Empire Theatre Kanata have just launched Doremi Labs’s new Fidelio System. The Fidelio is a wireless audio system that delivers descriptive narration for people who are blind or have low vision (V I) soundtrack), and amplified sound for people with hearing loss (H I soundtrack) in theaters. The same unit can be programmed for either V I, H I or H I V I. V I contains just the descriptive narration from the movie, HI contains the regular audio track (perfect for someone to plug in their hearing aid or earphones and increase the clarity and volume) and H I V I contains one track in each ear (for someone who might have hearing loss and vision loss). There is also a separate wireless text captioning unit that can be picked up, for those requiring captions. Unlike the other theatres in Ottawa, you don’t have Audio Narration available in just 1 room of the theatre but this is available in all rooms. This means you don’t have to hope the movie you are interested in is playing in theatre 13 on the week that you want to go to the movies because it’s the only room with audio narration capability. I applaud Empire Theatre for installing this capability in all rooms of the 24 room Kanata empire theatre and not just as a single “special room”.

You can pick up these units at Customer Service in the Theatre. In the Kanata theatre, it is located just on the left as you go through the 2nd set of doors after the box office. You will need to bring your own earphones in order to make use of the unit. The unit itself needs to be programmed prior to leaving customer service. Make sure you ask them to program the unit for V I and not H I V I, unless you want descriptive narration and amplified audio tracks. Once the unit is programmed, it acts independently from that point onward and wirelessly receives the audio tracks from any spot inside the theatre. You may not hear descriptive narration or any audio until the previews and other advertisements are finished and the main feature starts playing.

The audio unit is about the size of a pager with a belt clip, which is significantly smaller than and more portable than other systems I have seen. The unit has an audio jack & power button on the top and a volume rocker on the side. The one thing I would like to see improved is the wireless unit should make a noise when it’s turned on to indicate it is working properly. At present the power state of the unit is indicated solely by a bright green LED. This is a minor issue but should be considered by Doremi for future improvements.

I brought my standard set of ear buds with me and had no trouble hearing both the surrounding theatre audio track and the descriptive narration coming from my ear buds. You may have to adjust the volume on the Fidelio when the volume of the cinema tracks changes.

For those that have never experience what is sometimes referred to as Describe Video, Audio Narrations or Audio Description:
Like a narrator telling a story, audio description (AD) is an additional commentary describing body language, expressions and movements. AD gives you information about the things you might not be able to see, meaning that you can keep up with the action. It is for anyone who has a little trouble seeing the screen and will describe important visuals going on in the movie. Once you have enjoyed a movie with AD you will likely wonder how you lived without it for so long.

Now that all the rooms in the theatre can support Audio description, the only hurdle present is that the movie itself has to be made with the DV track. Some movie studios have been slow to move to providing this; however, at present around 75% of the movies released have the required tracks.

It is my hope that Empire Theatre will add an icon indicating the availability of (V I / H I) beside each movie listed on their website so that patrons can know in advance if the movie they are interested in seeing will be available with the required audio tracks. At present, I don’t believe Empire Theatre has made any official announcements of the system, as their staff is just being trained and marketing group is just figuring out what they are going to do to promote the system; however, the system is fully functional and any patrons can pick up the units from customer service. Currently, anyone wanting to know what movies is available with (H I V I) can call the main customer service number for Empire Theatre Kanata at (613) 599-5500.

Happy Movie Going…

Related posts:

1. Rogers Cable caught with their pants down, not passing DVS
2. Ottawa Transit System For Stop Annuncements

On the PC I use a combination of speech output, magnification and high contrasting colors. If I use a white background with black text I require 12x-14x magnification; however, if I use white text on a black background I only require 4x-6x magnification to read the same information. So, as you can see, that black interface is tremendously important to me. I am of course not the minority in this area, as one just needs to look at the most common features designed for low vision users built into CCTVs, Screen Magnification software and various Operating Systems and the majority of these features revolve around setting background/foreground colors and font sizes. I'm not as big of a fan of the "inverting" functions you find in screen magnification software, (such as Zoomtext), on some browsers like Chrome or on certain devices like the iPhone because colors invert but the setting doesn't deliver a true white on black color scheme. In addition to this, the inverting function creates an unusable color combination if a screen within an application or a webpage is gray or black. Finally, inverting also usually inverts pictures and photos, making friends and family look like aliens.

When I am using a mobile phone with a touch screen that black interface becomes significantly more important because I rely less on magnification (to be honest none at all) and rely on voice. However, I use my sight to speed up navigation and follow what's going on, on the screen itself. For example when I can see where buttons are, I can go to them directly with my finger, thus skipping over the linear top to bottom reading that is imposed by default with a screen reader and instead moving directly to the object I want.

This is how my quest for the perfect high contrast black setup for low vision users on android began. I am aware that android has certain firmware versions with high contrasting themes built in; however, I want to focus on features that are applicable across the majority of android devices without flashing a custom firmware. I am focusing on apps that work well with Talkback and that whenever possible provide a black background and not just inverting the screen. The emphasis is on devices that run the latest version of Android's operating system.

