Yes, Alexa, Siri, and Google are listening — 6 ways to stop devices from recording you by Janet Perez, Komando.com

Yes, Alexa, Siri, and Google are listening — 6 ways to stop devices from recording you

komando.com

 

Yes, Alexa, Siri, and Google are listening — 6 ways to stop devices from recording you

Janet Perez, Komando.com

Full text of the article follows this URL:

 

Seems like we owe the tinfoil hat club a big apology. Yes, there are eyes and ears everywhere in just about any large city in the world. Here in the good,

old U-S-of-A, our smartphones, tablets, computers, cars, voice assistants and cameras are watching and listening to you.

 

We don’t know what is more troubling — that these devices keep track of us or that we shrug our shoulders and say, “Oh well?” That attitude of surrender

may stem from an overwhelming sense of helplessness. ”

Technology is everywhere.

Why fight it?”

 

Truth is, it’s not a fight. It’s a series of tap-or-click settings, which we’ll walk you through.

 

You can take control of what your devices hear and record, and it’s not that hard. We have 6 ways to help you turn off and tune out Alexa, Siri, and Google,

as well as smartphones, third-party apps, tablets, and computers.

 

How to stop Alexa from listening to you

 

Weeks after the public discovered that Alexa, and by extension Echo devices

are always listening,

Amazon announced a

new Alexa feature that’s already available.

It allows you to command the voice assistant to delete recent commands. Just say, “Alexa, delete everything I said today.”

 

Sounds great, but there’s still the problems of Alexa always listening and your old recordings. Let’s tackle the old recordings first. Unless the delete

command is expanded to include all recordings, you still have to remove old files manually. Here’s what to do:

 

list of 4 items

  1. Open the Alexa app and go into the “Settings” section.
  2. Select “History” and you’ll see a list of all the entries.
  3. Select an entry and tap the Delete button.
  4. If you want to delete all the recordings with a single click, you must visit the “Manage Your Content and Devices” page at amazon.com/mycd.

list end

 

As for Alexa and Echo devices always listening, well you could turn off each of the devices, but then what’s the point of having them? The real issue is

that we discovered Amazon employees around the world are listening to us and making transcriptions.

 

Here’s how to stop that:

 

list of 7 items

  1. Open the Alexa app on your phone.
  2. Tap the menu button on the top left of the screen.
  3. Select “Settings” then “Alexa Account.”
  4. Choose “Alexa Privacy.”
  5. Select “Manage how your data improves Alexa.”
  6. Turn off the toggle next to “Help Develop New Features.”
  7. Turn off the toggle next to your name under “Use Messages to Improve Transcriptions.”

list end

 

For extra privacy, there’s also a way to mute the Echo’s mics. To turn the Echo’s mic off, press the microphone’s off/on button at the top of the device.

Whenever this button is red, the mic is off. To reactivate it, just press the button again and it will turn blue.

 

How to stop Siri from recording what you say

 

Alexa isn’t the only nosey assistant. Don’t forget the ones on your iPhones and Androids. On your iPhone,

“Hey Siri” is always on

waiting to receive your command to call someone or send a text message, etc. Apple says your iPhone’s mic is always on as it waits for the “Hey Siri”

command, but swears it is not recording.

 

If it still makes you nervous, you don’t have to disable Siri completely to stop the “Hey Siri” feature. On your iPhone, go to Settings >> Siri & Search >>

toggle off “Listen for Hey Siri.”

 

Note: “Hey Siri” only works for iPhone 6s or later. iPhone 6 or earlier has to be plugged in for the “Hey Siri” wake phrase to work.

 

How to delete your recordings from Google Assistant

 

Google Assistant has the

“OK Google” wake-up call,

but the company introduced the My Account tool that lets you access your recordings and delete them if you want. You can also tell Google to stop recording

your voice for good.

 

Here’s how to turn off the “OK Google” wake phrase: On Android, go to Settings >> Google >> Search & Now >> Voice and turn “Ok Google” detection off.

 

How to control third-party apps that record you

 

Even if you do all these steps for your Apple and Android devices, third-party apps you download could have their own listening feature. Case in point:

Facebook (although it denies it. But it’s still a good practice to check to see if third-party apps are listening).

 

Here’s how to stop Facebook from listening to you:

 

If you are an iPhone user, go to Settings >> Facebook >> slide the toggle next to Microphone to the left so it turns from green to white.

 

Or, you can go to Settings >> Privacy >> Microphone >> look for Facebook and slide the toggle next to it to the left to turn off the mic. You can toggle

the mic on and off for other apps this way, too.

 

For Android users go to Settings >> Applications >> Application Manager >> look for Facebook >> Permissions >> turn off the mic.

 

Tricks to disable screen recorders on tablets

 

Certain Apple iPads have the phone’s “Hey Siri” wake-up command feature. They are the 2nd-gen 12.9-inch iPad Pro and the 9.7-inch iPad Pro. Other iPad

and iPad Touch models have to be plugged in for the “Hey Siri” wake phrase to work.

 

The bad news for privacy seekers is that iPads come with a screen recording feature that also records audio.  It may pose issues in terms of both privacy

and security.

 

You can disable the screen recording feature through another feature, “Screen Time”:

 

list of 4 items

  1. Open the Settings app, and then tap Screen Time. On the Screen Time panel, tap “Content & Privacy Settings.”
  2. Tap “Content Restrictions.” If you don’t see this option, turn on the switch next to “Content & Privacy Restrictions” to unhide it.
  3. Under “Game Center,” tap “Screen Recording.”
  4. Tap “Don’t Allow” and then exit the Settings app. The screen recording control should no longer work, even if it is enabled within the Control Center.

list end

 

Screen Time is available in iOS 12 and above. If you are still using iOS 11 or iOS 10 on your iPhone or iPad, the above steps can be found under Settings

>> General >> Restrictions.

 

Android tablets also can record video and audio. However, you have to use a third-party app to disable the camera.

 

On your Android device, go to the Play Store, then download and install the app called “Cameraless.”

 

list of 5 items

  1. Once installed, launch the app from your app drawer.
  2. On the app’s main menu, tap the option for “Camera Manager On/Off.” By default, the camera manager is set to “Off,” so you need to enable the app first

as one of your device administrators before you can switch it “On.”

  1. Once your camera manager is “On,” just tap the option for “Disable camera” then wait until the notice disappears on your screen.
  2. Once you’re done, just close the app then go to your tablet’s camera icon.
  3. If successfully disabled, you’ll immediately get a notice that your device camera has been disabled due to security policy violations. This is the notice

that you’ll get from the “Cameraless” app. If you click “OK” you’ll be taken back to your home screen.

list end

 

Desktop and laptops are watching and listening too

Computer monitor and keyboard

 

We’ve been warned for years about hackers taking control of cameras on your computer screen. No need for elaborate instructions on disabling and enabling

the camera. Just slap a sticker on it and only remove it if you have to use Skype. Sometimes the best solutions are the simplest ones.

 

Unfortunately, you do have to root around your computer a bit to turn off mics.

 

For PCs running Windows 10, the process is actually quite painless. Right-click on the “Start Button” and open “Device Manager.” In the “Device Manager”

window, expand the audio inputs and outputs section and you will see your microphone listed as one of the interfaces. Right-click on “Microphone” and select

“Disable.” You’re done.

 

For Macs, there are two methods depending on how old your operating system is. For Macs with newer operating systems:

 

list of 5 items

  1. Launch “System Preferences” from the Apple menu in the upper left corner.
  2. Click on the “Sound” preference panel.
  3. Click on the “Input” tab.
  4. Drag the “Input volume” slider all the way to the left so it can’t pick up any sound.
  5. Close “System Preferences.”

list end

 

If you have an older operating system, use this method:

 

list of 5 items

  1. Launch the “System Preferences.”
  2. Click on “Sound.”
  3. Click on the “Input” tab.
  4. Select “Line-in.”
  5. Close System Preferences

list end

 

Now you know how to take control of your devices and how they listen and record you. It’s a pretty simple way to get your privacy back, at least some of

it.

 

Stop Facebook’s targeted advertising by changing your account settings

 

Let me be frank: I only keep a Facebook account to engage with listeners of my national radio show. I don’t use my personal account. I stepped away from

the social media platform, and I never looked back.

 

Click here to read more about Facebook advertising.

 

Please share this information with everyone. Just click on any of the social media buttons on the side.

 

list of 14 items

  • Fraud/Security/Privacy
  • Alexa
  • Amazon
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Echo
  • Facebook
  • Google
  • iPad
  • Mac
  • PC
  • Privacy
  • Security
  • Siri

list end

 

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CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Apps Round-up, June 3, 2019

June 03, 2019

xApps round up

 

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

Today, I’d like to introduce you to my apps roundup.

Enjoy!

 

  1. Clew (iOS, Free)

 

Clew is an AR indoor navigation app designed for visually impaired users to help them retrace their steps in unfamiliar environments.

Current Version: 1.0.4 (February 17, 2019)

Read Clew’s AppleVis App Directory entry for more information

https://www.applevis.com/apps/ios/navigation/clew

 

  1. MiniWiki (watchOS, Free With In-App Purchases)

 

MiniWiki is the best way to browse Wikipedia™ on your Apple Watch with ease.

 

From searching across 40 million articles, to downloading articles for offline reading, MiniWiki has you covered!

 

MiniWiki was designed from the ground up to compliment the Apple Watch’s unique screen size, resulting in a smooth and intutive Wikipedia experience.

 

Read  MiniWiki’s AppleVis App Directory entry for more information

https://www.applevis.com/apps/apple-watch/reference/miniwiki

 

Visit MiniWiki’s App Store page

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/miniwiki/id1448143759?mt=8&at=11l4LS

 

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

 

 

Government of Canada investing in teaching digital skills to Canadians who need them most, CNIB Foundation

*Note: This program is only available to British Columbia and Nova Scotia residents.

Government of Canada investing in teaching digital skills to Canadians who need them most

Author:

Date Written: May 20, 2019 at 5:00 PM

Date Saved: 5/28/19, 2:19 PM

Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/innovation-science-economic-development/news/2019/05/government-of-canada-investing-in-teaching-digital-skills-to-canadians-who-need-them-most0.html

News release

Canadians needing fundamental digital skills training to benefit from this investment Digital skills widen Canadians’ access to a world of possibilities. All Canadians should have the necessary skills to get online by using computers, mobile devices and the Internet safely and effectively. That is why the Government is putting in place initiatives to ensure no one is left behind as the world transitions to a digital economy.

Today, the Honourable Joyce Murray, President of the Treasury Board and Minister of Digital Government, on behalf of the Honourable Navdeep Bains, Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development, announced an investment of $1.3 million in the Canadian National Institute for the Blind’s (CNIB) Connecting with Technology initiative. This initiative will deliver fundamental digital literacy skills training to participants in British Columbia and across the country.

CNIB’s Connecting with Technology initiative will be targeted at seniors who are blind or partially sighted. This initiative will reach about 750 participants, providing them with training in digital literacy and offering required assistive technologies.

This investment is being provided through the Digital Literacy Exchange program, a $29.5-million program that supports digital skills training for those known to be most at risk of being left behind by the rapid pace of digital technology adoption: seniors, people with disabilities, newcomers to Canada, Indigenous peoples, low-income Canadians, and individuals living in northern and rural communities.

The program aligns with the Government’s Innovation and Skills Plan, a multi-year strategy to create good jobs and ensure Canadians have the skills to succeed.

End of article.

 

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, ReadEasy Move, May 27, 2019

May 27, 2019

Meet the ReadEasy Move

 

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

Today, I’d like to talk about the ReadEasy Move.

Let’s meet this product.

 

Meet the ReadEasy Move

 

Well folks, here it is.  Another alternative for you to check out!

