Accessibility

Tag Archives: Accessibility

News May 15, 2013

Can You Hear Me Now? Nuance Announces Dragon Notes for Windows 8 Devices

The ability to type by voice can be an incredibly powerful productivity tool. That is why I always use a version of Dragon NaturallySpeaking on my Windows computers, and why I quickly found a voice-to-text transcription application when I moved over to Mac. Unfortunately, at the time, voice recognition on the Mac was, at best, [...]

News April 7, 2013

by Douglas Moran

VitaSound launches Personal Audio Enhancer

All my life, I’ve been incredibly lucky enough to have unusually good hearing. Yup, my eyes have gotten worse, and of course my body continues its determined march towards decrepitude, but at least I’m still able to hear pretty durn well. But alas, many of my closest peeps are not so lucky; my BFF, for example, [...]

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Crowdfunding, News February 12, 2013

by Joel McLaughlin

Sonar Linux Aims to Make Linux Accessible to All

Over the years that I have worked in an IT support role, I have often had the experience of talking to people who didn’t have perfect eyesight or who might have other disabilities. What might be easy for you or me to do on a computer might be extremely difficult for someone who doesn’t have [...]

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Quickies September 9, 2012

by Douglas Moran

More Women and Moms Programming for iOS?

Image courtesy of Wonder Branding As you probably know, while in Elementary school girls and boys tend to score fairly close together in math and science; as they get older the gap widens considerably. The upshot of this is that they are darn few software engineers (or any engineers, honestly) that are women. But as [...]

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Quickies July 7, 2012

by Carly Z

Streaming Video and the Deaf Communtity: The Good and the Bad

(image courtesy tvtechnology.com) I am fascinated by the ways technology can open up the world and make it more accessible for people with disabilities. What is a convenience for you and me may be a life changer for someone else. Unfortunately, sometimes technology outpaces itself, and leaves the accessibility features playing catch-up. It is something [...]

The iPhone as Visual Assistant, One Woman’s Story

The iPhone is one of those devices that prompts its fans to declare “This phone changed my life!” Yes, the apps are great, and add an immense amount of convenience to everyday life. And the ease of use means just about anyone can pick one up and grasp the basics within minutes. But then there [...]

Eton Axis Self-Powered Radio Review

This past year Sarah and I have been very lucky. While our town did flood, it only necessitated the power being out for around 15 hours. Many of my coworkers and friends north of us had it much worse, with power outages lasting anywhere from 24 hours to 5 days! Unfortunately, the modern world isn’t [...]

The Amplicom Induction Neckloop (NL100) Review

photos by Kevin My mother has sensorineural hearing loss, and she has worn hearing aids in each ear ever since she was 36. My husband has hearing loss from working with loud machinery, and although he doesn’t wear hearing aids, he misses some tones and quiet speech is sometimes garbled. My friend Angie’s daughter caught [...]

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News November 12, 2011

by Dan Cohen

Holiday Gift Guide: For Those Who Need Better Voice Recognition

From the Editorial Staff of Gear Diary: Is there someone in your life who would benefit from speaking their text rather than typing it? If so, here are five gifts with which you can’t go wrong. The key to accurate voice recognition is wearing the right headphones. Andrea Electronics SuperBeam Phones are just the thing. We’ll [...]

Andrea’s SuperBeam Phones On-Ear Headphones Go “Boom-less”

I’ve used a number of Andrea headphones for voice recognition in the past, and I’ve always been impressed. The company’s SuperBeam Phones are a departure from previous models, and I’m really loving the design choices that went into creating them. They are sleek on-ear headphones that drop the microphone boom, but still offer great voice quality. [...]

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Events July 16, 2011

by Judie Lipsett Stanford

Intel’s “Upgrade Your Life” Event

Along with 12 other site owners, I was invited to attend the Intel “Upgrade Your Life” experience in Santa Clara, California on July 13th. I went into this event with no itinerary and no idea of what we were going to see, but I figured it had to be more than “just” processor chips. Sure [...]

First Look! Nuance Ushers in the Next Era of Mobile Search with Dragon Go!

Nuance’s Dragon Dictation is one of my “must have” apps for iOS devices. Their Dragon Search app is also a mainstay on my iPhone. Actually it WAS a mainstay… until now. For the past few weeks it has lost its place on my home screen. In its place has been a Beta version of Nuance’s [...]

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eBooks, News May 13, 2011

by Carly Z

Origin Instruments Announces Kindle Accessibility Accessories

One of the greatest things about eBook readers is how accessibility is in their nature. When I worked at Borders, people were always seeking large-print titles, but relatively speaking we carried far fewer large prints than regular titles. With an eBook reader like the Kindle, any book is a large print thanks to adjustable font [...]

Automotive Technology Déjà Vu

I love new technology when it hits the automotive market, but sometimes I just cannot help wonder if someone else did not think of this first. Two releases I spotted this morning jumped out at me, and I was overcome by a strong sense of déjà vu. First, Ford Motor Company: Ford is aggressively accelerating [...]

Review: Amplicom Alarm Clock

Every morning it’s the same routine. You’re sound asleep, and then your iPhone/Droid/alarm clock/dog starts going off and announcing WAKE UP TIME! Basically, something blares in or around your head and you start moving. What if you were hearing impaired, though? How do you make sure the alarm wakes you up? That’s where the Amplicom [...]