The BlindBargains.com 2011 Holiday Shipping Guide

 

There's lots of great stores online for your holiday shopping needs, but it's often hard to keep track of shipping cut offs. Now, we present to you the 2011 BlindBargains.com holiday shipping guide, the only shipping guide on the web which also includes blindness-specific retailers. This guide will be updated throughout the holidays with new information as we receive it.

Since many stores do not offer Saturday delivery, we've listed below the latest you can order items with arrival by Friday December 23. If more than one shipping option is available, we include that as well. Screen reader users can jump by headings to move from store to store. We do our best to keep this guide accurate, though information is always subject to change. If there are any stores you would like to see listed, please leave their names in the comments.

ActiveForever

Standard: December 15 by 11 am Pacific; Expedited: December 20 by 11 am Pacific; Overnight: December 21 by 11 am Pacific

Amazon.com

Free Super Saver Shipping: December 16; Amazon will show the expected arrival date for products it sells. Most items from its store can be ordered through 6 PM Eastern or later on December 21 for two-day shipping, December 22 for overnight shipping, and December 23 for (prime only) last-minute christmas delivery. Same-day delivery is available in select major cities through December 24.

Apple Store

Standard: December 20; Expedited: Dec 21; Fastest: December 22 by 10 am pacific

A T Guys

Standard: December 20 by 2 pm Eastern; Expedited December 21 by 2 pm Eastern; Software downloads: December 23 by 2 pm Eastern

Best Buy

Standard: December 20 by 11 am Eastern; Expedited: December 21 by 11 am Eastern; Fastest: December 22 by 11 am Eastern

Brailletshirts.com

Standard: December 9

Buy.com

Standard: December 15 at 3 pm Eastern; Expedited: December 20 at 3 PM Eastern; Overnight: December 21 at 3 PM Eastern

Dell Small Business

Standard: December 8; Expedited: December 9; Fastest: December 14

Drugstore.com

Standard: December 20 at 3 pm Eastern; Expedited: December 21 3 pm Eastern; Overnight: December 22 3 pm Eastern

Geeks.com

Standard: December 16 at 2 pm Pacific; Expedited: December 21 at 2 pm Pacific; Overnight: December 22 at 2 pm Pacific

Guitar Center

Standard: December 16; Expedided: December 21; Overnight: December 22

HP Home and Home Office Store

Standard: December 14; Expedited: December 21 by 10 am Eastern; Overnight: December 22 by 10 am Eastern

Independent Living Aids

Standard December 16; Expedited: December 21; Overnight: December 22

Kohls.com

Standard: December 18 by 11 pm Central; Expedited: December 21 by 11 pm Central

MacMall

Standard: December 16 by 5 pm Eastern; Expedited: December 21 by 9 pm Eastern, Overnight: December 22 by 7 pm Eastern

Meritline

Standard: December 16; Expedited: December 19; Fastest: December 22

Musician's Friend

Standard: December 16; Expedited: December 21;Overnight: December 22

Newegg.com

Standard: December 16 by 3 pm Pacific; Expedited: December 21 by 3 pm Pacific; Overnight: December 22 by 3 pm Pacific

Omaha Steaks

Standard: December 10 ; Expedited: December 16 9 am Central; Overnight: December 22 9 am Central

Overstock

Standard: December 12; Expedited: December 19; Fastest: December 20 by 12 pm Eastern

Sears.com

Standard: December 16; Expedited: December 21; Overnight: December 22

Shoebuy.com

Standard: December 10; Expedited: December 15; Fastest: December 16

Sony Style

Standard: December 15; Expedited: December 19; Fastest: December 21

Starbucks Store

Standard: December 15; Expedited: December 19 by 12 pm Pacific; Overnight: December 22 by 12 pm Pacific

Think Geek

Economy: December 12; Standard: December 16; Expedited: December 21 by 12 PM eastern; Overnight: December 22 by 12 pm Eastern

Tiger Direct

Standard: December 15 by 5 pm Eastern; Expedited: December 20 by 5 pm Eastern; Fastest: December 21 by 5 pm Eastern

Wal-Mart.com

Standard: December 14; Expedited: December 16; Overnight: December 21

Shopping is a breeze with our Blind Bargains Apps.

 

The BlindBargains.com 2011 Holiday Shipping Guide
Fri, 02 Dec 2011 13:45:55 GMT

Access Your Apps With Bluetooth Technology

 

Accessing your iPad, iPhone, iPod, and apps when upper extremity function is limited just became easier with the Blue2, Bluetooth interface/switch.

