Kurzweil 1000 Version 14 Improves Learning Experience for Blind and Visually Impaired Users

DALLAS, Feb. 3, 2015 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kurzweil Education™, Inc., a division of Cambium Learning® Group, Inc. ABCD, today announced the availability of Kurzweil 1000™ Version 14, the latest version of its award-winning text-to-speech software that makes printed or electronic text readily available to people who are blind or visually impaired.

Kurzweil 1000™ helps visually challenged learners save time and gain independence by combining traditional machine technologies such as scanning, image processing, and text-to-speech with communication and productivity tools that allow users to unlock learning anytime, anywhere. In addition to the educational benefits of the software, users can personalize experiences by choosing from a variety of natural-sounding voices and taking advantage of organizational features such as note taking, bookmarks, content summaries, and an appointment calendar with audible reminders.

"With Kurzweil 1000, people can go to college and earn degrees; they can work and read, and live their lives again," said Dona Orgeron, clinical nurse manager in Albuquerque, NM.

Version 14 enhancements include:

• The option to extract images into PDF files
• Recognition of PNG files
• Optical character recognition upgrades
• A new scanning mode
• An improved proofreading mechanism
• The ability to record voice notes
• Advanced editing capabilities
• Enhanced navigation within documents

"At Kurzweil, we believe that anyone willing to learn can learn when given access to the right tools," said Stephen Baum, vice president of engineering at Kurzweil Education. "We're committed to constantly improving our technology to enable students with low or no vision to bring the written word to life, in a way that helps them understand and retain the information."   

For a complimentary 30-day trial of Kurzweil 1000 Version 14, visit http://www.kurzweiledu.com/trialsignup.php. To upgrade, visit https://www.kurzweiledu.com/store.php.

About Kurzweil Education

Kurzweil Education™ believes that great educational technology solves real problems. Our literacy and learning solutions offer learners a way up and a path forward. Students' varying needs, their challenges, and their potential to achieve drive us to excel. That's why we continue to develop literacy-boosting solutions that directly enhance opportunities to learn and achieve. Using the principles of Universal Design for Learning, our solutions deliver content and tools that enable all learners to read, understand, and demonstrate their learning using technology-based tools and resources. Kurzweil Education is a division of Cambium Learning^® Group, Inc. ABCD, based in Dallas, Texas. For more information, please visit www.kurzweiledu.com.