Month: October 2019

Windows From the Keyboard Tips, Windows General Shortcuts, October 30, 2019

Hello. This is Gerry Chevalier from the GTT Edmonton Chapter. This weekly blog provides tips that I find useful as a keyboard user of Windows. The information is for Windows10 and Office 365, although many tips still apply to older versions.  The tips do not require a screen reader unless specifically noted. Thus, the tips apply whether you are a keyboard user or low vision mouse user. Here is this week’s tip.

 

Windows from the Keyboard – General Shortcuts

When progressive vision loss makes it increasingly difficult to see the mouse or read the screen you can use Windows without a mouse. You can operate most Windows programs such as Word, Excel, email, and web browsing without using the mouse. Did you know that the TAB key will move from link to link in a web page or from item to item in a web form or from field to field in an email? Once you navigate to an item you can activate it without clicking the mouse. Just press the Enter key.

 

Here are some other handy Windows keyboard shortcuts:

  • Control+Backspace will delete the previous word while typing in an edit field or document.
  • Control+Delete key will delete the next word while typing in an edit field or document.

Control+S will save your document.

  • Control+P will print your document.
  • Control+C will copy selected text, files, or folders to the clipboard.
  • Control+V will paste clipboard text into a document or email. Also, Control+V will paste files or folders that have been copied to the clipboard into another location.
  • Alt+F4 will close a window.
  • Alt+F4 while focused on the desktop will bring up the Windows shutdown menu.
  • Pressing TAB multiple times while on the Desktop will move to the Start button, then to the Task Bar, then to the Notifications area, then back to the Desktop. While in the Notifications area you can press down arrow to cycle through the System Tray icons.
  • Alt+Tab will cycle between open windows.
  • Windows key + M will minimize all open windows and return to the desktop.
  • While on the desktop, press the first letter of any icon to jump to it. Press Enter to activate the icon.
  • The Applications key beside the right control key is very important in Windows so much so that it will be discussed in a separate tip.
  • Here is Microsoft’s Windows 10 Complete List of shortcuts.

 

That’s it for this tip. Until next Wednesday, happy computing.

 

Cybercrime Reporting Website Accessibility Research with Canadian Digital Service, Government of Canada

Hello GTTProgram Blog Subscribers,

 

The Canadian Digital Service (CDS) is working with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) to create an accessible website for reporting cybercrime to the police.

 

They’d like to speak to you if you, or a loved-one, have ever been phished, hacked or called by a scammer, etc. Especially if you have a disability and/or use assistive technology, and if you are interested in testing the website used to report the above, please contact,

melissa.banyard@tbs-sct.gc.ca

for more information on how to get involved.

 

How you can help

 

The Canadian Digital Service can reach you via phone, video chat, or in-person to show you a work in-progress website and get your feedback on it. This  will not take longer than 30 minutes, and they can reach you at a time that’s convenient for you.

 

Your privacy

 

You’re volunteering to take part in this research, so you can choose to stop participating at any time for any reason.

 

The Canadian Digital Service will make sure your responses are confidential, which means they will not be linked back to anyone.

 

Your participation and answers will not impact your relationship with the Canadian Digital Service (CDS), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), or any part of the Government of Canada.

 

The Canadian Digital Service  handles all personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act, and we’ll give you a copy of our Privacy Statement.

 

For any further questions about this research, please contact:

Melissa Banyard

343-548-9044

melissa.banyard@tbs-sct.gc.ca

 

Access: Technology lags for people with vision, hearing impairments, Victoria News

Access: Technology lags for people with vision, hearing impairments

Author: Nina Grossman

Date Written: Oct 23, 2019 at 9:30 AM

Date Saved: 10/28/19, 8:53 PM

Source: https://www.vicnews.com/news/access-technology-lags-for-people-with-vision-hearing-impairments/

This is the third instalment of “Access,” a Black Press Media three-part series focusing on accessibility in Greater Victoria. See Part One- Access: A Day in the Life Using a Wheelchair in Victoria, and Part Two- Access: Greater Victoria non-profit brings the outdoors to people of all abilities

Heidi Prop’s fingers run over the raised white cells on her BrailleNote Touch Plus. She easily reads more than 200 words per minute, consuming online content with the tips of her fingers faster than most people can with their eyes.

Without vision since birth, Prop doesn’t ‘see’ the words in her head when the pins pop up to form braille words on the android-based braille tablet, she instead hears them like a narrator. She’s sitting in an office at the Pacific Training Centre for the Blind (PTCB) in Victoria, but the braille display allows her to read and write almost anywhere. With a braille output, Prop can check her email, browse the web, download apps and more.

The device is a model of technology that’s added ease to her life, but not all aspects of digitization have made the same leap; many aspects of the internet remain hidden to the blind community.

For example, devices called ‘screen readers’ make web pages accessible, but often stumble when navigating inaccessible websites. Elizabeth Lalonde, PTCB executive director, opens a Wikipedia page on grizzly bears and a robotic voice begins washing over the screen at a rate too rapid for most of the sighted population to consume.

But before the screen reader reaches the information, Lalonde has to navigate a series of unlabeled links and buttons – small hurdles standing in front of the content she’s trying to reach.

PTCB helps people who are vision-impaired learn how to navigate the world around them – from crossing the street and taking transit to cooking dinner or reading braille.

The centre also focuses heavily on using the web – a skill more or less required in order to survive the modern world. But technology is advancing beyond the speed of accessibility, says Alex Jurgensen, lead program coordinator at PTCB, who adds that creators end up playing catch up, adapting their websites and devices for vision and hearing-impaired users long after initial creation.

“A lot of information is out there, but websites can often be inaccessible,” Jurgensen says, noting things such as forms, apps and anything with unusual or unlabeled text can pose a challenge. Scrolling through unlabeled links will have the voice reader say “link” with no further description and scrolling over an image with no alt text embedded in the code will simply read off the name of the image file.

Lalonde says Instagram, for example, is simply not worth using for the vision impaired. But it could be if people described what was in their photos, or if Instagram added an alt text option for each picture, so users could describe what they posted, such as “pug sits on a red blanket in the park on a sunny day.”

Jurgensen describes it as adding a ‘sticky note’ to your image – an easy step that allows those who are vision-impaired to access a prominent element of everyday internet use.

But some elements of the information age don’t adapt. For example: memes. Text created as part of an image is indistinguishable for screen readers. Jurgensen notes apps such as Skip the Dishes can be difficult too. Without labelled button options, he’s ordered food far spicier than he’s intended.

One exception is the iPhone, which becomes usable for vision-impaired users with the simple slide of a toggle that turns on ‘voice over.’

“Camera. Maps. Google. Finance Folder.” The robot voice used to guide drivers to their destinations guides Lalonde through her phone. She double taps on the screen when she’s ready to use an app.

But devices with built-in accessibility software are few and far between – a disheartening reality for the more than six million Canadians living with disabilities.

Lalonde and Jurgensen say websites and online content should be “born accessible,” with accessibility built-in as part of the creation, instead of as afterthoughts or available only through expensive or impractical add-on software.

People with vision-impairments aren’t the only ones facing challenges either. A huge number of videos fail to include subtitles or descriptions of content, throwing in barriers for anyone who has hearing impairments.

And the barriers are nothing new. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines were published in 1999 by a group of international experts in digital accessibility. The guideline was used internationally to create digital accessibility policies.

The experts created a testing and scoring format for websites and programs, finding the most successful sites included criteria such as audio tracks (so people who are hearing impaired can understand audio information), the ability to re-size text, the ability to turn off or extending time limits on tasks, and designing consistently, so people will always know where to find what they are looking for when they are navigating the site.

READ ALSO: Victoria’s $750,000 accessibility reserve fund makes improvement ‘not the side project’

And while the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms included people with disabilities when it was created in 1982, it’s only recently that a bill relating directly to accessibility was taken to the House of Commons.

The Accessible Canada Act (Bill C-81) received unanimous support in May and is in the final stages of becoming law. Accessibility Minister Carla Qualtrough called the bill “the most transformative piece of legislation” since the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and called its progress “a testament to the work, commitment and contributions of the Canadian disability community.”

