Dear AccessWorld readers,

The holidays are behind us now, and it's time to start looking forward to a new year. For many, that means New Year's resolutions and commitments to exercising, losing weight, eating healthier foods, taking better care of ourselves, and taking better care of our personal finances. If getting a better understanding of your assets and debts, income, savings, and monthly expenses is on your priority list, check out Bill Holton's article in this issue, Spotlight on Personal Finance Accessibility.

On another very important topic, AccessWorld can't let January go by without celebrating the birthday, contributions, and legacy of Louis Braille. The fact is, 200 years ago, a child or adult who was blind had no effective way to read or write independently. Today, thanks to Louis Braille's invention and advancements in technology, children and adults who are blind can read and write as well as their sighted peers. The invention of braille, a system of raised dots representing letters, numbers, and punctuation, truly revolutionized independent communication for people who are blind or visually impaired.

This month, AccessWorld celebrates the anniversary of Louis Braille's birthday, January 4, 1809. We also celebrate the braille code, named after its young inventor, and the expanded possibilities for literacy and independence this code created for people with vision loss.

For users of braille, January 4, 2016 also marks an important day, the day when the US officially transitions from the English Braille Code to the United English Braille Code. Be sure to read about this transition in Jamie Pauls' article in this issue.

The AccessWorld team invites you to visit The Louis Braille Museum on the AFB website, which illustrates the life and legacy of the creator of the braille code. Using photographs, engravings, and illustrations from books preserved in the AFB Archives and Rare Book Collection, the museum traces Braille's life from his childhood in Coupvray, France, through his student years in Paris, to his invention of the braille code and the recognition of its importance throughout the world.

We also invite you to read The Reading Fingers, the full text of Jean Roblin's classic 1952 biography of Louis Braille, and "Braille, the Magic Wand of the Blind," Helen Keller's essay on Louis Braille, written around 1924. In this essay, Keller describes how the braille system works and relates how she benefited from learning and using braille. She describes the reading systems that existed prior to braille and the debates of the late 19th and early 20th centuries over competing embossed systems.

I also encourage you to check out Cay Holbrook's blog post, "Falling in Love with Braille," on the AFB FamilyConnect site. If you happen to be a teacher of visually impaired students or a professional in the field of vision loss, you may want to take Reinforcing Braille Using the iPad, a webinar available for purchase from the AFB e-Learning Center.

Today, braille has made the leap into the increasingly fast-paced world of technology via braille notetakers, braille displays, and braille friendly apps. The following braille-related articles from the AccessWorld archives will be interesting and useful to those who are interested in, or users of, braille and braille technology.

• Braille Sense U2 Mini from HIMS: Good Things Do Come in Small Packages
• An Evaluation of the iBrailler Notes Braille Notetaking App from iBrailler LLC
• Product Evaluation: BrailleNote Apex from HumanWare
• The Device That Refreshes: How to Buy a Braille Display
• She Rules the Braille Domain: An Interview with Judy Dixon
• Product Evaluation: Braille Sense OnHand Notetaker and PDA from HIMS, Inc.
• Refreshabraille Portable Braille Display and Keyboard: A Product Evaluation
• The Touch That Means So Much: Training Materials for Computer Users Who Are Deaf-Blind
• Dr. Abraham Nemeth: The Louis Braille of Mathematics Dies at Age 94
• First Ever Braille Summit: Review of an Extraordinary Conference from the National Library Service and Perkins School
• National Braille Press Presents the 2012 Touch of Genius Prize for Innovation

The AccessWorld team hopes you enjoy this issue, and we wish you the best in the New Year!

Lee Huffman
AccessWorld Editor-in-Chief
American Foundation for the Blind

With a big thank you to the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), AFB was again able to attend the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES), the annual global technology tradeshow that takes place in early January in Las Vegas. CTA, formerly the Consumer Electronics Association, made it possible for John Lilly, who works in the AFB Tech office in Huntington, WV, and me to attend the show. The official show ran from Wednesday, January 6 through Saturday, January 9. On Monday and Tuesday, special briefings, some of which I was able to attend, were held for the media. Here is our show wrap up.

As Lyle Lovett might say, CES is not large, it's huge. More than 3,800 exhibitors unveiled their latest technologies across more than 2.47 million square feet of exhibit space to more than 170,000 industry professionals. Perhaps most surprising for the new visitor to CES is the size of the exhibit booths. Many booths resemble nothing so much as the large suburban homes that the products on display are meant to, eventually, fill up.

This year, we tried to focus on technologies for home and health, which are major growth areas for the consumer technology industry. John also took a close look at various virtual and augmented reality lens- and head-mounted display technologies to see what kind of value these might offer to people with usable low vision. And, never fear, we fit in time to look at some of the many audio technology companies that come to CES, because we love our headphones and earbuds, especially Bluetooth connected ones. And, on the topic of Bluetooth, it seemed like the current view is every technology is better with Bluetooth. There was reportedly even a Bluetooth-enabled flower pot at CES.

Technology of Special Interest to People with Vision Loss

Samsung is continuing to strengthen its commitment to accessibility. The company included an accessibility section within its booth at CES. One of the items on display was the Samsung UN55KU7500 Smart UHD TV with Accessibility Features. The TV won a Best of Innovation award. The TV incorporates voice output menus for controlling and choosing features as well as a remote with decent tactile keys.

One of our first booth visits at CES was Casio, which was heavily promoting its new rugged smart watch. We were there to see something else they are quite proud of, the 2.5D Printer system for producing tactile graphics and braille. The tactile printing component of the printer relies on heat to raise images, dots, lines etc. up to 2.5 millimeters on specially produced paper treated with micro-powder. The new printer also allows for standard printing on the same sheet. The graphics and the braille felt sturdy and substantial.

Casio expects to introduce the 2.5D Printing Technology into the Japanese market in the spring of 2016. I was told that the cost for the printer might be between $18,000 and $20,000 US and each sheet of paper is likely to be priced at $2-3 US.

The printer is fairly large in size, resembling a coffee table that has a computer with a large touchscreen built into the top and two printing components underneath. Have a look at the website for more information. Casio also plans to bring the printer to the 2016 CSUN technology conference in March.

French start-up MagicaVision was showing an Android phone designed specifically for people who are blind or visually impaired. The phone (which resembles a long rectangular TV remote control), features a touchscreen display on one side and tactile buttons on the other side. Besides phone functions, the device will also work as a TV remote, color and light detector, obstacle detector, and more. The company says it will launch the device in France later this spring and hopes to bring it to the US late in 2016. The target price is $199 US. You can find some information at the MagicaVision website.

Polymer Braille Inc., a North Carolina company that hopes to revolutionize braille display technology was also at CES. Their concept is to use advanced polymer plastic to create the force to drive the braille pins. They do not have a prototype display to show yet, but their hope is to launch a multi-line display within a year. The goal is certainly worthy, but many attempts that have been made to develop new braille display technologies have thus far not succeeded.

Capturing Those Special Audio Moments

Who has not wished they could have saved a priceless audio moment or that essential comment missed in a meeting? Well, Kapture, a new audio recording device featured at CES, might be just the solution. We had a chance to discuss the device with Mike Sarow, co-founder and CEO,of the Cincinnati-based Kapture Audio. The Kapture device is a wrist band that continuously records audio in a 60-second loop. Simply double tap the wrist band, or the clip-on, watch-sized device and a recording of the previous 60 seconds of what you've heard or said is beamed to the associated app on your iOS or Android smart phone. According to the Kapture Audio website, the omni-directional microphone picks up sound within a 5-foot radius. Sarow said he developed the concept as a means to encourage us to listen more attentively to the people around us. He says that grabbing those priceless snippets of things our children say has been a big draw. Others use the device to "capture" key points in a meeting. Of course, it's easy to imagine that people who are blind might want to share interesting audio clips the way people now share photos.

The device, which costs $129 for the wrist band, is easy to use. Sarow says he is working on improving VoiceOver support, noting that some of the editing functions are not currently fully accessible. Audio clips are stored in your cloud-based account.

Tech in the Home

The connected home was a major focus of many companies at CES. We took a look at some products from iHome and iDevices. Both had similar functionality, allowing users to control electrical devices with the Apple voice-responsive Siri assistant as well as an iOS app. The smart devices were in many different forms such as electrical outlets and plugs, switches, light bulbs, thermostats, and even water leak detectors. Smart home devices could provide critical access for individuals with vision loss using an app on a smart phone to control mostly inaccessible hardware. Unfortunately, many of the companies were unable to comment on compatibility with VoiceOver or Talkback, but AFB will work to test access and make screen reader compatibility a standard feature of smart home apps.

Monitoring and Managing Health

In the healthcare area, the folks at Qardio were pleased to show off how well the QardioArm blood pressure monitor works with VoiceOver on Apple iOS products. We tested it with an iPhone using VoiceOver and found it very easy to set up, take measurements, and review results. The Qardio team also showed off QardioBase, a smart scale that measures your weight, body mass index (BMI), muscle mass, body fat percentage, and water and bone composition. We appreciated the candor of Qardio's CTO, Rosario Iannella, who indicated the app still needs some work for full VoiceOver access. It was possible to set up and use the device and read the results, but a bit more work will be needed to make the results easier to navigate and use. The company seems dedicated to making its products accessible through the app and their success with QardioArm shows they can do it. The QardioArm sells for $99 and the QardioBase for $149. Visit the Qardio website for information.

