Feb 17, 2005 3:34 pm US/Central
Disabled Computer Whiz Takes Web By Storm
Jim Mullen
GLENVIEW, Ill. (CBS 2) ―
He's a young man with a plan, and he's not going to let anything get in his way.
Jay Cohen is a local computer whiz who is taking the Web by storm. The 28-year-old from Glenview has muscular dystrophy, which inspired him to create the Web site called "Disabled Online."
"The Internet is a great opportunity for anyone who is disabled," Jay said.
It's full of resources for people with all kinds of disabilities. You can shop on Disabled Online and learn about opportunities in education, employment, travel and recreation. There are chat rooms and forums, too.
Jay calls it a "one-stop resource."
"I spend so much time on the net, I found a lot of Web site that can benefit the disabled community," Jay explained. "I thought: 'What a great idea to coordinate all these different Web sites.'"
It's a labor of love that came out of Jay's need for independence.
"I wanted to do something for myself on a professional level, but I really couldn't find anything that would be viable and realistic for my physical situation," he said.
Jay can't use a keyboard, so he uses voice recognition software to dictate commands to the computer.
The site started full speed last summer, and Jay said the response has been fantastic.
"It's continuously growing," he said. "I've got messages from England, from Australia, from Singapore. It's really a worldwide connection, which makes it pretty amazing to me."
(© MMV, CBS Broadcasting Inc., All Rights Reserved.)