Access Your Apps With Bluetooth Technology
Ziggi
Fri, 02 Dec 2011 00:31:17 GMT

Serospectives: This Month in Assistive Technology for November, 2011

 

On this issue of SeroSpectives, Lisa Salinger is joined by Alena Roberts, a private contractor and feature writer for the Matilda Ziegler Magazine, Michael McCarty, Director of Social Media at The American Printing House for the Blind, and Serotek’s own Mike Calvo to discuss the top stories in technology for November, 2011.

In the Community

The NLS Materials Development Division Modifies the Digital Talking Book Management Software

From blastbay Studios: audio demo of our upcoming game, Perilous Hearts!

NEW FAQ on Code Factory’s Noke Screen Reader

Qwitter replacement in alpha testing called Twit Monger.

A user has modified Qwitter 4.5.1 to use the new API, so it can now receive direct messages and mentions streaming.

Another Qwitter spin-off: The Qube

Kudos to Qwitter, the program that proves once and for all, that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

NVDA 2011.3rc1 released!

OCR plugin for NVDA:

Japanese Company Develops Robot Guide Dog

Serotek Conquers a New Frontier for Blind Veterans:

Braille

NFB - National Federation of the Blind Partners with Santa to Promote Braille Literacy

Top Braille

More information on Top Braille

If you use Braille with your iPhone, iPad or iPod, there’s a Braille User Group on AppleVis to connect with others

Cell Phones

From CNETNews: A Windows 8 smartphone could be coming next year

Google unleashes Android Ice Cream Sandwich Coming Nov. 17

iOS

Oregon Puts iPad Voting on the Map

http://t.co/sLF5LZ3yUpdated information on obtaining a refund for inaccessible iOS apps

From Yahooaccess: 10 things blind people can teach us about Apple’s #Siri on the #iPhone 4S. From macstoriesnet: Apple Releases GarageBand for iPhone

http://t.co/xIiJa3VPA Comprehensive Audio Demonstration of Siri

Microsoft

More Accessibility maybe? Office 365 updates begin to percolate through Microsoft’s line-up Windows 7 continues to roll as XP fades away

http://t.co/3R4YBdKWMicrosoft Internet Explorer 10 to add spell checking, auto-correct

Apple

Apple confirms Siri isn’t coming to any other devices as of now

MacBook Air supplies almost one-third of Apple notebook sales

Conclusion

SeroSpectives is made possible through technology from Serotek Corporation.

Visit the SeroTalk.com Blog and Podcast for the Latest Access Technology Information

Email Resources@SeroTalk.com Your Comments, Suggestions, and Ideas for Future Tech Chats and Podcast Segments

Download iBlink Radio, Free App for the iPhone, with Radio Stations and Podcasts Created by the blind, Radio Information Service and audio Tutorials!

DocuScan Plus Afordable and Powerful OCR Solution

Serotek Corporation – System Access Screen reader, SAMNet, docuScan Plus, Remote Incident Manager, iBlink for the iPhone, and Accessible Event

Try a Free Fully Functional Seven Day Trial of System Access and SAMNet Today by going to www.satogo.com

AccessibleEvent Makes Meetings and Webinars Accessible to the blind, Deaf, and Deaf-Blind

© 2011 Serotek Corporation – All Rights Reserved.

 

Serospectives: This Month in Assistive Technology for November, 2011
lisas
Thu, 01 Dec 2011 22:12:03 GMT

Freedom Scientific Announces High Definition Video Magnifier Line

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Brad Davis
800-444-4443 or 727-803-8000
www.FreedomScientific.com
Sales: info@FreedomScientific.com

Freedom Scientific Announces High Definition Video Magnifier Line

Crisper, Clearer Images for Those with Low Vision

(St. Petersburg, Florida – December 2, 2011) – Freedom Scientific, the world leader in assistive technology for those that are low vision or blind, today unveiled another breakthrough in assistive technology with a line of high definition desktop video magnifiers called TOPAZ® XL HD.

"Our TOPAZ XL has become an indispensable tool for many people, allowing them to once again read bills, bank statements, and other personal documents independently, and store them on their PC for later retrieval," says Brad Davis, Freedom Scientific’s Vice President of Hardware. “Now our new HD models offer improved efficiency, because the clear high contrast image, even at magnification levels below 2x, can fit more text on the screen than ever before. For many users, this means they can display an entire standard page of text across a widescreen monitor and read comfortably without moving their document back and forth under the camera."

