SCRIBE (Speech Computerised Recognition Into Bettering Employability) is a two year project involving the University of Ulster and Disability Action, funded by PROTEUS under the European Union Special Support Programme for Peace and Reconciliation.

The aim of the SCRIBE Project is to provide training, advice, and support in the use of voice technology for computer users with disabilities in order to enhance their access to education and to employment. This is achieved by delivering short courses of up to two days duration in the use of relevant software. The training is provided free of charge.

Voice technology has advanced considerably in the past decade. It is now possible to obtain fairly cheap software that supports the use of voice for the production of documents and the control of the computer and other appliances

Voice technology is a form of assistive technology that has potential benefits for people with disabilities. By using voice technology, various types of disabled people will have greater access to education and to employment. Voice dictation, for example, will be particularly useful for those people with dyslexia or physical disabilities, as they will be able to produce documents on a computer more easily and accurately, as well as being able to control applications such as spreadsheets by voice.

However, as with most other complex software, using voice technology requires some training in order to use the product effectively. The user has to train the software to recognise their voice correctly, as well as learning how to control applications by voice and how to dictate text using either discrete or continuous speech. Other potential difficulties that face users new to voice technology include microphone adjustment and positioning, as well as the choice of the most appropriate product.

The aim of this project is to provide training, advice, and support in the use of voice technology for computer users who have a range of disabilities. In particular, the project will focus in the first instance on hands-free use of computers and on high quality document creation, providing support for trainees who have physical disabilities and for trainees who have dyslexia. The training programmes will be based initially on existing products that are readily available at reasonable prices. However, given that individual trainees may have particular needs which may be identified during training, a further aim of the project will be to provide customised solutions, where possible, to meet these needs.