We also met with Omron Healthcare, a leading provider of clinical blood pressure monitors. Omron was showing two new blood pressure measurement devices and promoting its new initiative to address heart health. We looked at the new Wrist Blood Pressure Monitor, which includes an onboard display just like their upper arm model. It also communicates with the OMRON Connect app, but the app (which will be out later this year) does not work that well with VoiceOver. Along with providing blood pressure readings, the new wristband monitor also provides physical activity and sleep data. Omron representatives we spoke with said they were looking at changes to the app to improve VoiceOver access.

ReliefBand provides a technology-based solution for motion sickness or morning sickness. The target price for the band is $89. It delivers various levels of a mild electrical pulse to nerves in the wrist, which helps with nausea. The stimulation feels like a very mild electric shock.

For parents with vision loss who worry about supervising their child out in public areas, especially playgrounds and the like, the Child Angel might be a useful solution. This wearable technology allows you to track and find your child through GPS, Wi-Fi and GSM signals. Through the app, available for iOS and Android, you can determine your child's movements on your smart phone. An alarm is triggered if your child's device is disconnected and the battery lasts up to 48 hours. In my conversation at the booth, it seems that an alarm can also be set if your child moves too far away.

Virtual Reality

With virtual reality products hitting the consumer market, it seemed like a good idea for John to check out the products and research on display at CES, to determine if virtual reality can be used to assist individuals with low vision. At least one of the companies was actually touting their product for just that purpose. So, let's start with that one.

NuEyes, starting at $5,995, is a head-mounted display with an integrated camera, similar to the Jordy from Enhanced Vision. Designed to assist individuals with low vision, the device resembles a pair of sunglasses and fits over eyeglasses. The glasses stabilize images when magnified, and have different contrast settings. They also work with voice commands and swipe controls on the side of the device. NuEyes was a CES 2016 winner for technology that improves lives.

Vuzix received a Best of Innovation award at CES 2016 for their iWear wireless virtual reality headset. The iWear headset, which costs $500, is designed as a gaming and entertainment device and has integrated stereo headphones. The M3000 Smart Glasses (pricing not yet available) are an augmented reality device that overlays graphics and text. The M3000 has been "purpose-designed for commercial, professional, and prosumer users." Reps in their booth at CES were pushing this device to be used mainly in the medical and industrial fields, but it could have many more uses. The glasses have a semitransparent display that is positioned in front of the eye and an accompanying HD camera for recording and/or remote assistance. A related product, the M300 Smart Glasses (pricing not yet available), resembles the M3000 except the display is opaque instead of transparent. The display is fixed on an arm that can be positioned in the outer top portion of your field of view on either side of the glasses. The display is also designed so it can swing completely out of view when not in use. The frames of the smart glasses are designed to not interfere with prescription eyeglasses so both can be worn at the same time. This device may be worth further examination for potential uses, particularly in the low vision community. The HD camera, small and light enough to wear without fatigue, has image stabilization, which could be used to magnify certain items. One feature that the Vuzix representative mentioned is that the camera can be used to scan items such as a can of soup with the information provided via speech through the integrated earpiece.

I also had the opportunity to test out some research from Purdue University, which is developing a device that allows virtual reality devices to track forward and back positioning in 3D space. A virtual solar system was on display for demonstration of the technology. When you looked at a planet and moved forward, you zoomed into that planet. The currently available virtual reality headsets only allow for side-to-side and up and down movements. This technology would be a great addition for virtual reality.

The consumer version of the Oculus Rift, priced at $599, was on display, but unfortunately had an average wait time of about 2 hours to get a demo. The Samsung Gear VR was also available for a demo at the Oculus booth. The Gear VR is much more portable compared to the Rift. The Gear VR needs to be paired with a recent Samsung Galaxy smart phone, which acts as the display. This means that you won't be carrying any extra weight if you are transporting the Gear VR. The Gear VR is priced at $99.

What about Audio: Turn it Up!

It seemed like every company that makes headphones, earbuds, or speakers was at CES. Here are some highlights of our visits at CES. Obviously, we did not make it to anywhere near all the audio booths. Lots of companies were showing off waterproof or splash resistant Bluetooth speakers, so get ready for outdoor parties this summer. It also seemed like every booth had Bluetooth earbuds.

Invoxia, a French company, announced that its Triby speaker is the first third-party device to include the Amazon Alexa Voice Service. Triby is a portable connected speaker designed for the kitchen, including a magnetic back. Along with the Amazon Echo features, Triby includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, allowing Internet calls and a touchscreen message board. The Triby with Alexa will be available in Spring 2016 at a retail price of $199.

Another French company, Akoustic Arts, was demonstrating a directional speaker called the A. The A streams sound in a tight beam of perhaps a foot or so. Outside of the beam, you can't hear the speaker, or at least not very well. It was hard to demonstrate this at CES, because it was so loud on the exhibit floor, but the concept may prove interesting for people who want sound from a speaker but only in a discrete area, such as in front of their computer. In fact, company representatives said they are in discussions with computer manufacturers to place the speaker and associated technology in laptops.

Moving on to headphone and Bluetooth accessories, we were able to see a few interesting technologies. ZAGG, the mobile accessories company, showed off the FLEX ARC headset Wearable Earbuds + Speaker. The device is a neck loop frame with earbuds that extend and retract along with external speakers and microphone for listening and talking without the earbuds. The device we saw was not yet functional, so we couldn't judge the sound quality. It is expected to be out later this year at a retail price around $100.

We had a chance to visit Aftershokz, the developer of bone conduction headphones that are fairly popular in the blindness community because the headphone transmits sound into the cheek bone leaving the ear open to hear other sounds. We checked out their newest releases: Treks Titanium wireless, available for $129.99, and Bluez 2S, available for $79.95. Both offer powerful drivers and seem to be well constructed. The Trekz were built particularly for exercise and outdoor enthusiasts with a flexible titanium band.

Some of the more interesting Bluetooth earbuds were on display in the start-up area of CES. For example, Canadian start-up Revol technologies was showing off the Revols Bluetooth earbuds for which they had just completed a very successful Kickstarter campaign. Revols Bluetooth earbuds contain a gel that allows them to conform to the shape of your ear, which is then hardened to maintain the fit. The earbuds and associated app also include a system for passing through external sounds, along with an equalizer and a protective sweat resistant skin. They hope to ship earbuds by June or July 2016 at a target retail price of around $300.

Alpha Audiotronics, a New York City start-up, was showing their skybuds product and associated phone case. The Bluetooth earbuds are stored in the base of the phone case, which also includes a built-in charger for the phone and buds. They also sell a "pocket case" with built-in charger for the buds. They hope to ship the product in May 2016, for $279 with the phone case.

Hong-Kong-based Aumeo Audio has developed a small device to personalize the audio output levels to any headphone of your choice. Through an app, you first test your hearing to determine which frequencies may need to be enhanced. Then the device, which retails for approximately $200 and easily fits in a shirt pocket, delivers audio that is tailored to your specific hearing sensitivity. In a test at the booth, it was difficult to hear improvement from the device, but, in fairness, CES is a very loud place.

Plantronics unveiled the Voyager Focus UC, a business-oriented, stereo Bluetooth headset with Active Noise Canceling technology. The headset is built to provide great sound for conference calls or listening to music, and it also supports mobile and PC-based communications. Plantronics lists the battery life at 12 hours of talk time. The Voyager Focus UC retail price is $299.

Audio-Technica demonstrated its continued commitment to high-resolution audio. Among other headphones, they were eager to demonstrate the ATH-SR5BT wireless Hi-Res Audio headphones. The on-ear Bluetooth headphones are also equipped with aptX sound-improvement technology, specifically created to improve audio performance over a Bluetooth transmission. The ATH-SR5BT also feature a detachable cable with microphone and controller. They are hi-res compliant when connected via the included cable. The headphones should be available in the spring for around $200.

Finally, for those of us who sometimes need headphones at night but are looking for something a little lighter and less bulky, Bedphones, flat on-ear headphones designed for comfort while sleeping, might be the answer. The headphones, now in their 3rd generation, sell for around $59, and while they do not output a very high volume, the sound quality is good.

AcousticSheep also offers headphones designed for sleep. Their SleepPhones Harmony integrates Bluetooth wireless headphones (within a headband) with built-in sensors along with an audio application and a cloud server. The system is supposed to detect and analyze the wearer's head movement while they sleep to adjust volume, sounds, and beats based on the level of sleep.

As any of these or other stories we picked up at CES develop, we'll be sure to keep you posted.

As you read this, the CES show, an annual event about all things technology, is only just now opening, but lots has been happening already. Press events dominated Tuesday's schedule. I attended presentations by LG, Panasonic, and others.

Of course, LG bragged a good bit about their new TVs and the awesome picture and sound quality. I was actually more interested in hearing about new developments in home appliances and connected home technologies. I will report more about that later when I get a chance to see what they're offering.

Panasonic reviewed a number of new products and strategies, including work in Denver showing how to use technology to make cities more livable. They also hyped the revival of its Technics brand of audio components, including a new direct-drive turntable.