Other video magnifiers can share their monitor with a PC to save desk space, but the TOPAZ XL HD goes beyond that. With Freedom Scientific’s optional GEM™ software, low vision users can bring the magnified image to their PC, control the TOPAZ XL HD from the keyboard, and work in multiple split screen views so that they see their magnified document and their application at the same time. Users can quickly capture multiple images, review them with a single keystroke, and select which ones to save.

The new TOPAZ XL HD line offers 20-inch, 22-inch, and 24-inch widescreen models, as well as 17-inch standard monitor and camera only models. The products are shipping in December.

For complete specifications and pricing details, visit www.FreedomScientific.com or contact Freedom Scientific at 800-444-4443 or 727-803-8000.

Freedom Scientific offers a broad range of technology solutions for those with low vision, including:

• MAGic® screen magnification software
• RUBY® and SAPPHIRE® handheld video magnifiers
• ONYX® portable distance, document, and self view cameras
• PEARL® OCR camera with OpenBook® and the SARA™ and SARA CE scanning and reading appliances for both blind and low vision users

About Freedom Scientific

Freedom Scientific is the leading worldwide provider of assistive technology products for those with vision impairments. The Company sells its products worldwide and has offices in Florida and Switzerland. The Company’s products have been translated into 24 languages and are available in 55 countries. Freedom also has a line of software products for those with learning disabilities.

Freedom Scientific®, TOPAZ®, MAGic®, RUBY®, SAPPHIRE®, ONYX®, PEARL®, OpenBook®, SARA™, and GEM™ are trademarks or registered trademarks in the United States and/or other countries.

Source: Press Release

High-tech cane concept for the blind is a Foursquare-enabled smartphone - Tecca

 

 High-tech cane concept for the blind is a Foursquare-enabled smartphone
Tecca
With approximately 285 million visually-impaired people around the globe, it's no wonder Selene Chew decided to work on a technology that could benefit them for her senior thesis project ...
New cane for the blind uses Foursquare checkins to locate nearby friendsThe Next Web (blog)
all 2 news articles »

High-tech cane concept for the blind is a Foursquare-enabled smartphone - Tecca
Wed, 30 Nov 2011 01:38:30 GMT

Freedom Scientific Enhances Scanning and Reading Appliances - Adds FineReader Optical Character Recognition

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contact: Brad Davis
800-444-4443 or 727-803-8000
www.FreedomScientific.com
Sales: info@FreedomScientific.com

Freedom Scientific Enhances Scanning and Reading Appliances

Adds FineReader Optical Character Recognition

(St. Petersburg, Florida – November 30, 2011) – Freedom Scientific today announced an upgrade to its SARA™ and SARA CE Scanning and Reading Appliances to improve speed and accuracy.

“We’ve added ABBYY FineReader® to the OmniPage® OCR engine we were already using, combining the best features of both products to offer our best and fastest print to speech conversion yet,” says Dusty Voorhees, Senior Product Manager. “We’ve also made improvements to our SARA flatbed scanning model to reduce the time to gain speech and Braille access to printed text by a third. While the SARA CE camera model is faster overall, the flatbed scanner SARA now matches its processing performance.

“These enhancements are sure to improve productivity and enjoyment for our many blind and low vision customers who use the SARA and SARA CE to access books, magazines, mail, and other printed documents. The addition of FineReader should be particularly appreciated by those who use the additional languages available in both the SARA and SARA CE.”

To learn more about the SARA and SARA CE, visit the Freedom Scientific Low Vision Products page, where you’ll find a listing of features, samples of the human-like reading voices, and a short video demonstration to introduce you to both products.

The SARA CE model is still available for the special introductory price of $1,895 until December 31, 2011 – a $500 savings.

For complete specifications, visit www.FreedomScientific.com or contact Freedom Scientific at 800-444-4443 or 727-803-8000.

About Freedom Scientific

Freedom Scientific is the leading worldwide provider of assistive technology products for those with vision impairments. The Company sells its products worldwide and has offices in Florida and Switzerland. The Company’s products have been translated into 24 languages and are available in 55 countries. Freedom also has a line of software products for those with learning disabilities.

Freedom Scientific®, SARA™ and SARA™ CE are registered trademarks in the United States and/or other countries. The names of actual companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners.

Source: Email News Release

ZoomText 10 Has Arrived!

 

The wait is over – ZoomText 10 is here and ready for sale! For those of you who pre-ordered, you’re all set. For those who didn’t, here’s the scoop:

Today

• Buy ZoomText “Digital Only” version. We’ll give you a serial number so you can start using ZoomText immediately. The product documentation will be available online for downloading.
• Buy ZoomText “Physical Shipment”. We’ll give you a serial number so you can start using ZoomText immediately. Your documentation will be sent to you at a later date.

