BlindSquare

Does anyone else have issues with Blind Square and ducking?
Since i got it, when I'm out walking, I have iCatcher playing a podcast. When Blind Square makes an announcement, it ducks the podcast audio, but after the announcement, the audio does not return to normal unless I pause and restart playback.

I assume this is Blind Square's fault because when Zombies Run or a Voice Over alert duck the podcast, the audio returns to the normal level.

Now, in iOS 9.01. I have had Blind Square duck Voice Over. I have had Voice Over's volume dropped to a low level, and the only way I have been able to get it back to normal, short of restarting the phone, is to close Blind Square from the task switcher. Stopping and restarting Voice Over did not help.

Anyone else have these issues?

This is problem that iOS9 introduced. It will not happen, if you use BlindSquare to respond your headphone remote, so as a workaround, you can go to Other / Settings, Audio Menu Settings, Use Headset remote to control: "BlindSquare".

This will be fixed in next release.

I will look into using my headset controls. I use them to start and stop podcast playback, and figured that meant it was not appropriate for use with Blind Square. I am glad to hear this will be fixed in the next release.

Thank you for your fast reply.

I have an intersection near my home that Blind Square does not announce. The two roads are announced at other intersections, but not when they cross. It is not a new crossing. During my regular walk, I first approach from the west, and then much later from the south. In both cases, I never hear anything about the intersection.

This is the only intersection I have this with. Every other intersection I cross, on these two roads as well, are announced.

Short of creating a My Place near the intersection, is there a way to have this crossing announced?

Hello, I truly like this, but I cannot get it on my Apple Watch. Should I delete the app from my phone and try again? My iPhone and Apple are running the latest iOS.

There is no native support for Apple Watch, but you can use music controlling feature to use Audio Menu. You can listen podcast how to do it from here: http://www.applevis.com/sites/default/files/podcasts/AppleVisPodcast752.mp3

My ducking issue is mostly solved, and I'm very happy.

As a recap, I run iCatcher, Zombies Run, and Blind Square concurrently when out walking.

I was having issues where Blind Square audio would duck the other audio sources, including VO, and not want to return them to their prior volume.

After updating to the latest version, I fired up my apps and set out for a walk today. I still had an issue where VO occasionally, rather than always, wanted to stay ducked at a lower volume. However, the problems with iCatcher and Zombies Run were all fixed.

It was a much nicer walk not having to mess with my phone every time Blind Square announced something.

Thank you.

I just updated to version 4.0, along with the upgrade to iOS 10. I don't know which of the two updates introduced the issues I am having, but I am now having serious problems with BlindSquare.

The biggest problem for me is that the app no longer works simultaneously with background audio, such as from the Music app. If the screen is locked while music is playing, BlindSquare goes completely silent, with no announcements of any kind while moving. If the device is unlocked, BlindSquare will make announcements as normal, but any audio from the app causes music playback to stop, requiring me to start the music again manually. When I do start it again, such as by pressing the play button on my Bluetooth headphones, the music plays at a ducked volume, even if there is no other audio.

Additionally, I seem to be stuck with the Alex voice. BlindSquare gives me two options for US English, one of which says Alex, but both options cause Alex to be heard. Believe it or not, I actually prefer to hear Samantha in this app, though that may be because she's the voice I've been using in the app for quite some time now.

I am also having problems with the speaking rate. When I first started using the app today, the voice was much slower than it usually is. When I adjusted the speech rate within the app settings, it suddenly became really fast, and I had to set it to a lower rate to be comfortable with the voice. Later, after the app had gone into sleep mode, the voice went back to a very slow rate. This is while using Alex.

The fact that music playback no longer works with this app means I can't use it anymore. I have been on the fence about purchasing Nearby Explorer, but my bad experience with BlindSquare today will likely force me to get Nearby, assuming it works fine with music playback in iOS 10.

Did you try relaunching BlindSquare after changing voice?

What setting you use for Audio Menu (in Other / Settings). Does it cause any difference in behaviour?

Yes, I did relaunch the app. The issue I described with speech rate becoming inconsistent appears to be gone, but the other issues I described remain.

