<rant> I've just about had it with software projects trying to create the perfect windowing environment. Sorry, but I think perfection has already been breached by the Windows 95 GUI. </rant>
What I'm looking for is a species of Linux that lets users interact with the computer without the use of a monitor. And I'm not thinking of servers and render farms. What I have in mind is a Linux that can be operated by the blind or by a person who simply wants to save on his photons bill. Ideally such a setup would involve speech recognition. But since speech recognition is still a bit tricky even on souped-up proprietary systems, a cost-effective solution could be limited to the use of synthetic speech feedback. Instead of seeing the results of doing a "grep" one might hear a robotic voice saying: "grep dash-C happy T-M-P-dot-T-X-T .... zero" What I've found basically are systems (like emacspeak) which, based on their descriptions alone, appear to require the use of special speech synthesiser cards or propriety software. Does anybody know of a system that can use a consumer-grade sound-card plus speaker/headset setup and is DFSG-compatible and downloadable from the Net? The screen-free Linux should be usable from boot-up to shutdown so that a person can email, browse the Web, write a novel, compile emacs or do all the other things a typical computer does (minus the pop-up ads). A bonus would be if the system can use standard end-user programs like mutt or lynx. Any ideas? Sites I have consulted: http://ocularis.sourceforge.net/, http://www.cs.cornell.edu/Info/People/raman/emacspeak/emacspeak.html, http://www.linux-speakup.org/
