There is plenty to blog about again this time round. We are busy but need a holiday after working very hard through the so-called UK Summer.
DDA Accessibility Laws:
The American Store Target will revamp its Web site to make it more accessible for the blind and pay $6 million in damages to plaintiffs who joined a class action lawsuit against the retailer, under a settlement announced with the National Federation of the Blind. The $6 million will be placed in an interest-bearing account so that plaintiffs in the lawsuit, filed in California two years ago, can make claims. Most plaintiffs will get about $3,500, an NFB spokesman said.
Under the settlement, the Baltimore-based NFB will test the Web site for three years and certify it once it is completely upgraded. The lawsuit was filed after earlier negotiations between the two sides broke down.
Many blind people use screen-reading software such as Thunder that vocalizes information on a computer, but Web sites must be made accessible for the technology. The lawsuit complained that Target.com was not accessible.
But our Screenreader.net contention goes further. Accessibility is far more than a software package and a legal decision. Most blind people can never raise the cash to buy costly assistive software and, even if they do, training, patience and a level of computer skill is required far above that of the average seeing user who clicks a mouse on what she sees.
But, on the assumption that many things come over to Europe from across the pond, we should sit up and take notice that the law will soon be more strongly on the side of the blind user here too. Maybe it won’t be long before a courageous blind person here, with the backing of a courageous blind agency, will strike a similar blow in the UK or within a European country. I never thought I would be taking such a stance!!! Its just that the years go by and still government, local councils and the private sector in general continue to take the micky, talk the talk and fail to actually make computer accessibility and usability available to the mass of ordinary blind and partially sighted people, even in some Western wealthy countries.
Such access really is the modern Braille and a great way to mainstream blind people so all power and well done to the American pioneers.
The Worsening Economic situation:
We have had the good times here in the West and the coming year or two look not so good. But Screenreader.net will not be changing the price of free Thunder. We will never be wealthy here but are financially secure for the future because we don’t need paying for the work we do and we don’t need buildings and expensive staff.
But we do have ongoing expenses like everyone else and we do, therefore, ask that if you value the Thunder software and want to make a donation towards its upkeep, this would be very welcome indeed.
iTunes, LastFM and the BBC iplayer:
Like me, many of you will enjoy listening to music, listen again radio and TV programs etc. So now, as well as being able to enjoy LastFM and the BBC iplayer,
iTunes V8 works well too. For those who don’t know, LastFM.com is a website where you can download the music of your choice and listen to it free. There is a purchase opportunity too, of course. The BBC iplayer delivers on demand listening to radio programs from the whole of the BBC service as well as selected items from BBC TV 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. And iTunes is the Apple music store widely used to download a massive music library and save to your iPod or other portable device. So, if this is your bag, check it all out and enjoy. And if you want to let us know how you get on, we welcome your emails or phone calls.
Showing posts with label Screenreader. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Screenreader. Show all posts
Tuesday, 16 September 2008
Tuesday, 1 July 2008
NOT ALL GLOOM AND DOOM
NOT ALL GLOOM AND DOOM
As a statistic, I am 68, registered blind and hard of hearing. I wear two excellent digital hearing aids so, in many circumstances, I hear what I need to. I have had weak vision all my life and so am totally happy about that. With Margaret, I run a thriving business which is somewhat unusual as a business model but its all great. I am living where I want to be, with the person I want to be with and doing the things I want to do. So no room here for the doom and gloom of the credit squeeze, the down-turn in the economy and all that. Our software is largely free to blind people anyway and the numbers using it are rising day by day.
So, if you want to join us here at Screenreader.net, and ignore the general doom and gloom, here’s how you could play a part in a great project:
Translating the talking software into other languages:
So far we have the Thunder talking software in six languages; English, French, German, Italian, Estonian and Slovak. We have part translations in other languages too. We know there are blind and partially sighted people in all countries who would benefit from the talking computer with no funds to pay for the costly alternatives. So we welcome, please, an email or a phone call from anyone who can help with translation. Its partly a question of translating the manuals and tutorials and partly a question of translating the software package itself so that the menus, dialogs and features speak appropriately. We can give help and support, of course.
Writing Visual Basic Scripts: It is possible that no computer program is perfect and there is always room for improvement and more development. The Thunder software serves many people really well and makes easy much of what needs to be done on the computer without sight. But in schools and at work and even at home, there will always be a need to improve what Sensory Software Ltd has created and to extend the accessibility possibilities to new tasks and applications. So we welcome, please, an email or a phone call from anyone who has the capability and enthusiasm to modify or create Visual Basic scripts for this purpose. Your work will give blind and partially sighted people in great numbers a huge uplift as they struggle to improve their quality of life.