I have the audio menu set to control music playback by default. I tried switching it to control BlindSquare, but it did not make any difference.

By the way, does BlindSquare require access to the microphone? If I deny access, I get an alert saying BlindSquare requires the microphone to work, but I have no intention of using the voice features introduced in the latest version.

...so you don't need to give permission to use it. I suggest you try it out though, you have free credits to do so. You can always deny access later, but if you give permission, microphone is turned on only when you activate voice command listening.

I was able to determine why BlindSquare was using Alex even when I selected the non-Alex option.

It appears that, when the voice is set to US English, BlindSquare uses whatever voice is configured in Settings > General > Accessibility > Speech > Voices > English US. I had it set to Alex, so Alex was the voice that got used.

It would be nice to have the option to select from any installed iOS voice, since iOS 10 significantly expands the voice options from what was available in prior versions. I know this is possible, since other apps I use give me the ability to select from any installed voice.

This still doesn't resolve my biggest problem, though. I almost always have music playing while going for walks in the neighborhood, and I am not about to give that up.

So I tried a voice command and it said that buses is not available in your ariea. Even though the command didn't work it took away a creddit. I also wish this update would use google or apple for near by locations and points of interests as Foursquare is inaccurate when it comes to that. Still lots of cool updates to this app!

Technically it did work, so it recognised what you wanted it to do and it gave you result. But I understand what you mean, so I will implement something that gives one credit back in this situation.

I discovered that, if BlindSquare is in simulation mode, attempting to bring up the screen with nearby intersections does not work.

I was hoping to use this screen to figure out how a particular roadway travels, by seeing what other roads intersect it. I simulated one of the road's intersections in the app, but then I couldn't get a list of other intersections in the vicinity.

The app Nearby Explorer has the ability to show a list of intersections for a particular street, but that feature is currently broken in my area with the current release. I am trying to plan a route for walking, so I don't get surprised while I am actually on my way. Trying to follow roads in Apple Maps is tedious at best, and it often fails to announce intersections while following a road.

I just simulated "New York". Tools/Nearby Intersections shows lot of intersection.
Can you send location you tried to simulate to dev@blindsquare.com and I'll check it out.

It turns out a bunch of features weren't working while in simulation mode, including search, look around, etc.

I closed the app from the app switcher and relaunched it, and it appears to be working now.

I might still send you my location, to see if you can figure out why some intersections in my area are either missing or announced incorrectly, and if there is any way to fix it. Would you like me to do that?

I just updated to version 4.02, and it appears that I can now use the app with background audio again. The audio does not duck, as it used to in the past, but I am okay with it. In fact, that's how Nearby Explorer works, and I think I might actually prefer not having the audio duck for these apps.

I have yet to really test this version out, though, but I am hoping this version works as well as the app used to. As much as I like Nearby Explorer, it has problems announcing intersections in my area, and there are a few features of BlindSquare that I miss while using the other app, such as announcements when GPS accuracy is poor, when there is no network connection, as well as how far I have walked and how much time has elapsed.

I'm glad you noticed this fix, thank you for reporting it.

I tried to make ducking work, but for some reason it doesn't. This may have something to do with the fact that BlindSquare continues to support iOS6, 7, 8, 9 and 10. I think it is important, since this allows use of older and cheaper devices.

PS. Here is instructions about Voice Commands: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1StblcdSJect_czIdijUiSfgXLyaJsGRnqY3MqMFUK1I/pub

So a strange question. I notice that a lot of restaurants on BlindSquare have menus. I think this is a very awesome thing. However, many restaurants' menus are out of date on the app. I suppose the menu source is Foursquare? Is that correct? My question is is there some way that Blindsquare could do multiple source checks for menus? I hope this question makes sense.

Sadly a lot of things on 4Square are out of date including locations. The data is even inaccurate because people like to name their houses as restaurants, entertainment places, and so on.

I agree. BlindSquare would be a lot better if it could use a source other than Foursquare for place information. As I said before, I simply cannot use this app to find points of interest, because there is too much bad info on Foursquare. That's the problem with crowd-sourced databases - they're only as good as the users of the service.