Below, you will find the collection of setting changes and apps that I have found. I know there are more, so in sharing this information with you, I am hoping you will share your experience and suggestions too.

Luckily, many of the base screens in android such as the settings screen and notification shade have a black background with bright text. Many apps have the ability to download additional black themes or have a black theme called "night" mode that can be enabled in the settings of the app.

The first thing I change on android is the background that the launcher uses. While you could just upload an all-black jpg image and point it to that black jpg image, I prefer to use Starfield live wallpaper; which has both the "cool" factor and meets the high contrast requirement. Once installed, you can enable this custom live wallpaper by going into settings, display, wallpaper, live wallpaper and enabling the starfield wallpaper. This will instantly change your lock screen and workspaces in your launcher to a dark background with itty bitty stars flying across the screen in the background.

Many of the 3rd party text messaging apps have black themes (i.e. handsend and go sms). I myself use Text Talk; which has a dark theme that can be enabled in the app's setting screen and also provides a great voice recognition option for sending text messages.

AquaMail is one of the most feature rich email clients for android. It supports multiple mailboxes, has a smart inbox for collating mail from all your different accounts. It also has the ability to not only theme the interface with a black background that can even extend into emails, but also adjust the font size on the fly.

Calendar++ Dark Is a simple calendar app that was designed to present your Google calendars in a high contrasting black theme

ExDialer & Contacts is a great contact manager that displays contacts in the same form as the "people app" but with a choice of themes, including a black background with high contrasting colors .

For Twitter & high contrast, I use Plume for twitter; which has a black theme available that can be enabled in the app's setting screen

In android 4.2's browser and the latest version of the chrome browser, launch the browser and go into settings, accessibility and turn on invert colors. Because it is simply inverting, this doesn't give you high contrasting black background with white text on every web page, but is the best solution I have found so far.

Now it is your turn, what apps do you use that have a high contrasting bright text and black background that work well with Talkback?

Related posts:

1. Picking an accessible cell phone in Canada
2. The must have accessible apps for blind android users
3. Notes / Tweets From Lake Joe Technology Training 2012
4. Solutions for Blind Corporate Mail Users
5. Configuring your Samsung Galaxy S3 for Blind Users – Part 1 – Getting rid of the samsung keyboard in favor of the android stock one

First out of the gate is to get rid of the barely functional
samsung on-screen keyboard and replacing it with the stock 1 that comes from google. Unfortunately, Samsung hasn’t made this as easy as they could
because they haven’t left the google input method on the phone. However, this isn’t a complete roadblock, we will download a copy of it and re-install it into the phone.
I am doing this on a samsung galaxy S3 with jellybean installed. If you haven't already
upgraded to jellybean on your S3, do that before continuing

Here are the instructions for changing your keyboard on the
S3 running JellyBean

1. Download the android keyboard file
2. Connect your S3 and copy the apk file to your downloads folder
3. Go to my files,sd card, downloads and double
   tap the LatinImeGoogle_signed.apk file
4. if you haven’t enabled install unsigned
   apps, a dialog will pop up and you need to do the following: click settings, scroll down to
   on the security screen to check “enable unknown apps” and than hit back until
   you get to the LatinImeGoogle_signed.apk file again; and double tap,
5. tap the install
6. when install is done, go to settings, language and input
7. Check the “ android keyboard, english US
8. click default and set this as your default keyboard

Voila, a much
more screen reader friendly keyboard on your S3

Related posts:

1. Android and external keyboards
2. The must have accessible apps for blind android users
3. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Jelly Bean (Getting Started)
4. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Ice cream sandwich (Getting Started)
5. Solutions for Blind Corporate Mail Users

1. Plume for twitter- A fully featured twitter client for keeping up with my peeps
2. Canadian Weather- Got to know what the weather is going to be like before you leave the house. This app has a ton of information and a great widget
3. Audible- Need access to my audible books for the long bus trip in to work
4. Quick Calendar- See where I am going and what's on the agenda for the day with a quick look at my notification area
5. Lookout Security & Anti Virus- Anti Virus and other featurs including a Great phone recovery system
6. Talking Location- Verbally lets me know where I am with periodic announcements of nearest addresses andstreet names
7. Text Talk– This app is optimised for dictating text
8. Smart Audio Book Player- Set a folder for your audio books and smart audio book player will keep track of where you were last in the book, new books and even allow you to speed up the audio when listeing to books
9. Tune-In Radio- The king of streaming radio apps
10. Deadbeef Player- play music how you want to and the formats you want to play
11. Walkie Talkie- great gps navigation app
12. IDEAL Web Reader- one of several accessible web browsers
13. Nova Launcher- way better desktop than the stock 1 that comes with android
14. Easy aUninstaller- uninstall multiple apps at once
15. Zello- Multiplatform walky talky app with group audio chat
16. Sticher- News, Radio and podcasts
17. Talking Compass- Figure out which way you are pointed
18. Look Ahead Locator-
19. Scanner Radio- Listen in on police, fire, air traffic controller and other scanner audio from around the world
20. I Blink Radio- Great app from the Serotek crew. lists many blindness related audio content.
21. BS Plaer- Plays videos and handles even corrupted files fairly well
22. Genieor Voice Actions Plus- Great app that works like siri. Ask it questions, get it to look up information or call someone (and much more)
23. DogCatcher Podcast Podcatcher- best podcatcher around and allows you to play podcasts at faster speeds
24. ePistol- Note taking app that stores it's files in dropbox in .txt format
25. The Weather Network- Get weather conditions for many locations
26. Google Drive- Store content, share content and access material in the cloud.
27. DropBox- Got to be able to access my dropbox storage and an easy way to transfer apk files to the phone. Pair this with e-Pistol and you have a great note taking solution.
28. Skype- Make audio calls from your phone
29. IM+- Connect to any and all instant messaging platforms in 1 app
30. Lightflow LED & Sound Control- set custom sounds, vibration alerts, vibration patterns and LED patterns/colors for all the different notifications you recieve.