In the Coming Weeks

• You can still choose to buy ZoomText Digital (and save yourself some money on shipping), but we will also be offering up the traditional shipped ZoomText box.

Purchase online or give us a call at 800-859-0270 (upgrade orders need to be placed over the phone). Don’t forget that we’re running a bunch of specials if you order by the end of the year!

Even though ZoomText is just ready electronically, we’ve got camera packages ready to be shipped out!

Want to try ZoomText 10 before you buy? Head on over to our website and download a free 60-day trial.

We’ve added a bunch of new features into this release and you might need some training so that you’re getting the most out of them. We’ve got you covered with a series of free webinars – click on one of the following links to sign up for a one-hour training session that exclusively covers the new features of ZoomText 10:

• Tuesday, November 29th from 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST
• Wednesday, November 30th from 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST
• Thursday, December 1st from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM EST
• Monday, December 5th from 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM EST
• Thursday, December 8th from 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM EST

We’ve posted videos on each particular feature, but we have prepared a quick video that covers all the new and exciting features in version 10. Check it out!

 

ZoomText 10 Has Arrived!
Rebecca White
Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:34:44 GMT

DOL Notice on Availability of Assistive Technology (AT) in the Public Workfoce System

 

Training and Employment Notice from the U.S. Department of Labor to state workforce agencies, liaisons, administrators and other public workforce personnel that outlines the availability of AT resources for customers with disabilities. Includes information about types of AT, funding sources and available resouces. This information is also in PDF format.

DOL Notice on Availability of Assistive Technology (AT) in the Public Workfoce System
disability@dol.gov (Disability.gov)
Mon, 28 Nov 2011 05:00:00 GMT

NVDA 2011.3 Released

 

NV Access is pleased to announce that NVDA 2011.3 has been released. This release has been declared stable, which means it is suitable for production use and is recommended for most users. Highlights of NVDA 2011.3 include automatic speech language switching when reading documents with appropriate language information; support for 64 bit Java Runtime Environments; reporting of text formatting in browse mode in Mozilla applications; better handling of application crashes and freezes; and initial fixes for Windows 8.

http://www.nvda-project.org/blog/NVDA2011.3Released

Permalink

NVDA 2011.3 Released
Fri, 25 Nov 2011 06:22:00 GMT

Special Offer Extended: PLEXTALK Pocket Accessible DAISY Player / Recorder

 

The PLEXTALK Pocket lists for $349 in the U.S., but it is available at the introductory price of $275 through January 31, 2012. This includes not only the PLEXTALK Pocket, but also the PRS DAISY recording and editing software for your PC. This combination is only available for U. S. customers who purchase the PLEXTALK Pocket through Freedom Scientific.

Special Offer Extended: PLEXTALK Pocket Accessible DAISY Player / Recorder
VLuceno
Mon, 28 Nov 2011 01:16:06 GMT

SeroTalk Podcast 86: Everybody’s Side Is Right

 

Listen to SeroTalk Podcast 86: Everybody’s Side Is Right

This week, Jamie Pauls, Joe Steinkamp, and Mike Calvo discuss the news of the week. Also, Mike reviews several SoundDock options from bose for iOS and other devices including the following:

Bose SoundLink Wireless Mobile Speaker – Nylon

Bose SoundDock Portable Digital Music System (Gloss Black

Bose SoundDock Series II Digital Music System for iPod (Black

AT

The twitmonger users list is now active. subscribe using twitmonger_users-subscribe@lists.shaned.net

Qwitter replacement in alpha testing. go to: http://twitmonger.shaned.net and grab a copy.

I’ve modified Qwitter 4.5.1 to use the new API, so it can now receive direct messages. Also added mentions streaming.

Purchase Hope, the accessible PC client for Pandora which is still in active development by Christopher Toth.

NVDA 2011.3rc1 released!

HumanWare is seeking input on the future of the Victor Reader Stream via Survey Gizmo

ZoomText 10 feature leak alert – introducing the ZoomText Camera!

November 2011 AccessWorld is now live! Holiday edition (gift ideas 4 ppl w/vision loss)

Self Promotion

Serotek Conquers a New Frontier for Blind Veterans.

SeroSpectives Deck the Dogs.. and the Canes Too!

Amazon

New on Suntimes: My review of the Kindle Fire. At last, a great alternative to the iPad.