I want to give special attention to a couple of highlights, one related to healthcare and one tied to audio recording.

Let's start with the audio recording. I met Mike Sarow, co-founder, CEO, of Cincinnati-based Kapture Audio. The Kapture device and associated app for iOS or Android continuously records audio in a 60-second loop. Simply double tap the wrist band, or the clip-on, watch-sized device and a recording of the previous 60 seconds of what you've heard or said is beamed to your smart phone. According to the website kaptureaudio.com, the omni-directional microphone picks up sound within a 5-foot radius. Serow said he developed the concept as a means to encourage us to listen more attentively to the people around us. He says that grabbing those priceless snippets of things our children say has been a big draw. Others use the device to "capture" key points in a meeting. Of course, I can imagine that people who are blind might want to share audio clips the way people now share photos.

The device, which costs $129 for the wrist band, is easy to use and Serow says he is working on improving VoiceOver support. He says that some of the editing functions are not very accessible currently. Audio clips are stored in your cloud-based account.

Caption: The Kapture Audio wristband

In the healthcare area, the folks at Qardio were pleased to show off how well QardioArm, a blood pressure monitor, works with VoiceOver on Apple iOS products. I tested it with my iPhone and found it very easy to set up, take measurements, and examine results. The Qardio team also showed off QardioBase, their smart scale which tells you your weight, but also measures your body mass index (BMI), muscle mass, body fat percentage, water, and bone composition. I appreciated the candor of Qardio's CTO who indicated the app still needs some work for full VoiceOver access. I was able to set up and use the device and read the results, but I agree that a bit more work will be needed to make the results easier to navigate and use. The company seems dedicated to making its products accessible through the app and their success with QardioArm shows they can do it. The QardioArm sells for $99 and the QardioBase for $149. The website is getqardio.com.

Caption: Paul Schroeder trying out the QardioArm

Finally, I want to give two quick audio shout-outs. I had a nice visit with Stephanie from a company called Bedphones. They make a flat on-ear type wired headphone that is designed for comfort while sleeping. The headphone, which is in its 3rd generation, sells for around $59, and has a very nice sound quality.

I also had a nice visit with the good people at JLab Audio who were showing off earbuds, headphones, and Bluetooth Crasher speakers. I've been a big fan of JBuds for a long time. They have great sound and sturdiness for a product that costs less than $10.

I'll have lots more as the week of CES 2016 goes on, so stay tuned!

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

Holiday Shopping Using Your iOS Device by Janet Ingber was excellent! Thank you very much for this article. I never would've guessed that these shopping apps actually were accessible. iPhone 6 happiness!

Lilo Ljubisic

Eyes on the Prize: The Hadley School for the Blind Wants to Back Your Business

The Hadley School for the Blind's Forsythe Center for Employment and Entrepreneurship (FCE) was launched in 2011 to address the 70 to 80 percent unemployment and underemployment rate among Americans who are blind or visually impaired. Through this business education program, Hadley offers tuition-free courses to help prepare students for employment and entrepreneurship. Now, Hadley is announcing its inaugural 2016 New Venture Business Competition.

In the spirit of ABC's hit show, "Shark Tank," Hadley is inviting new, current, or recent Forsythe Center students to submit their plans for a start up for a chance to win one of three cash awards for up to $10,000. Entrants must have enrolled in at least one FCE module for consideration of their business plan. However, it's not too late to become an FCE student and participate in the competition. New FCE students must provide proof of legal blindness from a physician before enrolling in an FCE course. Participation and submission rules can be found on the New Venture Business Competition website. To enroll in the FCE, please visit the Hadley website or call Student Services at 800-526-9909.

Contestants will need to move quickly, though, as the entry period ends when the clock strikes 11:59 pm CST on Feb. 15, 2016. Winners will be recognized and receive their awards at the 2016 Business Leadership and Superior Training (BLAST) Conference in Chicago, May 17–20, 2016.

Help improve SiteCues!

Help improve SiteCues by taking a quick survey. Your input is essential to make the web more usable for people with diverse abilities. By offering your feedback, you will help SiteCues align development priorities for 2016.

Senators Urge Obama Administration to Release Proposed Rules for Internet Access Under the Americans with Disabilities Act

Senator Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.) led a group of eight other Senators in a letter to the Obama administration calling for the prompt release of rules that would clarify and support access to information and communications technology (ICT) under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Unfortunately, because the ADA predated the information-technology revolution, the statute and its implementing regulations lack sufficient clarity on the question of ICT accessibility. This ambiguity has resulted in individuals with disabilities facing frequent and unacceptable barriers to Internet access and information and communications technology.

Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Cory A. Booker (D-N.J.), Barbara A. Mikulski (D-Md.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Benjamin L. Cardin (D-Md.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), and Richard J. Durbin (D-Ill.) also signed the letter to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

A copy of the letter to OMB can be found here. A digitally accessible version can be found here.

2015 Accessibility Year in Review — A Message from the Facebook Accessibility Team

What a year 2015's been! Here are a few highlights, stories and reflections from the world of Facebook Accessibility in 2015. We are grateful for the support and love we have received from all of you and promise to keep advancing the accessibility of Facebook's products. Facebook's goal is to connect the world, and that means everyone.

Growing the Team

While accessibility is an aspect of code quality owned by every engineer at Facebook, it's critical to have a central team enabling this ownership. Meet the people that recently joined Facebook's Accessibility engineering team this year.

• Jesse Beach (UI Engineer)
• Matt King (Accessibility Specialist)
• Georgiy Kassabli (iOS Engineer)

Spotlight on our Community

Building accessible products enables people to use Facebook in empowering ways. Here are two stories we published this past year that capture this:

• Lisa's story
• Trevor's story

Raising Awareness

We organized a number of accessibility awareness events:

• We ran our annual accessibility bug bashing session in honor of International Day of Persons with Disabilities.
• We organized an internal lunch and series of talks from people around the company (Facilities, Research, Product, and more!) working on accessibility initiatives in honor of Global Accessibility Awareness Day.
• We hosted the American Association for People with Disabilities Tech Forum meet-up in DC:
• We sponsored and coordinated the Toronto DementiaHack:

Making Accessibility Mainstream

One of our main goals is to help push accessibility into the mainstream of technology. Here are a few ways we did that the past year:

• We launched our Accessibility Toolkit, a blueprint for scaling accessibility within our company and larger engineering organizations.
• The Teaching Accessibility initiative launched the week of the ADA's 25th celebration. We partnered with our peers in tech, academia and advocacy to help improve awareness and knowledge of accessibility across design, engineering and HCI.
• We released our accessibility best practices training tutorial called HIKE! This is one of the tools that we've built in-house to teach web developers basics on accessibility, and now it's available for anyone in the world.
• We announced the React Native Accessibility API, which allows web developers building apps on iOS and Android with React to make their experiences more accessible to people who use assistive technology. Learn more about how to use the API.

Recognition of our work

• WIRED covered Facebook Accessibility twice this year:
  • http://www.wired.com/2015/02/meet-team-makes-possible-blind-use-facebook/
  • http://www.wired.com/2015/10/facebook-artificial-intelligence-describes-photo-captions-for-blind-people/
• We were awarded Employer of the Year by The Arc San Francisco, an agency focused on enabling employment for people with developmental disabilities: Facebook for iOS was added to Apple's "Popular apps with VoiceOver" collection in iTunes! We're honored by the selection and have a lot more in store for making our iOS apps great for people with disabilities!

Building a Culture that cares about Empathy and Accessibility

We continue to focus on building awareness about accessibility internally and creating an accessible campus for employees and visitors.

• Recently, we upgraded our visitor sign-in process to be more accessible to people using screen readers:
• We announced two new Empathy Labs in Facebook's Engineering HQ in Menlo Park and in London. The initiatives featured in the new labs include our Safety Check feature helping people mark themselves as "safe" in a crisis, our Suicide and Self-Harm prevention flow, a refreshable braille display, an eye-tracking device, and low-end phones showcasing Free Basics by Facebook (part of the Internet.org initiative). You can learn more here: https://www.facebook.com/accessibility/photos/a.544973158879747.1073741825.443376095706121/966310600079332/

Product Improvements

Here are just a few of this year's many product improvements and launches around accessibility. You can check out our monthly updates for details on all of the changes and improvements for accessibility across platforms.

• We announced video closed captions for all languages:
• We announced Dynamic Type (aka Larger Text) on Facebook for iPhone and iPad:

Thank you and a happy new year to all of you!

January 4, 2016 marked the 206^th birthday of Louis Braille, creator of the code for reading and writing used by blind people the world over. That same day also marked another significant milestone for any braille reader living in the United States. That is the day that the US officially transitions from the current English Braille code to the Unified English Braille code (UEB). The United States is the last country to adopt the new code, with South Africa leading the way in May 2004, Nigeria, New Zealand and Australia making the jump in 2005, and Canada making the transition in 2010. The UK made the switch in 2011, and the U.S. adopted the code in November of 2012. The Braille Authority of North America (BANA) has opted to continue using the Nemeth code for math and science in the United States rather than switching to UEB. This decision has created some controversy, which we shall discuss later.

Why UEB?

