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Instead of getting coke-bottle glasses, what software is out there to zoom in on a portion of the screen?

Edit:

The platform can be Windows, but something for anywhere is nice too...

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What platform ? – Alex Rozanski Jul 15 '09 at 18:56
In Windows 7 you can use WIN-PLUS and WIN-MIN to do this. :-) – Tom Wijsman Sep 5 '10 at 23:22
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7 Answers

up vote 6 down vote accepted

SysInternals ZoomIt from Microsoft is nice and easy.

Try it out:
http://live.sysinternals.com/ZoomIt.exe

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up vote 4 down vote

What operating system? Vista has one built in, it is called Magnifier and it is in Accessories, Ease of Access.

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That's available at least since Win2k. Although it got really cool with Windows 7 (Win++ and Win+-) – Joey Jul 15 '09 at 23:42
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up vote 2 down vote

Windows specifically, but I could use something anywhere.

On a Mac: Opt-Cmd-plus (well, actually: the equal sign, without any Shift) and Opt-Cmd-minus.

(Opt-Cmd-8 disables and re-enables this option. Mac developers who need to see the actual pixels rather than smooth zooming, can use Pixie as included with the Developer Tools.)

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There's an option to disable the anti-aliasing in the "Universal Access" preference pane, under Zoom options, "Smooth images", or Alt+command+backslash – dbr Jul 16 '09 at 0:36
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up vote 1 down vote

Windows comes with its own magnifier. If you're using Vista, type "Magnifier" into your search-apps bar to begin using it.

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And not just in Vista: it was there way before that (can't remember, but maybe even pre XP?), but might take a bit more searching to open. It would be in the "tools for people with disabilities" section. – peSHIr Jul 15 '09 at 19:43
Yup, Win98 or maybe even earlier. I recall being able to choose to install it or not -- in those days where disk space was limited. – Arjan Jul 15 '09 at 23:26
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up vote 1 down vote

If you need a lot of magnification because your legally blind or close to it check these products out. There expensive but better then the free alternatives. http://www.aisquared.com/zoomtext http://freedomscientific.com/downloads/magic/MAGic-whats-new.asp#Enhancements

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up vote 1 down vote

On Windows: Win+U, start "Magnifier"

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up vote 0 down vote

If you are really partially sighted, and need more than just a slight bit of help, Zoomtext by AI Squared is one of the best commercial products at around $600. Also includes an optional screen reader. I have been using it for about 15 years and highly recommend it.

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