his idea. The 1.0 version was released on April 8, 2009, along with a fully featured pro version as a paid upgrade. On April 30, 2010 the author announced that BumpTop was being discontinued and that they were taking the software "in an exciting new direction." Two days later, it was announced that the company had been acquired by Google. On January 5, 2011, Google released a sneak preview video of Android 3.0 Honeycomb showing a 3D desktop with features purportedly taken from BumpTop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Opera Mobile</span> Freeware web browser for mobile devices

Opera Mobile is a mobile web browser for smartphones, tablets and PDAs developed by Opera.

A mobile operating system is an operating system for smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, smartglasses, or other non-laptop personal mobile computing devices. While computers such as typical/mobile laptops are "mobile", the operating systems used on them are generally not considered mobile ones, as they were originally designed for desktop computers that historically did not have or need specific mobile features. This line distinguishing mobile and other forms has become blurred in recent years, due to the fact that newer devices have become smaller and more mobile unlike hardware of the past. Key notabilities blurring this line are the introduction of tablet computers and light-weight laptops and the hybridization of the two in 2-in-1 PCs.

Nokia Internet Tablets is the name given to a range of Nokia mobile Internet appliances products. These tablets fall in the range between a personal digital assistant (PDA) and an Ultra-Mobile PC (UMPC), and slightly below Intel's Mobile Internet device (MID).

Digital Audio Control Protocol (DACP) is a protocol used by the iTunes and other audio player and server applications on Mac, Windows and Linux computers, enabling remote control by mobile devices such as iPhone and Android phones and tablet computers. By connecting the personal computer to loudspeakers the mobile device is used as a two-way remote control, allowing selection and control of music playback within a traditional listening environment such as a home or apartment.

Mobile translation is any electronic device or software application that provides audio translation. The concept includes any handheld electronic device that is specifically designed for audio translation. It also includes any machine translation service or software application for hand-held devices, including mobile telephones, Pocket PCs, and PDAs. Mobile translation provides hand-held device users with the advantage of instantaneous and non-mediated translation from one human language to another, usually against a service fee that is, nevertheless, significantly smaller than a human translator charges.

Swype was a virtual keyboard for touchscreen smartphones and tablets originally developed by Swype Inc., founded in 2002, where the user enters words by sliding a finger or stylus from the first letter of a word to its last letter, lifting only between words. It uses error-correction algorithms and a language model to guess the intended word. It also includes a predictive text system, handwriting and speech recognition support. Swype was first commercially available on the Samsung Omnia II running Windows Mobile, and was originally pre-loaded on specific devices.

Founded in 2008, Voxofon develops mobile apps and communication services that utilize over-the-top (OTT) voice and messaging technologies for smartphones, tablets, and web applications. Voxofon enables free app-to-app domestic and international calls and texts, as well as provides the option for users to make international calls and texts to friends and family that use feature phones or landlines. The Voxofon app is a cross-platform application that is supported on iPhone, iPod Touch, iPad, Android, Blackberry, Windows Phone, and through any web browser.

A mobile application or app is a computer program or software application designed to run on a mobile device such as a phone, tablet, or watch. Mobile applications often stand in contrast to desktop applications which are designed to run on desktop computers, and web applications which run in mobile web browsers rather than directly on the mobile device.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft SwiftKey</span> Virtual keyboard app

Microsoft SwiftKey is a virtual keyboard app originally developed by TouchType for Android and iOS devices. It was first released for Android in July 2010, followed by an iOS release in September 2014 following Apple's implementation of third-party keyboard support.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">ChatON</span> Mobile communication service

ChatON was a global mobile communication service provided by Samsung Electronics from September 2011 to March 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Android Donut</span> Fourth version of the Android operating system

Android 1.6 Donut is the fourth version of the open source Android mobile operating system developed by Google. Among the more prominent features introduced with this update were added support for CDMA smartphones, additional screen sizes, a battery usage indicator, and a text-to-speech engine.

References

  1. JISC RSC Scotland newsletter features CapturaTalk Archived March 1, 2012, at the Wayback Machine
  2. Lexdis Ideas For e-learning features CapturaTalk Archived November 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  3. Merlinjohnonline article on CapturaTalk
  4. Handheld Learning Conference 2009 Award Winners Archived October 26, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  5. JISC Regional Support Centres Scotland report on CapturaTalk win [ permanent dead link ]
  6. BBC Look East reports on CapturaTalk
  7. BBC on-line article about CapturaTalk
  8. "iansyst Releases New Android App for Literacy Support | Dyslexia Help at the University of Michigan". 2019-04-08. Archived from the original on 2019-04-08. Retrieved 2022-08-15.