Local-language digital information in India

Abstract

In this paper, we extend work examining the issues in language support for screen readers for vision-impaired computer users by building and testing a Hindi-language text-to-speech interface for screen reading. The paper first discusses the importance of 'mechanical voice' screen reading for the ICTD community in an environment where many 'natural voice' options are proprietary and expensive. We find that the main criticism against mechanical voice -- the issue of comprehension -- can be overcome by training using familiar metaphors, and that the most persistent problems in audio comprehension are ones that are solvable through technical means. Given the structure of vowel-consonant structure of most Indo-Aryan languages, we argue that mechanical voice audio output holds very significant scope for screen reading for vision impaired populations in India.

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