[MV] New to list, Legally blind

[Wyldceltic1]

I was three month preemie and parked in an incubator of pure oxygen and 
lights. My retina apparently took umbrage at this and went on strike.

Consequently, I've been very visually impaired from 'day one' so to 
speak. I'm told by my retinologist that what ppl see normally at 20 
feet I would see the same thing at 2 feet.

I have been trying to touch type and am somewhat getting it, but I 
really would be kinder to my wrists and so on if I could just dictate 
and my Mac would type for me. I hear disparaging things about Voice to 
Texy software, but that the mic and headset type do make a difference. 
I need to know what I should be looking at in these:

Very good input device and the actual software. I understand ViaVoice 
is no longer being worked on, but that 'iListen' is.

I'm a multiple Mac owner: I have at the house here, iMac G5 20" 1 GB 
RAM 1.8 GHz, 160 GB HD and of course BT and AP.

My fella's using the G3 iBook, 7-- MHz processor 14.1", 30 GB HD and 
640 MB RAM. He bought that for me a couple of years ago.

Then he got himself a G4 iBook, Just before they came out with the 
Superdrive (GRRRR) and this has a 1 GHz processor, 60 GB HD and 256 MB 
RAM. I want to beef up the RAM in this as I stole -err, "Borrowed" this 
iBook for GarageBand and such....

I have Airport in all computers here, my fella and our roommate use PCs 
for gaming and so on, but my guy uses the iBook for internet and email. 
I started using computers in 2000 on a windows box, (Win '98) and tried 
the 'Now You're Talking" software, since bought out by Dragon. Windows, 
being windows, gave me errors, low system and low RAM etc etc 
etc....(arrggh!) After an unfriendly trojan got my PC, I bought a Mac 
in August 2001 and will not go back :-)

All Macs are on Panther 10.3.8.

Now, I need to look at the Voice software because in Irony, I have had 
Insulin-dependent diabetes for over 20 years. I say "Irony" because the 
threat to my remaining sight is NOT due to this diabetes... (There are 
no complications from this at all, thanks to modern testing and also an 
insulin pump) but is in fact, further degeneration of the retinal 
attachment from my premature birth.

We are talking a laser treatment possibly in June and this has risks of 
my central field of vision being lost now. I need to be active on my 
computer and make my music and so on, so this software option is 
EXTREMELY important to me. I like the fact they are still working on 
MacSpeech in the form of iListen and want to help out too. If they need 
a tester....<G> I am indeed willing to devote time to test, train and 
report on this.

Thanks for any advise, reviews and so on to get me started.

Jenny Sutherland
<wyldceltic1 at mac.com>