The Kindle Fire is getting great reviews … except not. Wired: Is This Really The Tablet Everyone’s Talking about?

A Kindle smartphone may be coming in 2012

U.S. authors: Kindle lending library is ‘contract breach’

Amazon’s cloud is the world’s 42nd fastest supercomputer:

Holidays

NFB – National Federation of the Blind Partners with Santa to Promote Braille Literacy:

Assistive Technology for Young Children: A Parent’s Perspective – YouTube

Chicago Lighthouse pairs with electronics retailer to help the visually impaired

Starbucks Holiday Cups Come to Life With Augmented Reality App

Google

DAISY Player for Android goes live, on sales for a limited time. arwin Reader Website:

Best Android Apps and options for disabled users

Ivona free update for Android voices

Google Music hits almost all the high notes

Cloud Music Showdown: Google vs. Amazon vs Apple

Apple

Apple launches iTunes Match: music hoarders need not apply:

How to Enable iTunes Match On Your iPhone or iPad: Apple released iTunes Match today, and users can now access t…

More on iTunes Match’s new ID3 tags

Apple Can’t Handle The Demand For iTunes Match, Temporarily Halts New Sign-Ups

Apple kicks off worldwide iPod nano first-generation replacement program

Apple’s iCloud inaccessible for some users

iPhone owners might want to avoid iOS 5.0.1 update

RT @papasangre: I’m back. Hit the App Store now-ish.

Tests suggests iPhone battery issue not a hardware problem

The iPhone 5 Was Real, Says A Source Who Played With A Prototype

Mac OS X has its own sandbox security hole:

Apple fixes iTunes man-in-the-middle security hole

OS X Lion growth stagnates at 16% Mac market share

Web stats indicate Mac OS X Lion still growing very fast

MacBook Air supplies almost one-third of Apple notebook sales:

Sirispective

A Comprehensive Audio Demonstration of Siri

Siri’s security sabotaged, developer releases crack tools

SPN Launches Triple Click Home

Kickers

Support new regulations encouraging service dog relief areas within security @ airports.

[NFBAustin] awesome BELL Video, complete

 

SeroTalk Podcast 86: Everybody’s Side Is Right
jpauls
Tue, 22 Nov 2011 22:25:18 GMT

Dolphin announced a free update immediately available for all SuperNova version 12 customers

 

The version 12.06 update is available via SuperNova's internet updater for Arabic, Australian English, Belgian Dutch, Belgian French, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, German, Hindi, Icelandic, Italian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish, UK English, US English and Welsh product users.

Dolphin announced a free update immediately available for all SuperNova version 12 customers
Fri, 25 Nov 2011 14:21:14 GMT

ZoomText 10 Feature Leak – ZoomText Recorder!

 

Here’s the next sneak peek into the exciting new features of ZoomText 10 – ZoomText Recorder!

ZoomText Recorder allows you to turn text from documents, webpages, email, etc. into audio recordings that you can transfer to your mobile device and listen to at your convenience.

Recordings can be saved directly to a ZoomText Recorder playlist in iTunes or Windows Media Player and automatically synced to your mobile device. Or, if you’d rather, you can just save the file to a desired location on your computer. Each recording is created using your choice of ZoomText voices or any other voices available on your system.

It’s a simple, easy to use tool that allows you to multitask, increase your productivity, and take those pesky, long documents with you on the go. See for yourself just how it works in its video debut:

Be of the first to get your hands on ZoomText 10 by pre-ordering! We’ve got a bunch of promos running and they’re only good until the end of the year, so don’t delay. We’re taking pre-orders for US and Canada only by phone at 800-859-0270 or 802-362-3612 option #2. Here are all the details…

• Free ZoomText 10 t-shirt with any ZoomText order while supplies last

• $10 off any upgrade

• $20 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + camera package

• $20 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + Large-Print Keyboard

• $30 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + camera package + Large-Print Keyboard

We’ve posted all the nitty gritty pricing details in a post earlier this week.  Stay tuned for more info on the other features we’ve included in ZoomText 10!

 

ZoomText 10 Feature Leak – ZoomText Recorder!
Rebecca White
Fri, 18 Nov 2011 18:05:15 GMT

Minor Update to AMIS, Open Source DAISY Software Player Now Available

 

AMIS is a software program for reading DAISY books. It is self-voicing, therefore no specialized screen-reading software is needed. AMIS 3.1.3 is now available for download from http://daisy.org/amis. This is a minor update with the following change: DAISY 3 books with numbered lists that span page breaks are now displayed with the correct numbering.

