…the brightest future of assistive technology — a catchall term for any hardware or software used to “increase, maintain or improve the functional capabilities of individuals with disabilities,” according to the Assistive Technology Industry Association — will not be found in such marvelous manifestations. Rather, it will be in the application of everyday technology to enhance accessibilityContinueContinue reading “The Future of Assistive Tech Is Simple | Al Jazeera America”
Author Archives: dnw
Closed Captioning Gives Literacy a Boost – Education Week
Sometimes I turn on my TV and the closed-captioning feature has been activated. I can’t find the button to turn it off, so I think: It won’t distract me. And yet, I usually find it impossible to ignore. It turns out that reading same-language subtitles while listening to the same words on screen is aContinueContinue reading “Closed Captioning Gives Literacy a Boost – Education Week”
Two New Smartwatch Apps Aim to Help the Visually Impaired
A new pair of watch apps from pharmaceutical company Novartis has been launched with the intent of helping the visually impaired. The first app, Via Opta Nav, provides turn-by-turn navigation in the manner of Google Maps or Waze, but directions are provided with both voice directions and with haptic feedback. The second app, only availableContinueContinue reading “Two New Smartwatch Apps Aim to Help the Visually Impaired”
Thread: Accessible Captcha recommendations?
Question: Is ReCaptcha still recommended or is there a more accessible one that is better? (Curated by Lifekludger) Read full article at Source: WebAIM: E-mail List Archives
Designing for Non-Native Speakers
… Some curious facts emerge when you compare the languages most sites use, versus the languages most internet users speak. While around half of all web pages are in English, only about 28 percent of the people using the internet speak English as a first language. Interesting, right? There are billions of people who useContinueContinue reading “Designing for Non-Native Speakers”
IBM Research: Inclusive Technology is the New “IT”
IBM is collaborating with Freedom Scientific to offer organizations a complete portfolio of enterprise accessibility training and eLearning to ensure that all employees – designers, developers, testers, quality assurance, and program managers – are following best practices in accessibility and are educated on current regulations and industry standards. … For more information on the IBMContinueContinue reading “IBM Research: Inclusive Technology is the New “IT””
Making Word, PowerPoint, Excel & PDF Documents Accessible
Web accessibility means committing to making your website accessible to all users, regardless of their physical or sensory ability. But inclusive design extends beyond your website. To be truly accessible, any documents provided as links to download must also be accessible. This is often overlooked on university websites and online courses, which must comply withContinueContinue reading “Making Word, PowerPoint, Excel & PDF Documents Accessible”
Accessibility and Apple Watch apps | Macworld
From an accessibility standpoint, the Apple Watch’s screen is just too small for me to get a lot from apps. As someone with low vision, I try to minimize my interaction with the watch; I don’t want to spend much time looking at the screen for fear of increased eye strain and fatigue. … TheContinueContinue reading “Accessibility and Apple Watch apps | Macworld”
3 lessons from developers who have embraced assistive technology
Today, we have apps that can help the blind see, give words to those who can’t speak and enable independence for people who would otherwise be forced to rely on others. To celebrate these advancements, Apple debuted a new collection in iTunes Thursday, highlighting apps that take advantage of accessibility features on iOS devices. TheContinueContinue reading “3 lessons from developers who have embraced assistive technology”
10 Guidelines for High-Quality Alt Text
According to many sets of accessibility regulations and guidelines, including the US Section 508, and the W3C’s WCAG 2.0, image elements on web pages must have text equivalents to be considered accessible. This is accomplished by specifying alt text for the image. (curated by Lifekludger from 10 Guidelines for High-Quality Alt Text) Complete article atContinueContinue reading “10 Guidelines for High-Quality Alt Text”
Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo And Others Push For Accessibility Development – ReadWrite
ReadWrite Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo And Others Push For Accessibility Development ReadWrite As the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) approaches, a new group has formed to champion the cause of development for accessibility. Several educators and tech companies have joined forces in an effort dubbed Teaching … … (curated by Lifekludger) CompleteContinueContinue reading “Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo And Others Push For Accessibility Development – ReadWrite”
Apple Watch: Invisible feature helps woman who is deaf and registered blind to navigate – News – Gadgets and Tech – The Independent
A woman who is deaf and registered blind has described the way that the Apple Watch has been able to help her navigate and communicate with friends. Molly Watt, an activist and blogger, lives with Usher Syndrome and is deaf and registered blind. Apple products are “more than just up market gadgets” … One ofContinueContinue reading “Apple Watch: Invisible feature helps woman who is deaf and registered blind to navigate – News – Gadgets and Tech – The Independent”
