Second Sight

Second Sight is a web-based study tool intended for Christian Scientists working through blindness and other visual challenges. It provides access to the Christian Science texts in a format specifically designed for screen readers and similar text-to-speech software. It can also accommodate people who require large text, variable fonts, and high or low-contrast color schemes. The books included are: the King James version of the Bible, Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, by Mary Baker Eddy, Prose Works and Other Writings by Mary Baker Eddy, the Manual of The Mother Church, and the Christian Science Hymnal (texts only).

Second Sight offers many features, including:

  • True text-only support for screen reading software
  • Customizable colors schemes, font faces, sizes, and spacing for other assistive software
  • Alternative placement options for page, line, and verse numbers
  • Alternative placement options for Marginal headings in Science and Health
  • Option to translate Roman numerals into their Arabic equivalents
  • Complete tables of contents, with additional lists of items not found in the printed books
    (i.e., an alphabetical list of articles in Miscellaneous Writings, list of questions in Recapitulation, etc.)
  • A "place finder" to jump to a specific citation
  • Full-text search engine
  • User-definable bookmarks (the web site also keeps track of your current position in each book)

How to Start

To start using Second Sight you first need to get a user account so that you can customize your working environment and keep track of your own bookmarks and settings. I'll have a sign-up form posted shortly, but in the meantime feel free to contact me.

The program is web-based so you need a web browser to use it. Both Internet Explorer and Firefox have been tested with the site and work well. But just about any modern browser should work.

You will also need to bring your own accessibility software, such as Freedom Scientific's JAWS screen reading software or Window-Eyes from GWMicro. Actually, there are many accessibility solutions out there, I just don't have a full list here.

If you would like to know more about how Second Sight works, look at the More Information & Samples page. And again, to sign up, just contact me.

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