DAISY Online for Book Port DT
APH is excited to announce the first U.S. implementation of DAISY Online! This amazing service utilizes the features of the new Book Port DT to provide users the ability to find, download and play DAISY content without the need for a computer! DAISY, or Digital Accessible Information System, is an international standard for the Digital Talking Book (DTB). The debut of DAISY Online brings Newsweek and Readers Digest—which APH has provided in braille and audio formats free of charge for many decades—to the Book Port DT! In addition, DAISY Online makes available, to those Book Port DT users who are registered with Bookshare, access to Bookshare’s collections of accessible books, newspapers, and more. Bookshare currently provides access to more than 175,600 titles.
From http://www.fredshead.info/2013/02/daisy-online-for-book-port-dt.html#.URts_PKv95s, February 12, 2013
Making SlideShare Presentations Accessible for Persons with Disabilities
Current statistics about visual impairment published by AFB reports that an estimated 21.2 million adult Americans (or more than 10% of all adult Americans) reported they either "have trouble" seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses, or that they are blind or unable to see at all. When a website, an intranet, a school network, or an e-learning CMS links or embed a silent SlideShare presentation, about 25% of the audience may be at big risk of being excluded.
From http://networkedblogs.com/I8PcQ, February 11, 2013
UNICEF: Inclusive Education for Children with Disabilities can Transform Lives
Progressive policies in inclusive education have made positive changes in the lives of children with disabilities in Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia, according to UNICEF today. More schools are welcoming first grade children with disabilities in Serbia as a result of years of policy advocacy. Huge nationwide awareness raising campaigns in Montenegro and strong engagement of civil society in promoting inclusion in Armenia have led to increased public demands for inclusive schools, UNICEF said.
From http://www.unicef.org/ceecis/media_21246.html, February 11, 2013
New Smartphone App helps People with Vision Disabilities take Notes on iOS Devices
For the millions of Americans with vision disabilities looking for a simple, convenient way to take notes at work, at school, or at home, the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) launched the AccessNote™, a specialized notetaker for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch. “Apple products have earned high points from us for their out-of-the-box accessibility for users who are blind or vlow vision,” said Carl R. Augusto, AFB president and CEO. “We designed this app to complement the iPhone’s other popular features, like web browsing and email, so that users who are blind have all the tools they need in one, handy device.”
From http://globalaccessibilitynews.com/2013/02/05/new-smartphone-app-helps-people-with-vision-disabilities-take-notes-on-ios-devices/, February 11, 2013
Canada: Winnipeg-based Museum to set 'Global Standard' for Being Accessible to Visitors with Disabilities
Designers of the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg say they are setting a new standard in making the building accessible to people with a wide range of disabilities. Eight disabled Canadians have had direct input into the design of the museum, which is being built near The Forks in the city's downtown. Designers are now working on implementing their recommendations.
From http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/story/2013/01/28/mb-canadian-museum-human-rights-accessibility-standard.html, February 08, 2013
Resource: Accessible University 2.0
Accessible University (AU) is a fictional university home page designed to demonstrate a variety of common web design problems that result in visitors with disabilities being unable to access content or features. AU was originally developed by AccessIT and is maintained by AccessComputing, both projects based out of the University of Washington. Use the AU site to demonstrate common web accessibility principles at trainings, presentations, and workshops on accessible web design and learn common web accessibility problems and solutions in an easy-to-understand way.
From http://www.washington.edu/accesscomputing/AU/, February 07, 2013
U.K. Campaign to make Internet more Accessible to Disabled and Older People Gains Support
Two public sector bodies have been the first of their kind to join a national campaign which helps disabled and older people overcome the difficulties faced when using the Internet. Go ON Gold is a national campaign created to raise awareness and solve the barriers facing these groups in an increasingly digital society.
From http://www.carehome.co.uk/news/article.cfm/id/1558812/campaign-to-make-internet-more-accessible-to-disabled-and-older-people-gains-support, February 07, 2013
Resource: Making PIN Entry Devices (PED) Accessible for Persons with Disabilities
The features listed below would make a PED more accessible to partially sighted people:
1. Physical device
2. High contrast buttons - contrasting with the background (surface of the device)
3. High contrast numbers and symbols - contrasting with the surface of the button
4. Large numbers and letters (as large as the button allows for)
5. Sans serif typeface
6. Easy to see card slot (this could contrast from the surrounding area or have a prominent surround that make it easy to locate)
7. Back-lit buttons
From http://www.useraccess.org/2013/02/making-pin-entry-devices-peds-more_7.html, February 07, 2013
SSB Bart Group's Interview with Adobe on PDF Document Accessibility
Our joint webinar with Adobe in January on PDF document accessibility was a great success! There were so many good questions, but unfortunately only a short period of time to address them. This blog is the first of a two-part series that will address those questions. Many thanks to Andrew Kirkpatrick from Adobe and our own Jonathan Avila for answering the participants’ questions.
From https://www.ssbbartgroup.com/blog/2013/02/06/pdf-document-accessibility-q-a/, February 07, 2013
AppleTV 5.2 Update brings Accessibility Changes
Today, Apple released an update for the AppleTV set-top box, bringing the software up to version 5.2. Among the changes are support for Bluetooth keyboards, iTunes in the Cloud, Up Next, and some tweaks to accessibility. When browsing the AppleTV interface with VoiceOver users will find that the grid layout of icons is better represented. VoiceOver navigation will stop at the far left or right ends of a row of icons, clearly delineating between rows. This should eliminate some of the confusion navigating experienced by some users.
From http://maccessibility.net/2013/01/28/appletv-5-2-update-brings-accessibility-changes/, February 07, 2013