When BANA announced the adoption of UEB in November 2012, with the switch officially taking place in January 2016, I was not taken completely by surprise. I was vaguely aware of the existence of UEB, although I did not realize at the time that work on the code had been under way since 1991. I assumed that the main reason for UEB was to make it easier for braille readers in all English-speaking countries to share documents, but I had never taken the time to consider the matter further. Being eager to try this new code out immediately, I switched the braille table of my existing notetaker to UEB so as to see how imported documents would be affected. The first thing I noticed was that, at first glance, the differences between English Braille and UEB weren't so great that I couldn't easily read my documents using the new code. Some contractions had been dropped (nine in all), and a few words, such as "professor," now contained contractions where they did not exist in the old braille code. One striking example of this was the word "fever." Upon seeing "f dot 5 e," I valiantly tried to pronounce the word "ever" with an "f" at the beginning, before I realized what the word was actually supposed to be. Another moment of angst came for me when I discovered that the computer braille code with which I was so familiar no longer existed in UEB. This explained why the "double d" contraction was gone, because the period in a website address was now the same period that was used at the end of a sentence. After playing with UEB for a few months, I switched back to the current English Braille code, and decided to wait until closer to the actual launch date to start using UEB in earnest. In my discussions with other blind people, the same one-word question kept popping up over and over again. Why? What was wrong with the current braille code, and why did we need a new one?

In a recent conversation with Judy Dixon, Consumer Relations Officer with the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS), I posed that very question to her. Dixon says that the group of blind people who will benefit most from the new code are students. She then reminded me of something that took me back to my grade school days. In many textbooks of that time, rather than providing descriptions of photographs found in the book, there was a short, cryptic note placed where the photo was located. It simply read "Picture: Ask the teacher." Like Dixon, I don't recall ever actually asking any of my teachers to describe photos located in my textbooks. I simply ignored the photographs and moved on, never stopping to ask myself how important those photos might be to my understanding of the concepts being taught. Like those old photos, much of the current braille code takes the "Picture: Ask the Teacher" approach. Does the "dots 4-6" indicator in front of a word mean that the word is underlined, italicized, or in boldface type? Perhaps the answer is all of the above. There is really no way to know the answer without consulting a sighted person. If one is reading a self-help book for leisure, perhaps it doesn't matter all that much, but if a student is reading a psychology textbook where words in bold font are likely to be found in an upcoming exam, it might matter a lot.

Dixon points out that print has changed a lot over the years, but the existing braille code has not. Using UEB, the braille reader will now be able to know if a single character, a word, or an entire passage is italicized, bolded, or underlined. Bullet points are no longer represented by a generic indicator of two "dots 3-6" signs, but have their own unique indicators—two cells consisting of "dots 4-5-6," and "dots 2-5-6." Not only is it possible to know when, for example, a boldface passage begins, but there are termination indicators to alert the reader to the fact that the font change has ended. When I pointed out to Dixon that the casual reader would come across a lot of unfamiliar signs when reading UEB, she simply stated that if the new signs don't matter to the reader, it is possible to ignore them and keep reading. There is no way that anyone will learn the new code all at once, and NLS will provide descriptions at the beginning of each volume to make the reader aware of unfamiliar signs that may be encountered. These pages are currently provided when computer braille code exists in the text of a book or magazine. Since braille music notation has already been standardized, it will not be affected by the change from English braille to UEB.

Anyone who has ever typed in contracted braille on a notetaker and then saved their document in another format such as Microsoft Word will appreciate another advantage to UEB. I have personally experienced the embarrassment of trying to explain to a sighted colleague that the jibberish they were reading was the result of a braille translation error, a concept which is completely lost on anyone who does not read braille. UEB should make it much easier to accurately translate documents from braille to print, minus the annoying braille translation errors. For example, these days you'll often see two words joined together, with each word being capitalized. The name of this magazine, AccessWorld, is a perfect example. For this reason, the contraction for "ation"—dot 6, n—has been eliminated from UEB. Also, the contraction for "ally"—dot 6, y—is no longer in use. The absence of those contractions should make it easier to translate words such as AccessWorld from braille to print with no errors being introduced. As mentioned earlier, nine contractions have been done away with, including the "ble" contraction. In UEB, "dots 3-4-5-6" are now only used as a number sign.

Finally contracted words including "and," "for," and "the" are now separated by spaces rather than being placed together without spaces as they currently are in the English Braille code. Two explanations are offered for this. First, those words are separated by spaces in print, and therefore should be separated in braille. The second explanation is that it is not as important as it once was to save as much space on a page as possible when producing hard copy braille. Production costs have lowered over the years, and much of today's braille is read using refreshable braille on notetakers and braille displays rather than on paper.

Controversy over Nemeth Code

In making the decision to keep the old Nemeth code for math and science while adopting UEB for literary braille, a controversy has arisen that has serious implications, especially for those students Judy Dixon believes should benefit most from UEB. As with literary braille—braille read by the average user on a daily basis—UEB provides many more signs for math and science than does the old English Braille code. For this reason, some feel that UEB is superior to the old Nemeth code for working with math and science. Unlike literary braille, however, UEB signs for math and science differ greatly from the Nemeth code. Some states have decided to adopt UEB for math and science, while others have opted to stick with the Nemeth code. This means that a student attending high school in a state where UEB is taught for math and science might attend college in a state where the Nemeth code is used. That student will need to learn an entirely new code in order to successfully complete their studies. At the time of this writing, it is not at all clear how this issue will be resolved.

The Best Way to Learn UEB

Even though January 4, 2016 is the day that the United States officially transitioned to the Unified English Braille code, that does not mean that all braille materials will instantly appear in UEB. NLS has made a four-page reference +available containing the most frequently used UEB signs. Braille produced in UEB will become available from NLS in the coming months. As stated earlier, a list of UEB signs will be placed at the beginning of each braille volume. Judy Dixon says there are currently about 40 to 50 books now available from NLS that have been produced in UEB, and they can be located by entering the words "Unified English Braille" into the search field under the "subject heading" category of the BARD website.

Along with the many resources available on the BANA website, it is possible to obtain a braille copy of the BANA UEB Reader by sending an e-mail to Kim Charlson.

UEB has been available when using braille on Apple's products for quite some time, and all of the current Windows screen readers now support UEB. All of the major notetakers in use today allow for the use of UEB as well. HIMS recently announced that a soon-to-be-released firmware upgrade for its BrailleEdge braille display with limited notetaking capabilities will soon allow that device's notepad application to support UEB.

The Bottom Line

Regardless of one's opinion as to how and why the Unified English Braille code has been adopted in the United States, it is most likely here to stay. There will certainly be changes made to the code over time, and the transition from English Braille to UEB will almost certainly have a few hiccups. Many decisions need to be made regarding whether to use the existing Nemeth code or UEB for math and science.

That being said, if UEB will provide a richer experience when reading and writing braille, and if the sharing of documents between print and braille can be better facilitated, then the implementation of UEB should be worth the effort.

Resources

Visit the BANA website for the latest news, and various resources related to UEB.

NLS will be producing books in UEB over the coming months. Visit their website for more information.

E-mail Kim Charlson to request a braille copy of the BANA UEB Reader.

This Wikipedia article provides a thorough discussion of the history and implementation of UEB throughout the world.

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• Braille Sense U2 Mini from HIMS: Good Things Do Come in Small Packages by Deborah Kendrick
• Dr. Abraham Nemeth: The Louis Braille of Mathematics Dies at Age 94 by Deborah Kendrick

More from this author:

• 64 Oz. Games Promotes Braille Literacy and Fun At the Same Time by Jamie Pauls
• Racing Toward Success: The Story of Blindfold Games by Jamie Pauls

For a person with a disability, one of the most fundamental life goals is developing and maintaining the ability to live as independently as possible. For people with vision loss, one of the most formidable barriers to independence has historically been the ubiquity of printed material, which affected everything from employment opportunities to the ability to find a can of beans in the grocery store. And even after that can of beans was located, it still had to be paid for with printed money or a written check.

For most of us, personal finance is an extremely private matter. We would prefer not to share our wallets, our checking and credit card statements, utility bills, and the like with casual friends and strangers. Before the advent of accessible desktop and mobile computing, however, this is exactly what most people with visual impairments had to do.

In paying for that can of beans with a $20, the person with vision loss had to trust he was being given the correct change, and ask the cashier to identify the $5 and $10 bills in order to fold the denominations differently to stow in his wallet. Utility and other bills had to be read aloud by a sighted helper, then checks needed to be written and envelopes addressed. Bank statements were not readily available in braille, and balancing a checkbook required unique and innovative skill sets, not to mention determination.

Accessible, "talking," computers gave people with vision loss the ability to monitor and manage their personal finances: from simple text files that kept a running total of checks written, to the American Printing House for the Blind's Money Talks—a software package that kept searchable registers for multiple accounts and printed checks on demand.

With the emergence of the web in the mid-90s, financial institutions began offering public-facing Internet presences. Indeed, today, a financial institution without such a presence would not be viable. Initially, these web resources were touted to the general public as a free convenience: "Check your credit card purchases without having to phone the bank," and "Track your retirement account without waiting for the next quarterly statement." For those with visual impairments, however, these new tools were more than simple conveniences; they were the keys that unlocked significant personal independence in all things financial.

