Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I want to thank John Rempel for a very good review of the Uber rideshare service published in the June issue. I have used this service three or four times here in the Chicago area, and I found it to be reliable and the drivers friendly and helpful. I definitely agree with Rempel that you should use the options provided after a ride has been requested to let the driver know you are blind if you can't see the vehicle, so he or she will know to look for you.

Sincerely,

Ray Campbell

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I am a person with low vision due to albinism, and I recently read an article in the Back Issues of AccessWorld, entitled, Celebrating Nearly 12 Years as a Bioptic Driver, by Deanna Austin, published in December 2010.

I have been behind the wheel several times, but never out on the open road during normal driving hours. I love cars, and it has always been my dream to be able to drive legally.

I have read a bit about bioptic lenses and the driving laws. I currently live in Florida, and according to what I have read, I would not be able to obtain a driver's license with bioptic lenses in the state of Florida. I am wondering if there is an alternative to bioptics or if you know of any laws that may have changed. Any additional information on the matter would help.

Thanks in advance,

Oscar

Response from AccessWorld Author, Ike Presley:

I am a current bioptic driver, and coincidentally, I was one of the first bioptic drivers in Florida back in the early 70s, until they sent us all a registered letter telling us our licenses had been suspended, with no explanation. We tried to fight it, but as they say, "…you can't fight city hall."

I do not know the current situation in Florida, but here are some resources you might want to check out.

I urge you to connect with NOAH. It's an organization that does a lot of good work. It is having a conference in San Diego July 10–13, 2014, where I will be presenting an overview of technology for people with low vision.

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I read the last two articles about Accessible Quick Books with great interest as I have been struggling to use the accounting software with JAWS since starting my business in January, 2014. After reading the first article entitled, An Introduction to Accessible QuickBooks by Intuit and My Blind Spot and the second article entitled, Continuing the Accessibility Conversation: An Interview with Albert Rizzi of My Blind Spot and Lori Samuels of Intuit, both by Aaron Preece, I have two questions:

  1. Is there a separate version of the software that incorporates the accessibility fixes or is Quick Books Pro 2014 accessible off the shelf?
  2. The articles mention JAWS scripts. Where can I find the Quick Books scripts for JAWS?

Thank you for your assistance,

Douglas Martens

Response from AccessWorld Author, Aaron Preece:

QuickBooks Pro 2014 contains some accessibility fixes, but to benefit from the full range of current accessibility, it is necessary to use the JAWS scripts. The scripts do not seem to be publicly posted at this time, but you may be able to obtain a copy of the scripts from My Blind Spot by sending an e-mail to info@myblindspot.org.

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

In the archives of AccessWorld, I recently read the article from the February 2014 issue entitled, Evaluating the Accessibility of the Microsoft Surface Pro 2 Using Narrator, by Bill Holton, and I have a few questions.

I am a school teacher and wanted Narrator to read some text as an audio aid. My problem is that once it's reading, no other actions can be performed without causing it to read something new.

Is there a way to have Narrator read selected text in only one window and allow you to navigate away to multitask and work on other things?

Thanks,

Brian Dang

Response from AccessWorld Author, Bill Holton

The reason Narrator is stopping when you start doing other tasks is because of a feature called interruptability. Most screen readers will stop talking when you press any other key. Imagine if you were a very fast typist and had to wait at the end of each sentence for the screen reader to catch up with you.

Unfortunately, I do not know of any way to toggle interruptability off using Narrator, and when I called the Microsoft Accessibility Answer Desk, the technician could not find one, either. If you have a recent version of Microsoft Office on your Surface Pro, consider installing Window-Eyes, which is free for users of Office. Window-Eyes offers the option to turn off interruptability in the Keyboard Settings menu.

I hope this helps.

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

In the June issue of AccessWorld, Janet Ingber wrote, Mike Malarsie Teaches How to Be Blind. What an inspirational story of a brave person with great soul and great compassion.

Thank you for sharing this with your readers. I will introduce AccessWorld magazine to many in the blind community in Zimbabwe.

Gladys

Article Topic
Letters to the Editor