 

Yet another  portable scanner for you to go out there and make friends with.  This is good, exciting, and a must read for you.

Please see below.

 

http://www.gwmicro.com/Reading_Systems/ReadEasy_Move/

The ReadEasy Move

Has Arrived

 

ReadEasy Move is an easy to use all-in-one portable device that reads to you.

 

ReadEasy Move will read practically any printed text out loud within seconds, in a clear human sounding voice.

 

Simply line up your document or book against the right hand edge of ReadEasy Move’s case, press the “Capture” button and within a few seconds your print material is being read out loud to you.

 

Who is the ReadEasy Move For?

 

ReadEasy Move is for anyone who needs quick, easy and accurate access to printed material.

 

ReadEasy Move has an intuitive and tactile design that makes it an ideal solution for people with all levels of vision from low vision to total blindness.

 

The one button operation of the ReadEasy Move makes it suitable for people of all ages whether you are 4 or 104!

 

ReadEasy Move could be the perfect reading system for you if:

 

*          You find it difficult to read with a magnifying glass.

*          You would like to be more independent and be able to read your own documents (mail, newspapers, bills, etc.).

*          You have a learning disability such as dyslexia and benefit from listening to text read to you out loud.

*          You find reading with a video magnifier (CCTV) too difficult because you can’t fit enough characters on the screen to read at your desired pace.

*          You find the constant movement of text on a video magnifier’s screen makes your eyes fatigued or gives you a nauseous feeling.

*          You already have a reading machine but wish it was faster, more accurate and had more features.

*          You have a degenerative eye condition and would like a system that is suitable both now and for the future.

 

What are ReadEasy Move’s Benefits?

ReadEasy Move features many benefits over other scanner and digital capture reading machines including:

 

ReadEasy+ capturing text from a letter size document image:

 

http://www.gwmicro.com/images/RE-Move-Letter-Cropped-w1000.jpg

 

Ease of use: ReadEasy Move is so easy to use. A single button press is all it takes to start reading your document. The six tactile in built controls are all that are required to access ReadEasy Move’s main features.

 

*          Accuracy: ReadEasy Move uses the latest camera and recognition technology to ensure it is as accurate as possible, even on complicated newspaper layouts or curved surfaces like cans of food.

*          Quality of speech: Using the latest natural sounding voices, together with a custom designed, integrated, 6 watt RMS stereo speaker system, there is no better sounding reading machine.

*          Speed: ReadEasy Move reads your document to you in just a few seconds, (typically 4-6), which means less waiting and more reading!

*          Stylish and practical design: A sleek, all aluminum case together with a detachable camera, allows the ReadEasy Move to fit anywhere in your home and can be easily transported when on the go with the included custom carrying case.

*          Footprint: Occupying just 7.6 x 3.1 inches, (192 x 78 mm), of table area, ReadEasy Move is extremely compact and 75% smaller than the previous versions.

*          Weight: ReadEasy Move is the world’s lightest free standing reading machine at just 4 lbs., (1.80 kg), making it easy to take with you or pack away.

*          Versatility: Read almost any surface, flat or round. ReadEasy Move’s camera allows it to capture deep into the spines of books without flattening them, as well as reading 3D objects like cans or prescription bottles.

*          Low Vision Pack: If you benefit from reading magnified text in high contrast then the ReadEasy Move with the Low Vision Pack is just for you. The ReadEasy Move with Low Vision Pack offers additional features that benefit users with low vision including being able to output captured text to a monitor so you can see the text as it is read aloud.

*          Advanced Feature Packs available: The Optional Keypad Feature Pack, Low Vision Pack and Low Vision Touch Pack greatly increases the capabilities of each device (e.g. saving, importing, exporting, bookmarking documents and large print text output to an interactive touch screen).

 

ReadEasy Move Features

ReadEasy Move lets you read more easily than ever before.

 

The ReadEasy Move is Easy to Setup

 

Image of the ReadEasy Move simple three step setup process. Image displays

ReadEasy Move with camera disconnected, camera connected and camera connected and opened for use.

 

ReadEasy Move is designed to be simple to set up and pack away. ReadEasy Move features a unique magnetic quick release camera system allowing the unit to be far more compact and lightweight. Simply placing the camera into its dock on the base unit automatically locates it into the correct position. Once the camera system is docked into place, pull the camera head out towards you. To pack away, just complete the same steps in reverse and place the unit in the included custom carrying case!

 

The ReadEasy Move is Easy to Use

 

With a specially designed tactile keypad, comprised of just 6 buttons, ReadEasy Move is incredibly simple to operate. From left to right, the tactile and uniquely shaped buttons include: speech faster, speech slower, previous sentence, play/pause, next sentence and capture.

 

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 Edmonton Summary Notes, May 13, 2019

Summary Notes
GTT Edmonton Meeting May 13, 2019

The most recent meeting of the Get Together with Technology (GTT) Edmonton Chapter was held May 13 at 7pm at Ascension Lutheran Church 8405 83 Street in Edmonton.
12 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.

May Topic – Independent Living Low Tech Aids
Low Tech Aids Demo
Stephannie Leach, Independent Living Skills Specialist at Vision Loss Rehab Alberta (a Division of CNIB), demonstrated some inexpensive low tech aids and free apps that can be used in the home to promote independent living. These devices included:
• Color Reader is a hand-held device that can be placed near an object such as an item of clothing and it will speak its color.
• Level Indicator: Place it on the edge of a cup, pour in liquid and it will beep when the cup is full.
• Talking Kitchen Scale to weigh small items and ingredients.
• Talking Measuring Cup: It announces the amount of liquid you pour into the cup. Buttons to select water, oil, or milk. 1 Liter capacity. Detaches from its base for washing.
• Pen Friend is a talking label device. IT comes with 250 labels that can be attached to items such as clothing, containers, file folders, CDs, whatever you wish. Speak a description of the item to the Pen Friend and the next time you touch the label with the Pen Friend it will speak back what you said. Clothes washing does not damage the label. Pen Friend can also play MP3 files. It also comes with magnets. Place a talking label on a magnet and it can then be reused on items such as canned food.
• Talking Bathroom Scale with a setting for pounds or kilograms.
• Reminder Rosie is a handheld device that you can talk to. You can ask it the time, tell it to remind you about appointments or things to do, all just with your voice and no computer.
• Talking watches and clocks.
• Seeing AI App for iPhone: This is a free app from Microsoft that you can download from the app store. It helps with many tasks including speaking colors, reading out loud short text such as package labels and envelopes, reads package bar codes, reads out loud longer paper documents, identifies Canadian, U.S., UK currency notes, identifies faces, and more.

CNIB STEP Program and Retail Store
The above items can be subsidized through the CNIB STEP program for Alberta CNIB clients. Contact your local Edmonton CNIB office at 780.488.4871 to learn more or visit the office at #600, 11150 Jasper Avenue. CNIB also has a retail store at this address where the above items can be viewed and purchased.

Home Visit by Stephannie Leach
CNIB clients can also come into the Edmonton office to see these devices at the CNIB store or they can call to book an appointment with Stephannie to come to their home to help them with their independent living skills. You may also contact Stephannie by email at Stephannie.Leach@vlrehab.ca

Next Meeting (Monday June 10, 2019 at 7pm)
• Carrie and Lyle will explain the accessibility settings built into Windows 10 that make it easier for low vision users to use Windows 10 computers.
• As always, for help with technology bring your devices and/or questions to the meeting.

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.
• 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 meeting consists of a feature technology topic, questions and answers about technology, and one-on-one training where possible.
• Participants are encouraged to come to each meeting even if they are not interested in the feature topic because questions on any technology are welcome. The more participants the more talent and experience we will have to help each other.
• There are GTT groups across Canada as well as a national GTT monthly toll free teleconference. You may subscribe to the National GTT blog to get email notices of teleconferences and notes from other GTT chapters. Visit:
http://www.gttprogram.wordpress.com/
To subscribe, activate the “Follow “link 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]

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, scam alert, May 20, 2019

May 20, 2019

A scam alert

 

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

Today, I’d like to introduce you to my scam alert.

 

A scam alert

You have been left in someone’s will

 

If you receive an email telling you that you have been left in someone’s will;

Someone’s name that you do not recognize;

Just simply delete this email.

It may appear to you as being very real and you may want to investigate further

but do not do so.

If you make the mistake to reply, then guess what?

Your email address will be captured and the rest is now history.

 

Just take a moment to think of it!  You get an email out of the blue from someone telling you that you have been left a large sum of money by someone that you do not even know let alone that you have never even met!  In the general scheme of good luck; can this really be expected to be true?  Not really!

 

These emails are meant to grab your attention and get you to make that wee slip to respond and then bingo!  You have just opened wide your virtual door to the one lurking out there just waiting to pounce.  These emails usually originate from either Europe or Africa.  So just be aware.

 

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

 

Voice Dream Scanner: A New Kind of OCR by Bill Holton, AccessWorld

Voice Dream Scanner: A New Kind of OCR | AccessWorld
Author Bill Holton
9-11 minutes