Early personal finance portals often included significant barriers to low vision and screen reader accessibility. Website layouts could be overly complex and confusing. Links and controls were not labeled, and using a physical mouse was often mandatory; there were no keyboard alternatives to accomplish critical tasks such as navigating frames or completing a data form. Many of these problems turned out to be screen reader issues that were fixed with new releases with updated feature sets. But the web developers also did their share to improve and enhance accessibility.

With funding from J.P. Morgan Chase, the American Foundation for the Blind recently completed a multi-month survey of the accessibility of various online personal finance resources. We evaluated the websites and iOS/Android apps for several categories of online personal finance resources, including several large banks, online brokerages, financial research and education portals, and personal finance account aggregators. Since we have not yet shared our findings with the evaluated companies, we will not disclose individual company names here, but suffice it to say each evaluated service was among the largest and best known in its category.

General Impressions

Overall, accessibility for personal financial websites and mobile apps has improved dramatically over the past five to ten years, and, more importantly, accessibility is still improving. It was obvious that most, though not all, of the companies we evaluated have placed accessibility high on their priority lists. The larger, older, and more established a company is in its category, the more emphasis seemed to have been placed on accessibility. Newer companies were considerably more likely to exhibit accessibility issues, and there was at least one company, a relative newcomer to the personal finance aggregator industry, that demonstrated no awareness at all that an individual with a visual impairment might wish to make use of their services.

The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

For this project we examined personal finance websites and mobile apps. However as you read on, you will discover that much of what we evaluated and report on here are the very same criteria you yourself use when judging a website or mobile app's accessible online and mobile experience.

The Good

Nearly all of the tested desktop websites made extensive, and, for the most part, effective use of navigational elements including headings, landmarks, and anchors, which can be quickly navigated using screen reader hotkeys. Heading level numbers generally designated appropriate landing points.

For most websites, buttons and other controls were usually properly labeled. There were a few exceptions when a control changed its status, such as a "Search Now" button losing its label or failing to update after text has been entered in the search field.

"Skip Navigation" and "Skip to Content" links were widely used, making page navigation with a screen reader even quicker.

Most text entry forms were well constructed so a screen reader user could access and complete them. Tab orders were correct, and fields were properly labeled.

Tables are the best way to display groups of information such as lists of transactions or price and volume information. They were used appropriately in most cases by the evaluated websites. In those few cases when they were not, the information was difficult and laborious to navigate.

With a few notable exceptions, PDF data entry forms were well structured with proper tab order and form labels. They could be accessibly navigated, read, completed, and in many cases submitted online using an electronic signature and a desktop or mobile screen reader.

None of the evaluated sites used CAPTCHAs, which are formidable barriers to accessibility. Most offered a choice of e-mail, text message or phone call for new account or device verifications. These methods are both convenient for sighted users and completely accessible to screen reader users.

We noted several strategies being employed to make graphical chart and graph information accessible. One financial aggregator mobile app used a touchscreen reader accessible combo box to indicate pie chart categories and percentages. One of the tested brokerages used a proprietary smart text feature to describe security moving averages and other indicators with generalized descriptions such as: "The 50 day moving average is moving up, which is a bullish signal."

Most sites that presented chart information also allowed users to download the information in an accessible CSV file. This is useful, but even more useful would be a button beside each chart or graph with the feature label: "Display raw data in table format." For low vision accessibility all charts and graphs should be displayed in a vectorized format so they will scale up clearly when the page is resized.

All of the evaluated companies offered mobile apps for both iOS and Android. (The Windows mobile platform was not evaluated.) With a few exceptions, we discovered these apps to be quite accessible using the built-in touchscreen readers VoiceOver for iOS and TalkBack for Android. There are several reasons for this:

VoiceOver and TalkBack are both built-into their respective operating systems. The controls are embedded in the operating system itself, so additional hooks and workarounds are rarely needed, assuming the developers do not stray far from standard best practices code development.

The ability to navigate on a touchscreen is much quicker than moving heading by heading, or link by link, on a desktop computer. Swipe gestures can then be used to refine the position.

The mobile platform puts a premium on elegant and simple page design, since sighted users prefer this sort of experience. This simplicity also accommodates low vision and blind users.

In general, we found the iOS apps more accessible than their Android counterparts. This may be due to Apple's "First mover" advantage. The latest versions of Android are much improved in their accessibility features, but new features are not always backwards compatible between Android releases.

The Bad

Flash content still shows up on websites without proper labeling or an accessible HTML5 alternative. For example, the flash market ticker on one of the investment research sites interfered with other screen reader accessibility, and the control to toggle it off was unlabeled. All Flash content should be replaced with HTML5 elements.

Live regions, such as auto-refreshing real time stock quotes, did not auto-speak. They need to be properly coded so a screen reader can detect and voice them.

Screen reader tips, such as "The following is a table displaying account transactions," can be useful, but sometimes they are too long, and positioned such as they would repeat with each press of the Tab or Down Arrow keys, and their verbosity can become a hindrance to accessible navigation. These tips should be beta tested with an experienced screen reader user.

Very few of the evaluated sites included sitemaps on every page. Sitemaps are quite useful to screen reader users and can help them quickly find site areas of interest.

Some of the evaluated websites used low-contrast color palates, extremely small fonts, and/or text within images (which is never accessible). Other pages did not scale well using browser enlargement. Websites that used responsive design scaled more effectively.

Chat features on most sites were only partially accessible, requiring considerable screen review to follow a chat session conversation. Only one website included a completely accessible chat platform.

Several of the mobile apps developed for both iOS and Android had issues where the one-finger swipe gesture designed to move from screen element to element failed to find focus on certain controls, such as the "Done" button after paying a bill using one of the banking iOS mobile apps. The icon or control had to be located and activated using the less preferable "Explore by Touch" method.

Most iOS apps had their buttons and controls properly labeled. Most of those which were not had descriptive names that usually signaled their purpose, such as "Framework Tier One Menu," which appears in one of the brokerage iOS apps. Nearly all of the evaluated Android apps contained some unlabeled icons and controls. Most had no descriptive names, and displayed as unlabeled, such as "Button 39 unlabeled" for the same brokerage's Android app control. Some elements could be identified from context; others were harder to decipher.

Some apps display an inaccessible splash or other welcome screens. If sighted help is available to navigate beyond these opening screens the app usually becomes accessible, however.

Increasingly charts and graphs are used to convey critical information. New algorithms and other methods to more fully caption the presented information need to be developed and used. A graph caption stating "A chart of your monthly spending" fails to provide the same level of information to a screen reader user as it does to a sighted user, and is thus not fully accessible. This is a tough issue and we're not sure what the best solution is for providing access to graphical information, but, as we stated above, a good first step is to make sure the raw data is available in a table format.

The Ugly

One critical accessibility issue that needs to be acknowledged and addressed in the personal finance industry (among others) is technical support. It is obvious that many of the evaluated companies have devoted significant time and financial resources to making their offerings accessible. Unfortunately, much of this work is being undercut, often even negated, by the company's customer service and technical support representatives.

If a sighted user contacts the company because, for example, he or she is having trouble accessing account info, help will be forthcoming and useful. If that same user reports to the representative that a screen reader is being used, the response is likely to be "We don't support screen readers," or, quite commonly, "Your screen reader must be causing the problem."

One of the banking sites reviewed included an extremely detailed Accessible Banking statement, with tips for using their services with a screen reader. However a number of e-mails and phone calls failed to turn up any department, or single individual, who could help with an accessibility issue.

Any company that boasts their work with accessibility should have a dedicated accessibility customer service or technical support e-mail address. Two of the evaluated companies featured just such a contact address, however during this evaluation not a single response to an inquiry was received from either company.

These e-mail contacts need to be both offered and monitored. Additionally, all customer-facing employees should be given at least minimum training as to what a screen reader is, how it works, and why it does not need to be turned off to fix a site or app issue. These employees should also have a specific department or individual to whom customers who initiate contact because of access issues can be forwarded. Even if accessibility support is only available during daytime business hours it will be a vast improvement over the current situation, and would not only enhance the experience for blind customers, it would also provide the company a "real world" window into which accessibility features are most used, and what is needed to improve service for the average customer with moderate accessibility skills.

Conclusions

Web and mobile accessibility is a moving target. As these platforms develop and mature, new accessibility issues arise. PC and mobile screen reader developers strive to keep up, but full accessibility also requires the participation of groups that set new standards, such as HTML5, and developers and the companies who hire them.

They say recognition of the problem is half the battle, and in this sense, at least, all but one of the personal finance companies we evaluated is well on their way. They have devoted both time and money to addressing accessibility concerns, and it is our hope they will continue to do so. It is also our hope that they will begin a much needed dialogue between their developers and their other employees, and between these employees and customers who rely on various accessibility technologies.

In the following months AccessWorld plans to publish a series of articles on specific personal finance categories and site/mobile app accessibility. In the meantime: Do you have concerns about personal finance accessibility you feel are not being addressed? Do you prefer doing your banking and other finance tasks using a computer or a mobile app? We'd love to hear your comments and observations.