Feedback: We have thousands of Thunder users worldwide and, human nature being what it is, we don’t hear from those who, like us, use the software every day without problems. That’s great and just as it should be. But when there are problems, please, we would like to hear from you so we can put things right, or do our best to do so. We are reluctant to send out evaluation forms and questionnaires to everyone but we welcome your input and suggestions.
Interestingly, much of the feedback we do get falls into two major categories: Some blind people make the talking computer their hobby and their life; So we get feedback from those who already have one or more screenreader software packages on their computers with voice conflict problems or “moans” that Thunder does not behave like the others they are used to. The feedback we get from new users of talking software is very different indeed. Its almost always very positive and enthusiastic. But it’s the third kind of feedback we are now looking for; i.e. positive suggestions and tips to improve what we do for those who can’t afford expensive screenreader talking software.
The Finances: Any new business will struggle for the first year or so and this is especially true, probably, for a social not for profit enterprise like ours. Its almost two years to the day since Thunder was first launched and we are delighted to be able to say that we have money in the bank to continue what we are doing for the foreseeable future. With the long-term in mind, though, we need now to take a look at how we sustain a Screenreader.net revenue. A modest annual charge to each user would more than meet our costs but we don’t want to go down that road because even a modest charge would be beyond the resources of many individuals. Again, your suggestions would be very welcome, please. I will return to financial matters in a future blog.
So here are our contact details:
-mail: ask@screenreader.net
Telephone:
+44 (0) 1733 234441. We look forward to hearing from you.
As a statistic, I am 68, registered blind and hard of hearing. I wear two excellent digital hearing aids so, in many circumstances, I hear what I need to. I have had weak vision all my life and so am totally happy about that. With Margaret, I run a thriving business which is somewhat unusual as a business model but its all great. I am living where I want to be, with the person I want to be with and doing the things I want to do. So no room here for the doom and gloom of the credit squeeze, the down-turn in the economy and all that. Our software is largely free to blind people anyway and the numbers using it are rising day by day.
So, if you want to join us here at Screenreader.net, and ignore the general doom and gloom, here’s how you could play a part in a great project:
Translating the talking software into other languages:
So far we have the Thunder talking software in six languages; English, French, German, Italian, Estonian and Slovak. We have part translations in other languages too. We know there are blind and partially sighted people in all countries who would benefit from the talking computer with no funds to pay for the costly alternatives. So we welcome, please, an email or a phone call from anyone who can help with translation. Its partly a question of translating the manuals and tutorials and partly a question of translating the software package itself so that the menus, dialogs and features speak appropriately. We can give help and support, of course.
Writing Visual Basic Scripts: It is possible that no computer program is perfect and there is always room for improvement and more development. The Thunder software serves many people really well and makes easy much of what needs to be done on the computer without sight. But in schools and at work and even at home, there will always be a need to improve what Sensory Software Ltd has created and to extend the accessibility possibilities to new tasks and applications. So we welcome, please, an email or a phone call from anyone who has the capability and enthusiasm to modify or create Visual Basic scripts for this purpose. Your work will give blind and partially sighted people in great numbers a huge uplift as they struggle to improve their quality of life.
Feedback: We have thousands of Thunder users worldwide and, human nature being what it is, we don’t hear from those who, like us, use the software every day without problems. That’s great and just as it should be. But when there are problems, please, we would like to hear from you so we can put things right, or do our best to do so. We are reluctant to send out evaluation forms and questionnaires to everyone but we welcome your input and suggestions.
Interestingly, much of the feedback we do get falls into two major categories: Some blind people make the talking computer their hobby and their life; So we get feedback from those who already have one or more screenreader software packages on their computers with voice conflict problems or “moans” that Thunder does not behave like the others they are used to. The feedback we get from new users of talking software is very different indeed. Its almost always very positive and enthusiastic. But it’s the third kind of feedback we are now looking for; i.e. positive suggestions and tips to improve what we do for those who can’t afford expensive screenreader talking software.
The Finances: Any new business will struggle for the first year or so and this is especially true, probably, for a social not for profit enterprise like ours. Its almost two years to the day since Thunder was first launched and we are delighted to be able to say that we have money in the bank to continue what we are doing for the foreseeable future. With the long-term in mind, though, we need now to take a look at how we sustain a Screenreader.net revenue. A modest annual charge to each user would more than meet our costs but we don’t want to go down that road because even a modest charge would be beyond the resources of many individuals. Again, your suggestions would be very welcome, please. I will return to financial matters in a future blog.
So here are our contact details:
-mail: ask@screenreader.net
Telephone:
+44 (0) 1733 234441. We look forward to hearing from you.