Bill Holton
There is a new player in the optical character recognition (OCR) space, and it comes from an old friend: Winston Chen, the developer of Voice Dream Reader and Voice Dream Writer, both of which we’ve reviewed in past issues of AccessWorld. In this article we’ll start out with a brief conversation with Chen. Then we’ll take a look at the developer’s latest offering: Voice Dream Scanner. Spoiler alert—it will probably be the best $5.99 you’ll ever spend on a text recognition app!
AccessWorld readers who use their phones to audibly read e-Pub books, PDFs or Bookshare titles are likely already familiar with Voice Dream Reader. It works so well with VoiceOver and TalkBack, it’s hard to believe it wasn’t developed specifically for the access market. But according to Chen, “I just wanted to build a pocket reader I could use to store all my books and files so I could listen to them on the go. No one was more surprised than me when I began receiving feedback from dyslexic and blind users describing how helpful Voice Dream Reader was for their needs and making some simple suggestions to improve the app’s accessibility.”
Chen’s second offering, Voice Dream Writer, was also directed at the mainstream market. “Sometimes it’s easier to proofread your document by listening to it instead of simply rereading the text,” says Chen. At the time, Apple’s VoiceOver cut and paste features and other block text manipulation capabilities were,shall we say, not quite what they are today? The innovative way Chen handled these functions made Voice Dream Writer equally useful to users with visual impairments.
Reinventing the OCR Engine
“I’ve been wanting to add OCR to Voice Dream Reader for a few years now,” says Chen. “It would be useful for reading protected PDF’s and handouts and memos from school and work.”
The hurdle Chen kept encountering was finding a useable OCR engine. “There are some free, open source engines, but they don’t work well enough for my purposes,” he says. “The ones that do work well are quite expensive, either as a one-time license purchase with each app sold or with ongoing pay-by-the-use options. Either of these would have raised the price I have to charge too much for my value proposition.”
Last year, however, Chen began experimenting with Apple’s artificial intelligence (AI), called Vision Framework, that’s built into the latest iOS versions, along with Google’s Tesseract, TensorFlow Lite, and ML Kit.
“Instead of using a single standard OCR engine, I combined the best aspects of each of these freely available tools, and I was pleasantly surprised by the results.”
Instead of making OCR a Voice Dream Reader feature, Chen decided to incorporate his discovery into a separate app called Voice Dream Scanner. “I considered turning it into an in-app purchase, only there are a lot of schools that use Reader and they aren’t allowed to make in-app purchases,” he says. As to why he didn’t simply make it a new Reader feature, he smiles, “I do have a family to feed.”
Chen has been careful to integrate the new Voice Dream Scanner functionality into VD Reader, however. For example, if you load a protected PDF file into the app and open it, the Documents tab now offers a recognition feature. You can now also add to your Voice Dream Reader Library not only from Dropbox, Google Drive, and other sources, including Bookshare, but using your device’s camera as well.
To take advantage of this integration you’ll need both Voice Dream Reader and Voice Dream Scanner. Both can be purchased from the iOS App Store. VD Reader is also available for Android, but currently VD Scanner is iOS only.
Of course you don’t have to have VD Reader to enjoy the benefits of the new Voice Dream Scanner.
A Voice Dream Scanner Snapshot
The app installs quickly and easily, and displays with the icon name “Scanner” on your iOS device. Aim the camera toward a page of text. The app displays a real-time video image preview which is also the “Capture Image” button. Double tap this button, the camera clicks, and the image is converted to text almost immediately. You are placed on the “Play” button, give a quick double tap and the text is spoken using either a purchased VD Reader voice or your chosen iOS voice. Note: You can instruct Scanner to speak recognized text automatically in the Settings Menu.
From the very first beta version of this app I tested, I was amazed by the speed and accuracy of the recognition. The app is amazingly forgiving as far as camera position and lighting. Envelopes read the return addresses, postmarks and addresses. Entire pages of text voiced without a single mistake. Scanner even did an excellent job with a bag of potato chips, even after it was crumpled and uncrumpled several times. Despite the fact there is no OCR engine to download, and the recognition is done locally, a network connection is not required. I used the app with equal success even with Airplane mode turned on.
After each scan you are offered the choice to swipe left once to reach the Discard button, twice to reach the Save button. Note: the VoiceOver two-finger scrub gesture also deletes the current text.
Scanner does not save your work automatically. You have the choice to save it as a text file, a PDF, or to send it directly to Voice Dream Reader. You probably wouldn’t send a single page to Reader, but the app comes with a batch mode. Use this mode to scan several pages at once and then save them together: perfect for that 10-page print report your boss dropped on your desk, or maybe the short story a creative writing classmate passed out for review.
Other Scanner features of interest to those with visual impairments are edge detection and a beta version of auto capture.
Edge detection plays a tone that grows increasingly steady until all four edges are visible, at which time it becomes a solid tone. Auto-capture does just that, but since the AI currently detects any number of squares where there is no text this feature is only available in beta. However, if you’re using a scanner stand it will move along quite nicely, nearly as fast as you can rearrange the pages.
You can also import an image to be recognized. Unfortunately, as of now, this feature is limited to pictures in your photo library. There is currently no way to send an e-mail or file image to Scanner. Look for this to change in an upcoming version.
The benefits of Voice Dream Scanner are by no means limited to the blindness community. Chen developed the app to be used as a pocket player for documents and other printed material he wishes to scan and keep. Low vision users can do the same, then use either iOS magnification or another text-magnification app to review documents. It doesn’t matter in which direction the material is scanned. Even upside-down documents are saved right-side up. Performance is improved by the “Image Enhancement” feature, which attempts to locate the edges of scanned documents and save them more or less as pages.
The Bottom Line
I never thought I’d see the day when I would move KNFB-Reader off my iPhone’s Home screen. Microsoft’s Seeing AI gave it a good run for its money and until now I kept them both on my Home screen. But I have now moved KNFB-Reader to a back screen and given that honored spot to Voice Dream Scanner.
Most of my phone scanning is done when I sort through the mail. Seeing AI’s “Short Text” feature does a decent job helping me sort out which envelopes to keep and which to toss into my hardware recycle bin. But Scanner is just as accurate as any OCR-engine based app, and so quick, the confirmation announcement of the Play button often voices after the scanned document has begun to read.
This is the initial release. Chen himself says there is still work to be done. “Column recognition is not yet what I hope it will be,” he says. “I’d also like to improve auto-capture and maybe offer users the choice to use the volume buttons to initiate a scan.
Stay tuned.
This article is made possible in part by generous funding from the James H. and Alice Teubert Charitable Trust, Huntington, West Virginia.
Comment on this article.
Related articles:
• Envision AI and Seeing AI: Two Multi-Purpose Recognition Apps by Janet Ingber
• An Evaluation of OrCam MyEye 2.0 by Jamie Pauls
More by this author:
• Letters, We Get Letters: Receiving Digital Scans of Your Mail Envelopes Using Informed Delivery
• A Look at the New Narrator, Microsoft’s Built-In Windows Screen Reader
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Getting the Job Done with Assistive Technology: It May Be Easier Than You Think, AccessWorld

Getting the Job Done with Assistive Technology: It May Be Easier Than You Think | AccessWorld
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Getting the Job Done with Assistive Technology: It May Be Easier Than You Think | AccessWorld
Author Jamie Pauls
10-12 minutes
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article
Jamie Pauls

I remember getting my first computer back in the early 90s almost like it was yesterday. A friend of mine was receiving regular treatments from a massage
therapist who happened to be blind. My friend mentioned that this gentleman used a computer with a screen reader. I was vaguely aware that this technology
existed, but I never really considered using a computer myself until that first conversation I had with my friend. I began doing some research, and eventually
purchased my first computer with a screen reader and one program included. I’m sure there were a few other programs on that computer, but WordPerfect is
the only one I recall today. The vendor from whom I purchased the computer came to my home, helped me get the computer up and running, and gave me about
a half-hour of training on how to use the thing. A few books from what is now
Learning Ally
as well as the
National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
along with some really late nights were what truly started me on my journey. I sought guidance from a few sighted friends who were more than willing to
help, but didn’t have any knowledge about assistive technology. There were times when I thought I had wasted a lot of money and time, but I eventually
grew to truly enjoy using my computer.

I eventually became aware of a whole community of blind people who used assistive technology. They all had their preferred screen reader, and most people
used only one. Screen readers cost a lot of money and hardware-based speech synthesizers increased the cost of owning assistive tech. Unless the user was
willing to learn how to write configuration files that made their screen reader work with specific programs they wanted or needed to use, it was important
to find out what computer software worked best with one’s chosen screen reader. I eventually outgrew that first screen reader, and spent money to switch
to others as I learned about them. I have no idea how much money I spent on technology in those early years, and that is probably for the best!

Fast forward 25 years or so, and the landscape is totally different. I have a primary desktop PC and a couple laptop computers all running Windows 10.
I have one paid screen reader—JAWS for Windows from
Vispero
—and I use two free screen-reading solutions—NVDA, from
NVAccess
and Microsoft’s built-in screen reader called Narrator.

I also have a MacBook Pro running the latest version of Apple’s Mac operating system that comes with the free VoiceOver screen reader built in. I have
access to my wife’s iPad if I need to use it, and I own an iPhone 8 Plus. These devices also run VoiceOver. Finally, I own a BrailleNote Touch Plus,
HumanWare’s
Android-based notetaker designed especially for the blind.

Gone are the days when I must limit myself to only one screen reader and one program to get a task accomplished. If a website isn’t behaving well using
JAWS and Google’s Chrome browser, I might try the same site using the Firefox browser. If I don’t like the way JAWS is presenting text to me on that website,
maybe I’ll switch to NVDA. If the desktop version of a website is too cluttered for my liking, I’ll often try the mobile version using either Safari on
my iPhone, or Chrome on my BrailleNote Touch.

The lines between desktop application and Internet site have blurred to the point that I honestly don’t think about it much anymore. It is often possible
to use either a computer or a mobile device to conduct banking and purchase goods.

So what makes all this added flexibility and increased choice possible, anyway? In many cases, the actual hardware in use is less expensive than it used
to be, although admittedly products such as the BrailleNote Touch are still on the high end of the price spectrum. Along with the availability of more
screen readers and magnification solutions than ever before, the cost of most of these solutions has come down greatly. Even companies like Vispero that
still sell a screen reader that can cost over a thousand dollars if purchased outright are now offering software-as-a-service options that allow you to
pay a yearly fee that provides the latest version of their software complete with updates for as long as you keep your subscription active.

While some may not consider free options such as NVDA or Narrator to be as powerful and flexible as JAWS, they will be perfectly adequate for other people
who aren’t using a computer on the job complete with specialized software that requires customized screen reader applications to make it work properly.
There are those who will rightly point out that free isn’t really free. You are in fact purchasing the screen reader when you buy a new computer as is
the case with VoiceOver on the Mac. While this may be true, the shock to the pocketbook may not be as noticeable as it would be if you had to plunk down
another thousand bucks or so for assistive technology after you had just purchased a new computer.

In addition to the advancements in screen reading technology along with the reduced cost of these products, app and website developers are becoming increasingly
educated about the needs of the blind community. I once spoke with a game developer who told me that he played one of his games using VoiceOver on the
iPhone for six weeks so he could really get a feel for how the game behaved when played by a blind person. Rather than throwing up their hands in frustration
and venting on social media about how sighted developers don’t care about the needs of blind people, many in the blind community are respectfully reaching
out to developers, educating them about the needs of those who use assistive technology, and giving them well-deserved recognition on social media when
they produce a product that is usable by blind and sighted people alike. Also, companies like Microsoft and Apple work to ensure that their screen readers
work with the company’s own including Safari and Microsoft Edge. Google and Amazon continue to make strides in the area of accessibility as well. Better
design and standards make it more likely that multiple screen readers will work well in an increasing number of online and offline scenarios.

You may be someone who is currently comfortable using only one screen reader with one web browser and just a few recommended programs on your computer.
You may be thinking that everything you have just read in this article sounds great, but you may be wondering how to actually apply any of it in your life.
First, I would say that if you are happy with your current technology then don’t feel intimidated by someone else who uses other solutions. That said,
I would urge you to keep your screen reading technology up to date as far as is possible. Also, make sure that you are using an Internet browser that is
fully supported by the websites you frequently visit. This will ensure that your experience is as fulfilling as it should be. For example, though Microsoft
Internet Explorer has been a recommended browser for many years for those using screen access technology due to its accessibility, it is no longer receiving
feature updates from Microsoft, and therefore many modern websites will not display properly when viewed using it.

If you think you would like to try new applications and possibly different assistive technology solutions but you don’t know where to start, keep reading.

Back when I first started using a computer, I knew of very few resources to which I could turn in order to gain skills in using assistive technology. Today,
there are many ebooks, tutorials, webinars, podcasts, and even paid individual training services available for anyone who wishes to expand their knowledge
of computers and the like. One excellent resource that has been referenced many times in past issues of AccessWorld is
Mystic Access,
where you can obtain almost every kind of training mentioned in the previous sentences. Another resource you may recognize is the
National Braille Press,
which has published many books that provide guidance on using various types of technology. Books from National Braille Press can generally be purchased
in both braille or in electronic formats.

There are also many online communities of people with vision loss who use a specific technology. Two of the most well known are
AppleVis
for users of iOS devices and the
Eyes-Free Google Group
for users of the Android platform. Both communities are places where new and long time users of these platforms can go to find assistance getting started
with the technology or for help troubleshooting issues they may encounter.

While I vividly recall my first experiences as a novice computer user, it is almost impossible for me to imagine actually going back to those days. Today,
the landscape is rich and the possibilities are endless for anyone who wishes to join their sighted counterparts in using today’s technology. While there
are still many hurdles to jump, I am confident that things will only continue to improve as we move forward.

So fear not, intrepid adventurer. Let’s explore this exciting world together. In the meantime, happy computing!

This article is made possible in part by generous funding from the James H. and Alice Teubert Charitable Trust, Huntington, West Virginia.

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

list of 2 items
• Looking Back on 20 Years of Assistive Technology: Where We’ve Been and How Far and Fast We’ve Come
by Bill Holton
• Getting the Most out of Sighted Computer Assistance: How to Help the Helpers
by Bill Holton
list end

More by this author:

list of 2 items
• Pinterest Takes Steps Toward Accessibility
• A Review of “Stress Less, Browse Happy: Your Guide to More Easily and Effectively Navigating the Internet with a Screen Reader,” an audio tutorial from
Mystic Access
list end

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GTT National Conference Call Summary Notes, CELA Library Update, May 8, 2019

GTT National Conference Call.

