The message below is from Jason Fayre from CNIB who is one of the leaders of GTT Toronto. I do not know how this applies to other screen readers such as NVDA. If anyone has any additional information, please send it to me at
Gttprogram@gmail.com and I will post to the blog.
Hello all,
On April 11, Microsoft will begin roling out the next major update to Windows 10. This is a very large update, so Microsoft is sending it out in stages. You will probably not get the update immediately.
JAWS must be updated to the latest version of 17 or 18 to be compatible with this new update. If you already have the latest JAWS 18 update, there is nothing you need to do.
If JAWS is requesting that you update it, you should run the update. To be sure, I would suggest going to the Help menu in JAWS, then selecting “Check for Updates.”
The latest version of JAWS is 18.0.2530.

Hello everyone.
There has been a big flood at the CCB National Offices at 20 James street.
Staff are not able to work there right now. This means, that GTT training sessions or drop ins may have to be cancelled or moved.
Before coming to the office for anything related to GTT, please call or email Kim at the following numbers to check.
613-552-0533
Or gttprogram@gmail.com

This is just a reminder of our GTT national teleconference call which will take place tonight February 8 at 7 PM Eastern, 4 Pacific time.
We had been asked to talk about on line shopping (especially for groceries) but have been asked by some who are away to put this one off until March. Since it is white cane week, I thought we could talk about mobility devices and apps? What type of cane do you use? What type of tip? What colour? Do you use a guide dog? What apps or tricks do you use for getting around?
Here is the call in info.
1-866-740-1260
Passcode 5670311

Hi everyone.
See below for a message from Citizens with Disabilities Ontario.
Sorry for the short notice.

Hi Everyone,

Please Circulate Widely, especially for Ontario!

There is room for additional participants!

You are invited to attend a forum on National Accessibility and Inclusion Act, (NAIA), Tuesday evening at 7:30 PM EST, January 10, 2017, in CWDO Auditorium 1.

Your input is requested to inform CWDO’s submission about what the Act should include.

Captioning will be provided for this discussion.

Please use this link:

http://www.conference321.com/masteradmin/room.asp?id=rs940b83fc7268

When the Auditorium 1 page comes up, please read carefully. You may need to download a plug-in or an App, depending on what technology you are using.

If, for some reason, Auditorium 1 does not work for you, please call to have your input counted.

Thanks to CCD for supporting the teleconference.

Call 1-877-733-5390

Conference Participant Code number is: 2622423515#

Below my name is the notice which has been appearing in our CWDO Newsletters.

We hope you can join us Tuesday evening,

Pat Seed

(807) 473-0909

*CWDO forum on federal consultation

Join us on Tuesday, January 10 at 7:30 PM to share your views on what should be included in federal government legislation to address accessibility.

The forum will be held in Auditorium 1 in our accessible, online conferencing system. Go to our conference rooms and choose Auditorium 1. First time users – choose the download that matches your computer or phone device.

Please register for the forum on national accessible legislation to let us know you’re coming and to let us know of any accommodation needs you may have to participate in this online discussion (for example, captioning).

*Take our survey on national accessibility laws

The accessibility yardstick could be moved considerably with accessibility legislation that applies to federally-regulated organizations at the federal public service.

CWDO will be submitting a response to the federal government’s consultation and we would like to reflect our members’ views in that response.

Please take CWDO’s survey on national accessibility legislation and let us know what’s important to you.

Read Barrier-Free Canada’s principles and their Discussion Paper about what could be included in the legislation.

Together we are stronger.

Hello everyone. I have done testing for the below company before.
You can be from anywhere in Canada to do this. Also, both people with low vision and those who are totally blind would be eligible.
Use the contact information provided below in the posting.
Earn a $50 gift certificate for doing 1 hour of work from home.

Roy Ballantine at Neo Insight is looking for blind and partially sighted internet users to sign up to participate in 1-hour Skype sessions to test the usability of the Government of Canada website. The sessions are run entirely online using Skype and an internet browser, and a mutually convenient day and time. Participants are given a $50 PayPal or Amazon gift certificate for their time.

To be added to our list of candidates, please email your contact information to signup@neoinsight.com, or call Roy at (613) 317-1683. Your information will not be shared and your privacy will be preserved.

See below for a post from CELA about becoming involved in a user advisory group.  In order to do this, you must fill in a survey or contact them directly.

See below.

Are you interested in sharing your experiences and providing input to improve services for the print disabled community? CELA is now accepting applications for its new User Advisory Group! The group will meet 6-12 times a year with the goal of informing technology decisions and overall strategy of the organization and strengthening CELA services for all.  CELA is looking for input from a variety of users with a wide range of experiences and abilities. Appointments to the Advisory Group is for a two-year term and CELA asks that those applying meet the following criteria:

• Willingness and ability to commit to the necessary time and effort required to contribute meaningfully to the group;
• Commitment and interest in the future of CELA services, with that interest informed by personal or professional experience and an ability to balance local and regional perspectives;
• Skills and experience related to previous work with community-based and/or cultural or library projects

CELA welcomes and encourages interested GTT members to apply for the group by completing theapplication form (SurveyMonkey) by Friday, December 2, 2016. For additional information, please read the Terms of Reference (Word) or email Michael Ciccone, Executive Director.

I am trying out a new way to paste links into the blog.

