1.   Asked how she did her job being blind, Ms. Griffith said she used a Braille screen reader, which translated what appeared on her screen into Braille.

2.   At least seven companies make the screen readers.

3.   Blind computer users had to stick with outdated operating systems like MS-DOS until Macintosh- and Windows-compatible screen readers came along.

4.   But blind users encounter problems when Web sites fail to design pages compatible with screen readers.

5.   But Delphi displays web pages in a text-only form that screen readers can handle easily.

6.   But with special training and improved screen readers, users like Rosmaita have been able to use the Web more effectively.

7.   Early users relied on text-only software, so screen readers could be used.

8.   For visually impaired Web users like DeSantis, the vertical columns on the Web present the biggest problem because screen readers pick up the information horizontally.

9.   Many blind people use screen readers to surf the Web, but the graphics elements are hard for such programs to digest.

10.   Other screen readers are capable of reading Web-page text.