Thanks to everyone who has reported bugs and suggested improvements.

Minor Update to AMIS, Open Source DAISY Software Player Now Available
VLuceno
Sat, 19 Nov 2011 05:24:10 GMT

Get New IVONA Text to Speech Voices FREE for Android

 

IVONA Software has released the latest beta version (1.0.10b) of IVONA Voices for the Android platform, providing lifelike voice quality for Android devices that support the TTS functionality.

IVONA Text to Speech Voices have become the preferred TTS technology for a variety of Android apps. From helping people to drive safely by using hands-free functionality to Navigation and text messages to enjoying e-books while “on the road”, to the many work and recreational activities popular among today’s mobile, multitasking consumers - users can count on IVONA for clear, accurate, always accessible spoken messages.

The new, FREE IVONA Text to Speech Voices offer:

• Louder and clearer speech
• Even greater accuracy in pronunciation
• Less demand on internal storage space.

The IVONA Voices for Android are available FREE until the end of beta tests, so we encourage everyone to visit mobile.ivona.com and check out the list of IVONA TTS voices soon. More information about IVONA TTS voices can be found on the IVONA Software website.

Get New IVONA Text to Speech Voices FREE for Android
VLuceno
Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:23:59 GMT

ZoomText 10 Feature Leak – Enhanced WebFinder!

 

Here’s the next sneak peek into the exciting new features of ZoomText 10 – Enhanced WebFinder!

The Enhanced WebFinder allows you to search webpages for specific words or phrases, or skim through pages to find items of interest.  As you navigate through the page, each item you come to is highlighted and announced.  When an item of interest is found, WebFinder can start reading aloud from that location.  If the item is a link to another page, WebFinder can execute the link and you can continue your search on the new page.

All of these actions are performed using WebFinder’s simple toolbar and keyboard commands.  The WebFinder toolbar also has a popup dialog that displays a list of page elements (headings, links, controls, etc.) that can be filtered and sorted to quickly find information.

The power and flexibility of WebFinder makes web browsing fast, efficient and more productive.  See for yourself just how it works in its video debut:

Be of the first to get your hands on ZoomText 10 by pre-ordering! We’ve got a bunch of promos running and they’re only good until the end of the year, so don’t delay. We’re taking pre-orders for US and Canada only by phone at 800-859-0270 or 802-362-3612 option #2. Here are all the details…

• Free ZoomText 10 t-shirt with any ZoomText order while supplies last

• $10 off any upgrade

• $20 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + camera package

• $20 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + Large-Print Keyboard

• $30 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + camera package + Large-Print Keyboard

We’ve posted all the nitty gritty pricing details in a post earlier this week.  Stay tuned for more info on the other features we’ve included in ZoomText 10!

 

ZoomText 10 Feature Leak – Enhanced WebFinder!
Rebecca White
Mon, 21 Nov 2011 15:05:22 GMT

November AccessWorld is now available!

 

AFB	American Foundation for the Blind	TM
Expanding possibilities for people with vision loss

The November issue of AccessWorld is now available on our website.
This issue features:

· Editor's Page —AccessWorld Holiday Issue

· Holiday Gift Ideas for People with Vision Loss, by Bradley Hodges —Great gift ideas, in a range of prices, for people who are blind or visually impaired.

· Choosing Toys for Children with Vision Loss, by Tara Annis —What to buy and what to avoid when shopping for a blind or visually impaired child. Great tips and gift resources to help brighten a child's face during the holidays.

· Online Holiday Shopping Using a Screen Reader: A Guide to Popular Retail Websites, by Janet Ingber —Thanks to online shopping, you don't have to deal with the craziness of going to a store and trying to find the item you want—you can shop at your leisure any hour of the day or night on the Internet. If you use a screen reader, this article will help you navigate some popular retail websites.

· Recruiting Workers with Disabilities: A Profile of Joyce Bender, Owner of Bender Consulting Services, by Deborah Kendrick —A conversation with Joyce Bender, founder of Bender Consulting Services, Inc., a for-profit company committed solely to matching employers with job seekers with disabilities.

· Left to Your Own Devices: Results of a Study on the Usability of Everyday Household and Electronics Products for People with Vision Loss, by Jaclyn Packer and Morgan Blubaugh —The data collected from this research provides AFB with valuable information on the types of products most in need of an accessible interface, and the preferred methods for accessibility by blind and visually impaired users.