Sunday, 18 May 2008
The Times Newspaper and Thunder
On Thursday last, Screenreader.net had a minute of fame with a brief article about us appearing in the London Times Newspaper in the careers section. The story as told below is substantially true and its remarkable how a journalist can put together an uncomplicated summary of our last eight years of work in 300 words. But what I liked most was that it presented a picture of blind people doing well, achieving something good and not the more usual helpless image as often portrayed by some fund-raising charities’ campaigns. When you read this piece, you will also realise that no mention was made, sadly, of Sensory Software Ltd, who created the Thunder software.
Roger Wilson-Hinds achieved academic success despite his
blindness and rose to senior jobs in education. But he was
uncomfortable as an employee and, when 50, he and his wife,
Margaret Wilson-Hinds, started a successful business to supply
ICT equipment and teach other blind people how to use it. Illness
struck. While recovering, Roger resolved to create and give away
screen reader software to any blind person. Now with 100,000
users, ‘Thunder’ is gaining large fees for developing variants.
Our big idea
GIVING your product away to anyone who wants it is certainly an atypical business model, but for Roger and Margaret Wilson-Hinds, it was the pivotal decision that turned their screenreader idea into a commercial reality.
Blind since birth themselves, the Wilson-Hinds were busily running a disability training company, having won a government contract to teach blind people to use computers. Then, in 1998, Roger was diagnosed with cancer, forcing the couple to quit the business and gift it to a close friend - who has continued its success and now employs nine people.
During the ensuing treatment the Wilson-Hinds realised that, although programmes that could scan text on a computer screen and read it back to the user were available, the typical £700-£800 software packages were beyond the pocket of the majority of the world's blind community and they became determined to produce a low-cost alternative.
At 60 most people contemplate turning the wick down a little, but fuelled by the idea of "opening up information literacy to blind people anywhere", in 2000, Roger enrolled himself and his wife on a course for social entrepreneurs instead.
Having self-funded the product's development, the screenreader, called Thunder, was finally ready for market, but, after a few years of trying to sell it at low-cost, the take-up was slow.
"It seemed like a good idea at the time, but low-cost is often seen as inferior and it wasn't until we studied the Google model and embraced the notion of 'free to the end user' that things really got moving," Roger says.
Immediately the product became free a German company with links to European Blind Union got in touch and, two months later, the Wilson-Hinds were in receipt of an EU grant of ¤240,000 to fund French, Italian, German, Slovak and Estonian versions of Thunder.
Since then, more funding has been forthcoming, a version specifically for people with learning difficulties is in development and, with almost 100,000 users, the company now advises businesses on how to make their websites available to this untapped market.
http://www.blogger.com/www.screenreader.net
By MARK BARBER
We do look forward to a great future for the Thunder screenreader software and what it can do to empower blind and visually impaired people throughout the world.
Roger Wilson-Hinds achieved academic success despite his
blindness and rose to senior jobs in education. But he was
uncomfortable as an employee and, when 50, he and his wife,
Margaret Wilson-Hinds, started a successful business to supply
ICT equipment and teach other blind people how to use it. Illness
struck. While recovering, Roger resolved to create and give away
screen reader software to any blind person. Now with 100,000
users, ‘Thunder’ is gaining large fees for developing variants.
Our big idea
GIVING your product away to anyone who wants it is certainly an atypical business model, but for Roger and Margaret Wilson-Hinds, it was the pivotal decision that turned their screenreader idea into a commercial reality.
Blind since birth themselves, the Wilson-Hinds were busily running a disability training company, having won a government contract to teach blind people to use computers. Then, in 1998, Roger was diagnosed with cancer, forcing the couple to quit the business and gift it to a close friend - who has continued its success and now employs nine people.
During the ensuing treatment the Wilson-Hinds realised that, although programmes that could scan text on a computer screen and read it back to the user were available, the typical £700-£800 software packages were beyond the pocket of the majority of the world's blind community and they became determined to produce a low-cost alternative.
At 60 most people contemplate turning the wick down a little, but fuelled by the idea of "opening up information literacy to blind people anywhere", in 2000, Roger enrolled himself and his wife on a course for social entrepreneurs instead.
Having self-funded the product's development, the screenreader, called Thunder, was finally ready for market, but, after a few years of trying to sell it at low-cost, the take-up was slow.
"It seemed like a good idea at the time, but low-cost is often seen as inferior and it wasn't until we studied the Google model and embraced the notion of 'free to the end user' that things really got moving," Roger says.
Immediately the product became free a German company with links to European Blind Union got in touch and, two months later, the Wilson-Hinds were in receipt of an EU grant of ¤240,000 to fund French, Italian, German, Slovak and Estonian versions of Thunder.
Since then, more funding has been forthcoming, a version specifically for people with learning difficulties is in development and, with almost 100,000 users, the company now advises businesses on how to make their websites available to this untapped market.
http://www.blogger.com/www.screenreader.net
By MARK BARBER
We do look forward to a great future for the Thunder screenreader software and what it can do to empower blind and visually impaired people throughout the world.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)