So now it’s your turn, what do you use or find useful? Leave your favourite screen reader accessible android apps in the comments below.

Update: Since writing this article, I have added 2 new applications to my toolbox. Both of which are extremely compelling in my oppinion.

• Scanthing OCR which is an extremely useful OCR application with complete talkback support. Use it to take a photo of menus, reciepts or other printed material and have it read back to you
• AquaMail is a fantastic email client that supports multiple email accounts. I have completely switched over to this from the native gmail app. It supports reading mail, your mail list and the actual email using white text and a black background.

Related posts:

1. Solutions for Blind Corporate Mail Users
2. Picking an accessible cell phone in Canada
3. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Ice cream sandwich (Getting Started)
4. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Jelly Bean (Getting Started)
5. Android and external keyboards

Google Now is a screen that contains "cards" of concise information that Google has guessed you might need, "now".  You simply tap the "Google" icon from your desktop, the search icon or voice search icon and the "Google now" screen appears just below your search bar.  Google Now takes information that it already knows about you, such as, your location, the time of day, the types of searches you have made in the past, your contacts, your calendar etc. and guesses at what information you need at that precise moment.   What is truly interesting is that a lot of the information Google Now presents is information that enables a person who is blind to gain access to information that otherwise would be posted in their surroundings in an inaccessible format.   For example, when you are at an airport, it lists flights departures and arrival times,when you are near a bus terminal it will list the buses that leave from that terminal and the time to the next departure for each bus.    It will also automatically show you the bus route to work in the morning and the route to get home in the afternoon/evening, (including transfer points, time to next bus and estimated total trip time).   This is all done with no intervention on the user's part but simply information that Google Now thinks would be useful.  What I found truly interesting is that if you go into the settings for transit/traffic cards, you can also have it show routes & departure times when near any public transit stops.  If you set the location of a meeting in your calendar, when the appointment is coming near, Google Now will display travel information and estimated arrival times for getting to your meeting.

This is only scratching the surface of the useful things that Google Now can provide.

Related posts:

1. Notes / Tweets From Lake Joe Technology Training 2012
2. Screen-reader access to SharePoint

Many people want to have all emails come in using their choice of font, font size, foreground color and background color.  By following these steps you will override the color and font settings with your desired presentation on all incoming and outgoing messages.  This is especially useful for users with low vision who may want a specific font size (i.e. 18 point Arial) but do not want their emails to be sent with that font size.  This can be achieved by changing the default mail format to plain text, setting outlook to read all emails as plain text and defining the font and font size for all plain text emails in Outlook’s email settings as the desirable font and font size.  The additional advantage is that should you wish to view the message with all it’s fancy formatting, you simply need to open the message, press control + shift + w than select “display as HTML” from the menu that pops up.

Forcing Display and Font Presentation for Emails in Outlook 2010:

Set Plain Text:

This recommendation applies to anyone wanting a consistent email presentation within Outlook.

• Select File
• Select Options
• xSelect Trust Center
• Select Trust Center Settings
• Select E-Mail Security
• Select Read all standard mail in plain text (Checkmark Showing)
• Select read all digitally signed mail in plain text (Checkmark Showing)
• Select OK
• Select OK

Keyboard Instructions For: Set Plain Text

• Press ALT + F
• Press T
• Press Up or Down Arrow to Trust Center
• Press ALT + T
• Press Up or Down Arrow to E-mail Security
• Press ALT + A (Checkmark Showing)
• Press ALT + M (Checkmark Showing)
• Press Enter
• Press Tab to OK
• Press Enter

Modify Reading and Composing Font:

This recommendation applies to anyone wanting a consistent email presentation within Outlook.