The bill, still not fully formed, is expected to include digital content and technologies law, likely based on the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines – meaning a number of official sites might be scrambling to get their content up to code.

“A lot of the solutions are fairly simple,” Lalonde notes. “But it’s a question of getting businesses and innovators to adapt accessibility into their process from the start.

“It’s a catch-22,” she adds. “Technology has made a major difference in my life and I know [in] the lives of a lot of blind people because it’s allowed us to access so much more information than we could access before. In some ways it’s been absolutely phenomenal, but … the lack of accessibility keeping up with the technology – that’s the problem.”

Jurgensen nods. “No matter how many steps we take forward it feels like it’s a cat and mouse game, and we’re the ones who are one step behind.”

nina.grossman@blackpress.ca
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CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, talking Olympus digital recorder, October 28, 2019October 28, 2019 Meet the talking Olympus digital recorder Hi there! It’s Donna and thank you for allowing me to come into your inbox. Today, I’d like to talk about the talking Olympus digital recorder. Let’s meet this product. Meet the talking Olympus digital recorder Note: You will probably find that there are several competing products on the market today but I chose to write about this product as it is just another alternative for you to use in case you do not have an i device at hand. I met this nifty little gadget a few years ago and I really like it! This very portable little recorder is easy to use, easy to stow away in your pocket or purse, and its voice is extremely clear. Crystal clear so to speak. All of the menus are easy to navigate and have voice instructions. The recordings are very clear and you can use this nifty little gadget to record quick notes, tape lectures, create podcasts, and record music. The price is just right and the one thing that I like is that improvements continue to be made on a regular basis. You can even use the talking Olympus digital recorder to record and upload to your computer. Why not give this little gem a try? Just go out there and make friends with the talking Olympus digital recorder. That’s it from me for this week. If you would like to become a member of my CCB Mysteries chapter you can do so for the price of $10 annually and in return you will receive unlimited access to either of the following libraries. Recipes – http://www.donnajodhan.com/library-recipes.html Audio mysteries for all ages – http://www.donnajodhan.com/library-audio-mysteries.html Or you can subscribe to both for the price of $20 annually. Now you can subscribe to “‘Let’s Talk Tips”‘ which is my monthly resource for the most current and reliable informational tips available in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media, Business, and Advocacy. http://bit.ly/ADJSubscribe To contact me, send me an email at info@sterlingcreations.ca and I’d be happy to respond. Have yourselves a great day and see you next week. Donna

October 28, 2019

Meet the talking Olympus digital recorder

 

Hi there!  It’s Donna and thank you for allowing me to come into your inbox.

Today, I’d like to talk about the talking Olympus digital recorder.

Let’s meet this product.

 

Meet the talking Olympus digital recorder

Note:  You will probably find that there are several competing products on the market today but I chose to write about this product as it is just another alternative for you to use in case you do not have an i device at hand.

 

I met this nifty little gadget a few years ago and I really like it!  This very portable little recorder is easy to use, easy to stow away in your pocket or purse, and its voice is extremely clear.  Crystal clear so to speak.

 

All of the menus are easy to navigate and have voice instructions.  The recordings are very clear and you can use this nifty little gadget to record quick notes, tape lectures, create podcasts, and record music.

 

The price is just right and the one thing that I like is that improvements continue to be made on a regular basis.  You can even use the talking Olympus digital recorder to record and upload to your computer.  Why not give this little gem a try?

 

Just go out there and make friends with the talking Olympus digital recorder.

 

That’s it from me for this week.

If you would like to become a member of  my CCB Mysteries chapter you can do so for the price of $10 annually and in return you will receive unlimited access to either of the following libraries.

Recipes –

http://www.donnajodhan.com/library-recipes.html

Audio mysteries for all ages –

http://www.donnajodhan.com/library-audio-mysteries.html

Or you can subscribe to both for the price of $20 annually.

Now you  can subscribe to “‘Let’s Talk Tips”‘ which is my monthly resource for the most current and reliable

informational tips available in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media,

Business, and Advocacy.

http://bit.ly/ADJSubscribe

 

To contact me, send me an email at info@sterlingcreations.ca and I’d be happy to respond.

Have yourselves a great day and see you next week.

Donna

GTT New Westminster Summary Notes, Reader View on PC, Mac and iOS Browsers, September 25, 2019

Get Together with Technology (GTT)

New Westminster Meeting

 

A Chapter of the Canadian Council of the Blind

in partnership with

Blind Beginnings

Vancouver Community College

And

Canadian Assistive Technology

Summary Notes

 

September 25, 2019

How to use Reader View on the Mac, PC, iOS and Android Browsers

What is Reader/Simplified View, and why does anyone want to explore it?  Here’s an article that might explain it, followed by a link to the CCB Podcast and text instructions on how to use it in your favourite, or soon to be favourite browser.

 

Reader View

First posted on July 12, 2018 by Rob Tomlinson

“Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s dictum that “Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away” can be re-deployed most helpfully when discussing Reader View, a topic that touches on web page design and browser behaviour.”…

 

Find the CCB Podcast of this event at the link below:

09 GTT New Westminster, Reader View in iOS, Nac and PC Browsers, September 25, 2019:

 

PC Browsers:

 

Simplified View for Google Chrome on the PC:

Google Chrome Download Page;

  1. type this into a new tab in Google Chrome

chrome://flags/#enable-reader-mode

press enter.

  1. A Chrome settings page comes up that you can navigate using headings.
  2. Press the letter H until you get to reading mode.
  3. There is a combo box that shows that reader mode is disabled.
  4. Press enter to go into forms mode if using Jaws.
  5. Press the down arrow to get to enabled and press enter.
  6. Go to the bottom of the page with control end and there is a restart chrome button, and Press enter.
  7. Now visit a page that has news stories such as this article from the Victoria Times Colonist,
  8. You can try down arrowing through the page and see all the links, controls and advertisements on the page.
  9. Press the Alt Key to bring up a menu and either up or down arrow to “Toggle distilled page contents” and press enter.
  10. you will hear your screen reader say, “Simplified View”.
  11. Now what you have is the news article in its entirety without the ads and other controls.
  12. To get the page back to normal view, repeat step 11 and press Enter.
  13. Press the Escape Key to close the menu.

 

Reader View for Firefox on the PC:

Reader View is a Firefox feature that strips away clutter like buttons, ads and background images, and changes the page’s text size, contrast and layout for better readability.

Mozilla Firefox Download Page;

  1. Open Firefox and enter the address of the page you want to visit, let’s use the Victoria Times Colonist article again.
  2. Examine the page with down and up arrow keys to see that it is cluttered with links, controls and advertisements.
  3. Press the f9 key to enable reader view.
  4. If nothing happens then reader view is not available for the current page.
  5. If reader view is available, the page loads and is clutter free.

 

Mac Browsers:

 

Reader View for Safari on the Mac:

Safari Browser for the Mac Download Page;

To display an article in Reader on the Mac, do the following:

  1. Click the Safari icon on the Dock or Launchpad.
  2. Type in the URL for the website you want to visit.

For example, you might visit The New Yorker at www.newyorker.com.

  1. Click the article you want to read. You see the article with various advertisements, banners, photos, links, and so on.
  2. Click the Reader button, or press Command+Shift+R.
  3. If the article runs over several pages, Reader displays it as one continuous page so you need only scroll down, not click from one page to the next.
  4. If you need to adjust the size of the text, click the type buttons (the two A’s) in the upper-left corner.
  5. To exit Reader, click the Reader button, or press the Esc key to exit Reader and return to the normal Safari view of the article. Click the Back button to return to the original site.
  6. In both Reader and normal Safari view, press ⌘+= or ⌘+– to zoom in or out on the text. If you have a Magic Mouse or Trackpad or a MacBook that recognizes multi-touch gestures, you can also pinch in or out to zoom.