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• Accessible Mobile Money Management: Evaluating Mint, Check, and MoneyWiz iOS Apps by Bill Holton
• Banking on a Plan for Inclusion at JPMorgan Chase by Deborah Kendrick

More from this author:

• Training with IBM and Freedom Scientific: Teaming Up for Increased Accessibility by Bill Holton
• Mobile Phone Technical and Access Support: A Look at AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint by Bill Holton

If you're like me, you are doing more and more of your shopping online. It's far more convenient than trekking down to the store. You don't need sighted help to find what you're looking for, the selection is larger, and best of all, purchases are delivered straight to your front door.

Currently, Amazon is the king of online retailers, but recently a new player entered the online shopping arena. It's called Jet, and their model is a bit different than Amazon's. The Jet model factors in the location of the warehouse that stocks your desired purchases. It also factors in quantity. Since their shipping charges will be roughly the same whether you order a single item or a dozen, Jet increases your discount as you add more items to your cart. They also feature Smart Cart items, which are popular items available from the shipping depot nearest you. You can additionally add a few cents savings to each item by opting out of their free returns. Smart Cart items arrive in two days; the others take three to four days. Shipping is free with a $35 minimum order. Initially, Jet charged a $50 annual membership fee, but recently they removed this charge; membership is now free for all.

Accessibility of the Jet Site and Mobile Apps

Jet offers website shopping, along with both iOS and Android mobile apps. I recently placed three orders, one on the web and the other two with the mobile apps. Here's what I found.

Shopping Online

Creating a Jet account was as simple as entering an e-mail address, zip code, and password. The site included a "Show password" option, which made things even easier. From here you can search for items and add them to your cart. Shipping and billing information is not required until the first time you check out. At the time of this writing, Jet offered 15 percent off your first purchase of $35 or more (this offer appears to be available until February 1, 2016).

The Jet site has not been optimized at all for accessibility. There is no use of headings or other quick navigation keys. I found the best way to quickly move to the search results was to do a text search for "sort by" which places the cursor just above the first entry. Above the cursor position are several search and filter options. Searching for soap, for example, I could filter the results by category, such as health and beauty, family size, brand, color, and specialty soaps, such as alcohol-free, hypoallergenic, and aroma therapy. I could also filter to view only those results that were available to me via two-day delivery.

Unfortunately, once you have clicked on an item, navigation is still not particularly easy. You must either Tab repeatedly or use your screen reader's search hotkey to find the product description and the Add to Cart link. The increase and decrease quantity controls are also unlabeled links located to either side of the current quantity ordered. Pressing either of these only refreshes the quantity number, however, the page does not refresh and cause you to lose your place.

As mentioned, as your order size increases, the price decreases. At the time of this writing a 15.5 pound bag of Beneful Original Dog Food costs $13.36. Order two bags and the total decreases by $.66; the discount for three bags is $1.35. Of course you may not wish to order three bags of dog food in a single order, but adding other items to your cart also increases your total savings, which is accessibly displayed near the top of the cart page. When you want to access your shopping cart directly from a page, look for the number of items in your cart, which displays near the top of the page just beneath your zip code—this is the actual cart link.

Returns are free for any reason. Jet even pays shipping. If you are willing to forego the free return option, you can save just a tiny bit more. This amount seems to be based on how likely you are to return an item. I am not likely to suffer buyer's remorse over a bag of dog food. Consequently, foregoing free returns only saves me a penny per bag. A stainless steel canister set costing $33 offers a $.41 savings for no returns. A $518 Acer touch screen laptop offers $11.40. Note: Items that arrive damaged can always be returned.

The site turns over merchandise quickly. A few items I had added to my cart displayed as no longer available when I logged into my saved items a day after I added them. Within a day, however, they were again available.

I was able to accessibly enter my shipping and payment information and complete my purchase. During one instance when I tried to enter a promotion coupon I could not get it to stick. Jet offers phone support, however, and this turned out to be a known issue; the representative, known as a Jet Head, activated the discount.

Most of my items arrived in the allotted time. A few arrived late, but only by a day or two. Items were exceptionally well packed, bottles and jars arrived inside plastic seal bags with jar lids wrapped in tape. My only objection to the shipping packaging was the company's tendency to pack items in the new, no fun here, unpoppable bubble wrap.

Mobile Apps

The iOS and Android apps were simultaneously easier to use and considerably more difficult. Running the iOS app with VoiceOver, the app had a tendency to crash when I scrolled rapidly, or when I neared the end of a results list that was 10 or more pages long. My saved items were still in the cart when I reopened the app, however. I did not experience these crashes running the Android app.

Both apps have a number of unlabeled buttons. Most notably, the iOS app's search button appears unlabeled just beneath the Categories heading, the actual "Categories" button just above. Once found it was easy to keep track of from that point on. Category and product searches are the best way to shop using the iOS app. VoiceOver could not access the home screen featured items; Android had no trouble with these controls. The Android app did not display the remove item from cart controls, however.

Basically, at this point shopping Jet using either the iOS or Mobile app is problematic at best. I did enjoy using the apps for browsing. Since they do not have affiliate stores, the selection is not as daunting as a typical Amazon "We found 3,145 results for your search." I also found the iOS app the easiest to use for editing the cart and making the purchase. Android users may wish to switch to the website for completing an order.

Tracking numbers were included in the shipped notification e-mails, so it was easy to add these shipments to my Shiprack package tracking app so I would know when to expect what.

Conclusion

Finally, it would seem, Amazon has some viable competition. This can only enhance service and help keep prices at their lowest. A few business analysts have opined that Jet is currently selling many items below their costs. Indeed, I do have to wonder how long free shipping will be available on a 20-pound box of cat litter. But as I recall, for years Amazon sold below their costs to build market share, so in the long run, sometimes this sort of model does succeed.

For me Jet is most useful for purchasing bulk items, or heavy items I don't want to carry home, such as paper towels, cat food and litter, trash bags and the like. If I were making a large purchase, such as a new TV or laptop, I would also use Jet as one of my price comparison sites.

Despite some serious accessibility issues, I am giving Jet a tentative recommendation. The apps are free, and if they don't work for you, there is always the web interface to fall back on for a test purchase or two.

Hopefully, the company is aware of their accessibility failings and is working hard to address them. If you'd care to give them a friendly nudge, here are a few places to get started.

Company Contact Information

Website: Jet
Phone: 1 (855) 538-4323
Email: help@jet.com

Social Media: FacebookTwitterLinkedInInstagram

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

• Holiday Shopping Using Your iOS Device by Janet Ingber
• More Holiday Gift Ideas for People with Visual Impairments by Janet Ingber

More from this author:

• CrowdViz: Remote Video Assistance on your iPhone by Bill Holton
• AudioEye: Providing Web Accessibility as a Managed Service by Bill Holton

If you are a Mac user and want to make ringtones, transfer old cassette tapes or albums onto your computer, create a podcast or do just about any common audio editing task, Amadeus Pro is a good option. No previous audio training is necessary, but you will need to be familiar with VoiceOver commands. The software is very accessible through its menus and keyboard commands.

Amadeus Pro can be purchased in the Mac App Store or through HairerSoft's website for $59.99. If you purchase it from the App Store, Amadeus Pro will automatically appear in the Applications folder. If downloaded from the HairerSoft website, the file must be moved from the Downloads folder to the Applications folder. For this article Amadeus Pro version 2.2.1 and OS X El Capitan were used.

Configuring Amadeus Pro

In the General tab of Amadeus Pro's Preferences, select "From Insertion Point" from the pop up menu for what to do when no content is selected. The next choice is what to do when content is selected. Choose "Play selection" from the pop up menu. The next option is to allow the Space Bar to rewind sound. This should be unchecked. There are options to open a new document on start-up and start recording immediately, both of which should be checked. The final control in the General tab is "Length of edit preview." Select "2 seconds." This will let you hear the sound two seconds before and two seconds after an edit. This is the longest time offered for that control.

The Sound tab has two options: Input and Output. In the Input tab there is a table that lists all the input devices connected to your computer. By default the Mac's internal microphone is selected. If a USB microphone or other device is hooked up to your computer, it will also be listed in the table. When recording, select the device you want if it has not already been selected.

The Output tab's table lists all devices that emit sound. By default the Mac's internal speakers are selected. If headphones are plugged in, they should appear in the table and already be selected.

The next section in the Sound tab is "Default format for new files." There are three choices that you will need to make. The first setting is sampling rate. This refers to how many samples of the sound the computer takes per second of sound. Use the pop-up menu to select 44100 HZ. The next pop-up menu is for selecting bit depth. Bit depth refers to how the sound is encoded. Select 16 bit. This combination will produce a CD quality recording. The final option is how many channels to be used. The pop-up menu offers two options: stereo and mono. In most cases you will want to choose Stereo.

The Menus

Amadeus Pro has File, Edit, and View menus. There are additional menus including Selection, Sound, and Tracks. If there is a keyboard command for a task, VoiceOver automatically reads it.

The Insertion Point and Play Head

The insertion point and play head are very important concepts in Amadeus Pro. The insertion point moves as sound is recorded. This is similar to how the insertion point moves in an app such as TextEdit. The play head moves while sound is playing. Therefore, they may not always be together. When doing basic editing, it's important to move the insertion point to the play head. In other words, the insertion point needs to be where you want the edit to begin. The task can be accomplished either through the Select menu or by typing Command + Y. VoiceOver will say, "Move insertion point to play head."

