From the Journal of Visual Impairment & Blindness, Volume 91, Number 3,
May-June, 1997.  Reproduced with permission from the American Foundation
for the Blind, 11 Penn Plaza, Suite 300, New York, NY 10001.  All Rights
Reserved.


                    Product Evaluation

              A Review of the Artic TransType:
          A Personal Organizer with Synthetic Speech

                     J.D. Leventhal


Personal organizers with synthetic speech are small, battery-powered
machines that allow users to schedule and be reminded of appointments;
jot down quick notes; record names, addresses, and phone numbers; and
perform quick calculations.  They can also serve as external synthesizers
to another computer.  Two organizers, the Keynote companion (manufactured
by PulseData) and the Myna (manufactured by TFI Engineering), were 
reviewed in the January-February 1996 JVIB News Service (pp. 5-9).
The Artic TransType has 2,560 kilobytes of memory.  It uses Artic
Technologies synthetic speech program and synthesizer.  Its applications
include: a to-do list; a diary; appointments; a shopping list; a planner;
a editor with built-in spell checker; timers/stop watch; and a terminal
emulator.


DOCUMENTATION
The TransType's manual is available in print and on disk.  The
accompanying cassette tutorial is detailed and well organized.


PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION
The TransType is ten and three eighths inches by four and on eighth
inches by one and one sixteenth inches and weighs two pounds.  Its case
is black aluminum with gold labels for high contrast.  It has a parallel
port, a serial port, and earphone jack, an a.c. adaptor, a rechargeable
battery pack that is removable, and two flash ROM slots.  Flash ROM cards 
allow the user to store files and upload software updates.


KEYBOARD
The TransType has a 60-key keyboard, with the F,J,1, and 0 keys marked
for quick reference.  Artic Technologies manufactures version with
enhanced keyboards and a version with a Braille keyboards.  As with other
organizers, the TransType's size does not allow for a full keyboard.
Therefore, it is necessary to use various key combinations to get
functions such as page-up, page-down, home, and end.


BASIC FUNCTIONS
The TransType's functions revolve around its word processor.  When the
user selects the diary, the phone book, or the planner from the menu,
the TransType enters the word processor and provides a blank screen for
data entry.  It is possible to store information in whatever order and
format is preferred; the user is not constrained by predetermined forms
or field names.

To create a list of names and phone numbers, the user
selects "Organizer" from the main menu and "Phone Book" from the organizer
menu.  The user can then begin writing on the blank screen or retrieve a
phone number file saved previously.  Files can be printed out or
transferred to another computer.

The stopwatch and count-down timers are two handy, easy-to-use accessories
that are difficult for blind persons to find together in a single device.
They are very useful when timing a presentation, recording a radio show,
or even cooking food.


EASE OF USE
The TransType's programs are straight forward and include extensive on-
line help.  Such help is especially important because the TransType has
all the commands of a full-blown synthetic speech program, as well as
keystrokes for each of its functions.

The "key Learn" function allows the user to become familiar with and
review functions performed by individual function keys, as well as those
that require key combinations.  For example, holding down the Control/Shift
key and pressing the Find key brings the user to the "Birthday List."

From the main menu, the user can type a shortcut key or use the up and
down arrows and then press the enter key to access a particular function.
Beginners are prompted with each function's basic keystrokes, as well as
the options available on each menu.  Advanced users can turn these prompts
off.

Test of the TransType revealed no significant problems or bugs.


CONVLUSION
The TransType provides a powerful, flexible way to store names, addresses,
phone numbers, notes, and other information necessary to function
effectively in the information age.  Its high-quality Artic speech is
easy to adjust without exiting the application being used. 

The TransType is in the same price range as the keynote Companion and the
Myna personal organizer, and it has a similar menu structure.  The main
advantage of the TransType over the other two personal organizers is that
TransType allows users to choose their own formats to enter data.  Unlike
in the other two products, the manufacturer has not created forms that
allow only certain data to be entered.  Users can change forms according
to their needs to add a second address line or a field for a company's
Websites, for example.  This feature makes the TransType the most flexible 
organizer of the three.


MANUFACTURER'S COMMENTS
The manufacturer submitted no comments.


PRODUCT INFORMATION
Product:      Artic TransType.
Manufacturer: Artic Technologies, 55 Park Street, Troy, MI 48083-2753;
              phone: 810-588-7370;  fax: 810-588-2650.
Price:        $1,495.
Warranty:     30-day money-back guarantee; 90-day warranty; extended
              warranty available.

Jay D. Leventhal, senior resource specialist, Technical Evaluation Service,
National Technology Center, American Foundation for the Blind, 11 Penn
Plaza, Suite 300, New York, NY 10001.
	