 

An Initiative of the Canadian Council of the Blind

 

Summary Notes

 

May  8, 2019

 

Theme: CELA Library Update

 

Michael Ciccone who is the executive director of CELA joined us to provide updates and answers to our questions.

Note: CELA is updating the web site continually so these notes may be out of date if you are reading them after May 2019.

On the main page of the CELA web site

www.celalibrary.ca

you will find the latest updates, service alerts, and what they are working on now.

Michael thanked everyone for their patience and acknowledges that this has not been the smooth transition they would have wished for.

CELA continues to work on improving the searching feature.  At the time of the call, searching resulted in receiving way too many search results.  Michael assured us that by May 9, 2019 the searching feature would be greatly improved.  This was the case when Kim Kilpatrick tested it on Thursday May 9, 2019.  Fewer results came up and it was more accurate.

Michael is aware that the searching needs to improve and will include key words and other ways of searching as well.

People can now download books in daisy zip format and for the most part direct to player.  Some people are still having trouble with direct to player.

Cd’s and single use braille are being sent out as well.

People have access now to all CELA and bookshare titles for the most part.  New titles are being added.

Recently, the focus has been on improving the search functionality which they have heard a lot of complaints about.  Michael brought in someone to assist with this.  In order to fix the search issues, they had to re-index the entire collection which did take time.  Search filters and advanced search still needs to be implemented.

After the search is working well, the focus will be on improving the patron account information.  Implementing the history, the setting of preferences, manage holds lists and update account information.

Another priority is getting the daisy text magazines back.  They must build additional programming to do this.

CELA is hoping to have most of the site up and running by the summer.  However, many of the issues they have encountered have been issues they did not foresee.

There is a known issue with getting direct to player books on the plextalk players.  This is an issue with the company who makes plextalk.  Plextalk has done nothing about it.  Both CNIB and optilec have stopped selling their players for this reason.  Nevertheless, they are hoping to get a resolution for this issue.

CELA has been contacting the patrons they know use plextalk and giving them some alternatives.

There was an issue with voiceover (the screen reader for IOS) that has been resolved.

Some of the bookshare titles that appeared are titles we should not have access to in Canada.  And, another bookshare issue where duplicate titles are appearing.  This means that the bookshare title might not be able to be downloaded successfully.  Bookshare is working on this from their side too.  Once everything is fixed, this will be a great and very accessible system.

This system will give CELA room to grow and allow them to add other library systems as they become available.

Bookshare is already working with other blindness libraries to improve their product and interaction.  Michael is hoping that we continue to be patient (that is so appreciated) and continue to reach out and let CELA know our thoughts and ideas.  The pace at which issues are being fixed has picked up over the past few weeks.

People expressed their appreciation for the update progress e-mails that we have been getting regularly.

Someone liked that the site is easier to use on smart phones.

All formats being in one record are appreciated.

The mobile site works well.

The New titles section will be restored when CELA is able to add the filter for new titles.  That should happen within the next few weeks.

Michael will update us on this and any other major updates as they happen.

Michael will also investigate answers for the questions below and provide answers as he gets them.

Kim and Albert will share to the GTT list and blog.

  1. Will the bookshare new titles be updated as well as the cela titles?
  2. Michael will check.  We may have an option for filtering the new titles lists.

Comment. the dialogue box that comes up after you press get it for the book does not always pop up.

Michael has made this a high priority.

Sometimes bookshare has several versions of a book.  If you cannot download one, try downloading another one.

 

Comment. When you download a book into direct to player, there is no book description on the victor stream.

Michael will investigate.

Comment. There are some issues with bookshare download saying service error.  Bookshare was contacted and this seems to be a humanware issue.  There should be a victor stream software update in June which will correct this.

Michael suggested trying to download the bookshare books through CELA and see if this works better.

Publishers sign agreements with bookshare and they either say they will let international patrons have their books or not.  About 90 percent of publishers in bookshare let us have them.  May 8 Marrakesh treaty has passed so there may be an increase in books available.

Comment. The notification on the iPhone that says go to your downloads section, does not always show up or is not read automatically.  Someone suggested that this is a voiceover and screen reader focus issue on all platforms.

Comment Someone is having a problem with downloads not showing up in the download section.  Some people have also seen books that are much older in their list of holds or books on their shelf.

Michael wondered if It might be that the history feature once implemented will fix this.  This seems to happen with direct to player books in dolphin reader.

Comment.  Someone had an issue where CELA kept logging them out even when they were signed in.

Michael said that sometimes it is a personal account issue and you might have to call CELA help to fix your actual account.

Comment. Some people ended up downloading the same book 3 or 4 times because they did not get the notification.  The new system is a bit of a learning curve as there is one extra step to download a book.  Suggestion. Indicate all the known problems on the CELA front page?

Michael said that now, it would take a long time to get through the list of issues.  It was further suggested that any major issues be put on the front page.

Suggestion. Make a download sound for when a book is downloading like NVDA does when it is downloading a software update.

Comment Several people have not been able to download books from CELA onto their stream direct to player.

Michael will check if this is a known issue.

There will be filters for recently added and publication date.  Michael is waiting to see if both can be added for filters.

Question. Will CELA be added as a service under voicedream reader.

Michael would like to be able to do this.

Question Will we also be able to search more easily in voicedream reader and in dolphin easy reader?  This will hopefully happen, but it is not top of the list.  Michael will follow up on the voicedream search and adding as a service for voicedream.  This would cut out some steps and would make it easier for people.

After the search, putting the magazines back is a very high priority.  The magazines are ingested into bookshare and then they come back to CELA.

Suggestion Occasionally when you remove books from dolphin, it does not clear from site.  Can you have a button on the new site to clear books?

Michael believes this is planned but will follow up.  The staff from CELA are wanting to make sure we can do more ourselves.

Question Is easy reader good on android?

Maybe not as straight forward as on IOS but still works.

Question. Can we search for just bookshare books or just cela books?  Could that be a filter? Will it be described as a bookshare book if you search for just direct to player?  Nice to be able to tell within the record if it is direct to player bookshare or CELA.

Michael will investigate this.  It was pointed out that Daisy text is pretty much always bookshare.  Daisy audio is cela.

It was pointed out that Using the victor stream to search for bookshare books will go away once bookshare is integrated with CELA.  Is that right?  Bookshare is willing to let us stay with bookshare accounts until all is sorted out.

Once everything is working, can we still do a search through our victor stream?  Michael will check if this is on the development list.

It was suggested that we change the filter searches from check boxes to radio buttons.

Hopefully, in future when searching you can just type in a name, term, author, and the search will be smart and provide the most relevant results.

Michael will investigate what will be included in our preferences.  Now, each new search clears all preferences.

Suggestion when using screen readers and Screen navigation, raise the level of the heading for the search.  Make the search heading level 1 and the filters heading level 2.  Michael will pass this along.  Suggestion Will cela be in touch with humanware for people to search just on the stream because people find this a very easy way to search.  Now every search on the stream is now very streamlined and similar.  Michael will check on this as well.

Suggestion. Build an API with CELA to allow people to search on the stream.  Will CELA work with humanware to build an API for searching CELA with the stream?  Michael will check into this.

A similar API or the same one could work to add CELA to voicedream reader.

There are people who do not use their computer at all but just search on the stream.  That is a very important service to have.

CELA is Encouraging people to not get hard CD’s but to change to direct to player and downloading onto your stream and onto your easy reader app.  CELA can also designate someone or add a designate to help you load your shelf.  If it is all legal, that is okay.  If CELA has a designate name, then CELA can contact the designate if there is any issue.

 

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]

 

Alt-texts: The Ultimate Guide by Daniel Göransson

Alt-texts: The Ultimate Guide

Author: Daniel Göransson

Date Written: Oct 14, 2017 at 5:00 PM

Date Saved: 5/14/19, 1:43 PM

This post contains everything you need to know about alt-texts! When to use them and how to perfectly craft them. By me, Daniel, a web developer with vision impairment who use a screen reader in my day-to-day life.

 

My experience of images on the web

I use a combination of magnification and screen reader when surfing the web. As a rule of thumb, I use magnification on larger screens and a screen reader on smaller devices.

I, like everyone else, come across many images when surfing the web. If I’m using a screen reader I depend on getting a description of the image – the alt-text – read to me.

Many times the alt-text is not helpful, often even a waste of my time because it doesn’t convey any meaning.

Let me illustrate this on The Verge’s startpage. This is what it looks like for sighted people:

 

Below is what I see. I’ve replaced the images with what my screen reader reads:

 

Not very useful, huh?

Here are some common alt-text-fails I come across:

  • “cropped_img32_900px.png” or “1521591232.jpg” – the file names, probably because the image has no alt-attribute.
  • “” – on every image in the article, probably for improving search ranking (SEO).
  • “Photographer: Emma Lee” – probably because the editor doesn’t know what an alt-text is for.

Alt-texts are not always this bad, but there’s usually a lot to improve upon. So whether you are a complete beginner or want to take your “game” to the next level, here’s our ultimate guide to alt-texts!

What is an alt-text

An alt-text is a description of an image that’s shown to people who for some reason can’t see the image. Among others, alt-texts help:

  • people with little or no vision
  • people who have turned off images to save data
  • search engines

The first group – people with little or no vision – is arguably the one that benefits most from alt-texts. They use something called a screen reader to navigate the web. A screen reader transforms visual information to speech or braille. To do this accurately, your website’s images need to have alt-texts.

Alt-texts are super important! So important that the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) have alt-texts as their very first guideline:

All non-text content that is presented to the user has a text alternative that serves the equivalent purpose.
– WCAG guideline 1.1.1

How do I add an alt-text?

In html, an alt-text is an attribute in an image element:

HTML

Most content management systems (CMS), like WordPress, let you create the alt-text when you upload an image:

 

The field is usually named “Alt-text”, “Alternative text” or “Alt”, but in some interfaces it’s called “Image description” or something similar.

Let’s create the perfect alt-text!

Here are the steps to crafting fabulous alt-texts!

It might sound obvious, but an alt-text should describe the image. For example:
“Group of people on a train station.”
“Happy baby playing in a sand box.”
“Five people in line at a supermarket.”

Things that do not belong in an alt-text are:

  • The name of the photographer. This is very common, but makes absolutely no sense.
  • Keywords for search engine optimization. Don’t cram alt-text with irrelevant words you’re hoping to rank high on Google with. That’s not what alt-texts are for and it will confuse your users.

Content of the alt-text depends on context

How you describe the image depends on its context. Let me give you an example:

 

If this image was featured in an article about photography, the alt-text could be something along the lines of:

“Close up, greyscale photograph of man outside, face in focus, unfocused background.”

If the image is on a website about a TV-series, an appropriate alt-text could be completely different:

“Star of the show, Adam Lee, looking strained outside in the rain.”

So write an alt-text that is as meaningful as possible for the user in the context they’re in.

Keep it concise

Reading the previous section, you might be thinking to yourself: “I, as a sighted user, can see many details in the image, like who it is, how it’s photographed, type of jacket, approximate age of the guy and more. Why not write a detailed, long alt-text so a user with visual impairment gets as much information as I do?”

Glad you asked!

Well frankly, you can also get the necessary information from the image at a glance, and that’s what we’re trying to achieve for users with screen readers as well. Give the necessary information in the alt-text, but make it as short and concise as possible.

One of the few times you should write long alt-texts is when you’re describing an image containing important text. Ideally, you should not have images of text, but sometimes you need to. Like on some screenshots or photos of signs.

But the general rule of thumb is to keep it concise and avoid a verbose experience.

Don’t say it’s an image

Don’t start alt-texts with “Image of”, “Photo of” or similar. The screen reader will add that by default. So if you write “Image of” in an alt-text, a screen reader will say “Image Image of…” when the user focuses on the image. Not very pleasant.

