Can You Read This? (TIME Select/Help) by Andrea Sachs.

	June 1999

Can You Read This? (TIME Select/Help)
by Andrea Sachs.

Time, May 10, 1999 v153 i18 p94J+(1)
One morning the name of the town on the road map you're reading seems unnecessarily small. Then you notice how microscopic the print on the medicine bottle has become. How the addresses in the phone book have become exasperatingly inscrutable. And how they're just not printing paperback novels very well anymore: the text seems like one big blur.
Welcome to the world of the incredible shrinking word. Fading sight is a common sign of aging, as are a host of more serious vision problems such as macular degeneration, glaucoma and cataracts. Others have been here before, of course. But because baby boomers are arriving in droves, these difficulties are getting an unprecedented amount of attention. Medical science has developed impressive techniques using lasers and corneal implants to correct vision defects. Some people, however, still need bigger type in order to read comfortably--and the publishing industry is coming to their rescue.
Traditionally, large-print books have been a sleepy area of publishing. But, according to the Lighthouse International, 17% of all people age 45 and older--about 13.5 million Americans--report some form of vision impairment. By the year 2010, when boomers will all have reached age 45, that total will increase to 20 million--a number that has not escaped publishing houses. "There's been a huge growth in the number of titles available," says Fred Olsen of Thorndike Press, the world's largest publisher of large-print books. "The number has probably doubled in the past five years."
Until recently those titles, whether classics or current best sellers, have been available mainly in loan libraries. Vernon Ellickson, 83, is a typical large-type reader. A retired farmer with macular degeneration, Ellickson goes to the library in Decorah, Iowa, twice a week to pick out his favorite westerns and adventure books. He never buys them. "It would cost a lot," says Ellickson, who often reads more than a dozen large-print books a week. Publisher Olsen says this is not unusual. "When you're on a fixed income, to pay for a one-time read is inefficient when you can go to the library. A lot of these people are voracious readers."
But several large commercial publishers are determined to change the habits of the large-type-reading public as it grows. This fall, Random House and HarperCollins are launching new divisions to capture the big-print audience. Says Michael Morrison, associate publisher of the HarperCollins adult trade division: "A lot of the reason there has not been an explosion in sales of large-print books in bookstores is that people don't even know they exist. Booksellers have traditionally shelved them in a section in the back of the store." But publishers intend to change that-by persuading booksellers to showcase these books near the front of the store and offer crowd-pleasing discounts.
Drawing these readers out of the library and into the bookstore is also a goal at Random House. Christine McNamara, director of marketing for the large-print division, observes that "nobody has tried this before. No one has gone after the market this way." Random House plans to charge the same price for a large-type book as for its conventional-type counterpart-and use the same covers to minimize the perception that these books are different. Says McNamara: "They'll look just as sexy and glossy as the regular trade edition--just a little bit fatter."
Publishers acknowledge that most large-type readers are older and have older reading tastes. Westerns, which have almost disappeared from bookstores, are still a thriving genre in large type. "Mass market and pulp westerns were popular in the '30s and '40s," says Thorndike's Olsen, whose publishing house offers hundreds of large-type westerns. The life stories of older celebrities are also naturals for this market. This fall Random House plans to publish large-type editions of John Glenn's memoir and a Rosemary Clooney autobiography. With the market expanding, however, publishers are adding blockbuster bestsellers and newsy titles-even Oprah's picks--to their lists.
For those interested in current events, the New York Times has a 40-page weekly digest of stories published in its regular daily paper. Similarly, Reader's Digest has a monthly large-size edition. "Circulation is going up," says Lesta Cordil, director of public relations for Reader's Digest. "It's not only aging baby boomers; we find that people who do a lot of computer use like the larger type. It's not just for older people anymore."
Publishers are careful to cater to baby-boomer vanity. Nowhere is there a suggestion that large-print books are connected with getting older. Instead, publishers emphasize that people are reading large-print publications on treadmills, or relaxing with them after a long day on the computer, or using them to read in bed without their glasses. But with the graying of the baby boomers, large-print books are likely to become a mainstream, front-of-the-store--and no longer secret--habit.
WHEN BIG LETTERS AREN'T ENOUGH
Technological advances are creating new independence for the visually impaired. These prescription and nonprescription devices, all available through Lighthouse International, help bring the written word into focus.
1. MAGNIFIER DOMES Acrylic magnifiers and other handheld tools provide a simple, inexpensive solution to mild vision problems. These paperweight-size sight aides draw in additional light to provide a clearer, sharper text image, enlarged up to four times. $12.95 for a 1 1/2-in. dome; $29.95 for a 3-in. dome.
2. STANDARD CLOSED-CIRCUIT TELEVISION MAGNIFIER (CCTV) Printed material, photographs and other detailed objects placed on a rolling platform beneath the CCTV's camera are magnified as much as 60 times. These stationary models are a basic optical aid for the visually impaired. Prices range from $1,295 for a 9-in. black-and-white monitor to $3,000 for a 25-in. color monitor.
3. PORTABLE CCTV A variety of portable models is available. Each consists of a small rolling or sliding camera that is passed over the text, magnifying and displaying it on either a CCTV monitor, a television set or a computer screen. $695 for a handheld camera only; $2,750 for a compact model with a built-in 6-in. color monitor.
4. OPTICAL CHARACTER-RECOGNITION SYSTEM (OCR) These "personal reading machines" scan in typewritten text and "read" it back aloud, using a synthetic voice. When connected to a computer, scanned material can be converted to large print, Braille and other file types. Stand-alone OCR systems start at $3,160. Those requiring a PC begin at $1,350.
5. ACCESSIBILITY OPTION At no additional cost, most computer operating systems offer options to enlarge font and icon size, reverse screen contrast, provide audio feedback and activate "sticky keys" to aid in data entry. In Windows 95 and 98 look for the Accessibility Option and in Macintosh systems for CloseView and Easy Access.
6. SOFTWARE PROGRAMS Recent software developments are making many word-processing, office-use and Web-related programs accessible to the visually impaired. These programs enlarge text and icons, or use keyboard commands instead of a mouse to target Braille and synthetic-speech users. PC users can download several of these specialized programs free of charge at www.ibm.com/sns.
7. DOWN THE ROAD New technology is constantly upgraded, and several manufacturers are planning to sell "virtual-reality" headsets that will allow users to see the enhanced image directly in front of their eyes without a monitor.

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