Where It's AT – Assistive Technology Blog

Do you know where to go to find out about accessibility features for the latest apps for the iPhone, iPod, iPad, and Mac? Well, now there’s a website for that!

Applevis.com is a user-powered site focused on sharing information on the  accessibility of apps developed for the iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch and Mac. It’s also a place for users to read and share guides, tutorials and tips to help VoiceOver users get the most from their Apple devices. The Applevis site includes a user forum, blog, podcasts, guides, and much more.

Accessibility User Testing

Instead of conducting accessibility testing with users with disabilities (asking users to identify accessibility issues), it is almost always more effective to do usability testing (asking users to evaluate overall usability) with users with disabilities. While accessibility testing can be used to identify instances of accessibility – poor alt text here and a missing label there, fixing all significant instances of inaccessibility and non-compliance still might result in a poor experience for users with disabilities. Basic user testing that includes users with disabilities has a focus on the broader user experience with a site, yet still can identify specific accessibility issues. User testing with individuals with disabilities should be part of a broader testing plan that involves compliance checklists, automated tests, manual testing, and assistive technology testing.

New Features of Bookshare.org

Review by Joel Zimba, Special Projects Coordinator, MDTAP

If you are a regular user of the Bookshare.org website, you may have noticed another download option which has recently been added. Download in MP3 Audio (Beta) now appears at the bottom of every book listing.  Rather than receiving a file containing the text of a book in digital format, the text is converted to audio files using text-to-speech on the server side.  The result is a group of MP3 files zipped together and encrypted using your Bookshare password.

Here is how the process worked for me.  When I clicked on the MP3 Download option, I was taken to a page which informed me my download was being prepared, and that an E-mail would be sent to me when my book was ready.  I took my time, had some coffee, but still no download.  Some time over the weekend, my E-mail finally arrived.  I knew these MP3 files would be larger than a typical Bookshare transfer, so I decided to test it at home, rather than stressing our dubious office broadband.

This too was a slow process.  The 455 MB download took nearly 3 hours to complete.  That’s right, 455 MB.  While this is something like 1000 times larger than the text files from which the archive was generated, it’s still not a huge file size.  By comparison, video files can often make it into the tens of GB.

Why might someone go to all of this trouble to get a book in MP3 format?  The best answer is ease of use.  Once I actually had the zipped archive transferred to my computer, I easily imported the entire book into iTunes and transferred it to my iPhone.  Rather than using specialized hardware, like the NLS Digital Book Player or the Read2Go iPhone app, I could listen to my book on nearly any standard MP3 audio player.  For the purposes of testing, I simply used my computer running iTunes.

You’ll notice the word “beta” attached to the download link.  This is a new service and will probably change over time.  For example, I didn’t see an easy way to change the speed at which the text-to-speech engine reads the book.  The playback was annoyingly slow to me.  While many MP3 players allow you to speed up audio playback, the granularity may not always be as fine as what can be achieved with most specialized book readers.

The download method seems cumbersome for daily use.  Perhaps automatically transferring the files to a user’s DropBox account will be an option in the future.  Also, I can imagine a time when streaming content might be viable.

I am pleased to see Bookshare changing and growing.  Have you noticed the “Reading History” link?  I enjoyed glancing at the list of thousands of books I have read via Bookshare over the years.  Happy Tenth Birthday Bookshare.

Fair Housing in 2012: A Clear Path for All

April 20, 2012

9:30 am – 12:00 pm

FREE & Open to the Public

Register Here

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED

• Fair Housing — Rights & Responsibilities
• Reasonable Accommodations
• Foreclosure Prevention
• Legislative Update

WHO SHOULD ATTEND

• Condo Associations
• Elected Officials
• Homeowners Associations
• Housing Counseling Agencies
• Interested Persons
• Landlords
• Non-Profits
• Persons with Disabilities
• Realtors
• Renters/Homeowner

Complimentary Continental Breakfast/Up-to-Date Information/Resources Available /On-Site Exhibitors

To be held at the:

Havre de Grace Activity Center

351 Lewis Lane,

Havre de Grace MD 21078

For more information and disability related accommodations contact:

Sylvia W. Bryant – 410-638-4739 • humanrelations@harfordcountymd.gov

Brien Boone – boone@mdhousing.org

AT in the news for the week of 4/2 – 4/6

Google’s Project Glass augmented reality glasses begin testing

Shop Smart with Blind Bargains for iOS

Community Partners looking for iPads to help the disabled

Easy Way to Learn about Gimmicks and Gadgets to Make Life Easier and Safer at Home

The human voice as a game changer

A Free Cloud Library for Students with Disabilities

Braille Music Scores Provide Lifeline to Blind Musicians

Young Student Creates Pen for Visually Impaired Children

Purdue U. students develop ‘SPEAKall’ app to help children w/ severe autism

In Florida, Amputees Find Normal Life on the Golf Course

Who owns the tech to talk? The human toll of patent warfare

Technology helps disabled musician

Accessibility Spotlight: One Switch. One Head. The World.

