Software developer Serious Magic is providing free closed-captioning with its Visual Communicator. This update to the software helps government, education and professional groups to be Section 508-compliant with the Federal Rehabilitation Act, which requires these groups to make technology accessible to people with disabilities.

Steve Linthicum, professor at Sierra College in Rocklin, Calif, said that the software update is not solely about complying with Federal law.

"It is about serving the need to more than 22 million Americans with hearing disabilities," he said.

Visual Communicator 2 offers an on-screen teleprompter, customizable graphics and real-time transitions and virtual sets.

The software enables closed-captioning text in the software in a one-click process and ensures the video messages created can be read by people with hearing disabilities, according to Mark Randall, president and CEO, Serious Magic, based in Folsom, Calif.

Current users can download the free update from the Serious Magic Web site .