 

iOS 12.4 Browsers:

Sadly, we could find nothing to say there is a Reader or Simplified View for the Google Chrome Browser for iOS.

 

Reader View for Safari Browser on iOS:

How to enable Reader View in Safari in iOS 12.4:

  1. Launch Safarifrom your Home screen.
  2. Navigate to the website you’d like to read.
  3. Tap the Reader button on the left of the address bar. It looks like a series of stacked lines.
  4. If the Reader button doesn’t appear it means the page isn’t able to be simplified.

 

Reader View for Mozilla Firefox Browser in iOS 12.4:

Mozilla Firefox Download Page on the App Store for iPad and iPhone;

How to enable Reader View in Firefox on iOS:

  1. Launch Firefox from your Home screen.
  2. Navigate to the website you’d like to read.
  3. Tap the Reader button on the right of the address bar. It looks like a series of stacked lines.
  4. Double Tap it again to turn it off when you want access to more of the page.
  5. If the Reader button doesn’t appear it means the page isn’t able to be simplified.

 

Reader View for Microsoft Edge in iOS 12.4:

Microsoft Edge Download for iPad and iPhone;

How to enable Reader View in Microsoft Edge on iOS:

  1. Launch Edge from your Home screen.
  2. Navigate to the website you’d like to read.
  3. Tap the Reader Mode button on the right of the address bar. It looks like a book that is open.
  4. Double Tap the Done button to turn it off when you want access to more of the page.
  5. If the Reader Mode button doesn’t appear it means the page isn’t able to be simplified.

 

Android Browsers:

Simplified View for Google Chrome on Android:

Google Chrome Browser Download from the Google Play Store;

How to Enable Reader Mode in Chrome for Android?

  1. Open Chromeon your Android smartphone or tablet and type

chrome://flags

in the address/search bar and hit enter. The Chrome Flags page will open up.

  1. Hit the three dot button inthe top right corner and tap “Find in page “.
  2. Once enabled, you will see a “Make page mobile-friendly” button at the end of the webpage.

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                        Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                               1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

 

 

Windows From the Keyboard Tips, Windows 10 Accessibility, October 23,2019

Hello. This is Gerry Chevalier from the GTT Edmonton Chapter. This weekly blog provides tips that I find useful as a keyboard user of Windows. The information is for Windows10 and Office 365, although many tips will still apply to older versions.  The tips do not require a screen reader unless specifically noted. Thus, the tips apply whether you are a keyboard user or low vision mouse user. Here is this week’s tip.

 

Windows10 Accessibility

Many people who are experiencing progressive vision loss find it increasingly difficult to see their computer screen and ask what kind of assistive tech software they should buy. The good news is you can improve the accessibility of your computer without buying anything. Windows 10 has built-in accessibility settings for both screen magnification and screen reading with speech.

 

Just hold down the Windows logo key and press U to open the Ease of Access settings. You will find a list of accessibility features such as screen magnification, contrast, and alternative mouse pointers. Try setting these parameters to improve your screen reading experience.

 

Also, within the Windows 10 Ease of Access Centre is a speech screen reader called Narrator that should be explored if your vision loss is significant and you would benefit more by having the contents of your screen spoken to you.

 

That’s it for this tip. Until next Wednesday, happy computing.

 

GTT National Conference Call Summary Notes, How to Search and Download From the New CELA Website, September 11, 2019

GTT National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

September 11, 2019

 

 

Please check out the presentation on the CCB Podcast below for more details.

08 GTT National Conference Call Summary Notes, How to Search and Download From the New CELA Website, September 11, 2019:

 

 

What is CELA:

  • The CELA accessible library service for print disabled Canadians provides many services including: downloadable recorded DAISY books, downloadable DAISY eBooks, downloadable Bookshare DAISY eBooks, DAISY books on CD mailed to your home, braille books mailed to your home, print-brailled books for kids, over 150 downloadable DAISY e-text magazines, recorded DAISY magazines by download or mail, and over 40 daily newspapers that can be read online.
  • In early 2019 CELA launched a new accessible website that brings together their collection and that of Bookshare searchable from one place.
  • Many will recognize these CELA services to be the same as those previously provided by the CNIB Library. CELA took over the CNIB Library in 2014 and now serves all print-disabled Canadians not just those who are blind or vision impaired.

 

The Players:

  • In addition to playing CD books the Victor Reader Stratus can also receive direct to player DAISY books over the Internet. The user chooses their book by logging into CELA online and once a book is chosen it is sent directly to the player. For non-computer users, CELA customer service or your local Librarian can set up a reader profile for you and then the CELA computer will choose your books and send them directly to the player or on CD mailed to your home.
  • It is also suggested some may prefer the pocket sized Victor Reader Stream which can accept the direct to player books and perform other online functions Such as getting Bookshare books and listening to podcasts and radio stations.
  • CELA Direct to Player audio books can also be played on your iPhone or Android phone using the free Dolphin EasyReader app.
  • CELA audio books can also be downloaded through Dropbox to iPhones and played using the Voice Dream Reader app.

 

How much does it cost:

  • There is no fee for CELA service or Bookshare service.

 

 

How do I find CELA:

  • Visit the CELA web site for information on all their services or call their customer service at 1-855-655-2273.

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                        Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                      1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Accessible Canadian Federal Election 2019, October 21, 2019

October 21, 2019

 

The 2019 Canadian Federal Election is upon us, so if you plan to vote and haven’t yet checked out what to expect in terms of accessibility, here is Election Canada’s website.

 

The partial text of the main page follows the link where you will find live links to all you need to know as you head for the Polls.

https://www.elections.ca/content2.aspx?section=acc&document=index&lang=e

 

Accessible voting

 

We work hard to make voting in the federal election accessible to all Canadians.

 

If you have a disability or know someone who does, we have many tools and services to make it easier to vote. Explore the options below.

 

Can’t find what you need? Call us at 1-800-463-6868 or 1-800-361-8935 (TTY).

 

Elections Canada also welcomes VRS calls. Visit Video Relay Service (VRS) to know more. (external link)

 

Check the accessibility of your polling place

Tools and services at the polls

Accessible polling stations

Information in other formats

 

Useful material

  • Voting hours across Canada
  • Canada Elections Act

 

(Justice Laws website)

  • Maps Corner
  • List of political parties

 

(main website)

  • About federal elections

 

CCB Mysteries chapter:

If you would like to become a member of  my CCB Mysteries chapter you can do so for the price of $10 annually and in return you will receive unlimited access to either of the following libraries.

Recipes –

http://www.donnajodhan.com/library-recipes.html

 

Audio mysteries for all ages –

http://www.donnajodhan.com/library-audio-mysteries.html

Or you can subscribe to both for the price of $20 annually.

Now you  can subscribe to “‘Let’s Talk Tips”‘ which is my monthly resource for the most current and reliable informational tips available in the areas of Technology, Nutrition, Media, Business, and Advocacy.

http://bit.ly/ADJSubscribe

 

 

To contact me, send me an email at info@sterlingcreations.ca and I’d be happy to respond.

Have yourselves a great day and see you next week.

Donna

 

GTT New Westminster Summary Notes, Soundscape, August 28, 2019

Get Together with Technology (GTT)

New Westminster Meeting

 

A Chapter of the Canadian Council of the Blind

in partnership with

Blind Beginnings

Vancouver Community College

And

Canadian Assistive Technology

Summary Notes

 

August 28, 2019

Find the CCB Podcast of this event at the link below:

07 GTT New Westminster, Soundscape, August 28, 2019:

 

Microsoft Soundscape

A map delivered in 3D sound by Microsoft Corporation

 

Microsoft Soundscape was recently released in Canada in both official languages, Canadian French and English.  You can download Soundscape free for iOS from the App Store here.

 

Presenting over the Zoom Conference to the GTT New Westminster group were Amos Miller, the Product Manager for Microsoft Soundscape Research in Redmond WA, and Jarnail Chudge, a technology designer and user experience expert on the team.

 

Microsoft Soundscape uses 3D audio technology to enhance your awareness of what is around you, and thereby help you get around and explore your surroundings.