This is a useful new portal apple has for accessibility so if you want to let me know if you can click on the following link, I’d be grateful.

http://www.apple.com/accessibility/

Hello everyone. I received this information and am passing it along although it is not quite related to technology itself. If the links in this document do not work, email me at
gttprogram@gmail.com and I will forward you the email.
Kim
In May, the Government launched an independent, evidence-based review of Canada Post to ensure Canadians receive quality and sustainable postal services at a reasonable cost.

This letter is to inform you that the first phase of the review process is complete. Today, I received the discussion paper prepared by the independent Task Force I established to undertake Phase 1 of the Canada Post review.

During this first phase, the Task Force undertook an analysis of Canada Post’s services and current financial situation, conducted public opinion research, met with key stakeholders, and examined international best practices for postal delivery.

It is clear that postal services are highly important to Canadians. Canada Post is an institution that is relevant and valuable to Canadians, and part of our fabric as a nation.

A copy of the discussion paper can be found on the Department’s Canada Post Review website.

The discussion paper will help inform the second phase of the review, which is being led by the House of Commons Standing Committee on Government Operations and Estimates. The committee is carrying out national public consultations with Canadians from coast to coast to coast, beginning in Ottawa on September 20th. For more information on the consultations and how you can participate, please visit the committee’s website.

Based on its findings, the parliamentary committee will make recommendations to the Government on the future of Canada Post by December 2016.

This is only the beginning. A great deal of work has been done and more still needs to occur before the Government makes any decisions with respect to the future of Canada Post.

As always, please do not hesitate to share your thoughts on the review that will help ensure Canadians receive the postal services they value and need.

Sincerely,

Judy M. Foote, PC, MP

Minister of Public Services and Procurement

GTT National call September 14 2016.
Brainstorming for upcoming GTT national call topics.
Please rate these topics in order of preference. Give us your top 3.
If you have any expertise on presenting on any of these topics, please let us know that too.
IOS 10. What’s new for people who are blind or have low vision?
We especially would like someone to present on the new magnification features for low vision users.
Windows 10.
Downloading and reading audio books, which platforms to use, how to get your books to the device of choice, which device to use?
Apple TV and other accessible tvs like samsung.
Facebook for small business users
Twitter how to use it, which ways are most accessible?
Medical devices that are accessible?
Bluetooth devices for cooking and use around the house?
Low vision computer access solutions?
Employment panel of people in different employment situations and how to use technology while working?
Exploring hobbies?
Music streaming services and the dubious accessibility of Itunes?
Syncing across devices and systems, how to sync contacts, calendars ETC?
Scanning and OCR solutions Kurzweil, open book ETC?
Dealing with PDF’s?
Comparison of screen readers, jaws, NVDA, narrator, voiceover.
Kindle and Ebook reading solutions.
Favourite IOS apps.
Favourite android apps.
Cloud services, how to use them and which are most accessible and easy to use?
Zoomtext?
ORCAM.
GPS app comparisons?
New orbit braille display?
If you have other topics send them along.
Please send any thoughts and preferences and ability to present to
gttprogram@gmail.com

Hello everyone.
I have been running the beta of IOS 10 for a few months now. There are some exciting new voiceover features. There are two bugs one quite annoying for braille display users. These are just my impressions.
You can also go to
Www.applevis.com to find podcasts about this.
Big Pluses
1. New voiceover voices. There are several new voiceover voices to try. Some of you may recognize them from the mac and they are very high quality.
2. Arranging apps on your phone. Gone are the days when you had to slide your fingers around the screen to arrange apps. Now, when you are on a home screen, swipe down with one finger and when you hear arrange apps, double tap with one finger and you can then begin arranging apps.3. Getting rid of stock apps you do not want. You don’t have to keep any of the native apps on the phone that you don’t use anymore.
4. Pronunciation dictionary for voiceover. It is here.
5. In mail, when you read a message and then press delete, it goes right to the next message body and starts reading that.
Two bugs.
One is a big braille bug. When you have a braille display paired with your I device and. You are reading mail, each new line it inserts the name of the mail sender. This is quite annoying and has been pointed out to apple. If you are just listening with voiceover, you do not hear this.
Another bug is that in some apps, if you do a 2 finger double tap to continue listening to music etc, it sometimes starts dictation.
We are always here to help everyone get used to IOS 10. There are some great magnification features for people with low vision.
Contact me if you want to talk this through further.
1-877-304-0968
Gttprogram@gmail.com

Our next GTT national conference call is a brainstorming session to pick topics for the upcoming year’s national calls. Is there something you want to hear more about? Is there a topic you can present on for us? Please join us to brainstorm. If you cannot join us in person, you can always send suggestions to us.
Here is the call in information.
Date: Wednesday September 14.
Time: 7 PM Eastern
Call in info:
1-866-740-1260
Passcode: 5670311
For more information: Call 1-877-304-0968 and ask for Kim or Albert
Or email gttprogram@gmail.com
Looking forward to a great year of information sharing ahead.

This is just a reminder of the GTT national conference call which will take place on Wednesday August 17 at 7 PM Eastern time 4 Pacific time.
We will be talking about braille.
Kim will describe and talk about the Orbit braille display which is now available for pre-order.
One of our GTT Edmonton participants will talk about his use of the braille sense notetaker. He uses it extensively in his school and also paired with his phone.
Below find the call in information.
1-866-740-1260 Passcode 5670311
For more information contact Kim at
1-877-304-0968
Or
Gttprogram@gmail.com