One thing you can do is end the alt-text by stating if it’s a special type of image, like an illustration.

“Dog jumping through a hoop. Illustration.”

End with a period.

End the alt-text with a period. This will make screen readers pause a bit after the last word in the alt-text, which creates a more pleasant reading experience for the user.

Don’t use the title-attribute

Many interfaces have a field for adding title-texts to images close to where you can add an alt-text. Skip the title text! Nobody uses them – they don’t work on touch screens and on desktop they require that the user hovers for a while over an image, which nobody does. Also, adding a title-text makes some screen readers both read the title-text and the alt-text, which becomes redundant. So just don’t add a title-text.

When not to use an alt-text

In most cases you should use an alt-text for images, but there are some exceptions where you should leave the alt-text blank. Important note: never remove the alt-attribute, that would mean breaking the html-standard. But you are allowed to set it to an empty string, that is: alt=””. Do that in the following cases.

Repeated images in feeds

Pretend you’re scrolling through your Twitter feed. Everytime you want to read a new tweet, you first have to listen to “Profile picture of user ”. In my opinion, that would be super annoying!

Other examples of feeds are:

  • A list of links to articles. Like the one on our page Articles.
  • Chat or messaging feeds
  • Feeds of comments

So for an ideal user experience, leave the alt-text blank for images that are used repeatedly in feeds.

Icons with text labels

You should always have text labels next to icons. Assuming you do, the icon should not have an alt-text. Let me explain why!

Let’s take a social media button as an example:

 

If you would write an alt text to the Facebook icon, a screen reader would say something along the line: “Facebook Facebook.” Very redundant!

OK, this is technically not about alt-texts but still important: make sure both the icon and the link text are in the same link-attribute, to get a smooth experience. Like this:
HTML

  

  Facebook

 

Another common mistake with icons is on menu buttons:

 

If the menu button has no visual text label – which, by the way, is really bad for the user experience – then it needs an alt-text (or another way of describing its function in code, like aria-label). Explain the icon’s function, like “Menu”. Don’t write “Three horizontal lines” or “Main hamburger”, which sadly are real examples I’ve stumbled on.

If the menu icon has a label, you should leave the alt-text blank. I often find menu buttons which are read as “Menu menu”. Once I even came across “Hamburger menu menu”. Somewhat confusing wouldn’t you say?

Images in links

Usually an image within a link is accompanied by a link text. Like in the example below:

 

In this case, the image and the link should be in the same link-tag in the html. In this case, you can just leave the alt-text blank. The important thing for the user is to hear the link text. An alt-text of the image would only distract by adding information that the user will not find necessary. The image is probably found on the page that is linked, and then you can give a good explanation of it in the alt-text.

If you really, really have to have an image in a link without an accompanying text, then the alt-text should describe the link destination, not the image.

Preferably, decorative images that do not convey any meaning to the user should be placed as background images in css. It probably goes without saying, but this means you don’t need alt-texts on them at all.

I’d classify most images that you place text on as decorative. You don’t need an alt-text on them. One example is the background image on Netflix’s startpage:

 

Special cases

Logos in the banner

Logos in the banner almost always link to the websites start page. The opinions vary a bit on the topic of alt-texts for logos.

Some say it should include the company name, the fact that it is a logo and the destination of the link. Like such:

“Axess Lab, logotype, go to start page.”

In my opinion, this is a bit verbose. Too much noise! Since my screen reader already tells me it’s an image and a link, I only feel I need to hear the company name. From the fact it’s an image I assume it’s a logo and from the fact it’s a link I assume it follow conventions and links to the start page.

Svg

Scalable vector graphics (svg) is an image format that’s becoming more and more popular on the web. And I love them! They keep their sharpness while zooming and take up less space so websites load faster.

There are a two main ways of adding an svg to an html-page.

  1. Inside an img-element. In that case, just add an alt-text as usual:
HTML
  2. Using an svg-tag. If you use this method, you can’t add an alt-attribute because there’s no support for that. However you can get around this by adding two wai-aria attributes: role=”img” and aria-label=”.

Actually, for the second case, you’re supposed to be able to add your alt-text as a title-element in the svg, but there is not enough support for that from browsers and assistive technologies at the moment.

Can’t a machine do this for me?

Although machine learning and artificial intelligence is improving quickly and can describe some images quite accurately, they are not good enough at understanding the relevant context at the moment. On top of that, machines are not good enough at deciding what is “concise”, and will often describe too much or too little of the image.

Facebook has actually built in a feature that describes images automatically. But I feel like the descriptions are usually too general. One image in my feed right now is described as: “Cat indoors”. The actual photo shows a cat hunting a toy mouse.

So I’m sorry, you still have to write alt-texts yourself!

Thanks for making the web better!

I’m happy you read this far! It means you care about making the web a better place for all users. Spread the knowledge and keep being awesome!

Get notified when we write new stuff

About once a month we write an article about accessibility or usability, that’s just as awesome as this one (#HumbleBrag)!

Get notified by following us on Twitter @AxessLab or Facebook.

Or simply drop your email below!

 

 

 

NaviLens for iOS and Android: The cutting edge technology for the visually impaired

NaviLens for iOS and Android: The cutting edge technology for the visually impaired

Date Saved: 5/13/19, 10:44 AM

Source: http://www.navilens.com/

 

Maximum autonomy for the visually impaired

 

Unlike other markers, such as the well-known QR codes, NaviLens has a powerful algorithm based on Computer Vision capable of detecting multiple markers at great distances in milliseconds, even in full motion without the need of focusing. It is a cost-effective solution with minimum maintenance required.

 

The application is based on a novel system of artificial markers, which combines high density (multitude of combinations) with long range (a 20cm wide marker is detected up to 12 meters away).

In addition, the detection algorithm could read multiple markers at the same time, at high speed and even in full motion.

Discover the interface

100% user friendly interface for the visually impaired

 

See for yourself, YouTube testimonials!

This is how NaviLens can help the visually impaired. Below discover the testimonials of the first users

 

Underground

Ticket machine

Signs

Bus stop

Press

Awards

 

Subscribe to our Newsletter

You will receive the latest updates. We won’t spam you, we promise 🙂 NaviLens is a new integral system of artificial markers based on Computer Vision. It allows the user to read a special tag, displayed in their environment, from a great distance; it also assists in orienting the user toward the tag as well as obtains detailed information associated with that tag in particular in the same way that traditional signs would be read by a person with full visual capacity. To do this, the marker recognition algorithm is complemented by a novel 3D sound system that, without the need for headphones, informs the user of the position, distance, and orientation of the marker. It allows a visually impaired person to navigate in unfamiliar territory with complete autonomy in the same manner a person without a visual impairment could.

 

How to use NaviLens from YouTube:

Published on Dec 28, 2018

NaviLens, an app that makes it easier for visual impaired people to access information through QR codes of colors, has a new functionality available for users to download tags for their own personal use. Until now these tags were available in public spaces such as train stations. In this new functionality, the codes provided are blank for users to record any information about the objects in their environment. The developers have created tags of different sizes that can be adjusted to the needs of remote reading. In addition, they are printable and easily separated.

 

Category

Science & Technology

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Privacy Protection, May 13, 2019

May 13 2019

Privacy protection

 

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

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.

 

Applying for a passport

These are the following ways that you can do this and it all depends on whether you are applying for a new passport or applying for a passport renewal.

You can do it online but the relevant website is not user friendly for a vision impaired person.

Or you can obtain the relevant forms at the nearest post office.

However, you will again need help to do this with the aid of a trusted person.

You could get a head start by phoning your Federal MP’s office and asking them to tell you which supporting documentation you would need and you could also ask them to help provide you with a trusted person if you are unable to find someone.

Chances are that they will help you all the way.

From completing the forms to accompanying you to the nearest Service Canada office to present it to the agent.

However, you should be prepared that this may not be the case but it is worth a try.

To obtain the name and phone number of your Federal MP, call the toll free number 1 800 622 6232

 

Remember now:  Make sure to store your passport in a very safe place as it contains details of your date of birth and if your passport is ever lost, it means that your details are probably now in the hands of unauthorized persons.

 

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

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Apps Round-Up, May 6, 2019

May 062019

Apps round up

 

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

Today, I’d like to introduce you to my apps roundup.

Enjoy!

 

1. Calm Radio – Relaxing Music (iOS, Free with In-App Purchases)

 

Calm Radio is the world’s largest collection of relaxation music, meditation

focus study and sleep music and nature sounds.

 

Calm is also the world’s largest collection of classical music channels

like Mozart, Bach, Symphonies, Sonatas, Choirs … more.

 

All designed so you can work, focus and sleep better.

 

Current Version: 11.6 (January 25, 2019)

 

Read Calm Radio – Relaxing Music’s AppleVis App Directory entry for more

information https://www.applevis.com/apps/ios/music/calm-radio-relaxing-music

 

Visit Calm Radio – Relaxing Music’s App Store page

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/calm-radio-relaxing-music/id918425515?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D8

 

2. Ralphs (iOS, Free)

 

Looking for a faster, easier, more rewarding shopping experience? Save time

and money with the Ralphs app! It puts convenience, savings and rewards at

your fingertips. Simply download the app, create an account and register

your Ralphs Rewards Card to access all these great benefits:

 

* Shop Pickup or Delivery right from the app!

* Easily build your online shopping list, and use it to shop in-store or to

place your online order.

* View your Weekly Ads and quickly add sale items or specials to your

shopping list.

* Load digital coupons directly to your Rewards Card and use them to save

on items from your shopping list.

* Get even more savings with exclusive promotions, personalized offers and

bonus rewards.

* Refill your Ralphs Pharmacy prescriptions directly from your phone or

tablet. Just type in your prescription number, select your Pharmacy and

schedule a convenient pickup time.

* Check your fuel points.

* Use our locator to find the closest Ralphs store or fuel center.

* View your purchase history. Use it to create standard orders that will

save you time.

* Add your Rewards Card to Passbook for iPhone and iPod Touch.

 

To use the Ralphs app, you’ll need a Ralphs digital account. You can

register for your account and link your Rewards Card through the app. If you

don’t have a Rewards Card, you can create one when you register to access

all of these savings and rewards!

 

Current Version: 16.0 (January 24, 2019)

 

Read Ralphs’ AppleVis App Directory entry for more information

https://www.applevis.com/apps/ios/shopping/ralphs

 

Visit Ralphs’ App Store page

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ralphs/id584459861?mt=8&ign-mpt=uo%3D8&at=11l4LS

 

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

 

 

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, media pocket watch, April 29, 2019

April 29, 2019

Meet the media pocket watch

 

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

Today, I’d like to talk about the media pocket watch.

Let’s meet this product.

 

Meet the media pocket watch

 

Well readers, here is what I have discovered and although this article me be a bit long, it is worth the reading.  I myself have bought this great little gadget and I simply love it.

Please have a read.

 

Alexandravision is an innovative Swiss company specialized in watches for

the visually impaired.

 

The “Meteor” quartz timepiece was developed for visually impaired people

with the help of visually impaired people.

 

Its beauty lies in its elegant shape and pleasant feel, appealing to

visually impaired and sighted people alike.

 

Its original appearance of a crescent moon with a rounded bottom will make

more than one of your friends curious or even envious.

 

With its three buttons, the Meteor gives the time very simply by discrete

vibrations.

 

It also has many other qualities.

 

Of course, it’s a precize quartz watch.

 

It’s sturdy and waterproof.

 

Time setting is child’s play which only appeal to the sense of touch.

 

The batteries are powerful enough to make it vibrate more than five years.

 

It’s affordable for all.

 

Its nomination for the 2011 Canne Blanche award is firm evidence that we’ve

achieved our goal.

