Using Things That Talk

a street curb cut

Curb cut that helps everybody

Using Things That Talk

Susan L. Gerhart slger123@gmail.com

for Yavapai College OLLI October 28, 2009

Blog: ‘As Your World Changes’, Adjusting to Vision Loss with Class, Using Technology

Why think about “Things That Talk”?

  1. Understand the way of living well for visually impaired people, article on “how visually impaired people use computers”
  2. “Normally” sighted people can be more productive
  3. Exercise the plasticity of our brains, combat aging (maybe)
  4. Consumer product mainstream adopting
    Assistive Technology

  5. Supplement social services and geographical limitations
  6. Support Accessibility movement to make AT work for PwD

The Marvel of
Synthetic Speech
and
Text to Speech

  1. At your finger tips, in Windows Accessibility options, Narrator
  2. “Robotic Voices” Microsoft Sam, Eloquence, DEcTalk Peter …
  3. “Natural Voices” ATT Mike and Crystal, Neo speech Paul and Kate, Acapella, Cepstal, Nuance, …
  4. Demo: “Lost Symbol” Reading to overcome Synthetic Voice Shock

A Visually Impaired Person’s Tool Kit

Text Readers

Screen Reader

Versatile reader and MP3 Converter, e.g. Text Aloud from Nextup.com

  • Great trainer tool for reading text
  • Marketplace for buying Natural Voices
  • Convert text to MP3 for reading/listening anywhere
  • Newsletter of uses: people who learn better by listening, reading manuals while working, …

Scanners to Text for TTS

Mobil Readers

Levelstar ICON Mobile Manager

  • PDA with calendar, text editor, email,
  • WIFI for Internet access
  • RSS Client for downloading blogs and podcasts
  • Twitter client for social networking
  • Access to books and newspapers via Bookshare
  • Music playlists
  • Recorder

No screen IPod and Kindle functionality

Pocket Readers, Plextalk Pocket

  • Lightweight, no WIFI
  • Reads books, txt, html, loaded onto SD card
  • Plays mp3 podcasts
  • Great recorder

Daily Living

Gadgets

  • Moshy Voice Responding Clock
  • Color Teller (DEMO)
  • Pedometer
  • Labeler
  • Medical devices thermometer, blood pressure, glucose
  • Microwave oven, measuring devices
  • Home and office controllers, thermostats, security
  • GPS
  • Cell phones DEMO

Services

  • Bank ATM, e.g. Chase on Gourley
  • Voting at Yavapai County board
  • Social Security paperwork

Services for Visually Impaired

Books and Newspapers

Bookshare.org

  • Volunteer scanned and validated books, also publisher contributed 60,000+ books
  • $50 year members, free for all U.S. special ed students under DoEd grant
  • Also NFB Newsline newspapers, NYTimes, etc.
  • special format DAISY better for reading

Shopping sites

<h3Information Sources and Advocacy Groups

>

Podcasts on Assistive Tech and Persons with Disabilities

  • ACB Radio news, demo, interviews

    Summary Of Benefits

    For visually impaired people

    1. Ability to browse and interact on websites
    2. Use accessible software products
    3. Interact with other VI people via websites, twitter, chat, podcasts
    4. Employ mobile devices that un tether from computers, easier to use
    5. Convert electronic materials to speech, e.g. SSA, manuals, … even from printed via scanners

    For sighted people

    1. Listen without eyes glued to screens
    2. Convert docs to MP3 for reading anywhere
    3. Proof reading written materials
    4. Communicate better with VI people by understanding their needs
    5. Take advantage of the “electronic curb cuts” paved by assistive technology

    Eventually, we’ll all live in a world where devices speak feedback and environmental information

    Eventually, we’ll all be disabled if we live long enough. And most of us have intermittent disability, think broken arm or cataracts. Plus mobile devices disable their users in various situations, like glare, noise, crowding,… Disability is a broken connection among technologies and users, thus a great market opportunity.

    DVD Contents

    1. Examples of synthetic speech, — “Lost symbol”, blog article orations, samples, sing spoofs
    2. NVDA (free) and TextAloud (trial, $60) TextAloud installation files
    3. Podcast Demos on daily living, software, hardware products

    Nothing proprietary, distribute to others with credit to S. L. Gerhart

    Agenda

    1. Introductions
    2. Screen reader NVDA on this page
    3. Listen to synthetic voices “Lost Symbol”
    4. Intro to TextAloud FLASH ad with many voices
    5. Mobile Manager ICON PDA, News, Books
    6. Questions, Break
    7. Camera Scanner KNFB Reader
    8. Gadgets
    9. Services Bookshare, Banking, Voting
    10. Questions, Suggestions

    Disclosure: I don’t work for any of these organizations. My comments are as a user. Most products have viable competitors to consider against my choices. And this is an always changing market.

    • One Response to “Using Things That Talk”

    1. Social Media for Seniors — Lessons Learned « As Your World Changes Says:
      October 31, 2009 at 11:44 am |

      [...] “Using Things That Talk”, an assistive technology demonstration session at Yavapai Colle… [...]

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