Archive
Jun 3rd , 2011
Ginger’s Online Grammar Book is finally here!
The very first topic out of the Online Ginger Grammar Book is out We’re super excited as we’ve been waiting for this for a long time now – our very own, cool and updated online grammar book. The thing is, … Continue reading
Posted in Archive, English learning, Grammar | Tagged online grammar book
May 11th , 2011
Let your visitors correct text directly on your site
Out now: Ginger’s shiny and new correction widget! Yes, we’ve had our little online Ginger widget up and running on our website for a while now but we just gave it a boost and a face lift. Our brilliant art … Continue reading
Posted in Archive, Grammar, Spelling | Tagged online tool
Apr 26th , 2011
Do you do mistakes?
Looking at loads of corrections that went through Ginger, we found that people often confuse between do and make. But why is that? Well, they are both verbs, their meanings are similar but there are differences. To make things worse, … Continue reading
Posted in Archive
Oct 17th , 2010
October is dyslexia awareness month
Did you know that about 15% of the population suffers from dyslexia? Do you know what percentage of US entrepreneurs have dyslexia? 35%! The simple tasks we all learn at an early age of reading and writing do not come naturally to people with dyslexia. They end up trying to do things differently and find creative solutions to problems. These are some of the well known innovators and business leaders who have dyslexia:
• Sir Richard Branson
• Ted Turner
• Walt Disney
• Erin Brockovich
• Albert Einstein
• Thomas Edison
• Tommy Hilfiger
• Winston Churchill
• Henry Ford
• Agatha Christie
During the month of October there are conferences all around the US promoting, awareness, research, and early identification of dyslexia. Ginger Software will be participating in the following conferences and would love to meet with you there:
IL IDA
October 14-15, 2010, Drury Lane Conference Center, Oakbrook Terrace, IL
NJ IDA
October 22, 2010, Hilton’s Somerset Double Tree Hotel, Somerset, NJ
IDA
October 27-30, 2010, The Phoenix Convention Center, Phoenix, AZ
MA IDA
October 30, 2010, Sheraton Framingham Hotel and Conference Center, Framingham, MA
If you would like to join the Ginger Software team and help us raise money to support IDA's important work, helping people with dyslexia all over the world please go to: http://www.firstgiving.com/gingersoftware
See you in October,
Miki Feldman-Simon
VP US Operations, Ginger Software Inc
Posted in Archive
Sep 12th , 2010
Ginger Software partners with IDA
Ginger Software has partnered with the International Dyslexia Association, IDA. IDA will be holding their annual conference in Phoenix Arizona this October. Everyone registering to the conference can receive a FREE copy of Ginger Software. To find out more information about the conference please visit: http://www.interdys.org/AnnualConference.htm
Ginger’s revolutionary technology was developed specifically to correct the kinds of spelling mistakes commonly made by people with dyslexia. Other spell checkers are unable to correct the creative spelling errors that people with dyslexia make. Ginger provides a life changing experience to people with dyslexia, enabling them, for the first time to work efficiently and independently.
The IDA conference has been a great event for us to meet face to face with the people that we have impacted their life. Experiencing people’s reactions to our software has been a most gratifying feeling. I have watched people’s mouths drop as they are amazed by Ginger’s capabilities. I have been hugged numerous times by excited people. Sharing this excitement with our customers has made all the hard work worthwhile.
This year we decided to partner with IDA and provide each person attending the conference in Phoenix a free one year subscription to Ginger. The IDA has provided a valuable resource to people with dyslexia as well as to research in the field and we are proud to be taking part in promoting this cause.
Ginger Software will also be sponsoring the 2nd Annual Dyslexia Dash. We would like to invite you to join us all, walk, jog, or run through beautiful downtown Phoenix, Arizona on Saturday, October 30, 2010 @ 7:00 a.m. To learn some more about the Dash: http://www.firstgiving.com/dyslexiadash
To join the Ginger Software team and help us raise money to support IDA's important work, helping people with dyslexia all over the world please go to: http://www.firstgiving.com/gingersoftware
To read some more about how Ginger Software helps people with dyslexia click here.
I look forward to meeting you face to face at the conference. I hope that many of you will join the Ginger Software Dash team as we walk/run and jog the 5K and help IDA raise much needed funds to support their work and the lives of people with dyslexia.
See you in October,
Miki Feldman-Simon
VP US Operations, Ginger Software Inc.
Posted in Archive
May 12th , 2010
Making Ginger’s Frequent Error Reports Work for You!
In December we announced how Ginger Software Now Can Provide You with Statistics & Reports in a dedicated blog post about this handy new feature. Now, we would like to give you a few pointers on how to utilize Ginger’s reports to your advantage!