 

 

Soundscape will place audio cues and labels in 3D space such that they sound like they are coming from the direction of the points of interest, parks,

roads and other features in your surroundings.

 

You will need a pair of stereo headsets that you feel comfortable wearing outdoors. For example, bone conduction headsets, Apple AirPods and in-ear open

headphones have proven to work well.

 

Soundscape is designed to live in the background and provide you with effortless ambient awareness. Therefore, feel free to use it in conjunction with

other apps such as podcasts, audio books, email and even GPS navigation.

 

Key features:

 

– As you walk, Soundscape will automatically call out the key points of interest, roads and intersections that you pass. These can be adjusted and turned on and off.

 

– An audio beacon can be placed on a point of interest, and you will hear it as you move around. You can place an audio beacon on a point of interest that you would like to track such as your destination, a point to return to or a landmark you are familiar with.

 

– “My Location” describes your current location and the direction you are facing.

 

– “Nearby Markers” describes nearby places you have marked.

 

– “Around Me” describes nearby points of interest in each of the four cardinal directions, helping with orientation. Try this out when getting off a bus or leaving a train station.

 

– “Ahead of Me” describes points of interest in front of you, for example when walking down the street.

 

– The expandable Callout History section lets you review callouts you have heard, repeat callouts, hear more information about them, and more.

 

We hope you enjoy the experience. We believe that this kind of technology offers a new way to relate to the environment around you and we can’t wait to hear what you make of it.

 

If at any time you have any questions about Soundscape, please refer to the Help & Tutorials section available on the main menu or if you require further help then you can contact the Disability Answer Desk on

1-800-936-5900 which is a free of charge service.

 

This work started out in 2010/2011 when Amos was still in the UK. He was involved with the local guide dog organization there, and working with them to try and figure out how technology can integrate into our own independence and mobility when we’re out and about, but in a way that enhances that experience. Some people from Microsoft started working with mobility instructors, and guide dog and cane users. We explored a range of ideas long before we figured out how to solve the problem. We landed on this notion of how important it is to enhance the awareness, but not tell the person what to do in that space. A lot of what orientation and mobility trainers will do with us is to work on a specific route, but especially how to perceive the environment, how we read the cues that the environment is giving us from a sound perspective, echo location, traffic noise, direction of the wind, the tactile feeling of the ground: all of the signals we can get from the environment in order to orient, and make good navigational decisions. The work that we did with Guide Dogs in the early days of Soundscape was really to see how we can build on that. The idea of sound playing a big role in the perception of the space, was really how this idea evolved. Soundscape as an ap, is the first incarnation of that idea.

 

The ap is free, and available from the Ap Store. It does rely on map data, and so it does need to be able to access that data. For the most part, it will download the necessary data from the environment that you’re in, and from that point forward it’s not using data. So it’s not constantly drawing on your data plan, but it does require one. We’ve tried to optimize it so that the data usage is minimal, and in certain situations, it will also work in areas where there is no data.

 

Bose frames are a very good way to get the stereo effect, as are Bone conducting headphones. EarPods or standard headphones will work, but they will block your ears to ambient sound. Putting it in one ear to keep the other ear free won’t be effective because you won’t get the signature 3D effect. Amos said that he personally likes EarPods because of their sound quality, and it’s possible to insert them lightly into the ear and still have ambient sound. Some sports headphones are a good solution too, Plantronics for example. This type of headphone rests around the back of your neck, and clips over the ear. They sit in front of the ear canal without blocking it. They’re used commonly by runners and cyclists.

 

Users can email

soundscapefeed@microsoft.com

and that comes to the Microsoft Soundscape team. There is also a feedback button in the ap itself.

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                       Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                               1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

 

 

iOS 13 Tip: Quickly Activate Reader Mode in Safari | Thoughts from David Goldfield

In previous versions of iOS it was fairly easy to activate reader mode while on a supported page in the Safari Web browser. All that was needed was to navigate to the Reader button, located toward the upper left hand corner below the status line, and, if you are a VoiceOver user, double-tap. iOS 13…
— Read on davidgoldfield.wordpress.com/2019/10/20/ios-13-tip-quickly-activate-reader-mode-in-safari/

GTT Edmonton October 17 Meeting Notes, iOS 13, October 18, 2019

            Summary Notes

GTT Edmonton Meeting October 17, 2019

 

The most recent meeting of the Get Together with Technology (GTT) Edmonton Chapter was held October17 at 7pm at Ascension Lutheran Church 8405 83 Street in Edmonton.

19 people attended.

Reading Tip: These summary notes apply HTML headings to help navigate the document. With screen readers, you may press the H key to jump forward or Shift H to jump backward from heading to heading. Read the Additional Resources section following the meeting notes to learn about our one on one telephone support, the National monthly teleconference, and the support email list.

 

2020 Membership Dues

Thank you to those who paid their CCB 2020 membership. 5 members renewed and we had 2 new members. Membership of $10 will continue to be collected in the November meeting.

 

October Topic –iOS 13

Apple continues to demonstrate its commitment to inclusive design with many new accessibility features  in iOS version 13. Thanks to the GTT Edmonton Team who discussed and demonstrated many of the new features in the October meeting.

 

AppleVIS iOS 13 Resources

You are encouraged to read the comprehensive summary on the AppleVis web site because we only have space for a brief summary of the iOS features in these notes.

As well, on the AppleVIS Podcast Page, Thomas Domville has posted excellent podcasts in which he discusses and demonstrates the new iOS 13 features. Use your favorite podcast app or the Victor Reader Stream and search for the AppleVIS podcast feed. Then scroll through the iOS 13 episodes. Here are several direct links to relevant episodes.

What’s New in iOS 13 Part 1

What’s New in iOS 13 Part 2

How to Use Voice Control on iOS 13

How to Use the New QuickPath Swipe Keyboard

How to Create and Use New VoiceOver Activity Profiles

How to Customize VoiceOver Haptic Feedback

How to Customize VoiceOver Gestures

How to Check Battery Life and Optimize Battery Charging

 

How to Update Your Phone

To determine your iPhone software version, go to Settings > General > About. To update your phone software, be sure you are connected to the Internet and then  go to Settings > General > Software Update and follow the prompts. The most recent version is 13.1.3.

 

List of iOS New Accessibility Features

If you don’t want to read about the iOS 13 features described on AppleVIS or listen to their podcasts, you can jump right in and try them. Here is a list to get you started.

 

Accessibility Menu

Apple Has moved Accessibility out of the General Settings to the top level of Settings to make it easier to find.

New Siri Voice

iOS 13 introduces a new female voice for Siri that is considered more natural sounding. It is the default Siri voice in iOS 13. It is available only as a female English U.S. voice.

Dark Mode

There  is a new screen appearance called Dark Mode which low vision users may want to investigate at Settings>Display and Brightness. This is a general feature not an accessibility feature. Some say it is a calmer, more unified appearance with less stress on the eyes. It’s also available in the Control Centre.

Voice Control

New Voice Control feature lets you control the phone by voice. To set it up go to Settings > Accessibility > Voice Control. Before using it, you will need to download 250MB of data so that Voice Control can work even if you are not connected to the internet.

VoiceOver Sounds and Haptics

VoiceOver now provides haptic feedback for many gestures and actions. You can control the haptics feedback and sound feedback by going to

Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver > Audio > Sounds

& Haptics.  The haptics are on by default so you will likely notice them after you install iOS 13.

No more 3D Touch

Apple has replaced 3D Touch with a Context Menu  available on the rotor wherever 3D Touch was previously used such as the Home Screen.

Vertical Scroll Bar

On screens with lots of data such as Settings,  Messages, web pages, and many other places you can touch the right edge of the screen to find a vertical scroll bar. Flick up or down with your finger to quickly scroll through the data. For example, flicking to the 50% position on the scroll bar will position you halfway down the data.

Help with Photos

IN the camera app, VoiceOver now provides hints to help you better frame a photo such as whether the camera is level, the person or object is centred and even what it thinks the object might be.

