Podcasts about Ueb

In this episode, Ron Miller from Freedom Scientific's training team highlights key updates in the May 2025 releases of JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion. Learn about the new Home and Professional subscription plans, major MathCAT enhancements for speech and Braille math accessibility, UEB math support, and improved navigation options. Ron also demonstrates how to use the new AI-based UI Labeler, enhanced split Braille features, and Live Text View in ZoomText and Fusion. Whether you're a student, professional, or accessibility enthusiast, this episode guides you through the most impactful new features and how to try them out.

In this episode of Double Tap, Steven and Shaun return to the inbox to read listener feedback and share deeply personal experiences—starting with Steven's recent hospital stay. From insensitive medical staff to outdated assumptions about blind people, Steven unpacks the emotional highs and lows of navigating healthcare while visually impaired.The pair also dig into big tech topics, including listener reviews of Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 versus Pixel Watch, the pros and cons of angle gestures in Android, and the realities of using a Windows laptop with an ARM processor. Plus, there's an honest look at the Echo Vision smart glasses, the Glidance mobility aid, and whether blind users should still invest time in learning braille.You'll hear passionate listener opinions—from frustration over UEB to support for Fairlight (Ferret-ight?) audio editing on iPad. There's even a touching shout-out from an eight-year-old fan who thinks Sean deserves top billing!Get in touch with Double Tap by emailing us feedback@doubletaponair.com or by call 1-877-803-4567 and leave us a voicemail. You can also now contact us via Whatsapp on 1-613-481-0144 or visit doubletaponair.com/whatsapp to connect. We are also across social media including X, Mastodon and Facebook. Double Tap is available daily on AMI-audio across Canada, on podcast worldwide and now on YouTube.Chapter Markers:00:00 Introduction02:51 Navigating Medical Environments06:13 Attitudes Towards Blindness09:06 Parenting and Blindness11:55 Listener Interactions and Accessibility Tech25:06 Windows ARM Experience37:20 Navigating Accessibility Tools43:08 The Braille Debate: Relevance and Education52:05 Exploring Kindle and Fire Tablet Accessibility Find Double Tap online: YouTube, Double Tap WebsiteJoin the conversation and add your voice to the show either by calling in, sending an email or leaving us a voicemail!Email: feedback@doubletaponair.comPhone: 1-877-803-4567

On this episode, learn about the Monarch Student Pilot Program and the Abacus Bee. Now open for nominations for the fall of 2025, the Monarch Student Pilot Program will be accepting students entering the sixth to 11th grade, who are able to read and write braille and who have experience with Refreshable Braille technology.The APH Abacus Bee is a fun and engaging competition designed to ignite a passion for mathematics in students who are blind or have low vision. By allowing the use of various formats like print, braille, UEB math, or Nemeth code, the competition ensures that participants can use methods that suit their individual learning styles.In this podcast (In Order of Appearance)NarratorSara Brown, APH Public Relations ManagerSarah Gauer, APH Monarch Student Program Project ManagerJohn Tracey, Simons Foundation Program Director, Science, Society and CultureJennifer Brooks, APH National Abacus Bee Event CoordinatorMelissa Fischer, KSB teacherPiper, Abacus Bee participantBradley, Abacus Bee participantGabe, Abacus Bee participantAdditional LinksMonarch Student Pilot ProgramNomination form for Monarch Student Pilot ProgramMonarch Support Team emailMonarch Support Team phone number: 833-447-8444Abacus BeeSimons Foundation - Science, Society & Culture

20250206 I Love Braille Originally Broadcasted February 6, 2025, on ACB Media 5   This week, Matthew Horspool  from UK was our guest speaker, for the first time someone from Europe for I Love Braille. He gave updates  on UEB.   Sponsored by: East Bay Center for the Blind Access Archives Email Vileen Shah     Find out more at https://acb-community.pinecast.co

- Từ sự gần gũi thân quen, hàng Việt đã từng bước tạo sự tin tưởng của người tiêu dùng thông qua chất lượng hàng hoá, mẫu mã đa dạng và giá cả cạnh tranh. Nhận thức của người tiêu dùng đã thay đổi, không chỉ là sự vận động “Người Việt Nam ưu tiên dùng hàng Việt Nam” mà hàng Việt Nam đã trở thành lựa chọn không thể thiếu của người tiêu dùng Việt. Nhiều doanh nghiệp Việt Nam đã chú trọng xây dựng và có sự đầu tư thích đáng cho công nghệ, sản phẩm và thương hiệu của doanh nghiệp.Chương trình Chuyên gia của bạn có chủ đề “Khẳng định vị thế, hàng Việt Nam chinh phục người Việt Nam” với sự tham gia bàn luận của khách mời là PGS.TS Phan Chí Anh - Giám đốc Trung tâm Nghiên cứu Quản trị Kinh doanh, Trường Đại học Kinh tế - Đại học Quốc gia Hà Nội. Chủ đề : hàng Việt Nam, kích cầu tiêu dùng, Người Việt Nam ưu tiên dùng hàng Việt Nam, PGS.TS Phan Chí Anh, Trường Đại học Kinh tế, UEB tế --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/vov1sukien/support

Many screen readers, including JAWS and NVDA, make use of the popular, open source Liblouis braille translation engine as part of their braille display support. In this session, we explained and demonstrated how to harness the power of Liblouis braille tables to implement additional contractions in your screen reader of choice. If you use a long word regularly and find it is taking up too much space on your braille display, this is the session for you! It also serves as a brief introduction to Liblouis translation tables in general. The session was presented by James Bowden. In addition to his work as Braille Technical Officer at RNIB, James is also the Chair of the Braille Technology Committee of the International Council on English Braille, and is the primary developer of the default UEB translation table in Liblouis. Over many years, he has not only added new symbols to the UEB tables, but has also corrected numerous errors with existing contractions, and he actively contributes to discussions about the future development of Liblouis. Please note: although we did our best to present the concepts in this session in as simple and straightforward a way as possible, modifying Liblouis tables involves advanced file and folder manipulation, administration rights and working with computer code in a text editor. You do not need to be a computer programmer in order to benefit from this session, but it is best suited to people with intermediate to advanced computer knowledge.

20240328 I Love Braille–Braille Fun Day Originally Broadcasted March 28, 2024, on ACB Media 5   On this Braille Fun Day, Karen Thomas shared information about Braille games and entertain ueB with braille puzzles. Sponsored by: East Bay Center for the Blind Subscribe to I Love Braille email list Access Archives Email Vileen Shah

Happy New Year and welcome back to another episode of AccessWorld, a podcast on digital inclusion and accessibility. In this episode, Tony and Aaron kick off 2024 by sharing their resolutions on improving their braille. Tony shares how he's an old dog still trying to master UEB. Aaron offers guidance in a previous article that breaks down the transition to UEB. We then take a deep dive into distinguishing the difference between accessibility and usability. While accessibility is a critical piece of making the internet accessible for all, usability takes us that extra step toward assuring we can be fully inclusive with our digital content. Check out this previous AFB Tech Notes post on the value of usability. Aaron also breaks down accessible gaming for the blind, sharing some insight taken from the most recent issue of AccessWorld. You can check out the latest issue, published each quarter, along with all the back-issues by visiting: www.afb.org/aw. AccessWorld is produced by the American Foundation for the blind (AFB. For questions or comments, email communications@afb.org. You can support our work by liking and subscribing to the podcast, and even consider making a donation today by visiting www.afb.org.

“This new braille has so many extra dots!” This is something we hear a lot, and it's often followed by the question, “What do they all mean?” This Masterclass will help to solve the mystery. James Bowden, Braille Technical Officer at RNIB, Chairman of the Braille Coding Group of the UK Association for Accessible Formats, and the UK Representative to the Code Maintenance Committee of the International Council on English Braille, described the common indicators in UEB and gave some real world examples of their use. In particular, we covered: Capital letters and block capitals Making sure a word or symbol is not misread as a contraction Italicised, bolded and underlined text This session was recorded on Tuesday 16 May 2023. For further information please visit the Braillists Foundation Media Page.

Tamara of Unsightly Opinions is helping make music more accessible by designing a universally accessible Music Theory series and redeveloping Music Braille for UEB readers. Find the Music Theory resources here - Odyssey Music – A Revolutionary Music Curriculum For All Students Find out more about Tamara on her website - Unsightly Opinions - About

Hello flks, I am going to say that this is the first podcast we've done in about 2 months or so, maybe more. I'm happy to finally have something to present today, and this is going to get rather interesting for a 104 minute podcast. Here are the notes! On this episode, >Scalars Publishing has an educational book for learning UEB. They have other books as well, but we talk about the educational book today. How did I find out? Through a student who has asked for some help. Perky Duck from Duxbury Systems is discussed and demoed, and we also have some IOS news for those who don't know. This news is in regards to voices that some may know of, but some may not as we have sighted listeners that may not know. I hope to have another podcast soon! Thanks so much for listening, and I'll be back real soon!

What is computer braille? Are there different flavours? What are all the signs? Why would you want to use it? Is it still relevant now that we have UEB? The latest occasional Masterclass from RNIB's braille expert James Bowden answered all of these questions and more. This session was recorded on Tuesday 21 September 2021. For further information please visit the Braillists Foundation Media Page.

Nesse episódio, convidamos Celso Menezes para nos explicar um pouco sobre a atual polêmica da atualização do projeto educativo da UEB. A pergunta que não quer calar, querem mesmo retirar Deus do movimento escoteiro? Ouça o episódio, e tire suas conclusões!

So, the title of this interview infers that there will be some discussion of audio description within this conversation. And there is, we promise. But can you really blame J.J. for being nostalgic when talking to the author of more than 14 NBP books, and soon to be a retiree, Judy Dixon? UEB and Web Braille are some of the topics covered before the pair move on to her latest book Audio Description: What It Is, Where to Find It, and How to Use It"". Listen in, or read below, as Judy talks about the "independence of Braille" and how it impacted her journey with technology throughout her career. To purchase the book, visit the National Braille Press Bookstore page And to reach Judy directly, send an email along to judy@judydixon.net Blind Bargains Virtual Exhibit Hall coverage is Brought to you by AFB AccessWorld. For the latest news and accessibility information on mainstream and access technology, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon offerings, access technology book reviews, and mobile apps, and how they can enhance entertainment, education and employment, log on to AccessWorld, the American Foundation for the Blind's free, monthly, online technology magazine. Visit .

