In this post I would like to focus on the topic of social media, and how you can use the said medium on your iOS device with VoiceOver. I also want to dispel any misconceptions that social media is a complete no-go area for members of the blind or visually impaired community.
Social media is often subject to a lot of negative press and criticism, and in some cases such coverage and opinion is justified. However, I believe that social media is a fantastic form of modern media and source of information when used appropriately.
One of my favourite aspects of owning an Apple device is the ability to listen to sport on the go, and receive alerts within seconds of a change in the score. If you are a football or sports fan like me, check out these apps for your iOS device.
SkyGo
If you live in the UK, and subscribe to BSkyB, then SkyGo is a free app you can download from the App Store and access with VoiceOver. You can assign this app to two devices at a time in order to receive Sky services. If you want more nominated devices, then you would have to pay an additional fee.
When I heard the news of the recently released $0.99 Bluetooth OnOff app, an application which allows iOS users to turn bluetooth on and off quickly without going to Settings/General/Bluetooth, some thoughts came to my mind. First and foremost, I hope Apple doesn't remove this app from the App Store as it's quite easier to alter a feature like Bluetooth this way without delving into Settings. I also hope to see the same official apps for the WiFi and the Airplane mode switch.
When you think of audio games, the Blindfold series of iOS games from Kid Friendly Software probably come to mind. Certainly, the Blindfold Series of games have been a huge hit within the blindness community. With over 80 titles now available, it makes sense that blind and low vision users around the world would flock to these games.
The Braille Institute of America has launched a new iOS app that aims to make it easier for the vision-impaired to find useful apps.
Visually Impaired Apps (ViA) claims to fill the need for "a one-stop shop of useful apps that help visually impaired people stay connected and engaged with the world".
At the end of each month the AppleVis Editorial Team take a look at all the apps that have been posted to the site during that month - either for the first time or where there has been a significant update - and decide which of these we think is the most noteworthy.
Considering how much its release has been anticipated, it should come as no surprise that BrailleTouch is our choice for January.
It's been reported that Sendero is in the early stages of developing a full-featured GPS application for the iPhone.
Most of you are probably aware of the Sendero Group, and many of you will have used their location-based information and navigation systems for the blind. Considering how highly-regarded these GPS systems are, and the company's near 20 years of experience, it is easy to be excited by news of an iOS application. However, it also raises some questions.
We are pleased and excited to announce that voting for the AppleVis Golden Apple Awards of 2014 is now open.
This is our community’s opportunity to acknowledge the tremendous work by developers over the past 12 months in creating great and accessible iOS and OS X applications.
The shortlist for each Award has been compiled from the nominations that were submitted by members of our community.
After an extremely close vote, NFB-NEWSLINE edged out its 2 closest challengers by just 4 votes ... once again demonstrating how important each and every vote can be!
I'm not of sound mind. I do not own a decent microphone and I am not an audio engineer. I do not record music or podcasts. I simply have thousands of audio files, captured and collected over a lifetime, that sometimes need just a bit of attention.
On May 8, Sprint released a new update to the Sprint IP Relay app. While the description only states that there are "Miscellaneous bug fixes", one of those bug fixes is very significant... it restores access for braille users. Until now, braille users have not had a reliable solution to access relay via their mobile devices.
For some time it was looking like this would be an extremely close vote, with several apps appearing to be in contention. However, Digit-Eyes ultimately won out as the firm choice of AppleVis users, gaining more than double the number of votes of its nearest challenger.
Interpreting peoples’ body language—particularly facial expressions—is one of those challenges that almost all blind people face. But soon, there will be an app for that.
At the end of each month, members of the AppleVis Editorial Team review all of the apps that have been posted to the site during that month--either for the first time, or where there has been a significant update--and decide which of these they think is the most noteworthy.
The AppleVis Editorial Team app picks of the month for November 2014 are as follows:
1. Dropbox
Updated to version 3.5.2 (now at version 3.6); November, 2014.
Within the last couple of years, many apps have entered the market specifically for iPhone users who are blind. They range from color identifiers, to VoiceOver-specific Facebook clients, to touch-typing apps…and everything in-between. Some people think a higher price tag for blindness-specific apps is reasonable, others do not. The answer, I think, lies somewhere in the middle.
One of the many things that one can do with a mobile phone is keep up with current news events. For users of iPhones who are blind and deaf-blind, this is no different. But are the most popular apps accessible? Below, the three most popular free news apps for the iOS platform are reviewed for their usability with VoiceOver and Braille displays.
The three apps evaluated are: NYTIMES (the New York Times Company), CNN (CNN Interactive Group Inc.), and Fox News (Fox News Digital). These were the top 3 free apps in the news category in the App Store on January 25, 2012.
The national Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) has submitted their app, called BARD Mobile, for approval to the Apple App Store. Neil Bernstein, who works for NLS, estimated that it could take 1 or 2 more weeks for the app to be approved which would get it in to the hands of NLS patrons. The app, as indicated previously, will support the reading of braille files through the Web Braille service when using braille displays. it will also support the playback of the encrypted audio files on iDevices.
An incredible bit of news just hit the wire today--so huge that we wanted to let you know about it ASAP.
The incredible folks that created the biggest innovation to come to touch-typing for the visually impaired community--Fleksy - Happy Typing--released a statement today announcing that the app is now FREE.