More Customization of braille commands, Bluetooth keyboard commands, and gestures

Go to settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver > Commands to find what you can customize. For example, do you have difficulty with the rotor gesture or using the rotor on a web page to select heading navigation? You may want to create a custom gesture to set up a 2 finger flick to rotate the rotor or navigate web pages by heading.

Improved Braille screen typing

Some users are saying that with iOS 13 they can now type in braille on their iPhone screen faster than they can on an electronic braille hardware keyboard.

Chart Data Comprehension

iOS 13 has a data comprehension feature that attempts to describe and/or render in audio tones the information contained in graphical charts. For example, the Stocks app, Health app, and the battery level section of Settings>Battery have this feature. When you flick to a chart and hear the words, “Data Comprehension “, you can flick up multiple times to hear different interpretations of the chart data in speech and braille as well as an audio tone analog of the data.

QuickPath

There is a new general feature (not accessibility feature) for touch typing called Quick Path slide to type where iOS will announce the word it thinks you are trying to type as you slide and pause over successive keys. Some like it and others do not. It is on by default in iOS 13. If you find it more difficult to touch type in iOS 13, you may want to turn off this feature. Go to Settings > General > Keyboard and toggle off “Slide to Type”. You can also add Slide to Type to the VoiceOver rotor if you think you will want to enable/disable it frequently.

Activities

VoiceOver now has a feature called, Activities. It allows you to set up VoiceOver

profiles that will permit you to automatically switch from one set of VoiceOver settings to another based on launching an app, or on demand through the rotor. For example, in a News app or book reading app you may want a different Voice, language, speaking rate, volume, and different punctuation verbosity. Every time you launch the app, VoiceOver will switch to the customized settings profile and return to your default VoiceOver settings when you close the app. The profile settings also include choice of braille translation tables and choice of Bluetooth keyboard modifier keys. To create a custom Activity profile, go to Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver > Activities and select “Add Activity”. To add Activities to the rotor, go to Settings > Accessibility >VoiceOver > rotor and select activities.

 

Speaking Punctuation

In iOS 13, you have much more control over which punctuation is spoken and how it is spoken.  Check it out in Settings>Accessibility>VoiceOver>Verbosity>Punctuation.

Detect Text

VoiceOver will attempt to detect text on unlabeled buttons. If you wish to disable this feature, go to Settings > Accessibility> Verbosity > Speak Detected Text.

Auto language switching

You can now enable or disable VoiceOver auto language switching. Go to Settings > Accessibility> VoiceOver > Speech.

New Braille Tables

You can download and use many more braille translation tables including Liblouis tables. Go to Settings > Accessibility > VoiceOver > Braille > Braille Tables.

 

Next Meeting (Monday November 11 at 7pm)

  • Topic will be computer security and how to stay safe in the modern online world.
  • As always, for help with technology bring your devices and/or questions to the meeting.

 

Additional Resources

Telephone Support

Contact our GTT coordinators, Kim Kilpatrick in the East or Albert Ruel in the West to book one on one telephone support.

Kim: 877-304-0968 Ext. 513

Email: GTTProgram@Gmail.com

Albert: 877-304-0968 Ext. 550

Email: albert.GTT@CCBNational.net

 

GTT Blog and Monthly Teleconference

CCB sponsors a national GTT monthly teleconference. You may subscribe to the GTT blog to get email notices of teleconferences, meeting notes from GTT chapters, and other information. To subscribe, activate the Follow link at the bottom of the blog web page to enter your email.

GTT Email Support List

CCB also sponsors a GTT email support list to provide help and support with technology for blind and low vision Canadians.  To subscribe to the email list, send an empty email to:

GTTsupport+subscribe@groups.io

 

Meeting Location and Logistics

  • Ascension Lutheran Church 8405 – 83 Street NW, Edmonton.
  • We meet in the basement hall. There is elevator access.
  • Enter the church from the back door. There is parking at the back and drop off space for taxis, DATS.
  • Meetings are every second Monday of the month at 7pm.
  • If you have someone helping you your assistant is welcome to remain for the meeting.

 

GTT Edmonton Overview

  • GTT Edmonton is a chapter of the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB).
  • GTT Edmonton promotes a self-help learning experience by holding monthly meetings to assist participants with assistive technology.
  • Each 2 hour meeting consists of a feature technology topic in the first hour and a general tech discussion in the second hour.

[End]

Results of Accessible Canada Act Survey – Up to October 16, 2019

Good afternoon,

 

By way of follow-up from the September 25, 2019 – Accessible Canada Act: Candidates’ Forum, co-hosted by Holland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital and Reena, we are sharing a number of resources related to the event and preliminary survey results from the Accessible Canada Survey circulated by the two host organizations and Accessible Media Inc.

 

On the evening of October 17, 2019, CTV National News ran a lead story dealing with the hidden issue of the 2019 Election – Accessibility.

Link ß CTV National News – Video – Accessibility – The Hidden issue of the 2019 Federal Election

 

We are providing the preliminary side-by-side analysis of the Accessible Canada Act Survey; both results shared at the 9/25 Candidates Forum, as well as the results generated from a second publicity push from Accessible Media Inc.

Link ß (PDF) Survey Analysis 9/25 ACA Candidate’s Forum & 10/16 Snapshot of Accessible Media Inc. push of the survey.

 

For those with a visual impairment, we are attaching a Word document version without any graphics.

 

3 Major takeaways from the survey;

  • More education is needed to explain ACA and to differentiate between Federal & Provincial responsibility
  • A consensus is developing as to the priorities of Bill C-81 improvements, and suggested approaches
  • There is a Canada-wide interest in improving the ACA / Bill C-81

 

Going forward, and independent of the results of the October 21, 2019 Federal election, insights generated from this survey will be relevant to the national effort to improve and strengthen Bill C-81, the Accessible Canada Act.

 

As discussed at the Accessible Canada Act: Candidates’ Forum on September 25, 2019, the AODA Alliance has been seeking election commitments on advancing the cause of “Accessibility” for over 6 million people with disabilities in Canada. Here is the progress made as of October 18, 2019 – 10AM. The table below is a summary;

 

AODA Alliance – Seeking Election Commitments on Advancing the Cause of Accessibility
July 18, 2019
Party Responses as of October 17, 2019
Liberal Conservative NDP Green PPC
Directly Yes No Yes No No
Date October 16, 2019 X September 19, 2019 X X
Indirectly   October 14, 2019      
AODA Alliance – Summary of Federal Election Platforms – Issue by Issue Comparison
October 18, 2019

 

Additional Information;

  • Link ß Letter 1 – Follow-up Actions – Sent September 26, 2019 (Includes preliminary survey results)
  • Videos – Accessible Canada Act; Candidate’s Forum
    • Link ß Panel of Experts Education Session
    • Link ß Candidate Roundtable
  • Link ß Post Session Podcast – Original Air Date September 26, 2019 – 9:20AM – Accessible Media Inc

 

If you have any questions, please direct them to fwinegust@reena.org.

 

Please note… Neither Reena nor Holland Bloorview support or oppose any party or candidate in the upcoming Federal Election.

 

Fred Winegust

On behalf of the Reena and Holland Bloorview team that organized the Accessible Canada Act: Candidates’ Forum and the team that developed and deployed the ACA survey

 

 

Fred Winegust, MBA, BsC
Stakeholder Relations – Associate


Reena
927 Clark Ave West | Thornhill | L4J 8G6
w: (905) 763.8254 x3636 | f: (905) 763.8272

Cellular:  (416) 801-4039
fwinegust@reena.org  | reena.org | facebook

 

Information on Reena   www.Reena.org

Information on Intentional Community Consortium:       http://intentionalcommunities.ca/

Virtual Tour of Reena Community Residence:     https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYRgeF6MYW4

 

This e-mail communication is CONFIDENTIAL AND PRIVILEGED. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify me at the telephone number shown above or by return e-mail and delete this communication and any copy immediately. Thank you. L’information apparaissant dans ce message électronique est PRIVILĖGIĖE ET CONFIDENTIELLE. Si ce message vous est parvenu par erreur, vous êtes en conséquence prié de nous aviser immédiatement par téléphone ou par courriel. De plus veuillez détruire ce message immédiatement. Merci.