Hello and welcome back to another episode of your favourite podcast, with three blind guys chatting about crochet... Oh, sorry, that's the other show we produce! Welcome to Blind Guys Chat. We're ready to bring you episode 15 of our fortnightly show, but it appears that all is not well with the Blind Guys. Stuart seems stressed and anxious and, as we'll hear, he hasn't been eating or sleeping. He ended up going to confession to talk about what's on his mind. We received an email on our last show to ask if the guys could share some of their funny travel stories. Well, ask and you shall receive, and the trio have a few funny and indeed in the case of Óran, a rather cute experience to recount. Oh, and how do the guys feel about being offered a wheelchair at airports? Do they have any tips for managing what can sometimes be a tricky and exasperating situation? Last time Clare Whelan introduced a two-part series looking at units of measurement and what has changed in the UEB code. This time she's back to conclude that with Óran O'Neill, her second-favourite Blind Guy. There's a new kid on the block in the form of the BrailleSense 6, the latest notetaker from Selvas Healthcare in Korea, which was launched at the recent CSUN assistive technology virtual conference. Stuart gives some details and tells us how we can find out more. Dave Nason is Accessibility Lead at Sky Ireland, and he's also one of the nicest guys you could meet. He's joining the guys to talk about a really exciting development where Sky are introducing some significant accessibility into the Sky Q box. Voice Guidance is an internal Screen Reader which can be activated from the Sky Q menu or working in tandem with Sky Q's Voice Control and existing accessibility features, Voice Guidance will make Sky Q even more accessible. Dave is here to talk about how it works and what you can do currently. If you want to know more, than sit tight, because so do Jan and Stuart. Luckily for us, Óran is a Sky Q customer, and has promised to demo this new and very exciting solution on the next show. When Dave Nason isn't working hard for Sky, he's working hard for Applevis, where he's part of their editorial team. And, he's interviewed one or two interesting people along the way. On the last show Jan introduced us to 'Who's the Mole?', a Dutch TV show. Well, good news is that we've an update from Jan who confirms that audio description for the show is now available! Stuart has been watching 'Deadwater Fell' on All 4 and gives it a good rating, and Óran is still working through season two of 'For All Mankind'. Clodagh is back, sounding as great as ever, and ready to read more emails. This week, Robin Christopherson, host of the very popular 'Dot to Dot' podcast, and 'The Echo Show' has been in touch. Watch this space, because Robin will be coming on the show soon. Jan gets the most fan mail of the three guys, and this week he's got another one! And, we have a nice recommendation for a coffee with chocolate and baileys. We think Stuart might test that one out soon. Remember to keep in touch by email to BlindGuysChat@gmail.com or send us a tweet @BlindGuysChat. And Clodagh is asking our listeners to record messages and send them to us so that we can play them on the show!

introducing a new braille book for Teachers of the Blind/Visually Impaired, TBVI), parents and others who wish to instruct Blind students in learning Unified English Braille, (UEB). The book was written by one of our guests, Roberta Becker. She joins Jeff Thompson in the Blind Abilities studio along with her colleague, Lori Scharff. Roberta and Lori chat about a variety of topics, ranging from the implementation and description of "the new Unified English Braille (UEB), to many of the specific changes that it brought about for Braille readers, and how those changes are covered in Roberta’s book. Roberta is a Library of Congress Certified Braille Transcriber, and a Teacher of Children with Visual Impairments. Her brand is "Actual Tactuals Braille", and her book is entitled, Unified English Braille (UEB) Practice Sentences.  For details about her book and how to get it for your school or your child’s school, be sure to check out her web site at ActualTactuals.com. Feel free to contact Roberta with any questions, via Email, Or by phone at 516-434-1506. * Below is information from Roberta’s web site: Unified English Braille Practice Sentences-comes in print and braille for both students and teachers (sighted or blind). This book can be used to teach REMOTELY or IN CLASS. Suggestions on Roberta’s website will explain how these books can be used remotely. The book -is AVAILABLE IN HARD COPY BRAILLE, so you don't need to emboss anything. It is effective for children in mid-first grade until high school and beyond. Yes, they should know the alphabet first, but there is practice for writing the letters provided in the book.  This book can be used to teach appropriate level braille contractions, beginning with Alphabetic “Word signs” and it Easily and systematically TEACHES the UEB contractions to students of all ages. This is NOT just a review book! It is -Very easy to follow: a TVI’s “Go To” book. There is a lot of practice in reading and writing for each contraction, with 3-40 sentences for each contraction. Most sentences use multiple contractions-for additional practice and to build confidence. A Contraction Progress Chart helps you keep track of the contractions that your student knows. When you find a contraction that the student doesn’t know, simply locate that contraction in the book to give practice on it. NO contraction will be in those sentences unless it was presented in a previous lesson. Again, a contraction is NEVER used, unless it was presented in a previous lesson! You can also choose the level that you would like to work at from beginning reader to advanced reader, and anywhere in between. This book is very easy for teachers to use. Everything is done for you from planning to preparing braille materials.  It is very beneficial and even fun for the students. You will use these books throughout your career for teaching braille reading, braille writing, proofreading, keyboarding, spelling of braille contractions, and use of electronic Braille displays. So basically, you will use it with a student from elementary through high school. This book is being used successfully by TVI's in public and private schools, schools for the Blind, universities for teaching TVIs and also by transcribers, in the United States. It is also used by schools and/or universities in Canada, UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Africa. Here is one teacher's review of this book:             This book is a gem! It is well organized and user friendly for both teacher and student. The book enables learners to build confidence in recognizing contractions/braille characters and acquire fluency as they read or write sentences.              As the book progresses students have continued exposure to contractions already learned while continuing to build new skills. The book highlights correct usage of contractions and simplifies rules for using contractions such as ea versus er.             My student loved this book and enjoyed the challenges presented throughout the text.             The layout of the book also provides an easy reference for teachers like me who after an almost ten-year lull had to relearn braille. The simulated braille paired on the opposite pages from the printed material facilitates access and offers a convenient way for teachers or other individuals to check written work for accuracy.              As an added benefit, this book also serves as a resource for symbols used in math, computers, and other venues.  If you're interested in finding out more, please visit the website: www.ActualTactuals.com. Contact Your State Services If you reside in Minnesota, and you would like to know more about Transition Services from State Services contact Transition Coordinator Sheila Koenig by email or contact her via phone at 651-539-2361. Contact: You can follow us on Twitter @BlindAbilities On the web at www.BlindAbilities.com Send us an email Get the Free Blind Abilities App on the App Storeand Google Play Store. Check out the Blind Abilities Communityon Facebook, the Blind Abilities Page, and the Career Resources for the Blind and Visually Impaired group

Welcome to episode 14 of the Blind Guys Chat podcast. Sit back and enjoy just under 54 minutes of fun, as the Blind Guys, along with Clodagh, Clare and this week's guest Roisín Lenehan keep you entertained. On our last show we talked about the California State University (CSUN) Assistive Technology Conference, which, for the first time in its history, went virtual this year. The Blind guys, and Jan in particular, through his daily Clubhouse room, did a bit of virtual attendance. So how did it go? Did the guys find it worked well? And, if you attended, let us know how you found it as well. Oh, and speaking of CSUN and virtual conferences in general, Óran has a few thoughts on their future and in particular, how people from different time zones might be accommodated. If the guys aren't attending virtual conferences, or watching TV, they really need to be getting out and about and taking regular exercise. In fact, over the last year many people with low or no vision have struggled to remain fit during lockdown. Well, Roisín Lenehan, a listener to the show from Mayo has been innovative enough to find a solution and has established a group who meet daily on Zoom and work out with the Body Coach Alexa skill, from Joe Wicks. Stuart caught up with Roisín to learn all about it, and, indeed he's so impressed that he's agreed to try it out and report back on his fitness or lack thereof on the next show. If you'd like to get involved and join Roisín's group, give us a shout by email and we'll happily put you in touch. It wouldn't be a regular episode of Blind Guys Chat without our TV Corner slot, and this week, Jan has been watching a Dutch programme called 'Who's the Mole'. The concept is fascinating and we think you'll agree. Stuart has been watching 'The One', which recently landed on Netflix, but he's been somewhat upset with the choice of audio describer. Óran has a similar view, and this leads to an interesting discussion on choosing an appropriate voice to match the type of programme that's being described. What do you think? The way in which units of measurement are represented in UEB, for example, metres, millimetres, kilometres, etc, has changed from the Standard English Braille equivalents. Clare Whelan joins Óran for the first in a two-part series of what's changed and how the new syntax is used. After all that Braille learning it's time for us to catch up on what you are lovely listeners have been saying. Clodagh is back to read the mail, but before that, Stuart has a quick Buymie update and Clodagh broke up with the service last week! This week's email contributions include a recipe for Irish coffee, use of Braille and audio books, and a request for the Blind Guys to share some of their travel experiences and embarrassing stories. Watch this space for more of that on the next show. Remember to keep in touch on Twitter @BlindGuysChat or by email to BlindGuysChat@gmail.com

On the archive of the February FSOpenLine, highlights of  the February software updates, improved compatibility of JAWS with AVG/Avast antivirus, and your calls on a variety of topics including: Using the Canvas and Blackboard learning platforms, JAWS sluggishness in audio editors, excessive chattiness of recent versions of Zoom, and showing UEB attribute markers in Braille.  