To begin understanding the power of Ginger’s reports, one first must understand that Ginger allows you to sort a report by time frame. Meaning, as a parent or educator you are able to look at a child or group’s report for yesterday, last week, last month or the last three months. This is ideal for tracking a student or child's progress who may be on a RTI (Response To Intervention) or an IEP (Individualized Education Program). Simply clicking the ‘Save’ button shown below enables Ginger users to export the report they are viewing into MS-Excel for future reference. Being able to track a student week by week allows you to witness improvement and progress in their writing over time.
Another very simple way to use Ginger’s Frequent Error Reports is to track the correct word column. Commonly, while working with an individual who has dyslexia, they often have a very expansive verbal vocabulary. Though, when you track their written vocabulary, they may play it safe and choose words that are easier to spell. Knowing that if they choose a simple word, they can get relatively close to the correct spelling and then Microsoft’s Spell Checker may pick up the error and correct it for them. By simply tracking the correct word column, you are able to tell if the user is beginning to use more complex vocabulary.
Due to the fact that Ginger corrects on sentence context, users are able to attempt larger, more complex words that they would have avoided while solely using Microsoft’s tools.
Another wonderful advantage to using Ginger’s Frequent Errors reports is to export and save each student’s weekly report in MS-Excel. Once in Excel, you are able to use any of the program’s features to learn more about each Ginger user’s writing. For instance, once in Excel you can simply sort the corrected word column and watch for commonalities. Recently, I had a conversation with one teacher who said that she would sort the correct word column and look for patterns. With one particular student using Ginger, she found that each time a word beginning with the ‘ph’ sound such as ‘physical’ or ‘physics’ was used, the child would spell it with an ‘F’. This is a great example of an error that a traditional correction tool will not pick up, but one that Ginger will find. After seeing this, the teacher knew that she needed to spend additional time on this particular word sound.
Finally, one last simple feature that can be used is Excel’s charting capabilities. Below, you see my personal chart for how many Grammar & Misused Word errors I have made versus Spelling Mistakes in a given week. This is ideal to visually represent to a child how many mistakes they are making and how they are improving week by week.
Posted in Archive
Apr 8th , 2010
Conference Season Draws To An End
In November the Ginger Team prepared for a whirlwind 6 month tour of the United States with a quick hop over to the UK to cover all of the exciting conferences we had booked ourselves for. Speaking for trade show employees’ at large, attending conferences as a company is an immense undertaking. There is definitely more planning and coordination required than it may appear to the casual onlooker. With that said, there’s certainly not a more rewarding experience that an employee can take part in.
Working in sales, you’ll often hear that interacting with customers can be quite the experience, admittedly, good and bad. Customers have the unique ability to make your heart race and put a smile on your face at the same time. Though, it’s through customer interaction that sales people grow, and most importantly products improve. Customer feedback is imperative to the growth of products, as well as for new developments. There is no better way to obtain this information than to go where the customers are.
Traveling to six large conferences has been a way to understand which customers are interested in specific Ginger features and what aspects of Ginger garner the most applause. This information is both very interesting and helps move the software forward in a way that will please the most customers and prospective customers. While traveling to the 2009 IDA conference, Ginger’s ability to decipher unusual spelling mistakes and correct multiple errors within a sentence was a major crowd pleaser, as most of the attendees worked with or were the parent of a child who has dyslexia or a similar learning disability.
While at the very large BETT show in London, Ginger Premium’s Text-To-Speech (TTS) ability was an absolute necessity for many of the English Language Learners attending the show, as it enabled users to hear the difference between their initial sentence which contained all of their errors and the corrected sentence. Ginger’s Text-To-Speech (TTS) feature is ideal for helping users learn pronunciation and key in deciding between the appropriate words when looking at Ginger’s alternative correction options. Ginger’s TTS was also highly coveted amongst the many low visions users who visited Ginger’s booth at the 2010 CSUN show.
I’d have to say when it comes to assistive technology, there are so many products on the market that it can be difficult to stand out from the pack. This becomes especially evident at large conferences. However, due to Ginger’s consistently accurate corrections of spelling errors and grammar mistakes that those with learning difficulties often make, we soon become the buzz of the crowd. Anyone specializing in teaching disabilities is happy to come and see a Ginger demonstration, and even happier when they learn about Ginger’s Frequent Error reports. These are reports that educators and AT Specialists can use to actually see which errors a student is making, and in turn, use them to guide their day to day instruction.
Over the past six months, the Ginger Team was able to demonstrate new features and improved corrections from show to show. While the conference schedule for Ginger Software slows down, with only one remaining trip to San Francisco for the PEN EdRev 2010 (Parents Education Network) show at AT&T Park on April 17th, 2010, the Ginger Team is already looking forward to another busy conference season in the fall.
Remember to follow Ginger on Facebook & Twitter to stay current with Ginger Software.
Posted in Archive
Feb 22nd , 2010
Ginger’s Two Continent Tour
Most would expect to witness the height of European fashion while traveling to London. Though, on Ginger Software’s recent trip to the UK, not only did they launch the next big accessory, but they had an overwhelming debut at the 2010 British Education and Training Technology Exhibition in London.