GTT National Conference Call Summary Notes, WayAround Tags, August 14, 2019

GTT National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

August 14, 2019

 

Jessica Hipp, CEO of WayAround presented all that is possible with the use of WayAround Tags in the kitchen, workshop or office, as well as there potential use as a means of identifying products in stores.  Please check out the presentation on the CCB Podcast below for more details, as well as the links also found below for downloading the free app and purchasing the Tags from Canadian Assistive Technologies.

06 GTT National Conference Call, WayAround Tags, August 14, 2019:

 

WayAround

 

The Smart Assistant for People Who are Blind

Meet WayAround

 

WayAround is the app for your smart device that provides on-demand details about everyday things. The simple tag-and-scan approach lets you quickly and easily identify things around you. It also provides extra details, like how something works or when it expires.

 

The result? Doing more of the things you want, with more confidence and more independence.

 

Get the FREE App!

 

Download WayAround on the App Store

Download WayAround on the Google Play Store

 

Canadian Distributor:

Canadian Assistive Technologies Ltd:

 

Check out this Sample Pack of WayAround Tags:

 

Contact Canadian Assistive Technologies:

OUR MISSION

 

Because Assistive Technology has been our lives for over 30 years, we understand the importance that any given device or piece of software can have in

our clients’ day to day lives. We strive to ensure that every client has the tools and training they need in order to empower them to be able to live the

lives they want through the power of Accessibility.

 

1-844-795-8324

 

SALES@CANASSTECH.COM

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                       Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                      1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

GTT National Conference Call Summary Notes, LV and Blindness Features of Windows 10, 2019Jul10

GTT National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

July 10, 2019

 

Find the CCB Podcast of this event at the link below:

05 GTT National Conference Call, Low Vision Features of Windows 10, July 10, 2019

 

Windows 10 Accessibility Primer

 

Following is a summary of the Windows10 accessibility primer Carrie Anton and Lyle Rollaman presented to GTT National Conference Call meeting attendees on July 10, 2019. Although the presentation was focused on low vision Windows access there is information that is also relevant to blind users. There are links to other resources so you can research more commands and tools. The commands provided are for Windows 10. The resource links provided take you to the Microsoft pages where you can choose the version of Windows you are using.  Also find at the bottom of this document links to three Microsoft Accessibility Learning Webinar Series episodes hosted by Microsoft staff related to low vision and blind access to Narrator and Magnification features built into Windows 10.

 

Windows Shortcut Keys

Learning Windows Shortcut Keys is important to be Efficient and to be able to perform functions when you cannot use a mouse.

 

Windows Ease of Access Center

This is where all Accessibility related settings can be adjusted.

. TO DO THIS PRESS THIS
Open the Ease of Access Center Windows logo key + U

Scaling

This is a setting that adjusts the size and clarity of most items on your screen. The default is 125% but you can also customize it to what you want. Adjusting this to higher settings does require more scrolling of windows. Icons are larger, and text is larger without the stepping pixelating that often happens with magnifying things.

 

Right click anywhere on the desktop

Go to display settings

Scaling and Layout appear in the middle of the screen.

 

Magnifier

Magnifier allows you to enlarge the entire screen or sections of it. There are 3 viewing modes including full, lens, and docked. Magnifier’s application toolbar appears in the Taskbar at the bottom of the screen. It may also hover a magnifying glass on your screen. Click it and see the tools like plus, minus, zoom percentage, View, and a gear for settings.

TO DO THIS PRESS THIS
Turn Magnifier on Windows logo key + Plus (+)  
Turn Magnifier off Windows logo key  + Esc  
When Magnifier is on, zoom in or out Windows logo key  + Plus (+) or Minus (-)  
Zoom in and out using the mouse scroll wheel Ctrl + Alt + mouse scroll wheel  
Open Magnifier settings Windows logo key  + Ctrl + M  
Pan in the direction of the arrow keys Ctrl + Alt + arrow keys  
Invert colors Ctrl + Alt + I  
Switch to full screen view Ctrl + Alt + F  
Switch to lens view Ctrl + Alt + L  
Switch to docked view Ctrl + Alt + D  
Cycle through views Ctrl + Alt + M  
Resize the lens with the mouse Ctrl + Alt + R  
Resize the lens with the keyboard Shift + Alt + arrow keys  
Quickly see the entire desktop when using full screen view Ctrl + Alt + Spacebar  

More About Magnifier   https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/11542/windows-use-magnifier

 

Mouse Enhancements

As one of the hardest things to find as a visually impaired person, the Pointer’s Size and Color often makes the difference in its visibility.

Also, if you can find your Mouse Settings in Control panel, you can adjust more mouse shapes and effects like pointer trails.

Press WindowsKey+U to open Ease of Access centre.

IN the Search box type, Mouse

Then the mouse panel appears and you can choose to change the look of the mouse, how it looks when moving, and more.

More on adjusting your

mouse settings

 

Cursor Thickness

In the Ease of Access Center, “Other Options” you can change the thickness of the typing cursor by using a horizontal left/right slider from a blinking vertical line to a thick blinking box. This makes finding where your cursor is much easier.

Color & High Contrast

There are many ways to change color of THE screens in Windows.

Magnifier’s invert color

Windows color filters – especially useful if someone has color blindness

Windows Themes – is a quick way to adjust all colors in every application for text, hyperlinks, buttons and active or inactive items.

I find that using a Windows Theme presents the best diversity of color especially high contrast. However, the possibility of losing information that is only represented by color is there. Take for example, a web page that is not coded for accessibility may eliminate colored items if a theme is enforced. You will need to be the judge of your own experience. For working with text and email Themes work great. For someone who is always on the web and uses cues from images and color, themes won’t work well.

Use invert colors of Magnifier or similarly the Color & High Contrast Invert setting. Keep in mind certain colors have hard to read inversions like organize and green. Yellow’s invert is blue. White is black.

TO DO THIS PRESS THIS
Turn your High Contrast Theme on or off press Left Alt + left Shift + Print Screen
Turn your color filter on or off press Windows logo key  + Ctrl + C

Text to Speech to Read What is Magnified

There is a built-in screen reader called Narrator which I’ll mention later. For those of us who just want reading in MS Office documents there is a Speech feature you can activate. It reads aloud any text you select in the document. It can be activated by keyboard shortcut or a button in the Quick Access Toolbar at the top of the application. This feature is available in Microsoft Office 2013, 2016 and of course Office365.

Narrator

Narrator is a full-blown screen reading application that does just that, it reads the screen. Again, keyboard shortcuts are handy in controlling and navigating documents.

Narrator has a setting panel that allows you to customize the way narrator acts such as voice, cursor and pointer following. Narrator also lets you “highlight the cursor” which is where it is reading, a red box appears around where Narrator is reading. This is useful when I am trying to hover my mouse over text I want read.

On many keyboards, the Windows logo key is located on the bottom row of keys, to the left or right of the Alt key.

TO DO THIS PRESS THIS
Open Narrator settings Windows logo key  + Ctrl + N
Turn Narrator On or Off Windows logo key + Ctrl + Enter for Windows 10

Windows Logo Key  + Enter for Windows 7/8

 

More on Getting Started with Narrator

There are several ways to read text using Narrator. The first and simplest way is to use the arrow keys to navigate text if you’re interacting with a document in a word processor, such as Microsoft Word.

If an app doesn’t support text reading commands, Narrator will say “not on explorable text.” In this case, use Scan Mode to navigate and read text. While in scan mode you need to listen for Narrator saying scan on or scan off, otherwise, the letters or arrow keys you use are actually moving in your document.