Welcome back, lovely listeners, to 57 minutes of madness, that is episode 13 of the Blind Guys Chat podcast. The boys are in flying form and we're delighted you can join us for another show. If you remember on the last episode, Clodagh introduced the Blind Guys to Clubhouse, an audio-only social network. Well, the blind guys tried it out for themselves. So how did it go? And, would you like to join a Blind Guys Chat room on Clubhouse? If so, get in touch with us and keep an eye on our Twitter feed for more info. There have been some changes in UEB relating to the use of the percent sign and some currency symbols. Clare Whelan is along for this week's braille Bite to tell us all. The 35th CSUN Assistive Technology conference, hosted by the California State University takes place this year, as a virtual event for the first time. Virtual events definitely have some advantages, especially for people who may be restricted by travel costs, and the guys have info on how you can get free access to the virtual exhibit area. Holly Tuke is the person behind the hugely successful Life of a Blind Girl blog and she joins the guys for a chat. If you have always wanted to set up a blog, then listen in, because Holly has some top tips to get you started! Clodagh is here with more of your emails and, amongst the correspondence this week - what's the best way to make an Irish coffee, which apparently is Stuart's best hangover cure; a top tip from Óran on the BorrowBox library service, and an email from Roisin Lenehan, who will be joining us on the next episode of the show. Remember, we love to hear your feedback so get in touch by email to BlindGuysChat@gmail.com or on twitter to @BlindGuysChat

Join Paul Edwards and Judy Dixon as we learn about Judy’s extensive slate collection and discuss the adopted changes to the rules of UEB and concerns about Braille in the United States and other countries. There will be time for questions and comments.

Welcome to episode 12! Last time we mentioned that the Blind Guys were recording in their thermal underwear, but this time they're in shorts and t-shirts and Jan is reporting a 25°C increase in temperature in the Netherlands. Oh, and if you wondered about the strange voice opening the show, Óran is auditioning for a new identity. We think we like it better than his own one! We're getting used to what is becoming the BuyMie saga and Stuart has yet a further update on the long road to accessibility for this home shopping app. In the last two episodes of the show, Clare Whelan was explaining how Italics and Bold Braille signs have been implemented in UEB, and this week she's back to conclude this miniseries, by talking about the Underline symbol. We've expanded the popular TV corner segment to also cover books. Stuart has binge-watched the entire series of ‘Behind her Eyes' on Netflix and Óran is thoroughly enjoying season 2 of ‘For All Mankind' on Apple TV. Óran is also trying to find four of the remaining books in the Jack Reacher series. We discuss a couple of resources including your local public library and the Calibre Audio Library service in the UK, which is free to join. Jan and Stuart have interesting observations on reading Braille books as opposed to audio, and when one might be used over the other. What do you think? Let us know - BlindGuysChat@gmail.com. This week's guest needs virtually no introduction within Ireland anyhow. Luke O'Neill is professor of biochemistry at the School of Biochemistry and Immunology in Trinity College Dublin, and has become a household name over the last year with his regular media commentary on the Covid-19 virus and the hope that vaccines are bringing to us all. Luke joins the guys for a chat and Clodagh is here to read some emails we received for Luke. Oh, and just in case you are wondering, Luke likes the Blind Guys vaccination programme! We're extremely grateful to Luke for his time and reassurance, and we hear that perhaps Jan might be in Dublin buying Luke a pint next year! When Stuart was a young pup in school, the clubhouse was the name of the little shop where everyone bought their chocolate and all those things that we really shouldn't be eating before our dinner, but Clubhouse means something very different now, and Clodagh is here to introduce this brand new audio-only social network. What do the Blind Guys think, and, would you join a Blind Guys Chat room on Clubhouse? We have time for two quick emails, and we're delighted to share a link about audio description on YouTube which might help Cian - one of our listeners. Remember, the Blind Guys always love your feedback, so get in touch by email to BlindGuysChat@Gmail.com or by tweeting @BlindGuysChat. Looking forward to chatting again in two weeks time.

Welcome to episode 11 of the Blind Guys Chat podcast! The weather outside is frightful, and, while snow falls in Ireland and the Netherlands, the blind guys put on their thermal underwear to bring you this packed edition of our regular fortnightly show. Speaking of snow, Jan has plenty of it in the Netherlands and even gives us a quick weather report! Stuart is continuing his advocacy work with the BuyMie online shopping service, and we have a positive update on changes coming soon to their mobile app. Ever wondered about showing bolded text in UEB? Well, wonder no more, because Clare Whelan is back with another Braille bite to tackle this very issue. Apple recently released the latest update to their mobile operating system. iOS 14.4 however, has introduced a couple of problems for users of the latest Humanware Braille devices. We know that Humanware and Apple are working as hard as they can to fix these issues, but nevertheless, there's been quite a bit of discontent amongst the blind community. So what do the blind guys think of all this wrangling? We're beyond thrilled to welcome this episode's special guest. Sabriye Tenberken is a co-founder of Braille Without Borders, and now co-directs the Kanthari International Institute for Social Change. The Institute in Kerala, South India, fosters participants from all over the world, who have a passion to make the world a better place and have the strength to be forces of good rather than victims of circumstance. We always love to hear from our listeners, and your email is the high point of the show. But email needs a reader and there's none better than our Clodagh. This week, we're talking about challenges with home shopping delivery drivers, audio description and how it impacts sighted viewers, and a recommendation from a listener for a show called 'Death to 2020' on Netflix. Speaking of recommendations, Stuart has been watching 'it's a Sin' on All Four. It's an incredibly thought-provoking drama series, and, while its not an easy watch, it is worth every minute you'll spend viewing it. Finally, the blind guys have a very special guest on the next show. If you want to know who that is, you'll have to stay listening to the very end! Please make sure to get in touch by email to BlindGuysChat@gmail.com or on Twitter @BlindGuysChat

Led by James Bowden, Braille Technical Officer at RNIB, this session answered questions such as: How does UEB differ from Standard English Braille? Where can you learn about the changes? What tips and tricks are there for switching to UEB? This session was recorded on Tuesday 19 January 2021. For further information please visit the ... Read more

Facilitators: Brad & Sandhya Topics: iBUG announcements; sending text message from Apple Watch; entering 16 digit code on telephone; solutions – memorize credit card number, create a contact with commas that inserts pauses, use auto fill, use website instead, get live agent; sharing ringtone with family share; short cut for invert colors; activating reader mode on website; notification and Bluetooth headphones; transferring data from Android to iPhone; iPads and the mute button; Air Pods Max; audio description on Hulu; exporting play list from Amazon or Spotify; creating list in reminders; setting to manually update the iPad; delete that iOS 14 download; hospital portal app inaccessible; entering numbers in Braille Screen input in UEB; exporting data from Health app; links not appearing in rotor, rotor is contextual; signing with Aaptive for free 30 day trial option; customizing VoiceOver sounds; turning off VoiceOver to check a box; VoiceOver garbled; Siri no longer locating Apple Watch, the Find My app is able to locate the Apple Watch; enable Wifi calling;demo of Siri pinging Apple Watch.

Greetings Blind Guys Chatters! ..that's what we call you, our loyal and ever-growing band of listeners! The Blind Guys are thrilled to release episode 6 of our little show and we've just under an hour's entertainment waiting for you. Online shopping, or challenges around accessing it, is often a conversation that exercises many blind and low vision people. This week, Stuart is talking about a relatively new service on the scene called Buymie. It's not all sweets and roses however, as the service, via its mobile app, has some serious accessibility issues. So if it's that challenging, are the Blind Guys using it? Clare Whelan returns for another Braille Bite, and if you've been confused about the use of brackets in UEB, then fear not, because Clare will put your world to right. Stuart is immersing himself in season 4 of The Crown and is loving it thus far, and Óran is recommending a show called 'Little Fires Everywhere' on Amazon Prime, but is the audio description up to the job? We meet Lenore Good, who is about to embark on the adventure of a lifetime - she is preparing to climb Kilimanjaro, all to support the wonderful work of Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, Shine Centre for Autism and Sonas Junior Special Primary School. Please support Lenore by visiting her fundraising page. Finally, Clodagh is back with more emails, and a particularly interesting query about whether paper or Refreshable Braille is easier to read as a Braille beginner. Please don't forget to share this podcast with your friends, and we would love it if you'd submit a review on our podcast via your favourite podcasting platform. Thank you! Contact the Blind Guys at BlindGuysChat@gmail.com, or find them on Twitter - @BlindGuysChat. You can also subscribe to their mailing list to find out about new and upcoming shows: tinyurl.com/BlindGuysChat.

Hello faithful listeners, and of course those who are joining us for the first time. It's a bumpy ride, so fasten your seatbelts! This week, Óran regales us with the antics of his guide dog, Larry, who wanted to do his own bit of trick or treating for Halloween, and why not! Stuart has a free and very powerful tool to keep all your passwords safe and secure for those who use any apple devices. Clare Whelan is back to talk sequencing in UEB. If you don't what that is, don't worry, we didn't either! We meet Otis Stroup from Baltimore, who talks amongst other things about accessible voting in the US, how music has been central in his life and how it's not just guide dogs that are impacted by Halloween-related noises! Stuart binge watched Netflix's Bly Manor and has completely reversed his opinion of that show since our last episode. Clodagh is back to read more email, and the guys talk accessible emoji, stickers in messages, we give a big thumbs up to the Queen's Gambit on Netflix and, who wants some Blind Guys Chat Merchandise? Please don't forget to share this podcast with your friends, and we would love it if you'd submit a review on our podcast via your favourite podcasting platform. Thank you! Contact the Blind Guys at BlindGuysChat@gmail.com, or find them on Twitter - @BlindGuysChat. You can also subscribe to their mailing list to find out about new and upcoming shows: tinyurl.com/BlindGuysChat.

https://euromath.eu donal.fitzpatrick@dcu.ie Twitter: @fitzpatrickd For many students, mathematics represents a significant educational challenge. This is exacerbated in the context of blind students who must not only learn the concepts underpinning this discipline, but must also become proficient in the UEB linear representation. In this paper we outline a new tool, based on UEB, which aims to reduce the barriers of communication between the student and their teacher. We describe a web-based editor named Euromath and the newly designed conversion library which enables translation of mathematics presented in MathML into Unified English Braille (UEB).

