If you sit in the space between sighted and blind, you probably already know what I am about to say. There is no ideal solution for people who need both a powerful screen reader and serious magnification support on Windows. I have been looking for one for years. Recently, I decided to run an experiment. … Read more
I’ve been waiting for this toy since I pre-ordered it last winter and while 2 months late, finally the Clicks Universal Power Keyboard arrived. I’d pre-ordered it, waited patiently (well, impatiently), and finally held in my hands what amounts to a BlackBerry keyboard reborn as a slim MagSafe slab for the back of my phone. … Read more
Over the past couple of years I’ve had the chance to use GoodMaps in several venues and I want to share what that experience has been like. I first used it at the CSUN Assistive Technology Conference in California and since then I’ve used it at three locations in Ottawa: the Rideau Centre Mall, the … Read more
I’ve had the opportunity to use these glasses for 2 months now and wanted to share my early impressions. I’ve also used several Meta Glasses, ally solos and a number of previous similar tools [e.g. envision glasses, orcam, etc]. I have spent time with a pre-release pioneer unit of the Agiga Echo smart glasses. With … Read more
I’ve been meaning to write this article for years. Seriously. for well over Ten years I’ve been using Flashnote every single day, and I keep thinking I should tell more people about it. Especially blind users who are still scattered across multiple Notepad files trying to keep track of everything. For those who haven’t come … Read more
The 1st article in this series “My Exploration Of How Copilot Can Help Blind Users” was written almost 2 years ago. My feelings and observations remain the same and my use of AI has only increased over time. However; at work as part of the pilot we are running, I recently got asked the question: … Read more
If you’re blind and considering smart glasses, you’ve likely heard the promises and some of the buzz around the glasses. I’ve had the opportunity to use these glasses and a number of previous similar tools [e.g. envision glasses, orcam, etc]. After spending a year and a half using both the Ray-Band and more recently switching … Read more
I’ve been using Nova Launcher as my daily driver for years, but with the potential downfall of Nova Launcher with the loss of developer and support, I decided to stark exploring alternatives and started by revisiting launchers I knew were good in the past. I revisited Microsoft Launcher and Lawnchair to see how they stack … Read more
My family loves going to the movies. For years, we relied on audio description systems that worked beautifully. They were intuitive, reliable, and most importantly, designed with actual input from people like me who are blind. Last year, our family encountered for the 1st time, the Dolby Accessibility Solution during what should have been an … Read more
At work and in my personal life I’ve had a chance to explore Microsoft’s new integration using Chat GPT where Copilot brings AI into the M365 Microsoft Office Suite. At work, we are exploring it as a possible tool to help or support a wide variety of people with different types of disabilities. In my … Read more