• Select File
• Select Options
• Select Trust Center
• Select Trust Center Settings
• Select E-Mail Security
• Select Read all standard mail in plain text (Checkmark Showing)
• Select read all digitally signed mail in plain text (Checkmark Showing)
• Select OK
• Select OK

Keyboard Commands For: Modify Reading and Composing Font

• Press ALT + F
• Press T
• Press Up or Down Arrow  to Mail
• Press Alt + F
• Press Enter
• Press Alt + P
• Modify to your liking
• Press Tab to OK
• Press Enter
• Press Tab to OK
• Press Enter   

Related posts:

1. Notes / Tweets From Lake Joe Technology Training 2012
2. Screen-reader access to SharePoint

#ljt1 2

Lake Joe Technology Training
-2012

5 days of technology training, exploration & excitement at CNIB's beautiful and accessible Lake Joe facility

Trending Words

alt, @lordjeff, @mcourcel, up, slide, press, powerpoint, rt, now, use, enter, arrow, right, dropbox, list

Event Participants

_

RT @mcourcel: RT @mcourcel: A slightly edited tweet list of the Lake Joe Training. Enjoy! #ljt12… http://t.co/fNwuTvWO

29-Sep-12 21:28 | lordjeff

A slightly edited tweet list of the Lake Joe Training. Enjoy! #ljt12… http://t.co/fNwuTvWO

29-Sep-12 21:16 | mcourcel

@KarlenInfo: JAWS command for identifying Office Ribbon ToolTips is Shift + NumPad 5 – also works in dialogs #ljt12 – is r/tweet – wrong #

29-Sep-12 16:24 | KarlenInfo

was live from the saskatchewan pavillion http://t.co/csPH8qte #ljt12

29-Sep-12 00:27 | lordjeff

what happens when blind drunk on the last day after a week of serious stuff http://t.co/csPH8qte #ljt12

28-Sep-12 22:49 | lordjeff

The first five minutes are interesting The rest is pocket recording. #ljt12 http://t.co/gY7uHLdj via @audioboo

28-Sep-12 22:25 | mcourcel

Ich wuensche den Genossinnen aus Sachsen viel Spass beim #ljt12 Aus Gruenden der Lesbarkeit wird auf die männliche Form verzichtet

28-Sep-12 17:31 | ben_brusniak

@lordjeff How did that work! #ljt12

28-Sep-12 15:17 | 123dg

Thanks to the organizers, instructors, staff/volunteers & of course, @chinrz for a great @CNIB Technology Training Program this week. #ljt12

28-Sep-12 13:52 | Jennison

Loving the twitter training #LJT12 @lordjeff @mcourcel

27-Sep-12 23:59 | Chinrz

Got at least 20 people using The Qube tonight. Crazy stuff #ljt12

27-Sep-12 23:59 | mcourcel

cool; in our example for twitter we now have someone to block #ljt12

27-Sep-12 22:55 | lordjeff

In class being schooled about Twitter by @mcourcel #ljt12

27-Sep-12 22:53 | Jennison

bla bla bla. who the fuck cares? RT @lordjeff: To skip between groups, use Ctrl+LEFT or Ctrl+RIGHT. #ljt12

27-Sep-12 22:52 | lahellraiser

Doing a shortened version of Social Media. Talk about Facebook, Linkedin, signing up for Twitter and trying The Qube and EasyChirp #ljt12

_

to the first Ribbon tab use Ctrl+[. To jump to the last selected command use Ctrl+].take you into the ribbon #ljt12

27-Sep-12 19:32 | lordjeff

To skip between groups, use Ctrl+LEFT or Ctrl+RIGHT. #ljt12

27-Sep-12 19:32 | lordjeff

3. content #ljt12

27-Sep-12 19:29 | lordjeff

when logged in as admin or user/contributor will have quick launch #ljt12 #ljt12

27-Sep-12 19:28 | lordjeff

2. left of screen is navigation bar #ljt12

27-Sep-12 19:28 | lordjeff

3 parts to a sharepoint page, 1. ribbon, (sort of) but just links and buttons on the page

#ljt12

27-Sep-12 19:25 | lordjeff

"turn on more accessible mode" ctrl home, tab than enter #ljt12

27-Sep-12 18:46 | lordjeff

Sharepoint training #LJT12 @cnib is going great!

27-Sep-12 18:34 | Chinrz

large 2 small: library, list, document #ljt12

27-Sep-12 17:55 | lordjeff

object jeff has a property called height and the value is 6ft #ljt12

27-Sep-12 17:44 | lordjeff

@lordjeff Don't treat me like an object. I object. #ljt12

27-Sep-12 17:44 | mcourcel

i'm an object, eric is too… we are all objects with properties #ljt12

27-Sep-12 17:43 | lordjeff

largest to smallest: objects, properties & values #ljt12

27-Sep-12 17:41 | lordjeff

companies are using it for tons of things back and front office #ljt12

27-Sep-12 17:37 | lordjeff

replacing things like shared drives, email, list servers and contact pools #ljt12

_

Just used the up arrow with the word find command. Great tips to see your matches from #ljt12