Symposium to explore disability and technology

Inclusive Publishing and eBook Distribution: Access for People with Print Disabilities

June 8-9, 2012

National Federation of the Blind,

200 E. Wells Street, at Jernigan Place,

Baltimore MD 21230

The printed world is converging with the digital world in new ways every day.  More and more publications are available in electronic formats.  These formats, when they are accessible, provide blind and print-disabled users with a wealth of material which they have never had access to before.   Many members of the print-disabled community have been determined and voracious readers, despite a lack of large-scale adoption of formats they can utilize.  These users love the written word, and want to access it with the rest of the world, and this is where the promise of eBooks is so exciting.  Unfortunately, not all eBook platforms provide accessibility to this subsection of society.  At this conference, the DAISY Consortium and the National Federation of the Blind are teaming up with other experts in the field to meet the challenges of eBook accessibility for everyone. Presentations will include:

• The place of DAISY in  today’s eBook landscape
• An overview of present levels of accessibility in the market
• The place of accessibility standards in eBook systems
• The browser-based reading system
• Accessible math, science, and other advanced topics
• And much more

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about the state of the accessible eBook market, interface with experts in the industry, and ensure that your print-disabled users can join the rest of the world in enjoying the convenience and power of the eBook revolution.

For more information, or to register, please visit http://www.nfb.org/Inclusive_publishing

Agenda:

Friday June 8:

8:00-8:20 a.m.: Introduction – Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind

8:20-9:00 a.m.: Inclusive Publishing – Stephen King, President of the DAISY Consortium and Group Director, Prevention & International Affairs, Royal National Institute of Blind People

9:00-10 a.m.: Inclusive Publishing Guidelines, EPUB Check, Accessibility Checklist and Beyond – Matt Garrish, Publishing Solutions Consultant, CData

10:00-10:15 a.m.: Break

10:15-11:15 a.m.: Using Built-in Tools in Apple’s iBooks Author to Create Accessible Books – Sarah Herrlinger, Senior Manager, Special Markets, Apple

11:15 a.m. -12:15 p.m.: The Google Books Accessibility Project – Garth Conboy, Google

12:15–1:30 p.m.: Lunch

1:30-2:30 p.m.: Cross-Platform Accessibility with Blio: Reading E-Books on Your Mainstream Device of Choice – James Gashel, Vice President of Marketing, KNFB Reading Technologies

2:30-3:30 p.m.: The Case for DRM-free Content/Cloud-based Reading

3:30-3:45 p.m.: Break

3:45-4:45 p.m.: The Case for Dedicated Reading Systems for Users with Disabilities – Gerry Chevalier, Product Manager for Accessible DAISY and MP3 Players, Humanware; Tatsu Nishizawa, Chief Engineer, and Hiro Fujimori, Engineer, Plextor

Saturday June 9:

8:00-8:45 a.m.: Keynote:  Digital Publishing in Higher Education – George Kerscher,  Secretary General, DAISY Consortium; President, International Digital Publishing Forum (IDPF); Senior Officer,  Accessible Technology, Learning Ally (originally Recording For the Blind & Dyslexic)

8:45-9:30 a.m.: Enhancing Workflow for Inclusive Publishing – Rick Clinton, Publisher, Online Programs, Pearson

9:30-10:15 a.m.: Textbook Accessibility at Cengage Learning – Michele L. Bruno, Program Manager, Accessibility, Cengage

10:15-10:30 a.m.: Break

10:30-11:00 a.m.: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM): Issues around Creating Accessible Complex Content – David Schleppenbach, President, gh LLC

11:00-11.30 a.m.: Making Graphical Content Accessible – DIAGRAM Project, Betsy G. Beaumon,

VP & General Manager, Literacy Program, The Benetech Initiative

11:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m.: Accessible Mainstream Charts, Graphs, and Maps on the iPad – Ed Summers, Software Accessibility Specialist, SAS

12:00-12:20 p.m.: The AIM Report: An In-depth Review – Mark Riccobono, Executive Director, Jernigan Institute, National Federation of the Blind

12:20-12:40 p.m.: Closing Remarks – Dr. Frederic Schroeder, Vice President, National Federation of the Blind