Clovernook Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired opened its doors in 1903, and is located in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. Clovernook's Braille Printing House has been in operation since 1914, when a printing press was donated to the organization. Braille production has evolved considerably over the years, and today Clovernook is a global producer of braille – over 20 million pages of braille are shipped to libraries and individuals each year. Much of Clovernook's work is on a contractual basis with the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Disabled (NLS), Library of Congress, which provides accessible materials to their patrons. Clovernook also produces a number of additional publications, as well as menus, business cards, calendars, and other assorted braille items. A recent addition to Clovernook's services is an Arts & Accessibility Initiative which subsidizes the production of accessible materials for cultural institutions. At Clovernook, each step of the braille production process is able to be performed in-house – this includes scanning, transcription, proofreading, embossing, binding, and shipping. Clovernook is also a founding member of the Braille Authority of North America (BANA). NLS has offered braille transcription courses and professional certifications since the 1960s. These courses are available free of charge to any citizen or resident of the United States, function as an industry requirement for many state and federal braille production contracts, and aim to ensure that braille transcribers and proofreaders are familiar with the established rules and guidelines of braille codes used in the United States. In November 2012, Unified English Braille (UEB) was adopted by BANA's United States members and implementation began in January 2016. Prior to UEB, English Braille American Edition (EBAE) and Nemeth Braille Code for Mathematics and Science Notation (Nemeth) were the braille codes used for producing braille materials in the United States. As NLS began updating its courses to reflect the new code, it was determined that a new course was needed. The Literary Braille Transcribing course focused on teaching the basics of how to transcribe “literary” materials – it did not address the transcription of mathematics or technical subjects. Moreover, with the adoption of UEB and retention of Nemeth, two viable mathematic codes were now official in the United States – however the Nemeth certification course was the only NLS course that covered mathematics. In the fall of 2016, under contract with NLS, Clovernook began developing the Technical Braille Transcribing course – an NLS certification course for the transcription of mathematics and technical materials using UEB.

This paper describes RNIB's systematic approach to reviewing and rectifying shortcomings in the open source Liblouis braille translation library relied on by popular screen reading and transcription products and services. Since 2018, RNIB and international partners have identified over 3,000 errors in the existing Unified English Braille implementation, making Liblouis unsuitable in many education and employment settings. The paper describes the steps taken to collate lists of errors; work toward implementing corrections; and collaborate with international partners for peer review. Underpinning this work is the global move to digital braille delivery, lower cost braille technology and UEB's reduced translation ambiguity. While the Liblouis UEB table remains the primary focus of this work, other braille tables, e.g. Afrikaans, refer to the UEB table for underlying symbols. The paper describes the process used to review the existing UEB tables, compile lists of errors, compare rules with dictionaries, devise new rules, test against word lists, peer review and sign in changes. Stakeholders standing to benefit from this work include, but are not limited to, individual users of screen readers and braille translation software, students, teachers, transcribers, publishers, hardware and software manufacturers and rehabilitation professionals. The paper proposes practical ways in which stakeholders can support the project improving braille translation accuracy for everyone. Dave Williams: Customer Experience Manager, Consumer Services, Royal National Institute of Blind People; Member of the Braille General Group, UK Association for Accessible Formats James Bowden: Braille Technical Officer, RNIB; Chair of the UKAAF Braille Coding Group

Welcome back. The Blind Guys made it for their second show! This week, we're delighted to meet Danlami Bashru, from Nigeria. From falling into open drains, and jumping onto moving busses, Danlami shows us that life in Nigeria can be challenging when you're blind. Clare Whelan is back to introduce us to another couple of UEB contractions, and Óran, Stuart and Jan talk about fear of dogs, GPS and a few interesting observations about iOS 14. We got some nice emails, and Clodagh is here to read them out. Finally, what are you watching on TV these days? The Blind Guys have a few recommendations. Please don't forget to share this podcast with your friends, and we would love it if you'd submit a review on our podcast via your favourite podcasting platform. Thank you! Contact the Blind Guys at BlindGuysChat@gmail.com, or find them on Twitter - @BlindGuysChat. You can also subscribe to their mailing list to find out about new and upcoming shows: tinyurl.com/BlindGuysChat.

It finally happened! Enough stuff has transpired for us to do a proper old school news filled episode. Or as we now call it during the After Times , a retro inspired BBQ show. Join J.J., Joe and Patrick as they learn how to do a thing again that they have spent 10 years already doing prior to the release of this particular audio program. Breaking news talk of Audio Description, a tip, a bunch of Sound Off and the return of the Last Word will give you that nostalgic feeling for sure! In The News: Breaking: AIRA Scales Back its Free Five Minute Call Offer Breaking: With Nearly Seven Months Before the Event, #CSUNATC21 has Gone Virtual Humanware news from the NFB Convention There was a lot to parce from Humanware's Summer Convention announcements. Joe asked Andrew Flatres for a quick summary in July and here's what he sent along. Head on over to Humanware if you would like to know more. "Briefly showcased some low vision products, including the Reveal 16/16i, Explore 5 and 8 and Prodigi connect. New route preview mode for the Trek, that allows you to walk your router virtually. Future "HERE" MAPS are coming. BrailleNote Touch Plus recent update includes a new scientific calculator, allowing both UEB and Nemeth entry. One-handed mode Learning tables, assisting your braille learning between uncontracted and contracted. PDF and OAuth is coming soon. A NEW Brailliant BI-40 is coming to the market. Take the opportunity to get a free BI-14 now when ordering the BI-40. HW buddy application - an application available on ios and playstore free of charge. The app allows you to stay updating with what is happening at HumanWare, and contains how to guides on HumanWare's products to make learning easy, simple and enjoyable." JAWS/ZoomText/Fusion 2020 August Update Is Live Hadley launches new look WayAround update brings Multi-User Support in version 3.1 for iOS EnVision America updates the I.D. Mate for background server changes How to Use Google's Android Braille Keyboard for Typing Making the most of your Zoom Audio: Presentation Recording now Posted New Orbit Writer has been updated Discussion Topic: Even More News Yeah, we have not been blathering on about the news in a good long while. Yet there was not really anything going on to wrap a podcast segment around lately until all that stuff at the top of Show Notes arrived. Still, we have been reading and listening to what is out there in case something came along. Joe has compiled a few metric tons of info that occurred since late April and you can read his summations in the 4 articles below. BBQ In Review: A pile of news to smooth things over until our next podcast BBQ In Review: A pile of interviews to smooth things over until our next podcast BBQ In Review: A pile of helpful tips to smooth things over until our next podcast BBQ In Review: A pile of Last Word items to smooth things over until our next podcast Joe and J.J. also discussed Audio Description, or the lack there of, in some prominent streaming launches that have come about since March of this year. HBOMax and PeacockTV both sported difficult to navigate user interfaces and did not contain Audio Description at launch. Apple announced a new bundle of services that features Apple TV Plus, CBS All Access and Showtime. Showtime does not offer A.D. currently, however, Apple TV Plus and CBS All Access do have it for newer titles. Joe mentioned the quiet launch of Audio Described tracks on Microsoft Movies and TV Making our previous recommendation of using Movies Anywhere timely to get the most out of your movie purchases on various services. Lastly, not mentioned on the show but still noteworthy, Quibi also launched with no description tracks available. The pair noted the controversies surrounding Twitter s mistakes with launching Audio Tweets and Facebook s Avatar features. Each launch had some silly access self-inflicted avoidable issues. And each Social Media Giant had to make some public apologies after the debut of the feature on each of their respective platforms. Tip: Silence Notifications In Zoom Chances are that you might have had to use the Zoom Conferencing software recently. Furthermore, you might have never wanted to use it again because of all the notifications it will kindly inform you of in a meeting with a lot of participants. If so, then you need to review the Screen Reader Alerts under the Accessibility Options area of Zoom as it has new features based on a bunch of feedback from users. J.J. walks us through the current slate of Windows Web browser options and highlights a few of them that help him keep his sanity during Zoom meetings. Sound Off: Angela writes in to tell us "Bose frames are not discontinued" "Bose is augmented reality related projects have been discontinued, not the Bose frames themselves." In June, when Angela sent along this email, Joe would have disagreed with her as the multiple versions of the Frames had been heavily discounted at Best Buy and other retailers. However, since that time, the Bose Frames have returned to their original price and the replacement lenses have been restocked. It appears like they may even get a second run now. Or a possible scaled down Frames option If this recent FCC filing harkens a restart for the Frames line. No matter what happens, Angela is right that the AR portion is discontinued with some apps dropping those features or off the App Store all together. Roger has some questions aftr listening to BBQ 212 "Hi Thank you for this podcast which was interesting, especially the stuff about Narrator. I am a JAWS user with JAWS 2020 home edition. A couple of questions that I can t get answers to: How can I tell which version of windows I have. Can you talk me through the key strokes to find out this information. When I use Narrator it talks far too much. When I am in Excel it gives the cell and row information before giving the content of the cell. How can I get it to read the information in the cell first and most of the time that s all, I don t need the cell and row details. Your help would be much appreciated. Thanks. Roger" J.J. notes that you can do a Windows Key and type in System Information to learn about your version of Windows. You can also perform a Windows Key plus the letter I to go to your Settings Panel, then Choose the System option and go to the About tab. Either will help you find out more about your computer and Windows version. As for the Excel question, we do not know what version of Office is being referenced here. That is why we recommend using the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk As things get rather strange if you have a boxed copy of Office or if you are subscribed to Microsoft 365. Jan Brown, long time listener, sent along a relateable email aptly titled "How I ate my way through house arrest" "The day before the Governor issued the shelter in place order, I went for coffee with two friends. We hugged and then joked about it. I believe this state of affairs has brought us closer in a good way. We have listened to Bard books together. We started with Stephen King's The Stand which we thought was particularly right for this situation. We always try to have great home meals, particularly on Sunday nights. We try to have a great red wine from one of our wine clubs on Sunday evenings. We often have a good steak with various sides depending on whim and what we have purchased. I go to Safe Way, our big food emporium on Thursdays. The wine guy there was able to locate both paper towels and toilet paper when we needed both the most. I go with a friend as I have for at least a decade. Yes, I certainly pay her. At the end of the shopping trip, we get coffee either from the in-store Starbucks or the Peet's down the way. One staff member from this particular Safe Way contracted Covid 19. No, of course they didn't tell us the identity of that person. I tend to go out for an early morning latte to the coffee place a couple of blocks away. One of the baristas there gave us a couple of masks and when I tried to pay, was told it was her way of giving back. A friend came to our county the other day and asked if she could bring in and out burger with fries and milk shakes to our house. How could we refuse? She brought these lovelies over and then left. The same day, an organization in our town which tries to serve senior types like us, I reckon, dropped off flowers at our house. They came from a group of folks who garden and have more flowers than they can use. I was really touched. We are not isolated any more than anybody else, but I was still touched and my husband was too. I have been doing Zoom family meetings and church meetings and have found them a lot of fun. I do it on my i-Phone 11 and still have trouble pointing the camera correctly. I have also done a couple of gym trainings through zoom. My Guide Dog immitated me and went up and down and made the trainer laugh. So, you see, This is not a bad thing for us. I hope all is well with you. Thanks for the interesting podcast and enjoy life Jan Brown" Last Word Just a quick note here, instead of the usual food oddities that occupy this space, please support your local restaurants. The native eateries provide uniqueness to your city, township, or community. Check out the local online editions of the newspaper or Business Journal for recommendations. Most of them have been highlighting the best places to find your favorite foods that are not served by a chain brand. And, if all else fails, open Google Maps and do a search to see what Local Guides in the area are saying. You can even check if the place you have in mind has a favored delivery option as they get more of the sale that way. Windows 95 turns 25 A History of Windows 95 Development We would sincerely like to thank everyone for reaching out to us on Social Media, email, and other methods to find out if all of us on the BBQ Crew are okay. It really does mean a lot to us. We touch on this at the end of the program. We really are not sure how the podcast flows in the future. Although it may feature more BBQ Bytes, Bites?, as the A.T. Industry at large begins to figure out how to offer things in this new disrupted economy. We know there will still be some hardware and software announcements on the horizon. So those of you out there who are a fan of our wrap up shows are covered. The rest of our typical programming will be an interesting and exciting challenge for us. And after 10 years of podcasting, in various forms and places, we are actually fine with having to reinvent our way to providing you the content you have become accustomed to from Blind Bargains. Be safe, be well and wear your mask to help others if not yourself. Until next time thanks for listening!