 

And providing the instructions for use as a video designed for the blind

adds the finishing touch to its ground-breaking approach.

 

How it works in detail.

Our watch was conceived to be of a simple use.

 

It indicates time by inaudible and discreet vibrations.

 

It has 3 buttons:

 

The upper button for Hours,

 

the central button for Tens of Minutes,

 

and the last button for Minutes.

 

Time indication.

A brief pressure with the thumb on the upper button indicates the Hours,

 

a brief pressure on the central button indicates the Tens of Minutes,

 

a brief pressure on the last button indicates the Minutes.

 

A short vibration indicates 1 unit and a long vibration indicates 5 units.

 

The indication range for the Hours is 1 to 12, for the Tenth of Minutes 0 to

5 and for the Minutes 0 to 9.

 

Examples:

 

3 short vibrations indicate 3 Hours or 30 Minutes or 3 Minutes depending on

the pressed button,

 

1 long vibration indicates 5 Hours or 50 Minutes or 5 Minutes depending on

the pressed button,

 

2 long vibrations followed by 2 short vibrations indicate 12 Hours,

 

no vibration indicates 0 Tens of Minutes or 0 Minute depending on the

pressed button.

 

The buttons may be pressed in any order.

 

For example, you can check just the Tens of Minutes and then the Minutes.

 

Time Setting.

Press and hold the upper button to set the Hours,

 

press and hold the central button to set the Ten of Minutes,

 

press and hold the last button to set the Minutes.

 

The pressure has to go beyond a long vibration which indicates you are in

setting mode.

 

Each of the short vibrations that follows, counts for 1 unit and adjusts the

watch until the button is released.

 

Examples:

 

To set the Hours at 9 o’clock, press and hold until you have felt the long

vibration followed by 9 short vibrations. Then release the button.

 

To set the Tens of Minutes to 0, press and hold until you have felt the end

of the long vibration. Then release the button.

 

The time can be set in any order.

 

For example, you can just set the Minutes. Hours and Tens of Minutes will

not be affected.

 

Changing the battery.

The battery will last between 2 and 5 years depending on the use of your

watch.

 

Use only Energizer 357 type batteries or equivalent.

 

Whenever possible, have your battery changed by a specialized watchmaker.

 

Guarantee.

Alexandravision watches are guaranteed for 2 years. This warranty covers all

manufacturing defects.

 

It does not cover the normal wear of the materials of which they are

constituted, nor damages due to an abnormal use, nor the battery. The Meteor

is waterproof. It can be cleaned with a wet tissue but should not be put

into water. The pendants are not waterproof.

http://www.alexandravision.com

Meteor Vibrating Pocket Watch Demo

Transcribed from audio by Kayde Rieken

J.J. Meddaugh: Hi, everybody. J.J. Meddaugh here, and I want to tell you

about a new product that we’ve added to A.T. Guys that we actually

discovered at the CSUN conference in San Diego. It’s from a company in

Switzerland called Alexandravision, and it’s a vibrating pocket watch. So

what this allows you to do is completely independently-and without

distraction to other people-check the current time, completely without audio

or Braille or anything else.

 

So it’s a really simple design. This is called the Meteor, and it has three

buttons on it. So the first button is for the hours, and I’m going to put

this up to the speaker so you can hear it vibrate.

 

[The watch gives four short vibrations.]

 

That’s four vibrations for4:00, and then I press the middle button, which is

for the tens .

 

[The watch gives three short vibrations.]

 

Three vibrations for 30, and then I press the bottom button for the minutes

digit .

 

[The watch gives one longer vibration.]

 

And one long vibration for 5. So the long vibrations are fives, the short

ones are ones. So it’s 4:35. A.M. or P.M. does not matter here, it’s just a

12-hour timepiece, and as you can tell, you can figure out the time

completely by vibration. So you can just keep this in your pocket and

determine the time without distracting other people.

 

The shape of this thing is like a small oval with part of it cut out. So the

oval is maybe two and a half to three inches long. There’s one end that’s a

little bit thicker, that’s the bottom. The top end is thinner, that’s the

top. And on one side of the oval it’s cut out a little bit, and that’s where

the buttons are. They feel like little Braille bumps, but a little bit

bigger than that, and they are very well-defined and easy to find.

 

To set the watch, it’s also really simple. So say I actually want to change

it to 5:00. I hold down the hours button, and I wait for a long vibration.

 

[The watch gives a long vibration.]

 

And then.

 

[The watch gives shorter vibrations, and J.j. counts them.]

 

One . two . three . four . five . and let up on the button, and now I’ve set

it to 5:00.

 

[The watch gives a final vibration.]

 

One other thing to note here is that you don’t necessarily have to press all

of the buttons. So you know it’s already 5:00. You can just press the tens

of minutes button .

 

[The watch gives three short vibrations.]

 

30 .

 

[The watch gives one long vibration, then two short ones.]

 

  1. 5:37. So as you can see, the operation of this pocket watch is quite

simple. It was designed that way on purpose. It’s just to act as a really

simple timekeeping device, so if you’re in a meeting, or if you’re someplace

where you don’t want to deal with a loud talking watch or pull out your

phone, you can really discretely tell the time. Also, if you are or know

someone who is hard of hearing, this would be a great tool as a timekeeping

device, since it operates completely via vibration. So anybody, even someone

who has no hearing at all, could use this watch.

 

The watch uses a typical watch battery and will last from two to five years

on a single battery, and of course you can replace it after that. It comes

with a two-year manufacturer warranty against hardware defects.

 

So this is the Meteor pocket watch. We are the first in the United States to

be distributing this. It’s available currently on the A T Guys website for a

retail price of $117 plus shipping. I’d be happy to answer any questions you

might have. Of course, you can email support@atguys.com

<mailto:support%40atguys.com> , @atguys on Twitter, or call us at

269-216-4798 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting 269-216-4798 FREE

end_of_the_skype_highlighting. Again, http://www.atguys.com. Thanks so much for

listening. I’m J.J. Meddaugh.

 

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

 

 

 

Beepball: Leveling the Playing Field for 125 Years

Beepball: Leveling the Playing Field for 125 Years
— Read on www.fredshead.info/2019/04/beepball-leveling-playing-field-for-125.html

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Franklin language master, April 22, April 22, 2019

April 22, 2019

Meet the Franklin language master

 

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

Today, I’d like to talk about the Franklin language master.

Let’s meet this product.

 

Meet the Franklin Language Master

 

Now, here is one of my very favorite gadgets and I have been friends with this particular gadget for many years now.  What is it?  Well, the Franklin Language Master is a full blown dictionary that enables you to use it as a dictionary.  It is a dictionary with the following functions:

Thesaurus, word lookup, synonyms, homonyms, spelling capabilities, and it even has a number of games that you can play.

 

These are all word games.  The voice is very clear, and it runs on battery as well as via an adapter.  It comes with a pair of headphones and has a very nice little traveling case.

 

I take my Franklin Language Master with me everywhere I go.  It is a real gem for me and I hope you go out there and make friends with it.

 

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

 

 

 

Study on the use of remote, video-based assistance

The following is a message from Envision Research Institute and Wichita State University faculty member Vinod Namboori: 

We are conducting a study on the use of remote, video-based assistance by blind and visually impaired (BVI) individuals. We want to survey BVI individuals who have used mobile apps like Facetime, Skype, BeMyEyes, AIRA to receive remote, video-based assistance from a sighted person. Results of this study will help us understand how mobile apps might best offer remote, video-based sighted assistance to BVI individuals in overcoming challenges faced in performing routine tasks. 

If you are someone with blindness or low vision, and have received remote, video-based assistance in the past, we invite you to complete an anonymous short survey on your experience and preferences. Completing this survey should not take more than 15 minutes using a computer, tablet, or smartphone with reliable Internet connection. Link to survey: https://forms.gle/33NmDtFptnYTVyy26

If you have any questions, please contact Vinod Namboori at vinod.namboodiri@wichita.edu  

 

CCB Tech Articles, Donna’s Low Tech Tips, scam alert, April 15, 2019

April 15, 2019

A scam alert

 

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

Today, I’d like to introduce you to my scam alert.

 

A scam alert

This is for those of you who own your own domain name.

 

Your domain name is in violation

 

You’ll probably receive an email telling you that someone else in another country has the exact same domain name as yours and you’ll be asked to cease and desist.  Or you’ll be asked to sell your domain name.

 

You can do any of three things:

  1. Simply ignore this email and move on.
  2. You can choose to get rid of your domain name.
  3. You can choose to sell your domain name.

 

My suggestion would be for you to just ignore this email and move on.  Any communication with the sender could only lead to you getting in over your head in that you are bound to be asked more questions.

The thing is that you will never know if this is an authentic email and it is not worth the while to even find out.

 

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 Edmonton Summary Notes, Using Netflix on Your iDevice, April 8, 2019

            Summary Notes

GTT Edmonton Meeting April 8, 2019

 

The most recent meeting of the Get Together with Technology (GTT) Edmonton Chapter was held April 8 at 7pm at Ascension Lutheran Church 8405 83 Street in Edmonton.

15 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.

 

April Topic – USING NETFLIX On YOUR iDevice

Wendy Edey demonstrated how a blind person can use their iPhone to find and play described video movies and other programs on the Netflix service.

 

Netflix is a streaming service that allows you to watch movies, documentaries and TV shows on- a computer, a tablet or a smart phone.

This presentation focused on using Netflix with iPhone with Voice Over. Accessibility is not perfect, but it is usable.

 

Netflix Fees

Netflix charges a monthly fee and can be cancelled at any time. You can pay for one, two or four users. Four users costs $16.99 per month.

One user costs $9.99 per month. The cost for two screens is $13.99. If you pay for more than one person, all the users can use Netflix on different devices at the same time. The users do not need to be in the same home. They can even be in different cities. If you know someone who has a spare screen on their account, you can ask them to register for you.

If not, you will need your own account.

The Netflix Ap is free from the Ap Store, but you will need a Netflix account to use it. If you are using one of the screens on somebody else’s account, you will need their email and password to sign in the first time.

 

App Navigation

From the Home screen you can view all the content by flicking through the items one at a time. For a more efficient journey, set your rotor to Headings and flip through the available headings.

There are four tabs at the bottom of the Home screen: Home, search, Downloads and More. You can view all available titles by flicking through the items one by one on the Home screen, or by setting your rotor to Headings and flicking through the headings that Netflix provides. On the search screen, you can type in the name of a movie or TV show to see if it is available. The Downloads screen shows items you have downloaded for off line use, and the More screen contains options for adjusting your account and profile preferences.

 

Playing Content

To play an item, tap twice with one finger and flick through the options. You will have the option to play it or add it to My List. If you choose to play it, the playback will begin. If you choose to add it, tap twice on My List. Then you can flick down through the options and choose Download. This will place the item in your iPhone. You will be able to watch it at any time without connecting to the Internet. When you want to remove the item from your iPhone, you can go back to My List and delete it there.

 

Controlling the Playback

All content will play in Landscape Mode even if you have locked the orientation of your screen. To control the playback, you will want to tip your phone into the landscape position. Tap twice in the middle of the screen to see the control menu when the content is playing. The control menu only stays on the screen for a very short time, so you may have to get it back a few times. On the control menu you will find options to pause, go back or forward by time or percentage, and change audio and subtitle options.

 

Audio description

Quite a few of the Netflix titles have audio description. You can set up your personal screen to enable audio description whenever it is available without affecting the settings on other screens using the same account. This can be done on your computer. Alternately  the people in the Help centre can do it for you. Indeed, the help line people provide very good support. When you set up the ap on your iPhone you can set Audio Description as a default. You can turn it off during the playback for any individual item.