Move to the next or previous word

TO DO THIS PRESS THIS
Turn Scan Mode On or Off Caps lock + Spacebar.
Read by paragraph in scan mode Up and Down arrow keys
Read by character Left and Right arrow keys
To activate an item that you want to use, such as a button in an app, a link in a webpage, or a text box Press the spacebar
Move to the start or end of a line of text in an app or webpage Home and End
Move to the beginning or end of text Ctrl + Home and Ctrl + End
Move to the next or previous word Ctrl + Left arrow and Ctrl + Right arrow
Move to the next or previous line Ctrl + Up arrow and Ctrl + Down arrow

 

To learn more about Scan Mode. https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/22809/windows-10-narrator-using-scan-mode

Speech Recognition

A great feature for dictating to the computer as well as in documents. The trick to anyone using speech recognition software is to recognize when mistakes are made. You can open programs, control menus, click buttons and dictate text.  First be in a quiet environment with a microphone connected to your computer.  At the start menu type Speech Recognition or just speech and it will appear in the Start Menu.

More about Speech Recognition

 

Microsoft Accessibility Learning Webinar Series

 

Microsoft Accessibility Learning Webinar Series for low vision and blindness on YouTube

 

Accessibility Learning Webinar Series: Magnifier and Low Vision Features in Windows 10, Feb 27, 2019

 

Accessibility Learning Webinar Series: Narrator 101, Jan 30, 2019

 

Accessibility Learning Webinar Series: Narrator 101 for the May 2019 Update to Windows 10, Jul 2, 2019

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                             Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                                    1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                   GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

Windows From the Keyboard Tips, New Weekly Blog, October 16, 2019

Hello. This is Gerry Chevalier from the GTT Edmonton Chapter. Starting next Wednesday, we will begin a new weekly blog called, Windows from the Keyboard Tips. These weekly posts will contain useful keyboard shortcuts, tips, and strategies  that I find useful as a keyboard user of Windows. The information is for Windows10 and Office 365, although many tips will still apply to older versions.  The tips do not require a screen reader unless specifically noted. Thus, most of the tips apply whether you are a keyboard user or low vision mouse user.

 

There are over 50 weekly tips planned in the next year  that will cover Windows 10 in general, including the desktop, Start menu search, settings, and File Explorer. Office apps such as Word, Excel, and Outlook will also be included.

 

If you know people who might be interested in reading the blog posts, they can read them on the

GTT National blog web site.

If they prefer to receive the posts in their email inbox there is a Follow link at the bottom of that web site where you can submit your email address.

 

Watch your inbox next Wednesday for the first tip in the series.

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Privacy Protection, October 14, 2019

October 14, 2019

Privacy protection

 

Hi there!  It’s Donna and thank you for allowing me to come into your inbox.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Today, I’d like to introduce you to my tip on privacy protection.

 

Privacy protection

We are constantly striving to protect ourselves from scams and scammers, but most of all we need to ensure that our privacy, confidentiality, and independence are kept safe from prying eyes and those who thrive on destroying our right to these precious commodities.

 

Signing an employment contract

Now, you need to make sure that your employment contract contains terms and conditions that you expect to be there.  Before you sign anything, ask your future employer to provide you with an electronic copy.  You can also suggest to them that signing an electronic copy is acceptable.  You will either need an electronic signature which you would need a bit of help to create Or ask if you can reply to an email that they can send extending the offer and this too is acceptable.

 

Things to pay attention to:

  • Salary, benefits, period of contract, probation period.
  • Anything that pertains to working conditions and workplace requirements.

 

That’s it from me for this week!

If you would like to become a member of  my CCB Mysteries chapter you can do so for the price of $10 annually and in return you will receive unlimited access to any of the following libraries.

Recipes – A collection of hard to find recipes

Audio mysteries for all ages – Comfort listening any time of the day

Home and garden – A collection of great articles for around the home and garden

Or you can subscribe to all 3 for the price of $30 annually.

Visit http://www.donnajodhan.com/subscription-libraries.html

 

To contact me, send me an email at info@sterlingcreations.ca and I’d be happy to respond.

Have yourselves a great day and see you next week.

Donna

 

GTT New Westminster Summary Notes, Web Browsing with PC Screen Readers, June 26, 2019

Get Together with Technology (GTT)

New Westminster Meeting

 

A Chapter of the Canadian Council of the Blind

in partnership with

Blind Beginnings

And

Vancouver Community College

 

Summary Notes

June 26, 2019

 

Find the CCB Podcast of this event at the link below:

04 GTT New Westminster, Web Browsing with PC Screen Readers, June 26, 2019:

 

Windows 10 Shortcut Keys:

 

JAWS Keyboard Commands:

 

NVDA Keyboard Commands:

 

Narrator Keyboard Commands:

 

Google Chrome Shortcut Keys:

 

Firefox Shortcut Keys:

 

General Windows, Mac, MS Office Shortcut Keys:

 

On June 26, 2019 Ryan Fleury and Albert Ruel presented some favourite shortcut keys to the GTT New Westminster group based on the below list.

Ryan’s frequently used Windows keyboard commands:

Insert W application hot keys

Insert h jaws hot key info for application

Windows x works like a mini start menu

Windows I quickly jump to windows settings

Windows r opens the run dialogue

Insert spacebar h brings up jaws speech history

Windows E opens windows/file explorer

Windows D to go to desktop

 

 

Albert’s frequently used Windows keyboard commands:

Insert T, Task Bar

Insert F, Font attributes in JAWS

Insert B, read the pop up window

Control Z, undo

Insert number row 1, keyboard help toggle

Control X, C and V, Cut, copy and paste

Control B, U and I, bold, underline and italic

Windows B, System Tray

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                       Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                               1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

 

 

GTT National Conference Call Summary Notes, Lucia Accessible Cell Phone, June 12, 2019

GTT National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

June 12, 2019

 

Find the CCB Podcast of this event at the link below:

02 GTT National Conference Call, Lucia Accessible Cell Phone, June 12, 2019:

Robert Felgar, CEO, Raz Mobility  attended the GTT National Conference Call to tell us all about the Lucia talking cell phone that is now available for sale to Canadians.

  • Lucia is an Accessible mobile phone for individuals who are visually impaired, blind, hard of hearing or seniors.
  • Lucia is a user-friendly cell phone that allows persons who are disabled to remain independent.
  • Advanced features such as accessible buttons in different colors and shapes, voice guide to transform the phone into a talking companion, ergonomic design, combined with long battery life, make this high-quality, Swiss-made phone the perfect mobile phone for users who are disabled.
  • Lucia has a powerful battery and can operate for more than one week before requiring a charge (up to 7 days standby time and 10 hours of talking time).
  • Lucia allows users who are blind to enter their own contacts and move through the contact list to hear the contact names read out loud.
  • Low vision users benefit from extra large characters and can choose between various color schemes such as white on black or black on white display.
  • For emergencies, the phone has a dedicated SOS button on its back.
  • Easy to navigate menus with large and highly tactile buttons. The control buttons are different colors and shapes so that the user always presses the correct button.
  • Speech interface guides the user while using the phone. It speaks everything that is on the screen, speaks the keys that are pressed and even prompts the user to perform certain functions. Caller ID, amount of remaining battery power, contacts, list of missed calls and text messages are read out loud by Lucia. The user can select between more than 10 different voices.
  • Lucia is 100 percent accessible to individuals who are blind. Its features make it the perfect phone for individuals who are visually impaired, blind, hard of hearing or seniors.
  • To assist people who are hard of hearing, the phone has a “sound boost” function that provides additional volume during phine calls with the press of a button. Lucia has premium speakers to maximize clarity and sound experience.

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                        Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                               1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

 

 

GTT Beginners National Conference Call Summary Notes, Navigating Websites Using Screen Readers with a PC, May 28, 2019

GTT Beginners National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

May 28, 2019

 

Find the Podcast of this event at the link below:

01 GTT Beginners National Conference Call, Navigating Websites Using Screen Readers with a PC, May 28, 2019:

 

Navigating Websites Using Screen Readers with a PC

 

Kim Kilpatrick, Brian Bibeault and Albert Ruel demonstrated the use of Navigation Quick Keys and other strategies for effectively and efficiently accessing information from the websites we visit using the screen readers available in the Windows environment.