You may have heard the prediction that unemployment in the US could reach 30%, and that does sound scary. But what do those numbers really mean? And how would that worst-case scenario impact collections? What should we be concerned about as investors in affordable housing? Damian Bergamaschi is the cofounder of Damris Capital, a money management firm that leverages data analysis to help its investors achieve financial freedom sooner. Damian leads Damris’ optimization research for all investment models and algorithms and serves as the portfolio manager of the firm’s real estate acquisitions. On this episode of Apartment Building Investing, Damian joins me to explain how his obsession with data led to investments in commercial real estate. He discusses why affordable housing has been insulated from COVID-19, breaking down what the unemployment rate really means and how government subsidies have had a positive impact in the space. Listen in as Damian calculates projected collections in a worst-case scenario and find out why he is bullish on affordable housing as a reliable long-term investment. Key Takeaways The Damris Capital origin story Idea to organize data, info from white papers Test different asset classes by numbers How Damian’s research led him to affordable housing Devaluation of dollar = consistent long-term trend Residential real estate most tax efficient way to invest indirectly in inflation Add framework of Inflation Harvesting (layer on debt) What we don’t understand about the unemployment rate Many people have income despite being unemployed (e.g.: retirement, disability, etc.) At 30% unemployment, 60% would still have income vs. 80% in normal circumstances Why affordable housing is insulated from COVID-19 Government safety nets (stimulus checks, unemployment benefits) More likely to pay for housing than discretionary expenses Even in worst-case scenario, 70% collections projected The adverse short-term impact COVID may have on affordable housing Reductions for prepayment Slightly lower collections Credit card processing for online payments Won’t raise rents for 12 to 18 months Damian’s promising long-term outlook for affordable housing Opportunity to raise rents at accelerated rate in 18 to 24 months Consistent supply and demand in residential real estate As cap rates contract, value of properties will expand The cyclical nature of delinquencies and being paid up Most caught up after tax return Most delinquent after holidays Why multifamily investors need to be thinking about September Unemployment will start to hit caps (safety net goes away) Renters may owe on taxes, not realizing UEB taxable Connect with Damian Bergamaschi Damris Capital Resources Join Michael’s Investor Incubator Mentoring Program Register for Deal Maker Live Join the Nighthawk Equity Investor Club Damian’s Blog Post on Unemployment Damian’s Blog Post on Mobile Home Park Investing Damian’s Blog on Mobile Home Park Investing Performance Post-COVID Inflation Harvesting The Case-Shiller Home Price Index US Bureau of Labor Statistics Subprime Auto Loan Delinquency Statistics Podcast Show Notes Michael’s Website Michael on Facebook Michael on Instagram Michael on YouTube Apartment Investor Network Facebook Group

Dans ce podcast publié le 15 mai 2020, Alexandre vous présentera tout d’abord notre nouvelle offre de formations en groupe. Ensuite, vous en apprendrez davantage sur le nouveau clavier braille virtuel disponible depuis peu pour les utilisateurs du lecteur d’écran TalkBack sous Android. Ce nouveau clavier est comparable à la saisie braille disponible depuis plusieurs années sous iOS. Vous verrez comment effectuer la première configuration de ce clavier, nous passerons au travers du tutoriel d’initiation, nous vous expliquerons les différents gestes à utiliser et nous vous donnerons trucs et astuces pour une utilisation optimale. Sachant que le clavier braille TalkBack supporte pour le moment uniquement le code braille UEB, Alexandre vous donnera quelques bases de la table braille UEB et vous expliquera comment effectuer les caractères accentués pour écrire en français malgré tout! L'équipe de Canadialog demeure à votre disposition si vous avez des questions ou si vous souhaitez en connaître davantage sur nos offres de formations en groupes ou en privées. N'hésitez pas à visiter notre site Web régulièrement et à vous abonner à notre chaîne YouTube pour ne rien manquer. Voyez comment il est possible d'écouter nos podcasts en consultant la liste des services où nos podcasts sont référencés ainsi que les instructions qui s'y rattachent. Bonne écoute!

Jennifer Dunnam, former president of the Braille Authority of North America (BANA) and Manager of Braille Programs at NLS, outlined the progress leading to the transition from EBAE to UEB.

This week's discussion was an open-ended question and answer session, which including questions on the difference between hyphens and dashes, the changes between EBAE and UEB, and the International Council on English Braille.

Hi Mosen at Largers. Thanks for joining me again. Are you as enthralled by the Brexit drama as me? Before putting the show together, I pulled an all-nighter watching coverage of the unusual and dramatic Saturday session of the UK House of Commons. I offer a few thoughts.   We talk about food you absolutely adore, and food you detest. Even though the answer to this question should be blatantly obvious, at a listener's request I outline just a few of the things that make soup an abomination.   I review and highly recommend "A Day Like Today", an autobiography by British journalist and recently-retired BBC interviewer John Humphrys.   Shawn calls in to recommend a book called the ABCs of UEB. You can find it here.   We hear a listener's perspective on running Windows on a virtual machine on the Mac.   Keeping with our food theme, Bonnie joins me to discuss some of her most and least favourite food as well as her first taste of a New Zealand culinary institution.   We look at a few items of tech news, including announcements around Disney Plus, Uber Pet, Google's Pixel event and the cool new recorder in the new devices, the ability to easily move music and other audio between your Google Home devices, Tile has some new products including Tile Stickers.   I discuss how I have now made the Microsoft Edge Chromium beta my web browser of choice.    

This podcast is an overview of the Braille Authority of North America (BANA). Sandy Ruconich, Vice-chair of BANA, is interviewed so you can learn a little about our organization: who we are, what we do, and how long we've been around. BANA is the standard-setting body with regard to braille codes and formatting guidelines for both literary and technical material. It makes the rules for how braille is written and formatted in the U.S. and Canada.

We have a lot for you. Here are the show notes for each and every one of you. Welcome to podcast 292 of the technology blog and podcast series. We've got a bunch of stuff for you, and i hope you enjoy the program as much as I have bringing it to you. The program is 83 minutes in length. Braille Transcription course and learning UEB. My thoughts on learning UEB as a transcriber, and not just as a reader. I also have some corrections from last podcast. A very interesting article which is entitled When Security Researchers Pose as Cybercrooks, Who Can Tell the Difference? and boy it gives a real true tale that happened to Brian. The article was written on the 2nd of October, and I discuss my thoughts on it. The third segment deals with a Youtube segment, and it is a short video. drones verses the california wildfires is the video and I introduce this one. I honestly don't remember where I saw it, but I think it is quite interesting. Winamp gets an update. Winamp's web site has an announcement that I was tipped off to in regards to its development. Not being touched in quite awhile, Winamp 6 is coming soon, but they gave us a functioning 5.8 which I was provided. I'll let you know how it works. Hopefully, the new company who is doing winamp, keeps the accessibility in place we in the blind community are accustomed to. Wishing and hoping. Finally, Voice Phishing Scams Are Getting More Clever caught my attention. I do talk about something I got by a voice message a few weeks ago, where I've not returned the call, and yet, I'm also still here. Do you want to learn more about voice phishing? If you do, please go to the voice phishing page on Wikipedia so you are educated. Our contact information is at the end of the program as well, as well as briefly at the beginning. Please remember to utalize the info if you have any comments, questions, or concerns. Thanks so much for listening to this program, and I hope you'll join me for another podcast soon. More great interesting info is coming I thought you'd enjoy too. Thanks for listening!

