How to Train Friends and Family on a Screen Reader

November 26, 2024 2:00 – 3:30 p.m. EST

Learning access technology can appear daunting to a newly blind person. Finding quality access technology training can also be difficult for several factors. This is where technology savvy friends and family can help someone start learning how to use a screen reader. Join the National Federation of the Blind on Tuesday, November 26, from 2:00 p.m.-3:30 p.m. eastern to learn how you can teach a friend or family member how to get started with a screen reader. We will cover:

• How a screen reader works
• How screen readers present content
• Common keyboard shortcuts to start with
• Further training resources to learn how to use multiple screen readers

Mu-An Chiou talks about trying to improve accessibility, without support or resources, at GitHub prior to its purchase by Microsoft.

Mu-An writes:

Eventually, I found that there are tons of accessibility issues that are just stale, and a lot of them were just like: this icon button isn’t labeled. I looked at them and thought oh that’s easy. I will fix it.

At one point I added so many aria-labels that AT users got mad that they’re getting misused.

Yes that was me. I am very sorry. I had no idea what I was doing. But then I learned the error of my ways and tried to be better.

Shared by @[email protected]

Nike’s new Elite EasyOn backpack was designed with innovative features making it accessible for as many athletes as possible, including those with low dexterity or motor skills.

Originally developed for athletes competing in the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games, the backpack is now available to everyone through the company’s online store for $150.

Lots of focus on AI, as you would expect from Microsoft, but also sessions on C#, Blazor, Entity Framework, VS and VS Code, microservices, performance, testing, security, and accessibility

I'd like to recommend a book called At the Gates: Disability, Justice and the Churches by Naomi Lawson Jacobs and Emily Richardson. (Jacobs is on Mastodon: @[email protected])

It's a powerful book describing the experience of some disabled folks engaging with the Christian churches, including

• having difficulty accessing church services, due to physical barriers or inaccessible technology.
• being barred from exercising their spiritual gifts because of the charity model of disability, treating them as objects of pity instead of participants.
• being accosted by fellow congregants and strangers with attempts at miraculous healings without their consent.
• worshiping a Savior who retains his wounds after his resurrection, rather than them being erased or ignored.

What has stayed with me the most since I read the book last year is that several Christians with disabilities describe heaven not as a state where their disabilities will be taken away, but a state where the world will be fully accessible to them as they are.

Discovered via the Accessibility Weekly newsletter

Most mouse users can quickly understand the need to make a website accessible by keyboard, for users who do not use a mouse due to a motor disability or other reasons. But what if a user also does not have the use of a keyboard?

Janaki Konar just finished a presentation on the technology named Switch Control in iOS, or Switch Access in Android, which allows users to use their device using a single motion or small number of motions. This can include sipping and puffing into a mouthpiece, or tapping a pillow. The speaker describes how a user can customize these systems to be more efficient (for example, binding a second action to a long press, or grouping a set of actions into a "recipe" that can be repeated.) And the presentation introduces what makes software easy to use, and how user interfaces can be designed poorly to slow down and frustrate users of Switch Control and Switch Access.

This presentation and many more are part of the free Inclusive Design 24 event going on right now. Follow @[email protected] for more information.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.sdf.org/post/21984550

Article by Steven Aquino

An excerpt follows:

For sporting events like the Olympics and Paralympics, ... it’s paramount the (audio describer) be knowledgeable of the sport they’re describing; the quality would be otherwise sullied if the describer didn’t, for example, know the intricacies of basketball or anything else. The information conveyed has to be delivered with the proper context behind it in order for a Blind or low vision person to visualize a moment in their mind.

Article by Steven Aquino

An excerpt follows:

For sporting events like the Olympics and Paralympics, ... it’s paramount the (audio describer) be knowledgeable of the sport they’re describing; the quality would be otherwise sullied if the describer didn’t, for example, know the intricacies of basketball or anything else. The information conveyed has to be delivered with the proper context behind it in order for a Blind or low vision person to visualize a moment in their mind.

Steven Aquino (@[email protected]) writes:

For my latest story for my column, I went deep into the need for building more accessible, inclusive playgrounds.

This is a good reminder that the ADA goes only so far. To comply with the law is really a low bar. Compulsion is not volition.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevenaquino/2024/07/03/how-building-more-inclusive-playgrounds-means-more-playtime-for-every-child/

In this blog post, Léonie Watson of Tetralogical analyzes the output of three generative AI systems: Google Gemini, ChatGPT, and Fix My Code from Userway.

This Tuesday, 2023-10-24: Women Who Code Advocacy Town Hall moderated by AmyJune Hineline ( @[email protected] )

From the event description:

• Hiring Process, Getting the Job, and Support at Work: Know the challenges and opportunities for individuals with disabilities throughout the hiring process, workplace support, and career growth.

• Visible and Invisible Disabilities: Understand and define visible and invisible disabilities, and how they affect individuals in the tech industry.

Legal Rights and Responsibilities: Learn about legal rights and responsibilities in hiring practices and actionable ways to advocate for yourself and others.

• How Allies Can Be Advocates: Explore how allies can play a role in advocating for individuals with disabilities and creating inclusive workplaces, and how technologists can develop with accessibility in mind.

• Access to Resources: Gain insights into accessibility resources and how you can find more support