 

The pages visited were the Get Together with Technology (GTT) Blog and CELA Library pages.

 

Navigation Quick Keys for JAWS

 

NVDA command key quick reference

 

Narrator keyboard commands and touch gestures

 

For more information please contact your GTT Coordinators:

 

Albert Ruel                   or                       Kim Kilpatrick

1-877-304-0968,550                               1-877-304-0968,513

albert.GTT@CCBNational.net                GTTProgram@Gmail.com

 

CCB Backgrounder:

 

The CCB was founded in 1944 by a coalition of blind war veterans, schools of the blind and local chapters to create a national self-governing organization. The CCB was incorporated by Letters Patent on May 10, 1950 and is a registered charity under the provisions of the Income Tax Act (Canada).

The purpose of the CCB is to give people with vision loss a distinctive and unique perspective before governments.  CCB deals with the ongoing effects of vision loss by encouraging active living and rehabilitation through peer support and social and recreational activities.

CCB promotes measures to conserve sight, create a close relationship with the sighted community and provide employment opportunities.

 

The CCB recognizes that vision loss has no boundaries with respect to gender, income, ethnicity, culture, other disabilities or age.

The CCB understands in many instances vision loss is preventable and sometimes is symptomatic of other health issues.  For the 21st century, the CCB is committed to an integrated proactive health approach for early detection to improve the quality of life for all Canadians.

As the largest membership organization of the blind and partially sighted in Canada the CCB is the “Voice of the Blind™”.

 

CCB National Office

100-20 James Street Ottawa ON  K2P 0T6

Toll Free: 1-877-304-0968 Email: info@ccbnational.net URL: www.ccbnational.net

 

 

 

GTT Beginners National Conference Call Summary Notes, Using the Web on iOS with Voiceover, June 25, 2019

GTT Beginners National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

 

June 25, 2019

 

Theme: Using the Web on iOS with Voiceover

 

On June 25, 2019 Albert Ruel demonstrated the use of the Rotor with Voice Over for effectively and efficiently accessing information from websites using iOS devices.  A discussion of the Reader View available in the Safari Browser was also undertaken with a view to accessing just the text of articles rather than pages of advertising, links and other navigation controls.

Web Browsing using the Rotor with Safari:

  • Using both touch gestures on the iOS screen and the Logitech Bluetooth keyboard K380.
  • Voice Over and Safari on iOS, iPod iPad and iPhone with the latest version of iOS 12.
  • The rotor was used when web browsing to access Headings, Links, Form Fields, Edit Options, Text Selection, Characters, Words, Lines, Buttons and Tables.
  • To turn the Rotor to the above movement units move two fingers across the screen in opposite directions, or use the thumb and forefinger to mimic the turning of a knob. To do this on a Bluetooth keyboard press both the left and up arrow buttons to turn the Rotor to the left and use the right and up arrow buttons to move it to the right.
  • Once a movement unit is selected, a one-finger flick up will move to the previous item and a one-finger flick down will move to the next item. To do that with a Bluetooth keyboard press the up and down arrow buttons respectively.

 

Reader View Button in the Safari Browser:

  • The Reader View button is located at the very top of Safari on the left-hand side of the page and looks like a button with squiggly lines.

To access it perform a four-finger single tap near the top of the screen to bring focus to the top, or hold down the Control key and press the up arrow button.

  • To activate and de-activate the Reader View button one-finger double tap it, or press the up and down arrow buttons together. When the Reader View button is activated it strips out most links, advertisements and other junk from a webpage.
  • Voice Over will announce that Reader View is available once a web page is loaded.
  • Reader View in Safari can be activated when accessing any website where it is available, or it can be programmed to automatically activate when all web pages are accessed, or just specific websites. To access the Automatic Reader View Menu, from the Reader View button perform a one-finger swipe up or press the up arrow, then one-finger double tap or press the up and down arrow buttons to activate the Menu.  Use a one-finger swipe to the right or the right arrow button to examine the menu and one-finger double tap or press the up and down arrow buttons together to activate your desired option.
  • Low vision configuration is available once Reader View is activated by one-finger double tapping or pressing the up and down arrow buttons on the keyboard on the Reader Appearance Options button to the right of the Address Bar. Swipe to the right or use the right arrow button to examine the list of options and one-finger double tap or press the up and down arrow buttons together to select desired items.

 

General Touch Screen Gestures:

 

  • On all web pages, a one-finger swipe to the right, or pressing the Write arrow button will move focus to the next item, and a swipe to the left, or pressing the left arrow button will move to the previous item.
  • To have Voice Over read from the top of the page perform a two-finger swipe up, or hold down the VO key and press the letter A. To have Voice Over read from the current position perform a two-finger swipe down or hold down the VO key and press the letter B.
  • To pause and resume Voice Over’s reading of any document, email or web page perform a 2-finger single tap, or press and release the Control key. Both of the above gestures will toggle the reading functions on and off.
  • Access Heading Navigation by turning to it with the Rotor, or holding down the VO key on a Bluetooth keyboard and typing the letter Q. VO + the letter Q will toggle it off again.
  • Navigating by headings is the most important means of examining a web page, and once the desired section is found swiping to the right or pressing the right arrow buttons will move focus to the next item. Using Heading Navigation will avoid much of the junk at the top of web pages.
  • Headings are like the chapter markers in a book. They are organized in a hierarchical numbering system with Level 1 Headings above Level 2 and so on.  With VO + Q turned on pressing numbers 1 through 6 will move to those respective Level Headings.
  • Every time a Google search is conducted in Safari there should be a Level 1 Heading titled: Search Results. Turn the Rotor to Headings then use a one-finger swipe down or press the down arrow button to locate the Search Results area, and eventually each of the results listed on the page.
  • forefinger double tap on the iPhone screen will turn on keyboard help, this will enable you to test out key commands on the keyboard or swipes on the phone to hear descriptions of what that action will do when outside of keyboard help.
  • To access the Status Bar at the top of the screen in any iOS device using a Bluetooth Keyboard hold down the Control key and the CapsLock key plus the letter M, then perform the same key command again to get out of the status bar.

 

Quick Navigation Keys:

  • to turn quick navigation keys on/off use left and right arrow Keys at the same time.
  • when typing into an edit field quick navigation keys are off.
  • Having quick navigation keys On enables one to use the Rotor to access headings, Characters, Words, Lines and many other navigation elements.
  • when the focus is on the address bar and it is clicked on you can assume that the text is selected and if using quick navigation it will turn off automatically so you can begin to type. Typing will replace the highlighted text.
  • The Rotor elements called Vertical Navigation and Rows will allow you to move up and down columns when in a table rather than swiping right and left to go horizontally across the screen then wrapping around to the next line or row. This is useful on bank statements as an example.

 

 

Additional Resources:

AppleVis is the main place to find out information regarding voiceover iOS apps on all 4 of the iOS family devices. 

 

 

Bluetooth Keyboard Commands are listed here:

 

Logitech Bluetooth Keyboard K380:

 

 

GTT National Conference Call Overview

  • GTT National Conference Call is a monthly discussion group of the Canadian Council of the Blind (CCB).
  • GTT National Conference Calls promote a self-help learning experience by holding monthly meetings to present and discuss new and emerging assistive technology.
  • Each meeting consists of a feature technology topic, along with questions and answers about assistive technology.
  • Participants are encouraged to attend each meeting even if they are not interested in the feature topic because questions on any technology are welcome. The more participants the better able we will be equipped with the talent and experience to help each other.
  • There are GTT groups across Canada as well as an email distribution list where assistive technology questions are provided by participants. You may also subscribe to the National GTT blog to get email notices of teleconferences and notes from other GTT chapters. Visit:

http://www.GTTProgram.Blog/

There is a form at the bottom of that web page to enter your email.

 

National GTT Email Support List

CCB sponsors a GTT email support list to provide help and support with technology for blind and low vision Canadians.  To subscribe to the email list, send an empty email to:

GTTsupport+subscribe@groups.io

 

[End of Document]