Making a Recording

If the box in System Preferences labeled "Create new sound document at start up" is checked, a new document will be displayed when Amadeus Pro is launched. If the box is not checked, use the standard Mac command Command + N to open a new sound document. Also use this command if you've been working on other files and are now ready to start a new document.

Unless another device, such as a USB microphone, has been selected, the Mac's internal microphone will be recording. Press Command + R and Amadeus Pro will start recording. For practice, speak a few sentences including some mistakes. This will provide material for practicing basic editing techniques. When recording is finished, press the Return key. Listen to the recording by pressing the Space Bar. The Space Bar stops and starts playback. At this point the insertion point is not in the same location as the play head. If you are working with a file and want to start playback from the beginning of the file, press the Tab key. Move to the beginning of the file with Option + Home and to the end of the file with Option + End. If you want to get somewhere other than the beginning or end, type Command + G. A dialogue box will open where you can enter the time in the file you want to go to.

Basic Editing

When editing a file, Amadeus Pro needs to know which part should be deleted. Markers are used to accomplish this task. If the part to be deleted is at the very beginning of the file, play the file till the exact edit point is located, then do the following.

1. Type Command + Y to move the insertion point to the play head. This step is extremely important.
2. Type Command + Left Arrow to extend the edit to the previous marker. Although a marker wasn't placed at the beginning of the file, the file beginning is automatically a marker. The same is true for the end of a file. Use Command + Right Arrow to extend to the file's end.
3. Press the spacebar to hear what text has been selected for deletion.
4. Press the Delete key and the selected content will be gone.
5. Command + Z will undo the edit.

If a different edit is required, you'll need to set a marker. There are several ways to do this. My favorite way is to type the letter P wherever you want to place a marker. This will put the marker where the play head is located. Unfortunately, VoiceOver will not say anything, but it works. All markers can be deleted by going to the Select menu and choosing "Clear All Markers." Delete sound in the middle of the file by doing the following:

1. Locate the beginning of the edit and type the letter P.
2. Continue playing the file until you get to the end of the part to be edited.
3. Type Command + Y to move the insertion point to the play head.
4. Type Command + Y to select to the previous marker.
5. Type the letter E to hear how the file will sound with the edit.
6. You can adjust the length of the edit with the A, S, D, and F keys. The A and S keys will affect the beginning of the edit and the D and F keys will affect the end of the edit. The A key will expand the edit while the S key will make the edit smaller. The D key will make the edit smaller and the F key will expand it. How much each key adds or removes from the sound will be dependent on the zoom ratio. Zoom out using the = (equals) sign and zoom in using the − (minus) sign. VoiceOver will say "zoom out" or "zoom in" respectively. If you zoom in, the unit of movement will be smaller and if you zoom out the movement will be larger.

Saving the Recording

Most of the Save dialogue is the standard Mac format including the file name, tags, and location. Toward the end of the dialogue is a button to choose file format. Amadeus Pro has its own format, but it can only be used in Amadeus Pro. The MP3 format is universal. Other options include Apple's M4A and WAV formats. The WAV format uses a lot of disk space and the M4A file can only be played on Apple devices. As a general rule, I use MP3. There is an option in the format menu to save the file as an iPhone ringtone. Once the ringtone is created, import it into iTunes. Sync your phone and the ringtone should be on it. Next is a "Settings" button where parameters such as sampling rate and bit rate can be changed. Bit rate is the amount of data transferred in a specific amount of time. Usually this is seconds. A higher bit rate means better sound quality. iTunes music streams at 256 kbs while some music files have a bit rate of 128 kbs. At the end of the dialogue are the buttons to "Cancel" and "Save."

Metadata

Metadata is information about the file, such as a song's title, artist, genre, etc. iTunes and similar programs use metadata to sort the file. Although it is not necessary to add it, the information may be useful at some time. Type Command + I to open the metadata dialogue. There are five tabs. Select the Metadata tab and fill out whichever edit boxes you feel are necessary.

Conclusion

Amadeus Pro is a very powerful audio editor. This article covered the basics. The program provides very good accessibility and there are many keyboard commands. Although it is expensive, if you're planning on doing a lot of audio work, it's a good investment.

Resources

In the March 2015 issue of AccessWorld, Jamie Pauls reviewed Jonathan Mosen's book, Become An Amadeus Pro Maestro. This book is definitely worth considering if you want to learn more about Amadeus Pro

The team at Blind Abilities has been producing an excellent series about Amadeus Pro. Visit and activate the Demo link. There will be information about the podcasts when the new page loads.

Comment on this article.

More from this author:

• Apple Music: A First Look with Access in Mind by Janet Ingber
• My Fitness Pal: A Guide to an Accessible Fitness Tool by Janet Ingber

Related articles:

• An evaluation of the Mystic Access Audio Tutorial for the HumanWare Victor Reader Stream New Generation by Jamie Pauls
• Become an Amadeus Pro Maestro, by Jonathan Mosen: A Book Review by Jamie Pauls

In a recent issue of AccessWorld, one of our readers asked if we could shed any light on running a Chromebook computer using its built-in accessibility features. Reading this comment, it occurred to me that not including a few cursory and unsatisfactory sessions running Chromevox on a Mac and a Windows PC, I had never even used a Chromebook. It was time to address this lack of experience, and with the generous assistance of a Lenovo representative, who lent me one of the company's new sub-$200 Chromebooks, I set to work.

The Lenovo IdeaPad 100s Chromebook

Retailing at just under $180—I found it for $164 on Amazon.com—you don't expect a lot of frills from the Lenovo IdeaPad. Indeed, the only two things in the box were the Chromebook itself and the wall charger. The unit is netbook size, 11.8 by 8.2 by 0.8 inches, with an 11.6 inch, 1366 by 768 non-touch-screen display. Like most laptops, the IdeaPad included a built-in HD video camera, digital microphone, and stereo speakers. The model also includes Bluetooth and the latest AC Wi-Fi. The unit I tested featured a 2.16 GHz Celeron processor with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of SSD storage, but different processor and memory configurations are available from Lenovo's web store. A Windows version of the IdeaPad 100S is also available.

The left edge of the IdeaPad 100S includes, from front to rear, an audio jack, an SD card slot, a USB 3.0 port, an HDMI port, and the power jack. The right edge, also from front to rear, includes a USB 2.0 port and a Kensington lock slot. The battery is rated for up to eight hours. I can't say I ever got the full 8 hours, but in my limited evaluation period, I had no complaints. The IdeaPad 100S weighs in at approximately 2.6 pounds, and it is well-balanced enough to perch on the palm of one hand without worrying it will tip over.

The IdeaPad's keyboard has the touch and key travel of a standard notebook keyboard, with the usual wrist rests to either side of the touchpad. A Chromebook's keyboard is configured slightly differently than a Mac or Windows PC, however. There is no Insert or FN key, and Chromebooks replace the Caps Lock key with a Search key. Also, instead of F1-F12 function keys, by default Chromebooks include a set of Top Row Shortcut Keys. At the left end is the Escape key, at the far right the Power key. These keys are all the same size, so the first-time Chromebook user who is blind, myself included, might have to spend some time guessing how to turn it on. Only later did I find this useful Chromebook Keyboard Layout page, which included this list:

• Key 1: Esc key
• Key 2: Go to the previous page in your browser history
• Key 3: Go to the next page in your browser history
• Key 4: Reload your current page
• Key 5: Open your page in full-screen mode
• Key 6: Switch to your next window
• Key 7: Decrease screen brightness
• Key 8: Increase screen brightness
• Key 9: Mute
• Key 10: Decrease system volume
• Key 11: Increase system volume
• Key 12: Power

Chrome OS

Most operating systems provide a platform onto which you load and run word processors, music players, web browsers, and most importantly, screen readers or magnification software. Chrome OS takes a different tactic. The operating system consists of a single central application, the Chrome web browser. It is also used to run web applications that extend the functionality of the Chrome browser and enable you to create and edit documents, play music, watch a movie, and perform other essential computing tasks.

Chrome OS data files, documents, spreadsheets, music, and the like usually reside in the cloud on Google Drive. This is why most Chromebooks come with so little built-in storage—a mere 32GB, in the case of the IdeaPad 100s Chromebook. Consequently, although it is possible to work offline, it is far preferable to have a Wi-Fi connection to create, edit, save, and retrieve your files. You will also need a Google account, so that you can log into your Chromebook and Google Drive using your Gmail address and password.

The Chrome operating system is extremely lean. It can boot in as little as six seconds, and it is constantly being auto-updated by Google. It's all but impervious to computer viruses, and if you do somehow manage to corrupt the system, Chrome OS features a Powerwash option that quickly restores the operating system to factory defaults.

Chrome OS Accessibility

Most Chromebooks, including the IdeaPad 100s, include a touch pad to navigate the screen and perform mouse clicks. However, like Windows and Mac OS X, the Chrome OS also features an extensive roster of keyboard shortcuts that can be used to perform most tasks. Alt + Tab and Shift + Alt + Tab moves you back and forward through open windows, for example, and Shift + Alt + S opens the Status Area, where you can get the time, your account logon information, and battery charge level.