· Letters to the Editor —Worldwide Distributor of the Touch Memo Responds to AccessWorld Evaluation from the September 2011 issue.

· AccessWorld News
AccessWorld® is the American Foundation for the Blind's technology magazine.
Be sure to sign up on the AccessWorld home page to receive AccessWorld Alerts, an e-mail announcement letting you know when new issues of AccessWorld are posted.

Source: Email

ZoomText 10 Feature Leak – Background Reader!

 

Here’s the next sneak peek into the exciting new features of ZoomText 10 – Background Reader!

Background Reader is a tool that allows you to listen to documents, webpages, emails, or any text while simultaneously performing other tasks. Just think of the possibilities…listen to what Background Reader is speaking and:

• Take notes on what you’re listening to
• Browse webpages or check your email
• View its corresponding information, such as pictures and illustrations

It’s a simple, easy to use tool that allows you to multitask and increase your productivity. See for yourself just how it works in its video debut:

Be of the first to get your hands on ZoomText 10 by pre-ordering! We’ve got a bunch of promos running and they’re only good until the end of the year, so don’t delay. We’re taking pre-orders for US and Canada only by phone at 800-859-0270 or 802-362-3612 option #2. Here are all the details…

• Free ZoomText 10 t-shirt with any ZoomText order while supplies last

• $10 off any upgrade

• $20 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + camera package

• $20 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + Large-Print Keyboard

• $30 off any ZoomText 10 (new or upgrade) + camera package + Large-Print Keyboard

We’ve posted all the nitty gritty pricing details in a post earlier this week.  Stay tuned for more info on the other features we’ve included in ZoomText 10!

 

ZoomText 10 Feature Leak – Background Reader!
Rebecca Proskin
Wed, 16 Nov 2011 15:05:45 GMT

Serotalk Podcast 85: I Want Food!

 

Listen to SeroTalk Podcast 85: I Want Food!

This week, Jamie Pauls, Ricky Enger, and Joe Steinkamp discuss the top news stories of the week. Stories covered in this episode include:

Browsing

AOL still has 3.5 million dial-up subscribers

Adobe Stops Development of Mobile Browser Flash [REPORT]

Will there be a Silverlight 6 and does it matter?

The end of plug ins?

Firefox 8.0 released

New extension for Liber and Open Office

What’s new in accessibility in the Firefox 8 update?

Kindle Cloud Reader Comes to Firefox

Microsoft Internet Explorer 10 to add spell checking, auto-correct

Which of the big five Web Browsers is the Best? (Review)

General Tech

RIM can’t catch a break. New troubles push PlayBook OS 2.0 to February. 

Google to end support for Gmail on Blackberries

Apple

Oregon Puts iPad Voting on the Map

Apple App Store Hack Makes Good Apps Go Bad

Unlike iPhone 4, Consumer Reports recommends iPhone 4S | The Digital Home – CNET News –

iPhone 4S speakers don’t play stereo correctly, tests show

TA Daily Tip 330: iOS 5.0.1 Over the Air Update

Five other fixes I want in iOS 5.0.1 | iPhone Atlas – CNET Reviews –

SiriSpective

Apple confirms Siri isn’t coming to any other devices as of now

Want To Use Siri To Control Your Mac? Now You Can!

How to Quickly Launch Apps With Siri

Braille

Type in Braille on your iOS device – EveryWare Technologies:

If you use Braille with your iPhone, iPad or iPod, there’s a Braille User Group on AppleVis to connect with others:

Top Braille

More information on Top Braille

The UK adopts standard for English Braille

AT

Why We’re All Wrong About the Future of User Interfaces

blastbay: audio demo of our upcoming game, Perilous Hearts!

OCR plugin for NVDA:

NEW FAQ on Code Factory’s Noke Screen Reader

Amazon buys a voice recognition company to add Siri functions to Kindle?

Mailbag

iReport from Edward Alonzo on GW Micro OCR device and the Blind iPhone

From Michael Bryant, we are promoting the show notes at serotalk.com here.

Hello all,

I am interested in the free download of the Jaws 12 and the Windows 7 downloads.  Both by Kathy Ann Mertha.

  It has be difficult to find it.  Would you forward me thelinks?

My name is michael Bryant

Thanks so much

Best regards and love your podcasts.

From Ben King

Dear serotalk team,

You did an excellent job with the show.  My question is to you.  Is the windows seven book using system access going to be in Braille?  Please let me know.

  Keep up the great work!  Look forward to the next show.

Blessings,

Ben

From Gary, no last name given on the Twitter and iPhone

Hey all. Great podcast. Another good twitter app for the iPhone is twitterific. I use that one.