Show Summary: (Full Transcript Below) Blind Abilities presents this chat with Jo Fishwick, as Jeff Thompson caught up with her in Teignmouth, england. Joe is the Chairperson of VI Talk, a Charitable, Incorporated Organization (CIO). VI Talk is aimed at people with a visual impairment, anyone who knows someone with a visual impairment, or someone who has a connection with an organization or group that offers services or support to visually impaired people. VI Talk is on Facebook, with seven individual groups for your choosing and on twittersharing ideas, information and support. Jo shares her story of growing up in the UK with a visual impairment, her schooling, her journey into volunteerism and employment, her work at Cliffden Hotel in Teignmouth, and her challenges as a VI parent. Join Jeff Thompson as he chats with Jo, an old and dear friend, as only Blind Abilities can present. Thank you CheeChau for your beautiful music. You can follow CheeChau on Twitter. Thanks for Listening! Contact: You can follow us on Twitter @BlindAbilities On the web at www.BlindAbilities.com Send us an email Get the Free Blind Abilities App on the App Store. Get the Free blind Abilities App on the Google Play Store Full Transcript: Meet Jo Fishwick: Charitable Pioneer, Assistive Technology Coordinator, Wife and Mother Pete Lane:           Welcome to Blind Abilities. This is Pete Lane. We'd like to introduce you to our guest, Jo Fishwick. Jo is visually impaired an assisted technology instructor, a wife, and a mother. Jo is also the chairperson of VI Talk, an ongoing charitable organization who's goal is to equip blind and visually impaired folks in the UK to not only manage their blindness, but to thrive. Speaker 2: Welcome to VI Talk. Sharing ideas, information, and support. Jo Fishwick: We started just as a Facebook group, as a voluntary group in January 2014. Then we got an Audioboom channel in March 2014. We started doing link days, which basically is an opportunity for blind or partially sighted people, or anybody who works in that field to get together. I had to transition from using print to braille and I was so glad I was prepared for that. Although it was still difficult, you know, it was great. So I run a braille support group on Facebook for anybody who's learning braille, or just wants a bit of extra help, drop me a message on Facebook, and I'll approve your request to join. The same with the VI Talk groups. We've got seven of those now. A glutton for punishment, us. Pete Lane: Jo is also a good friend of our own Jeff Thompson, who had a chance to catch up with Jo while he was visiting the UK. Jeff Thompson: Indian summer? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, it's lovely isn't it? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Glad I'm here right now. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, you couldn't have picked better. Pete Lane: We're at the Clifton Hotel, which is in teignmouth. Jo Fishwick: Six or seven acres now, yeah. It was owned by Guide Dogs back in the day. Well, owned by Guide Dogs, but run by the RNIB. Pete Lane: Sharing her story. Jo Fishwick: It is lovely. I feel very lucky to live here. Been here for six and a half years now. Pete Lane: And her advice. Jo Fishwick: You've got to be patient with yourself. Don't expect everything to happen in a day. It is a grieving process. Losing your sight, it's a form of grief. Because you're losing something. It's very precious to you. Pete Lane: Now, let's join Jeff Thompson, and our guest, Jo Fishwick. Jeff Thompson: Welcome to Blind Abilities. I'm Jeff Thompson, and I'm in Teignmouth, England, and I'm sitting here with Jo Fishwick, and she is the ... what title would you call that for the VI Talk? Jo Fishwick: Chair of VI Talk, because it's a charity. A charitable incorporated organization, which is just a different form of charity. Jeff Thompson: And you got a big event coming up here this month. Jo Fishwick: We do. We started doing link days, which basically is an opportunity for blind and partially sighted people, or anybody who works in that field to get together during the day, at an event, and we're going to have speakers. So we've got one at Bradbury Fields, which is a local blind society up in the northwest of England, in Liverpool. So, we've got four speakers coming along. So we've got somebody talking about employment, and they're going to be offering opportunities for people in that area to get some employment, hopefully. Jo Fishwick: We've got somebody talking about sports and activities, hopefully motivate people to get involved with that kind of thing. And we got some technology, and we've got Bradbury Fields themselves talking about their services. Jeff Thompson: A big day? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, it's good. Then we've got another one in London in November. Similar kind of theme. Just a chance for people to get together, but with some social time as well. Because the feedback we get is people want to learn from each other. It's that kind of thing, isn't it? When somebody's done something and they pass that on. Someone thinks, "Well, if they can do it, maybe I could have a go?" Jeff Thompson: Oh yeah, experience is the best teacher. Jo Fishwick: Absolutely. Jeff Thompson: And you started this back in the Audioboom days? Jo Fishwick: I did. We started just as a Facebook group, just a voluntary group in January 2014. Then we got an Audioboom channel, well audio boo as it was then, in March 2014. It was actually you who kind of gave me the heads up on how to proceed with that. So, thank you very much for that. Then two years down the line, more or less, February 17th, 2016 we were granted charity status. The rest is history. Pete Lane: Welcome to VI Talk, sharing ideas, information and support. Jo Fishwick: Hi everyone, it's Jo, and I have with me Dawn. Dawn:                Hi. Jo Fishwick: It's a pleasure to introduce the first time on VI Talk, Ben, who I met at Sight Village, and he has a really interesting project to talk about. Hi Ben. Ben:                 Hello. Hi, thanks for having me. Jeff Thompson: Now Jo, a long time ago we talked about braille, and you gave this great talk about braille. Braille is very important to you. Jo Fishwick: It is, yeah. Very important. I learned braille when I was 12, and thank God for that, because I lost ... well, I kind of knew I was probably going to lose my sight, but nobody knew exactly when. They insisted I learned braille at 12, and I got a detached retina at 14. Smack bang in the middle of my O levels in CSE's for those who remember those days in Britain. So I had to transition from using print to braille, and I was so glad I was prepared for that. Although it was still difficult, it was great. Jo Fishwick: So I run a braille support group on Facebook. For anybody who's learning braille, or just wants a bit of extra help. Maybe they're changing from what we call standard English Braille, to UEB, which means that everybody's kind of together in braille, I guess. I love it, I love having notes in front of me. If I'm doing meetings, committee meetings for VI Talk, I just like to have notes in front of me, and braille just allows me to do that. Jeff Thompson: How can they find that Facebook page? Jo Fishwick: If you search braille support group, you'll find it. There's a couple of questions to ask you why you want to join, and if you're visually impaired, or work in the field of visual impairment. And just answer those questions. Or drop me a message on Facebook, and I'll approve your request to join. Jo Fishwick: The same with the VI Talk groups. We've got seven of those now. Glutton for punishment, us. So, we've got our main group. We've got the resources group, we've got sports travel, book club. Just recently we've opened a music one, and also arts and crafts. So people can share their idea of what they do for hobbies and things in the arts and crafts field. And hopefully encourage other people to have a go. Jo Fishwick: So there's people that already post about knitting, crocheting, sewing, all sorts of things. Jeff Thompson: You guys have got it all locked up? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, just if somebody comes to us and says, "What about this?" We'll think about it and we'll go. Yeah, we did get asked to open a dating group, but we kind of said no, it's a bit too complicated, the whole dating scene. Yeah, we thought the whole kind of safeguarding thing and you know. Jeff Thompson: It's where they can find people by other interests like knitting. Hey, go for it, you know? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, definitely. Sport, you know, get on the sport group or travel group. With travel it doesn't have to be that you've gone on some accessible travel or anything, it could be that you've gone mainstream, but you found it particularly useful, and helpful and that maybe staff at the hotel or something, or in a resort have been great. Come and tell everybody about it. Jeff Thompson: And you have a guide dog sitting next to you. Jo Fishwick: I do. I have Bruno. He's a golden retriever. He's a bit hot, it's very hot here today. So, he's a bit warm Jeff Thompson: Indian Summer? Jo Fishwick: Yes, lovely, isn't it? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Glad I'm here right now. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, you couldn't have picked better. Jeff Thompson: We're at the Clifton Hotel, which is in Teignmouth. We're sitting down on the ground and some people are coming by, but we found a bench way down here. What is there, six acres, seven acres? Jo Fishwick: Six or seven acres now, yeah. It was owned by Guide Dogs back in the day. Well, owned by Guide Dogs but run by the RNIB. Now it's been bought by Starbud who are a company that holds some Holiday Inns, some [inaudible] hotels, and some Great Western, I think it is. They bought [inaudible] which is up in the late district in the northwest of England, and the Clifton, which is down here in lovely sunny, Devon. Jeff Thompson: This is my third time being here, and it's still a great place. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, it's lovely, it is lovely. I feel very lucky to live here, been here for six and a half years now. Jeff Thompson: What is unique about the Clifton Hotel if you are visually impaired? Jo Fishwick: So, the Clifton is, even though it's mainstream now, all the staff are trained in visual awareness. So if you come as blind or partially sighted person and you maybe need guiding around the hotel, you need to be shown the route to your room. They'll show you around the hotel. What they can't do is personal care, obviously that's a bit too much because they don't have the staff here to do that. But they have braille menus. There's braille on all the doors and large print as well. Large print menus. There are guide dog runs here. So your guide dog is catered for. Jo Fishwick: They can also order in dog food for you. So if you ring them in advance, rather than traveling on the train with a big bag of dog food, you can order it in from the hotel. They can also supply dog beds, dog bowls, and there's a grooming room here as well. There's even a dog shower. So if your dog's been on the beach, you can take your dog into the dog shower and give it a little wash down. Jeff Thompson: Oh, that's sweet, and we're not that far from the beach at all. Jo Fishwick: We're not. You can walk through the grounds and there's a gate at the bottom of the gardens, and there's a code for that. You put in the code, and you're probably about no more than 100, 150 meters I'd say. Walk down this pretty safe path, really. Then you're on to the sea front. There's an outdoor café there so you can grab yourself a sandwich or a breakfast or something. Or just sit and have a coffee and listen to the sea. Jeff Thompson: That's about five minutes walk? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, I'd say so. Yeah, no more than that really. Jeff Thompson: And Teignmouth is right on the English Channel? Jo Fishwick: Mm-hmm (affirmative), yeah, it's near to Torquay and Exeter. We've just been to Plymouth today, haven't we? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jo Fishwick: So that was nice. So, yeah, there's lots to do here. There's a zoo and there's other places of interest. There's a museum in Teignmouth, just a small museum that's quite interesting. Lots of pubs, and places to eat. Last night for example, there were 10 of us, went out for a meal weren't there, in one of the local pubs. Jeff Thompson: We even had some great musicians come in there. Jo Fishwick: We did, they were fab. You did a recording, didn't you? Jeff Thompson: Oh yeah, they were playing American folk music. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, and Lori got up and had a sing, didn't she? Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative), Crazy by- Jo Fishwick: Patsy Cline. Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jo Fishwick: Yeah, yeah, it was really good. Speaker 7:           That's my wife from Minnesota. Speaker 8:           Thank you, that was the best one of the evening sweetheart. Better than this bloke down here, I'll tell you. Jeff Thompson: So, Jo, what was it like for you growing up and going to high school as you transitioned into your career and stuff? Jo Fishwick: So, I was born with a sight problem. So, they always knew that I would lose my sight. Although it wasn't kind of explained to me as a young child, because I guess it would be too scary I suppose. So I lost the sight in my right eye when I was about six or seven, although I don't really remember that now. When I got to 11, it was decided that my eyesight was deteriorating badly. So I was at school for partially sighted children. So I had to go to one that could teach me braille, teach me how to use a long cane. So I went to boarding school in Liverpool in the northwest of England, as I said before. Then I went to a residential college in Hereford, in England. Went there for three years, did lots of business studies. Audio typewriting, that kind of thing. Then I really struggled to find work afterwards. So I kind of just kept going and going back to college. Re-learning, getting new skills. I qualified as a complementary therapist. Qualified as a computer programmer, so jack of all trades, master of none. Jo Fishwick: That's where I met my husband in 1995, on a computer programming course. I just couldn't find work, just couldn't get a foot in the door really. So started VI Talk because I wanted to help people, but also I guess something to do, really. Then in 2016, there was a job going at the Clifton Hotel for an assistive technology coordinator as part of the RNIB online today project. It was a lottery funded project to help visually impaired people get online, to learn how to use mobile technology, and get started with that or advance further with it. Jo Fishwick: The then manager at the hotel said to me, "You should give that a go." I was like, "No, I'll never get it. I just won't get it." She said, "All joking apart, but you can do it with your eyes shut." So I went for it, and got the job. I was like, "Wow." I was in my forties and got my first job, first paid job and still doing that now. I'm contracted until the end of January next year. But I'm going out and about in different areas of Devon now, and Somerset, and Cromwell, so all southwest of England. Teaching other people how to do what I've been doing. So how to teach visually impaired people how to use technology and supporting local blind societies when they do events for blind and partially sighted people. So, helping with iPhones, Android, Alexa, all that kind of good stuff. Jeff Thompson: And you probably bring the VI Talk business card? Jo Fishwick: Well, you know, sometimes. In the process of braille and some of those at the moment. So you see, braille comes in again, so yeah. Jeff Thompson: Could you tell our listeners what it's like, because you're a mom. Jo Fishwick: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Jeff Thompson: What was it like raising a child as a visually impaired person? Jo Fishwick: Oh, wow, gosh. My daughter's 16 now. So she's gone off to college. It was interesting. My husband, Rob, was at home. He wasn't working at the time. So I guess I had help there. So we kind of worked as a team. Because we lived what for me was a struggle. We lived in a quite a rural village, in the northwest of England. And the transport links were pretty rubbish. So to get a daughter to nursery, or to get her to school was now an impossible for me to do. So Rob had to be around, really. I lost my mom before Jody was born, and so that was really a struggle for me. Because I obviously wanted her around for all her advice. So we were kind of a lot on our own. So it was just learning, just as you go. Jo Fishwick: I didn't have many VI friends, but then really I kind of left, not deliberately left I guess, but just dropped out of the blind community quite a lot. But I just think you just get on with it. I think you just get on with it. I think you've got to get stuck in. You just can't be afraid of it. You get all those silly questions. You'll be out and someone will find out you've got a child and they'll be like, "Oh, how do you feed a baby when you're blind?" And you'll be like, "Well, you try giving a baby Weetabix." You know, with your eyes shut. Jo Fishwick: I think you just have to be prepared. You have to be well equipped, you have extra cloths and water around to clean up mess and you just have to really just be determined I think, and just find work arounds, but you do. I think don't let anybody tell you that you can't be a mom or a dad. A dad as well. I've spoken to VI dads and you get ... on the school playground when you used to do pick up and some of the parents don't want to interact with you because they just don't know how. But it's the same old thing, isn't it? We all experience that at sometime in our lives. Whether we've got children or not. Which can make it a bit tricky because your child gets all the questions. "Oh, your mom's blind is she? What do you do? What can she do? How can she do things for you?" But I think your kids grow up really quickly, and they learn ... I mean, Jody's been able to guide since she was able to walk really. I used to be a hand on her shoulder and we'd go off and do things together. Jo Fishwick: Moving down here to Teignmouth has been the making of all of us I think. She's made so many good friends. She's sighted, but down here, and I think partly because of the hotel, everybody just takes it in their stride. Because they've all seen guide dogs and long cane users before. It's like, "Oh, it's just another guide dog. Oh, no, it's just another long cane user." And everyone's just really quite nice about it. There's not as much discrimination I don't think, in this area, luckily. Jeff Thompson: They get it. Jo Fishwick: They do get it, yeah, they really do. You go into a shop or a bar, or whatever and they're happy to help. And they're happy to carry drinks. I'm not saying that doesn't happen in other places, but I think they're just so used to it here. They just take it in their stride. Jeff Thompson: Yeah, like in Minneapolis we have two schools about a mile apart. So there's always about 20 or 30 students milling about, and interacting with society and stuff. So they get acclimated to it, and that really helps. Jo Fishwick: Yeah, I think it does. They just happy to go out of their way to just treat you like anybody else really, but to just give you that little helping hand if you need it. Jeff Thompson: So, Jo. What advice would you have for someone who is in the shoes you were in when you were younger? Or someone who is starting to have challenges with vision, or reading the printed word and stuff. What would you say to them? Jo Fishwick: I'd say give yourself time, it's little steps. I think you've got to be patient with yourself. Don't expect everything to happen in a day, and it is a grieving process. Losing your sight is a form of grief, because you're losing something that's very precious to you. So I think you've got to give yourself time. Don't be afraid to reach out to people to tell them how you're feeling, and to seek that help and support. There is support out there. Sometimes it takes a while to get that support. But tell your family, tell your friends. You may lose some friends along the way. People do, because they just don't know how to behave around you. But you'll also make some other friends along the way. And some probably good friends, and lifelong friends. Jo Fishwick: Persevere, but have patience with yourself. Just carry on, don't give up. You'll feel like it sometimes. I have moments when I lost my sight. I can remember being 14 and lying on my mom and dad's bed and telling them that I was not going back to school. I was not doing my O levels. I was jacking it, that was it, life was over, rubbish. My mom and dad were brilliant, and they just encouraged me. I went back and took my exams, and carried on. It is possible, things are possible, don't let people tell you. I mean, obviously there are things you're not going to be. Jo Fishwick: You're not going to be an airline pilot. And you might have to even, if you lose your sight later in life, you might have to change career. That's a challenge, and it is difficult. You may not find work, but there's voluntary work and there's a lot of things you can do to help other people as well. There's a lot of organizations, charities out there that you can get involved with. Jo Fishwick: I think just give yourself time, and don't be afraid to reach out and ask for help, and tell people what's happening. You'll get there, you will get there. Jeff Thompson: So Jo, here's a technical question. Since you're in the technology, iPhone, or Android? Jo Fishwick: iPhone for me, iPhone. That's a really tough one. I find Android quite tricky, I'm an apple girl. However, when I go out and do say Living With Sightloss courses that we have over here, I always take Android, Apple, and I also take a Synapptic phone as well. Which is something I don't know if you have in the US, but we have it here. If you've got limited vision, it kind of pairs everything down into one nice, neat menu. It's got really good contrast on it. Jo Fishwick: If you want a phone, or a tablet, just to do ... you don't want it singing or dancing, but you want to do things on it, Synapptic is quite good. So I do try and keep an open mind, but for me, it's iPhone all the way, I'm afraid. Jeff Thompson: So do you get a keyboard with it? Like a Bluetooth keyboard? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, I do. I have two Bluetooth keyboards. I have a full size one, and then I have a folding one, which is a tri fold, so it's almost full size when you unfold it. It's got an aluminum back, so it's quite sturdy if it gets a bit of a knock in your rucksack, or your bag. Yeah, I generally have a Bluetooth keyboard with me, because I'm a touch typist as well. So I can just chatter away on the keyboard. Jeff Thompson: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Now when you say touch typing, will you explain that do us? Jo Fishwick: Yeah, so touch typing is when you don't look at the keyboard. So I was taught to touch type when I was at primary school, which again, is one of the best things I've ever been taught. You know where all the keys are, so you know what finger does which key on a keyboard, typewriter, or a computer keyboard. So you can get up to really high speeds. It's great. If you've got sight, and maybe you're losing your sight and maybe you know that eventually it's going to go, then I would learn to touch type. Because I think it's a really, really useful skill. Jeff Thompson: Well, Jo Fishwick, thank you very much for coming on here, talking about VI Talk, talking about the changes that happened in your life, and all the paths that you traveled to get to where you are today. You've been successful at doing that. I really like what you're doing with your charity, VI Talk, and getting other people connected. Jo Fishwick: Thanks Jeff. Pete Lane: This concludes Jeff's chat, with Jo Fishwick. Thanks so much Jo, for joining us on Blind Abilities. Also, special thanks to Chi Choi for his beautiful music. Thanks so much for listening, and have a great day. Pete Lane: For more podcasts with the blindness perspective, check us out on the web at www.blindabilities.com. We're on Twitter, we're on Facebook, and be sure to check out our free app, in the apple app store, and the Google Play store.