27-Sep-12 16:41 | 123dg

PowerPoint done. Next up? Lunch… And then SharePoint Be still my beating heart. #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:49 | mcourcel

To apply an animation on a place holder, press ALT+A, s. Choose animation and press ENTER #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:46 | mcourcel

alt k to get to the transitions ribbon #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:37 | lordjeff

switch through & apply them without worrying about losing content as it only changes the look #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:25 | lordjeff

themes apply themselves to all slides #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:14 | lordjeff

alt g, h for themes and down arrow than right arrow to have a look at theme #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:12 | lordjeff

now on to coloring and making the powerpoint pretty #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:09 | lordjeff

ctrl shift N to read notes when in slide show mode #ljt12

27-Sep-12 15:03 | lordjeff

While in slideview, advance slide by slide by pressing spacebar. Pull up a list by pressing CONTROL+S #ljt12

27-Sep-12 14:50 | mcourcel

In PowerPoint, Go into slideview by pressing f5 #ljt12

27-Sep-12 14:49 | mcourcel

in win7 win+up arrow to maximize the current app/window (question from someone who's powerpoint opened up as a small window) #ljt12

27-Sep-12 14:35 | lordjeff

@lordjeff Never done that. always work in PowerPoint directly. Accept for notes as couldn't read them with later versions of Jaws. #ljt12

27-Sep-12 14:32 | 123dg

@mcourcel Holding my breath. <grin> #ljt12

27-Sep-12 14:28 | 123dg

_

To maximize GMail accessibility, click on the basic HTML link at the top of the page. #ljt12

26-Sep-12 23:26 | mcourcel

You can bypass the audio captcha in gmail by opting for the automated voiceCall. It calls you instantly. with verification code. #ljt12

26-Sep-12 23:17 | mcourcel

Setting up GMail, and Dropbox for colaborative work later on #ljt12

26-Sep-12 23:01 | mcourcel

http://t.co/DHe5SAMN #ljt12

26-Sep-12 22:35 | lordjeff

next up … online services google, dropbox, youtube #ljt12 finding, accessing & using information

26-Sep-12 22:21 | lordjeff

RT @lordjeff: RT @lordjeff: alt h, r, e to adjust the reminder for a calendar event when the event is opened #ljt12

26-Sep-12 20:24 | 123dg

26-Sep-12 19:58 | lordjeff

Karen likes her contact view in default; I like mine in phone list view #ljt12

26-Sep-12 19:49 | lordjeff

activity is based on info in contact card under contacts #ljt12

26-Sep-12 19:45 | lordjeff

alt h, a, z … show all activities from someone #ljt12

26-Sep-12 19:40 | lordjeff

alt h, r, e to adjust the reminder for a calendar event when the event is opened #ljt12

26-Sep-12 18:44 | lordjeff

changing calendar view to list, alt v, tab, space, right until you hear list, hit enter #ljt12

26-Sep-12 18:31 | lordjeff

huge sigh of relief from audience when told all standard keyboard commands (i.e. F9, ctrl N) still work #ljt12

26-Sep-12 18:11 | lordjeff

disabling the "today" screen in outlook #ljt12  

Related posts:

1. 5 days of technology training for business professionals using adaptive technology on how to leverage technology and IT systems in the workplace – hosted at Lake Joe
2. Jeffrey D. Stark & The Accessibility, Accommodation & Adaptive Computer Technology Program receive the Public Service Award Of Excellence 2012

1) Talks on a Nokia S60 Mobile Phone with the BlackBerry Connect Client

When Blackberry Connect came into the market about 6 years ago it allowed blind users access to corporate environments that were blackberry only for the first time.  Nokia E61, E70 and E90 phones support blackberry connect.   This has provided a robust, stable and powerful screen reader based solution for blind users for the last 6 years.     This solution is extremely feature rich providing magnification, voice out put and braille output.   The screen reader for blind users is extremely stable and works in all built in apps, third party apps and for web browsing. However, it is difficult to set up, extremely difficult to find these handsets (6 year old handsets require a purchase from abroad of an unlocked phone).  Periodically, the phone will require a wipe and reinstall to continue to function for certain users.  The solution itself consists of a desktop software "blackberry connect desktop"  and the proper version of the handset software "blackberry connect", this needs to match the firmware+model of the phone.    As of today, this solution is difficult or impossible to support.  For example, it no longer works on Lotus Notes as of version 8 with a BES.

2) Blackberry Curve with the "blackberry screen reader"

In the spring of 2012 this solution was released and is supported on a limited number of blackberry curve devices.   This is an extremely easy to install & support screen reader.   It is offered free by RIM.  It is reportedly unstable.   According to many  users on the screen reader mailing list (1 user stated it needs to be rebooted 10 times a day on his phone (Which requires him to remove the battery cover and battery).  The screen reader provides good support for email, contacts, calendaring and dialing.   It does not support or work with web browsing, html and many of the installed or third party apps.   It does not provide magnification or braille output. 

