Dear AccessWorld Editor,
I just read 2015 Employment Resources for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired by Joe Strechay in AccessWorld. Thanks for all the effort he must have put into it.
I find it difficult to find the right path back to employment. Most resources seem to be geared toward younger blind people and blind people who are looking for work in nonprofessional roles.
I was an applications developer for 25 years in a major financial institution. Unfortunately the department I worked in was disbanded and everyone lost their jobs. Because of the type of system we worked on there weren't opportunities for any of us to upgrade our skills. Since my separation from the company in December 2013, I've struggled to find any opportunities for someone in my position.
So, my comment on this article is there needs to be more resources for middle-aged blind workers who were displaced from their old careers. There is also a need for help for those people who went blind in middle-age and can no longer do their old jobs. We aren't entry level and we shouldn't be expected to start from the ground floor in our 50s.
Thank you for listening,
Glen A. Rivara
Dear AccessWorld Editor,
As a confirmed AccessWorld fan for many years, I look forward to every issue with excitement and attentiveness. There is one area which would make the magazine even more useful and well-rounded: information for those in every stage of life who are blind and who also have other disabilities. Which tools and apps are thought most useful for this population? What strategies are felt most preferable in daily living and employment situations? What about employment for this population, concerning thoughts on best fits regarding specific jobs, acquisition, accommodation, and employment maintenance? Lifelong total blindness in my situation has been joined by 50 percent hearing loss, leading to balance and orientation issues, including in my home. Moderate nerve damage in both arms prohibits cane or dog use, notwithstanding my choice of also using sighted guides in former times. How about a review of orientation aids, maybe apps, possibly making use of RFID tags on objects and landmarks for identification and guidance, also consideration of the Humanware Trekker Breeze. Thank you for your consideration of my thoughts and for such a wealth of knowledge, written in a concise, friendly format. Keep up the great work!
Beth Terranova
Dear AccessWorld Editor,
Thanks for the article LinkedIn Career Networking Website and App: Assessing Accessibility for People Who Are Blind by Jamie Pauls. I have tried using the LinkedIn website with JAWS and have also used the iPhone app. I wouldn't say LinkedIn is inaccessible but I did find it a bit daunting to figure out where I should start. Perhaps someone should create a LinkedIn tutorial. It also has been a challenge to find another blind person who uses LinkedIn to help me get started.
Sincerely,
Dan TeVelde
Dear AccessWorld Editor,
I am a retired 74-year-old social worker with some limited vision. I've been legally blind all my life due to retinopothy of prematurity but during the past few years my vision has progressively worsened to the point where I can no longer read newspapers or magazines. Fortunately with today's widespread use of personal computers there is the ability to magnify text with word processors and read online periodicals and have them read with text-to-speech programs.
Also, I have purchased a Magnilink S electronic magnifier with OCR to get help with reading the mail and other material not online. I find it very useful and convenient to use at home [but it is not portable enough] to take it outside to use when I go shopping.
There are a number of hand held products on the market. But low vision products are not conveniently available to examine and compare, even in New York City. This makes it difficult to decide which products would be best suited for the individual.
There is the Jewish Guild/Lighthouse in Manhattan that has some electronic magnifiers on display to look at and try but not a large selection. And there is a charge to the client if taking more than a half hours' time.
MaxiAids—a private retailer of products for the physically challenged—has a display showroom at their Farmingdale, L.I. location, though a salesman is in attendance to encourage purchase.
In addition to this, there are various distributors representing various manufacturers that will make home visits to demonstrate products like electronic magnifiers. However I have always felt pressured in a home demo situation and would very much prefer to visit a Best Buy or a Staples if they would carry electronic magnifiers and just take my time examining products and only ask for help if needed.
In the absence of this, I find that YouTube is a good resource for demonstrating and sometimes reviewing electronic magnifiers and other products. The YouTube videos display a range of quality in their presentation. Sometimes they are quite informative, sometimes they are very limited use showing merely still shots of a product from different angles with blaring music accompanying.
Most informative is when a live person shows the product in demonstration and discusses its uses.
One should understand that these videos are basically commercials produced by the retailer or manufacturer and should be viewed critically, but nevertheless they can provide useful information for the consumer to help him decide which product to choose.
At present I would like to see if a handheld electronic magnifier with OCR would be convenient enough for me to carry around comfortably in a shirt or pants pocket.
There is the Aquos 5-inch which seems to be the same as the Mercury 5-inch. There is the Mercury 7-inch and the Prodigi Tablet (5-inch).
I think it would be a very helpful service if AccessWorld could evaluate and review these handheld electronic magnifiers with OCR. There are so many electronic magnifiers out there to choose from though they are quite expensive and an objective comparative evaluation can help us make an informed decision.
Although iPhone and other smartphones have apps with functions similar to handheld magnifiers, it may be that a dedicated device for this purpose may be better (or not) and not everyone wants a smartphone.
Thank you,
Ray Turbin
Dear AccessWorld Editor,
Thank you for this great article, Digital Task Management Solutions: Barriers to Accessibility are Barriers to Productivity and Convenience by John Lilly and Olivia Milam, about task management and its accessibility (or lack thereof). Did you try Omnifocus2? I only use it on my iPhone, which is fine for me, but it seems to be very accessible. At least, I haven't noticed any issues with the functions that I have wanted to use. Just thought I would mention it, since you hadn't.
Thanks again. This is such a great publication!
Regards
Tom Dekker
Editor's Response
Hi Tom,
Thank you for reading AccessWorld and for your kind comments; both are appreciated.
In response to your question, I checked with the article's authors. They originally looked at Omnifocus2 for inclusion in the review, but they ruled it out, because it only supports iOS and Mac. They were looking for software that supports multiple platforms for that particular article.
Best,
Lee Huffman
Reader's Response
Hi Lee,
Well, the multi-platform approach makes sense all right. But for those who are happy doing it on their iOS device or Mac, the Omnifocus people have even gone so far is to build in all kinds of VoiceOver hints that really make Omnifocus2 a breeze to use. And given their great attitude, I wonder if AFB could encourage them to develop it for other platforms, because it really does rock! Anyway, keep up the great work.
Regards,
Tom Dekker