There used to be a grocery store near where I live, but it was one of several in the chain that got shut down a couple of years ago, yet it still shows up as a Foursquare place. Other sources, such as Google, no longer list the store. There are numerous points of interest in my neighborhood that have wrong GPS coordinates, placing them several blocks away from where they truly are, and in a few cases the GPS position is over a mile away. Also, I don't need to hear about the "top of my parents' house" or "my favorite parking lot" or other nonsense places, and there's no effective way to filter them out without also filtering legitimate places.

Foursquare is a starting place, and I haven't had the same issues that you seem to have had @dvdmth. However, I do think it would be great if we could check other sources like Yelp or Google. I don't know how that would be implemented, though.

Yesterday, while on a walk, there was an area where BlindSquare kept telling me, "Nearest address is Littleton, United States." This was while walking on a street in an ordinary neighborhood, although the streets have a bunch of twists and turns around here.

I went to the same area today, and the same thing happened at around the same location. Other places I go to do not appear to do this.

Is the name of the nearest city the best BlindSquare can do if it does not know what street I am currently on? If it has to give an approximate address, I would think it would announce a nearby street or intersection, rather than a city name.

Hi All,
My one question in regards to this app is very simple, how good is BlindSquare at helping you discover new routes and explore unknown areas, in other words ones that I haven't been walking around?

It depends on what you are looking for. If you want to use it to find points of interest then it is not accurate as the app uses foursquare and has miss labeled locations, businesses that no longer exist and so on. For example if you were walking on my street you would be told that the Wells Fargo Center was 5 minutes away. When actually the Wells Fargo Center is further away as it is in the city and I'm about 15 minutes out of the city. The reason it says this is because someone named there house or location this. If you just want to know streets around you or have an address to plug in then you are fine. If you walk to a location that the app found just be aware that it could be someone's house, a place that went out of business, or the actual location of a still operating business. If you find a place that you want to check out while walking I'd check it on Google Maps or Apple Maps.

When I explore an area I haven't been to before, I find BlindSquare to be pretty useful as far as figuring out how the streets go in the area. As I walk, it periodically announces my current address, as well as which direction I am traveling. When I reach an intersection, it usually announces what streets are present at the intersection, although there are a few places near my house where this doesn't work properly.

You can also use the app's look around feature to find out what intersections are nearby in various directions, or you can open the app and view a list of intersections directly on the screen. These can help get a better idea of how the streets are laid out, although in my area it gets tricky because the streets meander all over the place, thanks to the uneven terrain around here.

I cannot recommend BlindSquare for finding nearby places of interest, because it's just not accurate. Nearby Explorer does a much better job in this area, since it uses Google instead of Foursquare by default.

One thing BlindSquare does offer, at least in my area, is that walking trails and bike paths also show up in the list of intersections. For example, I live near the South Platte River, and there is a trail called the Platte River Trail that runs along the river. When I am walking on this trail, BlindSquare announces intersections with roadways as I pass them, as well as intersections with other trails that branch off to either side. Nearby Explorer does not do this at all, so I find BlindSquare to be superior in this area. Not all trails are announced, since they need to be in the Open Street Map database, but it comes in handy when a particular trail does come up.

Considering how inaccurate the 4 square data seems to be, what is the likelihood of blind square changing to a more trusted resource?

Can someone out there do the following for me?

1. In BlindSquare, look for the city of Littleton, CO.

2. Tell BlindSquare to simulate this location.

3. Now do a search for Columbine Manor Park.

4. Simulate this location, so that BlindSquare acts as though you are at this particular park.

5. Bring up the tools menu, and select the option for nearby intersections.

6. Tell me what the first few items are on the list.

In this area, several intersections are not correctly identified by BlindSquare, with odd names like KeNorth Caryl Avenue instead of Ken Caryl Avenue. This has been an issue for me ever since I first started using the app a few months ago.

But here's the weird thing. On a couple of occasions now, these intersections suddenly started getting announced correctly by BlindSquare, as if nothing was wrong. I then think that maybe the problem with the map data here may have been fixed. But then, the next time I use the app, the intersections are back to their incorrect descriptions.

