Adding Captions to Videos

Well, I always learn a lot when I go to technology workshops. Yesterday, I went to CUELA (Computer Using Educators Los Angeles). I attended some great workshops about Google Earth and Sketchup; two free applications you can download at Google's website. In the afternoon, I attended a workshop about using iPods in the classroom. I got some wonderful resources, but one of the other benefits of attending was talking with some really tech-savvy computer users. One of the workshop organizers shared a great website to help add captions or translations onto your videos (thank you, Matthew!). I went to check it out, and within about 30 minutes, I'd finished captioning my first video. This video segment was filmed in 2004, and showed one of my students explaining how she reads and organizes her braille books. This might be useful for teachers to show to classroom teachers to help them understand the space requirement for those braille books. Check out the video, then go to http://dotsub.com to see how you can caption or translate videos yourself!

Tutorial on Creating a Keyboard Shortcut to Applications

Click on the link below to go to a step-by-step tutorial on how to create a desktop keyboard shortcut. Note that this is a very visual pdf file.
Creating a Keyboard Shortcut to JAWS

Here are the text directions:

This is the procedure for how to add a desktop keyboard shortcut for JAWS.

1. Select Programs

(1) Press Start Menu and then (2) select All Programs (or Programs, depending on your version of Windows).

2. Select JAWS

Press 'j' for JAWS (if you have more than one J program, keep pressing 'j' until JAWS is highlighted).

3. Select the JAWS Icon

Press Enter and then press the down arrow until JAWS is highlighted.

4. Right-click [press Applications key] on Properties

Press the Applications Key (key on keyboard that looks like a lined piece of paper with an arrow pointing to the paper). Press the up or down arrow to move to Properties; press Enter.

5. Press the Keys to Create the Shortcut

Press the Tab key to move to "Shortcut key" field; press the Control key and the letter J on your keyboard (the Alt will be added by the computer).

6. Apply the Shortcut

(1) Tab to Apply and press Enter to apply your change; (2) Tab to OK and press Enter.

7. Create a Desktop Shortcut

Repeat Steps 1-3; press Applications key and down-arrow to Send To; press Enter and down-arrow to Desktop (create shortcut); press Enter. Press Esc until you're back at your Desktop.

8. Start JAWS Using Keyboard Shortcut

You should now see a JAWS icon on the desktop. If you press and hold the Ctrl and Alt keys, and press 'j', JAWS should start up (be patient, it may take a moment or two).
You can create desktop keyboard shortcuts for other programs (Microsoft Word, Internet Explorer, etc.), following the same procedure. Good luck!