Not all deaf people can read well.

That might sound counter-intuitive to anyone familiar with closed-captioning on television screens. But many people who were born deaf see the printed word as a foreign language.

That’s why a New York software company developed iSigner a sign language translation tool that can be plugged into any website. Fort Lauderdale recently became the first city to incorporate the software into its website, and while the tool is being met with both praise and criticism within South Florida’s deaf community, its developer says it’s the most advanced automated sign language translator possible right now.

The city decided to beta test the iSigner software at the request of one of its owners, Fort Lauderdale City Manager Lee Feldman said last week. More.

See: Sun Sentinel

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