The erroneous descriptions don't just happen at this neighborhood. There are several other intersections in the general region that get announced incorrectly, usually with the same mistake of changing the last letter of a word to a direction, like County Line Road becoming County LinEast Road.

Has anyone else seen something like this? Can others reproduce the issue at the exact location I mentioned above?

I use Google Maps to get within a block or two of the destination. I then open BlindSquare, enter in the name or the address where I'm going, and make sure the two addresses match up. Thus far, I haven't had an issue with them not matching. Then, I have BlindSquare start tracking me so it can get me as close as possible to my destination. This seems to work great for me. Love this program. Although I do agree, that having Google locations as an option might be a better way to go, as Foursquare places don't seem to get updated very often.

One option to find places from Google, is to purchase WhereTo-app from App Store (USD 3, https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/where-to-find-best-places/id903955898?mt=8). It has been integrated with BlindSquare: When you find place, you can select Directions and BlindSquare.

Hi. It's nice to see that there is some public transport integration now with BlindSquare. On reading through various bits and bobs on here I see that some people are using the MoovIt app. How? I downloaded it today as, having seen other people sing it, I thought maybe it would be accessible. It would seem not however. If anyone has got this to work with BlindSquare please do let me know how. When I say it doesn't work, maybe I"m not explaining myself too well. I can load it up and it gives me bus routes etc but It doesn't tell me what stop I'm to get off at.

I also downloaded RNIB Navigator as a trial this week because I was told that it tells you what directions the road intersections are in when you get to them. for example, Hill Street on your left, Waterloo Road ahead etc. It would be great if BlindSquare could do this. I don't begrudge paying for apps, however, I do begrudge paying a yearly subscription just to have that feature.

Hi. Just upgraded and I now see that it is possible to use blind Square with the Sendero apps. I am trying to figure out what the point of this would be? Does that mean we can download one of their apps but use the maps from BlindSquare so we don't have to pay a subscription?

Also, I thought it was possible to use the Siri voice is now? I can't seem to find them.

The Siri voices are available, but you need to know the actual names for the voices. They are:

US Male: Aaron
US Female: Nicky
UK Male: Arthur
UK Female: Martha
Australia Male: Gordon
Australia Female: Catherine

Also make sure the voices are installed, under Settings - General - Accessibility - Speech - Voices - English. There was a bug in earlier versions of iOS 10 which could cause the voices to disappear unexpectedly.

Hi, I'm afraid not, unfortunately. you'll still have to pay a subscription to use that 3rd party app. all BlindSquare does with these apps is open them for you, with the details of the location you're trying to get to, and then the 3rd party app does it's job, while BlindSquare continues to work as normal in collaboration with whatever third party app you're using. At least that's what I think is the case.

Yes, the main point of third party apps is for turn by turn navigation, which when it comes to GPS apps that require a subscription, I simply don't choose to do that. I use free third party apps with BlindSquare, usually Apple maps and Move It for buses.

Hi. I have just bought myself some aftershokz bluez 2S For use when using navigational apps outdoors and I have come across a very interesting problem. I am using the UK Siri female enhanced voice for my iPhone and Martha on BlindSquare. However, when I load BlindSquare up, the voice on BlindSquare is much louder than the Siri UK voice. I was under the impression that if I used this voice, I would only have one voice to contend with. Whenever I get announcements from BlindSquare, it is very loud, but if I start to swipe with my finger to reach the search button for example, the voice is so quiet, I can barely hear it. I thought maybe it was an issue with audio ducking, so turned that off, but it made no difference. Any suggestions or advice gratefully received

BlindSquare has its own volume setting, independent from VoiceOver. If you want BlindSquare to speak at the same volume, you must change the setting to match what you use for VoiceOver, such as making both 60 percent.

Since BlindSquare does its own audio, it can talk at the same time as VoiceOver, even if they are set to use the same voice. For this reason, I suggest using a different voice, so that you can more easily distinguish between BlindSquare announcements and VoiceOver announcements, particularly when they overlap.

Hi. Thanks for this. The irony is that BlindSquare Voice volume is set to 100% and I had the volum maxed out on my phone also.

Kerry

Is blindsquare available for use in Malaysia?
Is it available for use in every country around the world?