UEB, better late than never. Can Augmented reality and tech help with surgeries? Fake handbags are nothing new, but can this type of fake item really funnel crime rings? An interesting ted talk by someone who investigates such things. Also, comments on an article about Alexa being a blindness specific tool. It can help, but it should not be just a blindness tool. Contact info at the end.

Bequest: http://www.nfb.org/planned-giving www.nfb.org/make-gift www.nfb.org/planned-giving   Tech Tools and Learning Modalities Level the Learning Field for Students with Impairments: http://www.learningally.org/Educators/Educator-Blog/PostId/907/tech-tools-and-learning-modalities-level-the-learning-field-for-students-with-vision-impairments   in brief section order new titles in UEB today: http://www.seedlings.org/browse.php?cat=12.%20 http://www.seedlings.org/order.php   Actiview: www.activiewapp.com www.activiewapp.com/download www.activiewapp.com/audio-description

Rich De Steno is one of those people who has put into practice the adage that you can do anything if you put your mind to it. As a lawyer by profession, he found there wasn't an accessible version of a game he wanted to play, so he taught himself how to code in the evenings and wrote the game himself. He then produced a range of fun, accessible games. Now retired, he always had a dream of making music and doing an album, so he taught himself how to do that as well. Rich is Jonathan Mosen's guest on this week's episode.In listener feedback, we learn how you can easily get The Daily Fibre Premium podcast set up on HumanWare's Victor Reader Stream. Jonathan talks about how Daily Fibre Premium subscribers will be able to get access to a live stream of the recording of the Blind Side Special covering Apple's June keynote.There's more discussion about public transport, and a hint on how to learn UEB.A listener asks how Aira explorers are keeping their glasses protected from breakage.Seeking your feedback, Jonathan asks what you'd like to see in the next major versions of Apple software, and for your opinions on whether it's appropriate to blindfold partially sighted people while they receive blindness-related rehabilitation services.We welcome your feedback. Send email to TheBlindSide at Mosen dot org or call the feedback line in the United States on (719) 270-5114.You can also join our online community to discuss the podcast with other listeners. Send a blank email to TheBlindSide+subscribe@groups.io

Rich De Steno is one of those people who has put into practice the adage that you can do anything if you put your mind to it. As a lawyer by profession, he found there wasn't an accessible version of a game he wanted to play, so he taught himself how to code in the evenings and wrote the game himself. He then produced a range of fun, accessible games. Now retired, he always had a dream of making music and doing an album, so he taught himself how to do that as well. Rich is Jonathan Mosen's guest on this week's episode. In listener feedback, we learn how you can easily get The Daily Fibre Premium podcast set up on HumanWare's Victor Reader Stream. Jonathan talks about how Daily Fibre Premium subscribers will be able to get access to a live stream of the recording of the Blind Side Special covering Apple's June keynote. There's more discussion about public transport, and a hint on how to learn UEB. A listener asks how Aira explorers are keeping their glasses protected from breakage. Seeking your feedback, Jonathan asks what you'd like to see in the next major versions of Apple software, and for your opinions on whether it's appropriate to blindfold partially sighted people while they receive blindness-related rehabilitation services.   We welcome your feedback. Send email to TheBlindSide at Mosen dot org or call the feedback line in the United States on (719) 270-5114. You can also join our online community to discuss the podcast with other listeners. Send a blank email to TheBlindSide+subscribe@groups.io  

On this episode of the #iACast, Michael, Aleeha, Chelsea and Scott discuss the applications of Braille in their lives. Before we got to the main topic, we discussed the recent news that Sprint and T-Mobile will be merging pending DOJ approval. During our discussion of Braille, we discussed several resources, including iAccessibility's own PocketBraille app for iOS, which will soon be receiving a major update to include Braille contractions. We also discuss the Hadley Braille course, offered by the Hadley School for the Blind, the National Reading Media Assessment for students, and our training program, which offers courses in Braille. We also discussed the transition to UEB, and how it is important to keep one's skills up. Some of the Braille displays mentioned in this episode were the Focus 40, Braile Edge, Brailliant BI 32, Orbit Reader 20, and NeoBraille. here are our picks for the week. Aleeha: Woven Words Scott: Weather Informant Chelsea: Math Robot Michael: Glitch Dash Don't forget to send any comments to feedback@iaccessibility.net or to our Twitter @iaccessibility1.

On this episode of the #iACast, Michael, Aleeha, Chelsea and Scott discuss the applications of Braille in their lives. Before we got to the main topic, we discussed the recent news that Sprint and T-Mobile will be merging pending DOJ approval. During our discussion of Braille, we discussed several resources, including iAccessibility's own PocketBraille app for iOS, which will soon be receiving a major update to include Braille contractions. We also discuss the Hadley Braille course, offered by the Hadley School for the Blind, the National Reading Media Assessment for students, and our training program, which offers courses in Braille. We also discussed the transition to UEB, and how it is important to keep one's skills up. Some of the Braille displays mentioned in this episode were the Focus 40, Braile Edge, Brailliant BI 32, Orbit Reader 20, and NeoBraille. here are our picks for the week. Aleeha: Woven Words Scott: Weather Informant Chelsea: Math Robot Michael: Glitch Dash Don't forget to send any comments to feedback@iaccessibility.net or to our Twitter @iaccessibility1.

Lisa kicks off Podcast 74 with some news and some congratulations to Jamie Pauls, our podcast editor, for receiving the Ned E. Freeman Award for excellence in writing. Read his article in The ACB E-Forum, April 2016 » Making the Transition from English Braille to UEB, by Jamie Pauls. Mel interviews Audrey Schading about the ease and benefits of using sprouted foods. One of Audrey’s favorite resources is The Sprout House, which is an accessible site with a newsletter and a wide variety of products. You can also contact them by phone: (800) 777-6887. In this BookIt segment, Lisa discusses Fat for Fuel: A Revolutionary Diet to Combat Cancer, Boost Brain Power, and Increase Your Energy by Joseph Mercola. It is available in many accessible formats. You can comment on our Facebook page, follow us on Twitter, or subscribe to our informative chat list.

Topic links for this weeks discussion in Talking Tech:   New Braille Book related website: Blind Book Case: free UEB books   http://www.blindbookcase.com   Camera phones turn 20years old   https://www.macobserver.com/columns-opinions/editorial/camera-phone-turns-20/   New Mac app: Speech Central: Text to Speech Suite for the Mac   https://www.applevis.com/apps/mac/utilities/speech-central-text-speech-suite   New iOS app: Dolphin Easy Reader   https://itunes.apple.com/au/app/dolphin-easyreader/id1161662515?mt=8   New Game iOs app: Blindfold 3d Tic Tac Toe   h   My Latest podcast: Setting Up a MacBook Pro with Touch Bar Out of the Box   http://davidwoodbr.podbean.com/e/setting-up-a-new-macbook-pro-with-touch-bar-out-of-the-box/   A new Podcast on the Block from a VA Staff Member   Blind Test Drive   http://blindtestdrive.podbean.com

Table of Contents President's Message: What You Didn't Know about Stevie Wonder's ‘Braille Joke' at the Grammys – The Motown Legend Is Also a Legendary Advocate for Literacy, by Kim Charlson 2015 Annual Giving Societies Report Card, by Tom Tobin How to Register for ACB: Land of 10,000 Dreams, by Janet Dickelman Let the Race Begin!, by Donna Brown Would You Like to Work at the 2016 Information Desk?, by Vicky Prahin Friends-in-Art Seeks Your Art for Its Annual Show, by Amy Monthei Making the Transition from English Braille to UEB, by Jamie Pauls The Things I Do Today, Part 2: Listening from On High, by Paul Edwards Sharing Tools for Affiliates/Chapter Leaders, compiled by Ardis Bazyn In Memoriam: Dorothy “Dot” Taylor, 1925-2015, by Carol Francisco Affiliate News American Foundation for the Blind Board Names Kirk Adams as Its Next President and CEO Here and There, edited by Sharon Strzalkowski High Tech Swap Shop

1549 The New Unified English Braille (Dec. 2, 2015) Show Notes Readers of Braille have probably heard of the new UEB or Unified English Braille code by now. This week hosts Nancy and Peter Torpey talk with Jennifer Dunnam, Chairperson of the Braille Authority of North America, about what prompted these changes to the Braille … Continue reading 1549 The New Unified English Braille (Dec. 2, 2015) →

We bring you a wide variety of information on MainMenu this week including several interviews from the recent AFB Leadership Conference, and three presentations from David Woodbridge. David Woodbridge of our MainMenu staff starts out this week with a demonstration of using audio description on Netflix. MainMenu co-producer of MainMenu interviews a representative of Audio Eye about their new software to improve your access to the web. Next we hear a demonstration of one of the new features in the upcoming Keysoft 9.5 software release for the BrailleNote Apex from Humanware. Jeff Bishop interviews a representative from Verizon about Vela Sense for Verizon smartphones. David Woodbridge demonstrates the Apple Watch Companion App for your iOS device. Jeff Bishop finds out what is new at the American Printinghouse For the Blind. David Woodbridge shows us how to password protect a folder on our Mac. Jeff Bishop interviews a representative from Ambutech about the latest new products and upgrades in their fine line of canes. And, Jeff Bishop interviews a representative from the Hadley School for the Blind about their new course on UEB. What a lineup of valuable information. And, you will hear it all on MainNenu this week.

Have you been wondering about what UEB is, and have a lot of questions about it... ACB President Kim Charlson gives us an excellent presentation on the basics of UEB and why we need UEB. MainMenu staff person David Woodbridge shows us how to record all the sound from your iPhone on to your Mac. And, David will also show us how to use our voice for both voice dictation and computer command on your Mac.