3) Blackberry Mobile Fusion or Good client

At present a number of organizations are planning on (or have started) exploring Live email services that expand beyond supporting blackberry hardware.

IOS (iphone/ipad) & Android both have an accessibility suite available.  The possibility of having a new solution that might meet the needs of the blind population is extremely exciting.   The BlackBerry Mobile Fusion (BMF) http://goo.gl/8K1yF offering may allow organizations to continue to offer options that people with disabilities could use

Recently, there has been a great deal of talk about the solutions that are currently being explored.   For example, the US government is currently exploring the possibility of replacing  their blackberry solution with the "good" offering http://goo.gl/g121V - although it has been reported that good has some serious accessibility issues, perhaps with section 508 requirements, soon going forward this will be an option.

At present both IOS (iPhones) and Android have extremely stable and feature rich screen readers that are significantly more powerful, capable and feature rich than either of the other 2 offerings.

Related posts:

1. A blind trek through the BlackBerry patch with the Blackberry Screen Reader
2. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Ice cream sandwich (Getting Started)

I have been involved in the testing, development and evaluation of accessible mobile devices for well over 10 years. I have used some of the very early proprietary devices, the phones running Microsoft’s Windows Mobile, Symbian, the blackberry OS, Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android since the early days for each of those operating systems.

In late May, RIM released the "blackberry screen reader".  RIM offers this software for free, but it is only supported on a limited number of devices.  At the time of this writing BlackBerry Screen Reader is supported on the BlackBerry® Curve™ 9350, 9360, 9370, 9320 and 9220
I have been using the 9630 Blackberry Curve Smartphone for just under a week now with the blackberry screen reader.  I have used Oratio prior to this for several years; I have to say that this environment and the screen reader seem awful familiar.
RIM makes beautiful hardware.  The phone is light, the keys are sufficiently distinct that I can easily type on them and the Direction Pad it uses for cursoring provides a fantastic experience.   I easily type upwards of 20 words per minute on this device.    Users who are familiar with Symbian, S60 and Nokia phones will find a very familiar interaction model.   The blackberry OS is very similar in a number of ways and a user who is familiar with the Symbian operating system will have no problem transitioning to this device. 
The device is designed to take advantage of the QWERTY keyboard by offering easy to set up integration with social media and messaging environments.  I successfully connected it to twitter, Facebook, msn, Google talk, blackberry messenger and various email services.  The threaded messaging screen allows for quick and easy reading and replying.    Blackberries have also and optional “unified messaging” screen that brings all of these environments into a single timeline for easy sequential review.  This device is clearly well suited for someone who wants to get to work and perform tasks quickly.  It integrates well with corporate environments and provides a great contact app and phone dialing app.  The voice recognition based “voice dialing” is among the best I have used.  It performed extremely well in a very noisy environment.  I wish RIM had decided to support the bold 9700 because it had a 2^nd “physical key that they call a convenience key”.  You can pick what this key does, and this key can be set to activate voice dialing.  Instead on the curve you have to go into the menu and find the voice dial app and launch it before voice dialing each time)(which is far less convenient.
  
I tried to install a number of 3^rd party apps and had extremely poor results.  I was extremely disappointed that the weather network app did not read and the first screen for foursquare app did not read.   
I tried browsing the web but found the screen reader was really not up to the task.  The screen reader lacks keys to move by various structure elements (i.e. by heading, to form fields and by blocks).   It seems to not support ARIA or JavaScript handling, which means many modern websites, will be out of reach.  Even a number of places in the “blackberry app world” app on the device did not read (most notably of these is the announcement of whether the app in focus is free or what its cost is).
 
I also found that the screen reader sometimes stopped talking and had to be rebooted when a notification sound was being played at the same time as the character echo and keyboard tones.  (I.e. several times I found that while I was typing an email when a text message was coming in, that speech suddenly stopped).  I also found that if the speech speed was set to 7 or higher, that the screen reader started to act a little flakey.    The screen reader is a little unstable at times but works more than it doesn't (at least in the "core" apps).  I also had problems understanding the phone in a slightly noisy environment without an earphone as the text to speech volume is quite low, even when set to the maximum volume

While RIM offers screen reading and custom fonts/font sizes that are quite large, there is no braille, high contrast or magnification support on the device.  RIM does offer an “inverted” mode but it really does not provide a good high contrast (white on black) experience and makes it awful strange to try and look at photos of your family on the device because those too are inverted.
 
The Blackberry curve is offered on a number of carrier’s plans at an extremely low cost (often $0).  This makes it an extremely good choice for the budget conscious customer and because of its physical keys and straightforward operating system it will for sure appeal to many people (as long as they do not recieve a lot of email, phone calls or text messages while using the device as sometimes this causes the device to need a reboot.    RIM has released at least 1 update for the screen reader since its initial June release, which leads me to hope that more is coming.   While the screen reader seems a little buggy and has definite room for improvement, I think that RIM has made a good first start in providing blind users with access to the Blackberry environment.  Once they fix the stability issues I am sure that this device will really appeal to the business traveller, people who do a lot of email, text messaging or social media and those looking for an easy efficient interface for dialing and telephony.  If they keep up the pace of development demonstrated this summer by offering an update just less than 1 month after the initial release, than RIM may finally catch up to Apple or Google for accessibility in the coming years.
 
