Vinux
Encyclopedia
Vinux is a Linux distribution
which has been specially designed for blind
and partially sighted
users. Specifically it is a remastered version of the popular Ubuntu
distribution and provides users with two screen-readers, two full-screen magnifiers, global font-size and colour changing facilities. The system also supports USB Braille displays
. Vinux was originally developed in 2008 by Tony Sales, a lecturer at the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford
, United Kingdom
. It was first listed on DistroWatch
on 1 June 2010.
(a screen reader
and magnifier), Speakup (a console
screen reader), Compiz
(a magnifier based on 3d technology), and support for Braille displays. Braille displays operate automatically when connected and support grade 1 and 2 Braille
. Vinux can run from a live cd
without making any changes to a current operating system. It can be installed to a usb or hard drive alongside a current operating system or as a complete replacement.
Linux distribution
A Linux distribution is a member of the family of Unix-like operating systems built on top of the Linux kernel. Such distributions are operating systems including a large collection of software applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, media players, and database applications...
which has been specially designed for blind
Blindness
Blindness is the condition of lacking visual perception due to physiological or neurological factors.Various scales have been developed to describe the extent of vision loss and define blindness...
and partially sighted
Visual impairment
Visual impairment is vision loss to such a degree as to qualify as an additional support need through a significant limitation of visual capability resulting from either disease, trauma, or congenital or degenerative conditions that cannot be corrected by conventional means, such as refractive...
users. Specifically it is a remastered version of the popular Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
distribution and provides users with two screen-readers, two full-screen magnifiers, global font-size and colour changing facilities. The system also supports USB Braille displays
Refreshable Braille display
A refreshable Braille display or Braille terminal is an electro-mechanical device for displaying Braille characters, usually by means of raising dots through holes in a flat surface. Blind computer users, who cannot use a normal computer monitor, use it to read text output...
. Vinux was originally developed in 2008 by Tony Sales, a lecturer at the Royal National College for the Blind in Hereford
Hereford
Hereford is a cathedral city, civil parish and county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, southwest of Worcester, and northwest of Gloucester...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. It was first listed on DistroWatch
DistroWatch
DistroWatch is a website which provides news, popularity rankings, and other general information about various Linux distributions as well as other free software/open source Unix-like operating systems such as OpenSolaris, MINIX and BSD. It now contains information on several hundred distributions...
on 1 June 2010.
Features
Vinux allows blind and visually impaired computer users to install a version of Ubuntu independently. It includes OrcaOrca (assistive technology)
Orca is a free and open source, flexible, extensible assistive technology for people with visual impairments. Using various combinations of speech synthesis, braille, and magnification, Orca helps provide access to applications and toolkits that support the AT-SPI .The development of Orca has been...
(a screen reader
Screen reader
A screen reader is a software application that attempts to identify and interpret what is being displayed on the screen . This interpretation is then re-presented to the user with text-to-speech, sound icons, or a Braille output device...
and magnifier), Speakup (a console
Command-line interface
A command-line interface is a mechanism for interacting with a computer operating system or software by typing commands to perform specific tasks...
screen reader), Compiz
Compiz
Compiz is one of the first compositing window managers for the X Window System that uses 3D graphics hardware to create fast compositing desktop effects for window management. The effects, such as a minimization effect and a cube workspace are implemented as loadable plugins...
(a magnifier based on 3d technology), and support for Braille displays. Braille displays operate automatically when connected and support grade 1 and 2 Braille
Braille
The Braille system is a method that is widely used by blind people to read and write, and was the first digital form of writing.Braille was devised in 1825 by Louis Braille, a blind Frenchman. Each Braille character, or cell, is made up of six dot positions, arranged in a rectangle containing two...
. Vinux can run from a live cd
Live CD
A live CD, live DVD, or live disc is a CD or DVD containing a bootable computer operating system. Live CDs are unique in that they have the ability to run a complete, modern operating system on a computer lacking mutable secondary storage, such as a hard disk drive...
without making any changes to a current operating system. It can be installed to a usb or hard drive alongside a current operating system or as a complete replacement.