Users of most third-party screen readers and screen magnification packages are accustomed to loading and running these applications separately on top of the Windows operating system. Mac and Windows Ease of Access users have their accessibility built-in. This is the model employed by Chrome OS: using browser extensions to enable screen magnification and to provide speech output.

Low vision accessibility options can be found in the status area Settings menu. Click your account picture, then Settings, then Advanced, then Accessibility. You will only need to dig this deeply into the menus once, if you enable the option to show the Accessibility menu on the Status Area. Other low-vision options include:

• Show large mouse cursor
• Use high contrast mode
• Turn on screen magnifier

The Settings menu also includes an option to turn on the Chrome OS screen reader, called Chromevox, but there is an easier way to do this, which I will describe in the next section.

The Chromevox Screen Reader

In the past I made a few half-hearted attempts to use the Chromevox (CVox) screen reader while browsing with Chrome on my main desktop. I found it limited and overly complicated, especially when compared to my regular screen reader, to which I quickly returned. Running a Chromebook, however, the CVox screen reader is the only speech access solution available. So it was time to try again.

Let's start with the good news. First, you can toggle CVox on and back off on any Chromebook by simply pressing CTRL + Alt + Z. At this point language and keyboard options are presented, which can be effectively navigated using the Tab and arrow keys. You are then asked to select your Wi-Fi and enter its password, and then to log into your Google account. Use the Tab key to move from field to field, then press Enter. At this point the Chromevox user is offered a nine-lesson tutorial on running the screen reader, which I found extremely useful and easy to follow.

Similar to most screen readers, CVox uses a special modifier key combination to issue screen reader commands. Shift + Search (located where usually you would find the Caps Lock key) is the default modifier key, but you can change this in the Chromevox Settings menu. I preferred using either CTRL + Shift or the Search key alone. Note: There is no Insert key, and the default CVox modifier key is still needed to sign in to your account and to navigate most Settings screens.

Chromevox Navigation

CVox employs an object model, which means as you navigate using the CVox + Up and CVox + Down Arrow keys the focus is moved using a higher-level granularity, whereas CVox Left and Right move you by smaller increments. If the main, higher level granularity is set to "Lines," for example, CVox + Up and Down move the focus and read the screen in the desired direction one line at a time. CVox + Left and Right arrow use the next lower level granularity, in this case advancing by word. Use CVox = and CVox − (minus) to increase or decrease the level of granularity to character, word, line, object, and groupings. Android TalkBack users will already be familiar with this structure.

Many CVox commands consist of a single key combination, such as CVox + R to begin reading at the current position, and CVox + Space Bar to issue a force click. A complete list is available at the Chromevox Keyboard Shortcuts Reference.

Unfortunately, most of the Chromevox navigation keys require two separate keystrokes. For example, by default all of the jump commands, including next and previous headings, form fields, buttons, combo boxes, list items, and the like, require that either the P or N key be pressed for Previous or Next, followed by a second keystroke, H for headings, F for form fields, etc.

At first glance this may seem like a minor inconvenience. But this literally doubles the time it takes to navigate a page. Rapidly locating the seventh heading on a web page using CVox + N, H seven times is literally a "rubber baby buggy bumper" for your fingers. And if the combination is difficult to perform (I had trouble typing several CVox + C, T "Next Table" commands in a row) CVox tended to go silent, and I was forced to toggle the screen reader off and back on to continue.

I suspect that the reason for these double key commands is related to Chromevox's lack of shortcut key availability. Chromevox does not offer browse or forms modes. Consequently, the H for Next Heading and Shift + E for Previous Edit Field quick keys offered by other screen readers would make entering text into a form field or writing a report in Google Docs impossible without extensive use of the CVox + 9 bypass key. Another limitation is due to the fact that you can only reassign hotkeys to a CVox + character combination; Alt + CVox + character and CTRL + CVox + character combinations are not supported, further limiting the available hotkey combinations.

You can improve the default layout somewhat, but it takes thought and planning. I could have reassigned the CVox + H combination to jump to the next heading, but I could not use Shift + CVox + H to move to the previous heading. You would need to use up another precious key combination to create a previous heading single CVox key command?or you can do what I did: Assign the CVox + H key to "Show Headings List," and then use this list to navigate to my desired location.

Getting Help

You can repeat the original CVox tutorial at any time by pressing the two keystroke CVox + O, T command. You can also consult the Command Help feature using CVox +. (period). Type the first letter of the CVox command you wish to use. Arrow up or down to locate the desired command. Its CVox hotkey will be voiced after the command name. Alternatively, press the Enter key to issue the command immediately.

Like other screen readers, CVox includes a CVox + O, K Keyboard Explorer. Bafflingly different from all other screen readers, however, with the Explorer activated, pressing a key does not announce its function. It merely speaks the key name, such as Shift, Tab, D, P, or Enter.

The online Chromevox Users Guide contains little information not already included in the device tutorial and the keyboard reference mentioned above.

Both Microsoft and Apple have acknowledged that users of accessibility features occasionally need a bit of extra assistance, and they both offer excellent e-mail and phone support. Google offers neither. For most users of accessibility features this is not a major concern, as we do not rely on Chromevox as our primary screen reader; we use JAWS, NVDA, VoiceOver, and Window-Eyes. Support for these platforms is readily available via multiple channels, from access tech podcasts and blogs to screen reader company documentation and training webinars.

Unfortunately, the times they are a-changing.

A Call to Action

Today, many school districts have begun deemphasizing shared resource computer labs in favor of issuing high school, middle school, even elementary school students their own low-end laptop, iPad, or Chromebook. Of these three, Chromebooks have the somewhat dubious distinction of being the fastest growing option…and the one with the least mature and least supported accessibility features and capabilities.

During my research for this piece, I spoke with several access technology instructors, and only one offered her mainstreamed blind or low-vision students training in Chromebook accessibility. Others chose to request their districts to allow their students to use a Windows notebook with JAWS or another major screen reader. Not only did these teachers not offer Chromebook accessibility training, they were also unable to direct me to any resources where an access technology instructor might go to become certified to teach Chromebook accessibility.

A year ago when a DeKalb County, Georgia, charter school began using Chromebooks, access technology instructor Katrina Lowrey had to purchase her own Chromebook and teach herself to use CVox so she could assist a student who is blind, who is now in seventh grade. "Having access to her own computer 24/7 has given her a great deal more independence than if she had to share a PC part-time in a school lab," Lowrey acknowledges. "But there are still some serious issues we have to work around. For example, occasionally there is a click control that simply cannot be accessed using Chromevox. Also, Chromebook's braille display support is extremely limited, and even if you do get one to pair, it doesn't work everywhere. None of the text inside a Google Doc will read—only the menus and other controls. My student still needs a braille notetaker to read documents, complete her writing assignments, and take her tests, which her teacher has to e-mail to her."

Lowrey is hopeful that greater Bluetooth support for braille displays and other screen reader improvements will be forthcoming in the next Chromevox release. But there are no guarantees. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, prior to this writing assignment I have not spent a lot of time running Chromevox. I am no power user, and consequently, it is difficult for me to distinguish an accessibility bug or limitation from a simple inability on my part to understand the ins and outs of the software. And I'm guessing I am not alone.

For any screen reader to be successful, it needs to be used. Bugs need to be reported, feature requests submitted. Unfortunately, from my limited vantage point, it seems that the blind community has more or less ceded these tasks to the school kids who are forced to use Chromebooks, and for whom this is their first screen reader so they may not know increased accessibility is even possible.

How many among us know exactly when the latest JAWS, NVDA, Window-Eyes, VoiceOver or TalkBack update went live, and at least a few of the release's new features? Can we say the same about the latest version of Chromevox?

The AccessWorld readership includes many extremely savvy accessibility users, a number of whom devote considerable time and financial resources purchasing, testing, blogging about and recording podcasts about the latest and greatest high-tech gadgets and accessibility devices. I invite these readers to focus a bit more of your expertise toward using and evaluating Chromevox, especially the dev track release of the upcoming ChromeVox Next, reporting bugs, and creating or lobbying for some much-needed tutorials and other educational resources.

For many individuals and organizations spending $180 on a new test device is imminently doable. To those I can recommend the IdeaPad 100S as a solid device that offers good value for the money. Others may have an old Mac or Windows laptop lying around unused. Consider installing the Chrome OS onto that machine, or creating a flash drive Chrome install you can use to boot temporarily into the OS.

Getting Started

If you have a child in school who is using a Chromebook and you'd like to be able to offer support, or if you are simply interested in improving accessibility for blind and low vision students who use Chrome OS, here is a pair of excellent "Getting Started" podcasts I highly recommend:

Mystic Access: First time set-up Asus Chromebook with ChromeVox

Vision Australia: Demo of the Samsung Chromebook using ChromeVox

Comment on this article.

Related articles:

Speak Easy Media System by New Designs Unlimited: A Product Evaluation by Jamie Pauls

Overthrowing the Desktop: The Revolution 22-inch All-In-One Magnifier and Tablet by Shelly Brisbin

More from this author:

Training with IBM and Freedom Scientific: Teaming Up for Increased Accessibility by Bill Holton

Office for Mac 2016: A First Look at Accessibility by Bill Holton