 

Next Meeting (Monday May 13, 2019 at 7pm)

  • Stephannie Leach, independent Living Skills coordinator for CNIB, will demonstrate several low tech gadgets and apps that promote independent living.
  • As always, for help with technology bring your devices and/or questions to the meeting.

 

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.
  • 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 meeting consists of a feature technology topic, questions and answers about technology, and one-on-one training where possible.
  • Participants are encouraged to come to each meeting even if they are not interested in the feature topic because questions on any technology are welcome. The more participants the more talent and experience we will have to help each other.
  • There are GTT groups across Canada as well as a national GTT monthly toll free teleconference. You may subscribe to the National GTT blog to get email notices of teleconferences and notes from other GTT chapters. Visit:

http://www.gttprogram.wordpress.com/

To subscribe, activate the “Follow “link 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]

 

 

CCB National Newsletter: Visions, April 2019

 

VISIONS

 

 

Canadian Council of the Blind

Newsletter

 

 

April 2019

 

 

“A lack of sight is

not a lack of vision”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

President’s Message++

1 Louise Gillis – National President

As we March into spring, weather is improving and everyone is becoming more active. We continue to be active at the National level on working toward great access medications and health care by proving input to companies and Government at all levels. As new medications become available or are in the very preliminary stages, we along with other organizations, are providing information regarding accessibility concerns that many of us have to try to avoid as many issues as possible by the time they reach end users.

 

Several groups have been busy preparing submissions to Canada Transport Agency and the CRTC regarding their proposed regulations prior to these regulations moving to Government for final approval. The regulations along with the Accessible Canada Act are not perfect but at this stage it is very important to have them passed in legislation before the summer recess. Once in place they will provide greater accessibility to all federally run jurisdictions. They will come up for review in five years which gives more time for organizations to provide recommendations for change where needed. The submissions take a great deal of time and work, by all the committees, for which I thank everyone involved for their hard work and dedication.

 

Also, I wish to thank the over 450 people who responded to the technology survey which was completed and now is being compiled. This has given a lot of valuable information, which will be submitted to government, and will be very useful toward the hiring of persons with sight loss by government in their budget promise of 5000 persons with disabilities over the next five years.

 

CCB’s other committees such as By Laws, Membership and Advocacy continue to meet on a regular basis on their differing agendas. Other groups that have met over the month of March are World Blind Union (WBU),, Consumer Access Group (CAG), Barrier Free Canada (BFC), and Braille Literacy Canada (BLC) for which we have representation.

 

Check the website for these groups for their latest updates. { WBU – CAG – www.cag-tccdv.ca/ all position papers are on the site. WBU http://www.worldblindunion.org. The World Blind Union (WBU) is the global organization representing the estimated 253 million people worldwide who are blind or partially sighted. Members are organizations of and for the blind in 190 countries, as well as international organizations working in the field of vision impairment.  BFC – http://barrierfreecanada.org/. Barrier-Free Canada/Canada Sans Barriers (BFC/CSB) advocates for the Canadian Parliament to enact a strong and effective Canadians with Disabilities Act (CDA) to achieve a barrier-free Canada for all persons with disabilities. BLC – www.brailleliteracycanada.ca/ BLC is a not-for-profit corporation committed to braille promotion and the right of braille users to equal access to printed information.}

 

Check out GTT & CCB Health and Fitness for the latest news items through Facebook, blog and twitter. There are lots of helpful hints, tips and ideas there for many of our individual needs. Now that curling is over watch for news on the Atlantic Sports & Recreation Weekend coming up in May.

 

It is important for members to keep active in whatever way they can at local, divisional and national levels. That can be by going to socials, sports & recreational activities, advocacy, membership development, mentoring, or taking a leadership role. Everyone counts no matter the level of ability. Enjoy Visions and send in any interesting items you may taking place in your community.

Louise Gillis, National President

Announcements

 

 

Thank You Volunteers++

In Celebration of National Volunteer Week

Canada is a nation where volunteering is a mainstay.  According to Volunteer Canada’s website, 12.7 million volunteers currently give of their time, energy, skills and experience.

National Volunteer Week takes place from April 7-13 this year.  There is no better time to thank the many volunteers that contribute to CCB’s success.  We have recently marked out 75th Anniversary; we know that volunteer power played an important role in helping our organization to reach that milestone.

 

Volunteers fulfill a wide variety of positions nation-wide within the 80+ chapters throughout Canada.  Leadership roles, such as President, Treasurer and secretary are occupied by volunteers.

 

Each chapter allows for a certain percentage of volunteers with vision to help with some administrative tasks.  At the national level, volunteers serve on CCB’s Board of Directors.  Chapter volunteers also staff display booths, assist with special events and provide help and support during programs and activities.

 

Peers volunteer to teach peers through the Get Together with Technology (GTT) program.  Volunteer guides guide and assist those involved in sports programs. Sighted volunteers provide some help with Book Clubs.

Volunteers also serve on various committees both within CCB as well as in the community at large. Their tireless efforts are helping to break down barriers and create a more inclusive Canada.  Advocacy, pharmacare, transportation and telecommunications groups have become more aware of the requirements of those living with vision loss thanks largely to the input from those who give of their time and experience.

Volunteers also contribute to our monthly Visions newsletter.

It is said that one of the prime reasons that people choose to volunteer is having been deeply and personally affected by a cause or situation.  In many instances, those who have directly or indirectly experience vision loss have chosen to take what they have learned and experienced to bring about positive changes for themselves and others. With the trend toward short-term, episodic volunteering, it is worth noting that many of CCB’s volunteers have been involved with CCB for many years.

 

Those in the blind/low vision community and beyond would like to take this opportunity to thank all of the volunteers involved with the Canadian Council of the Blind. During National Volunteer Week and throughout the year, please take the time to thank the volunteers for their continued enthusiastic support for CCB.

 

Peterborough Woman Wins Medal for Making Angels for Service Personnel++

 

In mid-January of this year, Suzanne Thomas, formerly a CCB member in Toronto, now living in Peterborough, was struck speechless when she received a medal from Chief of Defense General Jonathan Vance for the angels she provides for service personnel around the world.

 

2 Suzanne Thomas working at her craft table

A highlight of Suzanne’s involvement with CCB in Toronto was when she took on Howard Moscoe, who was not only a city councilor at the time, but also chair of the board of the Toronto Transit Commission.  In that position, Moscoe encountered a good deal of opposition from blind or partially sighted patrons who were bounced off the Wheeltrans program because they didn’t use wheelchairs.  CNIB didn’t take up the cause, but CCB Toronto, led by Suzanne, gave voice to the issues, and was successful in getting many of the patrons back on the program.  Now, the Thomases daughter, Debora is a vice-president of CCB Peterborough chapter.

 

“I was blown away,” Suzanne said in a recent interview about the medal for CCB Peterborough chapter’s weekly radio show, Insight Peterborough.  “General Vance says that they love these angels that come in the Christmas boxes that go all over the world.  They’ve got them hanging on their shaving mirrors, on their key rings, on the ceiling of their little huts, on their night tables, and on their filing cabinets.”

 

Suzanne has received many E-mails from the people who have received her angels.

 

“Some of them are very sad, some of them are funny,” she recalled.  “There was a young fellow, and he was 20 years old.  He said: ‘I hope you’re not offended, but I have a bomb-sniffing dog.   She goes first, so I put my angel on her harness so that if she dies, I want to have the angel go with her.’”

 

In the past “ten years plus,” Suzanne has made 40,000 angels.

 

“The only thing that slowed me down was that I got sick, and had to spend a lot of time in bed,” Suzanne recalled.  “I’m kind of panicking, because I want all my kids to get an angel.  You see, when you’re 74, you can call all these people your kids.  I have to have the boxes ready by September 1 so that they can go down to Nova Scotia.  They may put them on a frigate,” Suzanne continued, and then I’ve got angels in the helicopters, the American helicopters, and the big airplane that sends supplies over to the countries that they’re going to, and it’s army, navy, air force, and military police.  They all get these angels, and so do the heads of staff.

3 A close up of Suzanne’s beads.

Suzanne explained that the angels are made with seven safety pins, each containing five beads, a bit of wire, and a bow which serves as the wings.  The halo is made of much smaller beads.

 

Suzanne said that she has no idea when her medal actually arrived at her house.

 

“It was in the mail during the strike, and then the mailbox froze, so I don’t know how long it was in there before we got it, but it was a lovely surprise.”

By Devon Wilkins.

The Canadian Blind Chess Association and the 2019 Quebec City tournament++

 

Are you an avid chess player living in Canada?

 

Or maybe you are an aspiring one who is looking for ways to play chess and have some fun while at the same time make new chess friends?

 

Then the Canadian Blind Chess Association may be what you are looking for.

 

Why not become a member and join our group!

 

Come on in and let’s play chess together!

 

We want to invite you to register for the Quebec chess tournament to be held in April.

 

It’s opened to everyone!

 

For more info on the annual Quebec chess tournament please go to this link https://www.dropbox.com/sh/zcji13ezaskeepa/AACsNyfRJWHOtIxw25Vz5xIia?dl=0

 

 

Gor more information about the Quebec City tournament and to look for the Canadian Blind Chess Association on Facebook, contact Rebecca at

amrywoddyddiauheulog@gmail.com

or at cqpa@bellnet.ca

 

 

Assistive Technology

 

 

 

Get Together with Technology (GTT) at CSUN, March 13 to 15, 2019++

 

Thanks to Markido Inc. of Ottawa

(https://markido.com/try?utm_source=markido.com&utm_content=try-topnav ), four CCB staff and volunteers had the great good fortune to attend the 34th CSUN Conference in Anaheim California.

 

Visit the GTT network for reports from Kim Kilpatrick, Rebecca Jackson, Maryse Glaude- Beaulieu and Albert Ruel.

 

Sam Burns, CEO of Markido Inc. promoted their PowerPoint Plug-in, “Engage” during CSUN and you can get a peak at its great support for accessible presentations by activating the below links.

4 People entering the conference (photo from http://www.csun.edu)

You can download your own free version and see how it will help you get access to all the information in the PowerPoint presentations you receive, and to create your own accessible presentations for circulation.

 

One of the exciting products produced by Markido is Engage.

( https://markido.com/about )

 

Engage is a PowerPoint add-in that lets people of any skill-level create visually impressive presentations. Engage comes with thousands of design assets that are easy to incorporate into any presentation using drag and drop functionality. Users can also create and edit infographics and data maps right in PowerPoint.

 

Make your presentations more accessible for people with disabilities.

( https://markido.com/engage )

 

Run our accessibility tests to get an overview of how accessible your presentation is.

 

-We provide quick and convenient shortcuts to fix the issues that are found.

-Visually check and fix the screen reading order of your slides without having to use the selection pane.

-Add a slide description so users with screen readers can get an overview of what the slide is about before reading the detailed content.

 

Over 100,000 amazing presentations have been created with Engage.

 

Get a free trial version of Engage. (https://markido.com/try?utm_source=markido.com&utm_content=try-topnav )

 

 

 

Donna’s Low Tech Tips, Pen Friend++

 

Meet the Pen Friend.  If you have not already been introduced to this nifty little gadget then here is your opportunity.  Meet this very affordable and very useful little gadget.  It was developed by the RNIB of Britain.

 

Yes, it is shaped like a large pen and has a very nice speaker that enables you to hear what you are doing.  The Pen Friend enables you to label things using specially adapted tiny labels.  The instructions can be accessed on the card that it comes with; a really nifty way to produce instructions.  This is how it works.

 

– When you turn on your Pen Friend you hear some very delightful sounds and then you know that Pen Friend is ready to go to work.

– Place Pen Friend on one of those special labels that comes with your Pen Friend then press the record button.

– Give a short audio description of what you want the label to describe.

– Press a button to end the recording.