Emerging ways of providing audio description
When we consider providing audio description for web based media, we understand is to be broadcast alongside the primary audio and video of the media when it is activated. Standard description in this way is ‘closed’ and applied to post-production content. However, new forms of description and new ways to provide them are emerging andContinueContinue reading “Emerging ways of providing audio description”
Don’t let a disability stop you from using your smartphone
http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isSlim=1 Watch video from usatoday Apple CEO Tim Cook recently tweeted, “Accessibility rights are human rights. Celebrating 25yrs of the ADA we’re humbled to improve lives with our products. #ADA25.”Apple and Google have baked strong accessibility tools into the iOS and Android ecosystem, respectively. While some tools are meant to complement third-party devices, from hearing aidsContinueContinue reading “Don’t let a disability stop you from using your smartphone”
Future of Video Accessibility | JW Player
Video player technology experts discuss the future of video accessibility. (Curated by Lifekludger) Source: Future of Video Accessibility | JW Player
Web Accessibility for Designers | August
Web accessibility makes it easier for people to use the web. It creates a better user experience for a wider audience. It’s not just targeted towards people with disabilities. … “Web accessibility means that people can use the web. Not ‘people with disabilities’. Not ‘blind people and deaf people’. Not ‘people who have cognitive disabilities’ or ‘men who are colourContinueContinue reading “Web Accessibility for Designers | August”
People With Disabilities Still an Afterthought in Tech Design
Progress over the past 25 years has made computing more accessible to people with disabilities. But from design to finish, accessibility is still an afterthought in the race to technological innovation. — Despite breakthroughs in robotics, speech recognition, eye-motion sensors, virtual reality and many other areas, the general design approach to new products still excludes peopleContinueContinue reading “People With Disabilities Still an Afterthought in Tech Design”
Australian government web accessibility compliance transitions from strategy to standards
From a transition strategy to a national standard, the Digital Transformation Office has begun to detail requirements for federal government agencies to have their websites recognised as being accessible…. (curated by Lifekludger) Complete story at source: Access iQ http://ift.tt/1h6QmIX
Making sure it works – testing the new London.gov.uk | London City Hall
Testing software and websites is a challenge. We need to ensure that the final product is fit for purpose, and as good as it can possibly be. We must also understand it can never be totally free of bugs. We do lots of different types of testing from User Acceptance Testing (UAT) to performance andContinueContinue reading “Making sure it works – testing the new London.gov.uk | London City Hall”
Accessible IT, assistive technology and working with a disability in tech
Accessible IT and assistive technology need to be ingrained in the DNA of the organisation, according to executives from the Royal National Institute for the Blind, BBC and Natural Resources Wales – to enable those working in tech with a disability and to give CIOs a greater understanding of user requirements. … “It’s a CIO’sContinueContinue reading “Accessible IT, assistive technology and working with a disability in tech”
Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo And Others Push For Accessibility Development – ReadWrite
For all their rhetoric and idealism about changing the world, consumer-facing technologies have largely failed at least one major set of users: people with disabilities, a segment that represents roughly 1 in 5 people in the U.S.As the 25th anniversary of the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) approaches, a new group has formed to championContinueContinue reading “Facebook, Microsoft, Yahoo And Others Push For Accessibility Development – ReadWrite”
10 Simple Rules for Making My Site Accessible
Hands-Free ‘Mouse’ Wins AT&T Accessibility Award
The $25,000 grand prize went to Kinesic Mouse, a software solution that uses a 3D camera to detect facial expressions and head rotations so that users can operate a PC hands-free. The Kinesic Mouse also won the $10,000 “Best Mobility Solution” category, bringing its total cash winnings to $35,000…. (curated by Lifekludger) Complete story atContinueContinue reading “Hands-Free ‘Mouse’ Wins AT&T Accessibility Award”
Layout Tables Tip
It’s 2015, so hopefully web developers know that table elements should not be used for layout. There are many reasons why CSS for layout is better but at the core, HTML tables are data tables; they’ve always been meant for data. If a table is used for layout, add ARIA role of presentation to the table element. This will remove theContinueContinue reading “Layout Tables Tip”
Pipes End-of-life Announcement
Jun 04 2015 – Pipes End-of-life Announcement As of August 30th 2015, users will no longer be able to create new Pipes. The Pipes team will keep the infrastructure running until end of September 30th 2015 in a read-only mode. You can download your Pipe definition by specifying your Pipe-ID (_id) and the output formatContinueContinue reading “Pipes End-of-life Announcement”