  
  
   

Related posts:

1. Screen-reader access to SharePoint
2. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Ice cream sandwich (Getting Started)
3. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Jelly Bean (Getting Started)
4. The epidemic of inaccessible Touch Screen Point Of Sale Devices to blind consumers

I have been involved in the testing, development and evaluation of accessible mobile devices for well over 10 years. I have used some of the very early proprietary devices, the phones running Microsoft’s Windows Mobile, Symbian, the blackberry OS, Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android.

Each platform had things it brought to the table for blind consumers and each platform had pitfalls and issues. The 2 most popular mobile platforms at present are iOS and Android for general consumers. So it should be no surprise that both platforms have been dedicating resources to improve their offerings in terms of Accessibility. Apple is the veteran in this space and has created a fantastic offering. Likely, that is the last reference to Apple that I will make in this series of articles. If you want an iPhone, go get an iPhone. It is great and very usable for blind consumers. On the same point, Google has recently released a new version of their android mobile operating system and they should be commended by the strides they have made. I contentedly use an android phone on a daily basis on Mobilicity’s network.

This series of articles is intended to give the reader a sense of what to expect from Android, to share some tips and to demonstrate how to get the most out of an android device.

So far, I have used several android devices. The first was running v2 of the Android OS and had no direction pad or direction controls; the 2nd was running v3 of the Android OS and had a direction pad. At the time, as a blind consumer, I felt both devices to have some shortcomings in terms of functionality and capability; however, the 2nd device running v3 of the operating system was very functional and I got a lot of use out of it. The most recent phone I have had the opportunity to use is the Samsung Galaxy Nexus running v4 of the Android operating system (named: Ice Cream Sandwich or ICS for short).  I have recently upgraded my phone from ice cream sandwich to its successor Jelly Bean (JB).

ICS brought 2 important features to the Android space:

1) Talkback (an Android Screen Reader) and the various accessibility features are built into the operating system and can be activated At the setup screen, by performing a double tap and hold for four seconds anywhere on the screen.  You will be asked to keep holding, if you want accessibility turned on.  Talkback will then switch itself on properly and you can release the screen. 
And 2) Android implements a form of touch Exploration, which allows a blind person to explore the screen with touch without activating the items on the screen. Talkback’s touch exploration provides feedback about screen items by making use of the mobile device’s haptic feedback capabilities, by providing audio alerts and by speaking text as controls and information is touched.

Jelly Bean retains these features and as previously mentions, it adds braille support and a whole new interaction model based on gestures. 

Many manufacturers make “Android” devices. This means that there is a great deal of diversity in shapes, sizes and designs. All the android phones I have seen have a touch screen; a volume rocker and an unlock/power key. This is where the similarities end. There are many different screen sizes and form factors available. Some devices have touch pads for cursoring, arrow keys, a rocker or joystick or a trackpad. Some devices have a qwerty keypad on the front face of the device or a sliding keypad that slides out for extended typing. With the purchase of any device, I highly recommend seeing the device before purchase. Personally, I prefer devices with a dedicated hardware qwerty keypad, simply because I can type more than 20 words per minute on a qwerty phone. Especially newer users will have a much easier time learning the device if they have the option of a phone with a direction pad or other method of moving up, down, left and right. Less technical or adventurous blind consumers should consider buying Code Factory’s Mobile Accessibility. Many carriers offer Mobile Accessibility at no cost (sometimes under the name “wireless accessibility” or “mobile accessibility lite”). Mobile Accessibility is very helpful for new users or less technical users because it creates a much simpler interface that requires even less learning. None of the above recommendations are required but they do simplify a number of tasks and allow a consumer to get up and using the phone in a matter of seconds with very little learning. The emphasis of the rest of this article will be on understanding and using a phone running JB with the stock out of box experience provided on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus. It will assume the reader has not or is not going to install Mobile Accessibility.

Once you power on the phone for the first time, in order to make it usable for a blind person, you will need to activate TalkBack At the setup screen by doing a  double tap and hold for four seconds anywhere on the screen.  You will be asked to keep holding, if you want accessibility turned on.  Talkback will then switch itself on properly and you can release the screen. 
Optionally, you can activate Talkback by getting a sighted person to go to the settings screen, selecting accessibility and checking the “talkback” checkbox.  also on the same screen make sure to check the checkbox for allow web scripts.

What is great about the experience on android is that it requires you to memorise only a small number of gestures or actions to get up and going. 

Using Touch Exploration, Initially, you should start out by “Exploring” the screen by sliding your finger slowly across the surface of the touch screen. As you slide your finger across the surface of the screen you will hear the items under your finger announced. You will also feel a light vibration from the phone paired with a “bubble like sound” to indicate you are passing over a clickable object.    