– Now you are ready to complete the task by taking your label and placing it on wherever you want it to be. Can, tin, box, file folder, whatever.

– You can go back to what you have just labeled and using your Pen Friend you can tell what you have just done.

– Turn on Pen Friend and voila! With the press of a button Pen Friend will tell you what your label says; what you have just recorded in your own voice.

 

This is indeed a neat little gadget and is extremely affordable.  You can find this gadget at such places as http://www.maxiaids.com and http://www.independentlivingaids.com  So go out there and make friends with the Pen Friend. To contact me, send me an email at info@sterlingcreations.ca

 

In the News

 

 

  Lynda Todd with art displayed, “Rites of Passage” series, at Cavan Art Gallery, Cavan, Ontario++

 

Visually impaired artist paints her mark in galleries!

 

Lynda Todd was born into a family of artists, so she naturally had an affinity for creative expression. However, she never took herself seriously as an artist. Why not?  Lynda was born legally blind and much of her remaining vision is colour blind.

 

5 Lynda Todd with “Rites of Passage” series at Cavan Art Gallery

In spite of this challenge, Valerie Kent, Director of Cavan Art Gallery, encouraged Lynda to take lessons and she started acrylic abstract painting. Her desire to explore and express creativity have resulted in unique colour choices melded with interesting use of texture. This particular medium has evoked an intense desire to communicate and express herself to the visual world.

 

Valerie was able to ascertain early on Lynda, “was painting from the heart.”

 

“I am blown away with the interest and enthusiasm that my work has garnered.  Commissions and sales starting occurring immediately. Then I received multiple gallery acceptances.  I would never have thought I would find my happy place in a paint studio!” stated Lynda

 

She describes her visual disability as an “inconvenience”. Lynda is active in her community striving to bring awareness to those living with inconveniences and provide education and understanding to create a more inclusive and kind community.

 

She believes anyone facing a challenge can achieve whatever they want to.  Sometimes modifications may need to be made to make that happen.  Everything is possible. Including a blind woman creating visual, expressive and beautiful art.

6 Lynda’s art in the Cavan Gallery

 

Moving from a small town Lynda had no idea how much her life would expand with so many more opportunities living in the city of Peterborough, Ontario. She has embraced her “inconvenience” and speaks about it openly providing education and awareness through motivational speaking.

 

One opportunity keeps leading to another. So many doors have opened now that she has the independence to get around herself and embrace city life.

Lynda is a wife, mother, artist, motivational speaker and adrenaline junkie who enjoys axe throwing, tandem bike riding, and pistol shooting.

 

Her art has been accepted in three galleries plus a solo show:

  • Paul’s Art & Frame Gallery, Peterborough
  • Solo feature artist for the month of June.
  • Gala opening will be June 1st.
  • Spirit of the Hills Art Association Show and Sale, Warkworth April – September
  • Miskwaa Gallery, July – August
  • Cavan Art Gallery- ongoing

Check out her website at www.lyndatodd.com

 

Get Free On-Demand Verbal Descriptions of Museums ++

Starting this spring, Smithsonian visitors who are blind or have low vision can access a groundbreaking technology that uses their smartphone cameras or special glasses to get free on-demand verbal descriptions of everything from individual objects to entire exhibitions from sighted agents. The Aira technology is available at all Smithsonian museums in Washington, D.C., and the National Zoo. The new service is provided by Access Smithsonian, which oversees accessibility and inclusion activities for Smithsonian visitors.

 

“For far too long, museum visitors with vision loss have depended on accompanying friends and family to help them navigate around museums,” said Beth Ziebarth, director of Access Smithsonian. “Now, with the touch of a button, visitors have instant access that not only helps them engage with the museum but also increases their mobility and independence. In the words of one recent user, ‘This revolutionizes the way people with vision loss experience museums.’”

 

Visitors can access Aira in two ways: by downloading the app to their iPhone or Android smartphone or by using their personal Aira smart glasses—at no cost to the user. In both cases, through artificial intelligence and augmented reality, visitors will be connected to highly trained sighted live agents who can see from their remote location what is in front of or near the user. The agent then helps the visitor navigate the museum.

For instance, in the National Museum of American History, live agents can guide visitors to specific objects, such as the Ruby Slippers; specific exhibitions, such as “The First Ladies” and the Star-Spangled Banner Gallery; as well as restrooms, cafés and museum stores. Ongoing services and materials for visitors who are blind or have low vision will continue to be available, including Braille and large-print brochures and docent-led verbal-description tours. In addition, talking tactile floor plans will soon be installed in the National Museum of American History.

 

About Access Smithsonian

Established in 1991, Access Smithsonian believes the Smithsonian’s exhibitions, programming and content should be inclusive, integrated, independent and dignified. The office is charged with ensuring that all visitors, including people with disabilities, are able to benefit from and have access to what the Smithsonian offers in its buildings, collections and programs. Through collaborations with Smithsonian museums, Access Smithsonian improves access to existing resources and helps design new programs, exhibits and buildings that are accessible to all. Signature programs include Morning at the Museum, designed for youth with sensory-processing disorders and other brain-based disabilities; See Me, for people with Alzheimer’s and their caregivers; and Project SEARCH, a 10-month internship-to-job training program for young adults with intellectual disabilities. For information, visit http://www.si.edu/visit/VisitorsWithDisabilities.

 

About Aira

AI stands for Artificial Intelligence; RA stands for Remote Assistance. When you put them together, you get Aira. Aira is a service that connects people who are blind or have low vision to highly trained, remotely located agents.

 

At the touch of a button, Aira delivers instant access to information, enhancing everyday efficiency, engagement and independence.

 

Breaking barriers: accessibility at home a costly process++

It’s just a few centimeters high, but the sill of the sliding glass door that leads to the back deck of her Barrhaven home is a mountain to Jennifer Glanz.

 

“It’s little, but I can’t get over it,” said Glanz, who has multiple sclerosis and uses a wheelchair. Glanz and her husband, Eli, have already installed a $4,000 electric lift in their garage so that Jennifer can get out of the house, and recently completed a renovation to make their bathroom barrier free.

 

They moved with their daughter Emelia, to a bungalow a few years ago when Jennifer’s deteriorating condition made it impossible for her to manage the stairs in their former two-storey home. The small ramp over the door sill is the next item on their reno list for summer — “if we ever get a summer,” Jennifer jokes.

 

“It’s the next project. And a ramp down to the grass. Emilia will be playing on the grass this summer and it would be nice to be there with her.”

 

Whether it’s a senior who wants to age in place in her own home, a person battling a debilitating illness, or someone injured in a sudden, catastrophic tragedy like the Westboro OC Transpo bus crash, those facing disability find that barriers abound in the home. In fact, 22 per cent of Canadians live with some sort of physical disability, according to Statistics Canada.

 

“The older you get, the more likely you are to have a disability,” says Patrick Curran, national executive director of Independent Living Canada, a national non-profit agency that advocates for those living with disabilities and promotes independent living.

 

“And if you live long enough, you will have a disability.”

 

Many of the modifications needed to make a home accessible are obvious: a wheelchair ramp to the front door, for example. Others aren’t so apparent.

 

“One item that’s really big, especially for someone with head injuries, is lighting,” said Sean MacGinnis, co-founder BuildAble, an Ottawa company that specializes in building and renovating homes for accessibility. “You want lighting that won’t put a strain on your eyes. Or if it’s for someone who has a visual impairment, better lighting will eliminate shadows and help them see any changes in elevation in their home.”

 

MacGinnis founded BuildAble five years ago with partner Kyla Cullain, a registered nurse. The company works closely with their clients’ medical teams -their family doctor or occupational therapist, for example — to develop an appropriate construction plan, he said.

 

“We started the company out focusing on people who are aging in place, but we’ve found the majority of our clients are people who have had a medical crisis, MS or a stroke or something like that … and we do have a lot of people who’ve been in vehicle accidents too. They’re in mid-life and they want to stay in their homes or they have family that they don’t want to move.”

 

For Eli and Jennifer Glanz, that meant redoing their bathroom to make it accessible. BuildAble installed a barrier free bathroom that Jennifer can roll up to and swing herself into a spare wheelchair that stays in the shower. The tile floor slopes gently to a drain and a waterproof barrier under the entire bathroom floor means spills or floods cause no damage.

The old sink and vanity was replaced with a “floating sink” that lets Jennifer wheel up to it like a desk. Three heavy-duty handrails give support and stability at the toilet.

 

“For the longest time we had a standard tub and shower that you see in most showers. Jennifer can’t transfer herself into a standard tub, even if there’s a shower seat. It would be me physically lifting her up and into the tub. That was hard for both of us,” Eli said.

 

“She keeps reminding me, I only have one back.”

 

“It brought more independence to me,” Jennifer said. “Before, I would have to have him home and helping me have a shower. Now I don’t. He doesn’t know how many times I shower.”

 

It cost $15,000 to renovate the bathroom, about 80 per cent of which was paid for with grants from March of Dimes. The family had to cover the cost of the garage lift on their own.

 

Another clever addition are offset hinges that allow doors to swing completely out of the way, adding a crucial extra five centimeters width to the doorway for Jennifer’s chair to pass.

 

The simplest and most common modification to a home is to add grab bars and handrails, MacGinnis said, including railings on both sides of a staircase. In the kitchen, countertops and cabinets can be made to lower to wheelchair level, while full-extension drawers are easier to access without awkward reaching.

 

One of BuildAble’s biggest jobs was to add a full elevator to a home for a man with Parkinson’s Disease, he said.

 

The cost can vary widely. The cost of home modifications are often included in the insurance payout for accident victims or — as in the case of an Ottawa Public servant who is suing the city for $6.3 million for injuries in the Westboro bus crash — part of the lawsuit claim. Others are helped with the cost through grants from the March of Dimes and other charities or through tax breaks.

 

“There’s a lot of low-cost things we can do that have a high impact,” MacGinnis said. A grab bar might cost $100. A second staircase railing $1,000. A wooden ramp to the door can range from $500 to $5,000, while a more aesthetically pleasing ramp of interlocking brick could cost $15,000 to $20,000.

 

A barrier-free bathroom costs between $12,000 and $15,000 while a full reno to make a kitchen full accessible can run up to $30,000, he said.

 

In Ontario, someone who has suffered catastrophic injuries in a car crash is eligible for $1 million in under the province’s the province’s Statutory Accident Benefit Schedule. But for non-catastrophic injuries, that benefit is capped at $65,000 and will only last five years, said lawyer Najma Rashid, a partner in Howard Yegendorf & Associates.

 

“Just because someone’s injuries aren’t catastrophic, doesn’t mean they’re not serious,” Rashid said. “Many people with serious injuries might be stuck with that $65,000 and it’s only available for five years so they have to make a judgment call as to whether they’re going to use part of the money for changes to their home or for ongoing treatment needs.”

Additional costs could become part of a lawsuit claim, she said. Lawyers would work with their client’s medical team or hire an occupational therapist or consultant to determine what renovations are needed and their cost.

 

“And if they do claim it in a lawsuit, they have to wait for that lawsuit to be over. Or self-fund it and look for a reimbursement, but most people don’t have the money to pay for it themselves.”

 

Those looking for more information on improving accessibility will be able to find it Independent Living Canada’s AccessABLE Technology Expo on May 30 at the Ottawa Conference and Events Centre on Coventry Road. The one-day expo will bring together 20 exhibitors with a broad range of products for disabilities such as visual or hearing loss, cognitive impairment and mental issues. Admission is free, Curran said.

 

“We’re doing this to build awareness for Independent Living Canada,” Curran said. “But we also want to give to hope to people who have disabilities — to show them that there are people out there doing research and introducing new products that will be of interest to them.”

For more information, visit www.ilcanada.ca

By Blair Crawford

www.ccbnational.net

ccb@ccbnational.net

1-877-304-0968