2010 was Ginger’s first year at the BETT exhibition, and while we did not actually launch a fashion line, Ginger did have one of the hottest giveaways at the show. The ‘I Love Ginger’ tote bag went form a novel idea to the must-have item of the show.
Giveaways aside, the Ginger booth, located in the special needs section of the exhibition, was busy from the start of the day until the end. Unlike some of the other shows that Ginger has participated in, BETT resides on the international level and was a wonderful opportunity to really spread the word about Ginger. The show attracted educators, assistive technology professionals, parents and many more! For the first time in Ginger’s history we also provided our FREE 14-day trial to visitors to our booth, in the form of a disc.
To see more pictures from BETT, go to the Ginger Software Facebook Page.
After returning from London, Ginger took a short hiatus before departing for the 2010 ATIA Show (Assistive Technology Industry Association) in Orlando; a welcomed trip out of the cold Boston, MA weather where Ginger’s headquarters are located. Like BETT, ATIA was another great show for Ginger to participate in, drawing crowds from around the United States. This year, Ginger was lucky to have Brian Friedlander, fellow Ginger Blog writer on hand to assist in their booth.
Not only did Brian assist at the booth, he also made a presentation during one of the breakout sessions about the up-and-coming Assistive Technologies on the market, Ginger included of course!
Where is Ginger’s next appearance? At the 2010 TCEA Show in Austin, Texas from February 8-12, 2010. Remember to stop by the Ginger booth if you are attending. We will be in booth 1652.
Remember to follow Ginger on Twitter, we always tweet live from the conferences!
Posted in Archive
Jan 6th , 2010
Ginger, The New Year, & YOU!
How many times have you schemed up a New Year’s
Resolution? If you are anything like me,
you probably come up with at least one each year. Now, the more important
question, how many years have you kept to your resolution?
Like you, I have heard them all. The crazy diets, the gym
memberships, the book a month you plan to read….let’s be honest the list goes
on and on. Not to mention, some of these
resolutions can be very costly. Have all the previous year’s taken their toll and
you did not even bother to come up with one this year?
Well, what about a resolution that enabled you to learn, to
write better, and most of all, created self-confidence. I’ll be the first to
admit it sounds a bit like a gimmick you’d hear on an infomercial at 2AM. It’s
not! All of these objectives are possibilities
that can occur by adopting Ginger into your life.
Whether you’re a high school student preparing for college
in the fall, or a cubicle resident like myself; Ginger is the only tool on the
market that can do all of the above and much more in one click.
Correcting spelling and grammar mistakes with unmatched
accuracy, Ginger will ensure that your written work is free of errors. Whether
it’s a tweet on Internet Explorer about the long line for a coffee, or an email
to your most cherished client, you can rest assured that with Ginger on your PC
your writing will improve.
It’s not too late to make superior writing your New Year’s
resolution.
Try Ginger today, take advantage of our 20% New Year’s
Discount, unless you would rather 400 sit ups at the gym?
www.gingersoftware.com
Posted in Archive
Dec 24th , 2009
Ginger Software Now Can Provide You with Statistics & Reports
It has been very exciting to watch as
Ginger has evolved over the course of the past couple of months. If you have not had a chance to look at 
Ginger,
I urge you to download the latest version from the Ginger
Software Website. One of the features which I am sure will garner a lot of
interest from teachers who are working with students with writing disabilities
is the ability to quickly generate a report of the types of grammar and
spelling errors that a student makes.
With Ginger Premium it is now possible to quickly generate a
report of the student’s spelling and grammar errors right from within the
application. For the home user, a parent can simply click on statistics and
reports within the Ginger menu as seen here. Ginger will automatically launch
your browser and generate a report.
At the school level, teachers will go to Ginger Software website and click School & Reports Login as seen below.
Teachers have the capability to sort their Ginger users into
groups whether it’s by course, class period or even assistance level. Each
teacher using Ginger has the opportunity to create their own groups to best
utilize Ginger as they see fit, truly adding to Ginger’s versatility as a
learning platform.
Ginger’s reports allow the parent or teacher to generate a
report within a certain time frame, be it a week, month, or year, enabling them
to track the students’ progress over time.
Likewise, teachers can
drill down and look at the types of errors that students are making. In the report
below you will see that Ginger classifies errors as; Grammar and Misused or
Spelling. The report will tabulate the number of occurrences of the errors and
will also show you what the student wrote and the correction.
Armed with this type of data, teachers can begin to see
patterns in their students’ work and indentify their specific needs and chart
appropriate interventions. Educators will be delighted that they can collect
this type of information and have it available to them as they plan a student’s
educational program. For more information or to trial Ginger go to www.gingersoftware.com.
Posted in Archive