Another one from Dan about NLS

Hello,

Thank you for your interest in what we are thinking about!

I received my NLS digital Talking Book player about a year ago. In 2009 and 2010, there were quarterly reports about it in the News; I live in Northern California and receive the Talking Book Lending Library News in both print and Braille. I’ll admit not using the player much for NLS reading material. I have received a few cartridges from the library in Sacramento, but more from Christian Record Services library, and I bought a personal 2 gig cartridge from Perkins School for the Blind. I use it mainly for Librivox books and for playing high fidelity music in jam situations and at church, where mp3s and wma files come in handy. 2 Gigs is a lot of space and I only occasionally have to use compression to reduce the size of movie files or larger music files. I have the upgrade for the new player, and I have found it easy when necessary to download the upgrade software and install it from the cartridge.

So I don’t know about the claim that the digital players are not distributed well in Northern California or how accurate it is. I think it might be more fair to say that there may be a yawning disinterest on the part of some of the qualified blind people who could, if they wished, receive it. Many of them seem to think the tapes they want are simply more widely available than good books on cartridges. What good is the player if you can’t get the books or magazines you want to play on it? As books on cartridge and thumb drive become more widely available, the player may become more popular. I would love it if you keep commenting regarding thoughts regarding your use of digital talking book players, distributions, other applications of said technology, and the BARD Web site. Mentioning some of the lesser known libraries would help, too.

Oh, by the way, my friend Sheila in Philadelphia bought a cartridge, too, and she likes having Librivox books and music on it, too, and we have also been reading some recordings from http://www.fcbh.org

Sincerely,

Dan Shelley

More on NLS, this time from Beth.

Hi, way to go on podcast 84!  Mike’s thoughts about book-writing are great and I have a site which may make future publishing and writing easier, here is the link for more info and you guys can explore the whole site at your leisure and as you prefer:

http://www.hyperink.com/platform

I love my NLS player, the sound is exemplary, hope the Stratus is that good too!  Regarding the new Read Easy Plus:  I see a couple of genuine markets.  Sometimes, blind tech users just want simplicity and, in this case, portability, with just one machine, no lugging around a laptop, camera, plus your material to scan.  Some seniors would also definitely benefit.  You discussed Facebook, a funny thing happened on Skype the other night.  I got one call announcing some kind of I.D. number, what was that?  I also got 2 requests to be added to my contacts from people I never heard of and I blocked those and found the list of status indicators and I now am invisible on Skype, except if I know I have a call scheduled.  How did those people get my Skype name?  Keep up the terrific work, guys!  Beth

From Mike Arigo

Just listened to pod cast 84, a few comments. I like the android shoes idea. Hopefully they would have a speaker, this would allow you to have spoken directions as well. That GW Micro reading thing is silly, I would also like to know who would waste money on that, notice I said waste, not spend, because that’s what it is. You could get a nice computer, scanning software and a scanner or camera for so much less.

Why pay more for a device that only does one thing, even for someone who doesn’t want to do anything else, get a computer and put the scanning software in their start up folder in windows, or log in items on the mac and it will automatically start when you turn on the computer. I cannot think of any reason to get that at all. This new version of keysoft is another example, charging for an update and the main new feature is PDF support. Let’s see, I’ve been able to read PDF files since 2001 when Adobe made acrobat reader accessible in Windows, and on the mac, the preview application which comes with the mac reads PDF files and is very accessible. Another example of how these specialty note takers are way behind the times, cost too much and need to be replaced by main stream products that are now available, again, there’s really no reason to buy one of those when you can get all of that functionality and more much cheaper.

SeroSpectives from October 20^th  Email from Laney

I put up a post about the the U.S. Department of Transportation’s proposed regulations on airline web and check-in kiosk accessibility.  Information on how to comment and areas where I think the regulations need to be strengthened, is included. (Comments due November 25, 2011).

The direct link is: http://lflegal.com/2011/11/dot-proposed-regs-2/

Kickers

Japanese Company Develops Robot Guide Dog

Serotalk Podcast 85: I Want Food!
jpauls
Wed, 16 Nov 2011 04:06:33 GMT

OneVoice Does Less On iPhone And iPad

 

How important is the ability to communicate? As important as it gets might say it all. The OneVoice app for iPhone and iPad targets usability by utilizing an age old standard- Keep it simple.

OneVoice Does Less On iPhone And iPad
Ziggi
Tue, 15 Nov 2011 22:43:47 GMT