When you raise your finger from the surface of the screen, the device will remember what item you last touched.  Talkback will announce if an item is clickable or long clickable when using touch exploration if you leave your finger on the same item or an area of the screen for a short period of time.  Once Talkback announces that your finger is on an item or clickable item, you can at that point perform a few actions to interact with the item.

You can double click the item by tapping the surface of the screen quickly twice with 1 finger.  This usually activates the item or selects the item.  This works very similarly to hitting enter on a desktop PC.

Next, to perform an action or activate a context based menu you will need to be able to “long click”. You can long click (click and hold) an item by tapping the screen twice with 1 finger and on the 2^nd tap keeping your finger on the surface of the screen until the device responds.    Usually  this action either allows you to click and drag an item or more often opens a context based menu related to the item you clicked (i.e. it acts like a right click on a desktop PC).

By sliding your finger or “swiping” from left to right or right to left quickly across the screen you can move forward or backwards through items on the screen.  This is very similar to tabbing and shift tabbing on a desktop PC.

. Many android screens have lists or panes that contain more items than can be displayed on the screen at once. You move through the list by scrolling. To scroll you simply swipe 2 fingers across the surface of the screen. It is important that when swiping your fingers that they hit the surface of the screen slightly apart and at the same time. It is also important that they move in a relatively straight direction either up, down, left or right. As you scroll through a group of panes or a list of items you will receive information verbally about where you are currently in the list (such as “displaying items 5 through 10) and you will hear audio feedback that goes from a high to low pitch sound as you scroll from the beginning to the end of the list or group.

• You also have a number of configurable gestures.  You can pair a gesture with a limited choice of commands.   By default, the following gestures work:
• -          Draw an upper case L on the screen (i.e. touch the surface of the screen and quickly draw a line down, than continue to the right and raise your finger) to go at any time to the recently used applications.
• -          Draw an upper case L backwards  (i.e. touch the surface of the screen and quickly draw a line down, than continue to the left and raise your finger) to go to the previous screen
• -          Draw an upside down upper case L  (i.e. touch the surface of the screen and quickly draw a line up, than continue to the right and raise your finger) to go to the notification area
• -          Draw a backwards and upside down upper case L  (i.e. touch the surface of the screen and quickly draw a line up, than continue to the left and raise your finger)to go to the “home” screen
•  

The Android screen is generally divided into 3 pieces. The 1st is the notification bar, which is a thin slice of the screen at the top of the screen. The notification bar contains alerts, date/time, battery levels and other important information. The 2nd section is a row of icons on the bottom of the screen, that from left to right are back, home, recent apps & menu, which will be referred to as the “soft key icon bar” in these articles. The soft key bar is present at the bottom of the screen at all times. This allows you to go to the workspace by clicking the “home” icon. Clicking the “back” icon will return to the previous page or screen. To get a list of the recently loaded apps click “recent apps”. The rest of the space on the device’s screen below the notification bar and above the soft key bar is devoted to the content of the current app or screen currently loaded. This area will be referred to as the “content area” for the rest of these articles.

When you power on your phone you will be placed on the “lock screen”. There are a variety of settings that you can explore that allow you to change how you “unlock” your device. These range from a simple 1 finger slide to unlock, to camera based facial recognition all the way to being required to enter a complex password. By default, on my Samsung Galaxy Nexus, the slide to unlock setting is enabled and this requires you to touch the lower center of the screen and slide it right to the “unlock” icon.

Once your phone is unlocked you will be placed on the main “. Workspace”. The workspace is the equivalent to your “desktop”. It has 5 panes (or screens) that you can scroll between by “flicking” or “swiping” with 2 fingers either left or right on the surface of the screen. The panes of the workspace are a 4×4 grid of place holders that can contain icons or widgets that you can customize. Below the workspace pane is a “dock” or bar of icons that sits just above the “soft key bar”. The dock is only visible when on the workspace and not in apps… The icons on the dock from left to right are Dock Space 1 & 2, Apps and Dock space 3 and 4. You can place shortcuts to apps into Dock Space 1-4 to quickly access apps you use very regularly such as the phone or email app. In the middle of the dock is a permanent icon called “Apps”. The “Apps” icon is similar to the window key on a PC in that it launches the “app menu” which contains all the apps that have been installed on the device. These will be displayed in a 4×4 grid in the content area of the screen. The number of panes in the app menu grows as you install apps on the phone. You perform a 2 finger swipe left or right to scroll through the panes.

This should get you started, but stay tuned for the next part of the article “A Blind Trek through Android Part 2: Eating the Jelly Bean (Getting Productive)”.

Related posts:

1. A Blind Trek Through Android – Part 1: Unwrapping the Ice cream sandwich (Getting Started)
2. The epidemic of inaccessible Touch Screen Point Of Sale Devices to blind consumers
3. Picking an accessible cell phone in Canada
4. Android and external keyboards