If you made a New Year's resolution to get in shape or have been thinking about it for a while, here are three iOS apps that can help get you started. For this article I used these apps on an iPhone 5 running iOS 8.1.2.

Pocket Yoga

This is a good app for learning yoga in the privacy of your home. If you cannot attend a class or if the instructor is unable or unwilling to assist you with detailed verbal pose descriptions, this app clearly describes each pose.

Pocket Yoga's Home Screen

The "Store" button is located at the top left of the app's home screen. The next button is "Poses," where very clear pose descriptions are presented. The next button is "Ocean." Activating "Ocean" loads a page where you choose your session level and time duration.

The "Settings" button is in the lower left corner. Next is the "History" button, which records the date and length of your workouts. The next button is "Karma." You get one Karma point for each 15 minutes of practice; activating this button tells you how many points you have. Use these points to unlock additional levels in the Pocket Yoga Store, accessed through the "Store" button. The final button is "About." Activating this button presents options to visit the appp'S related website, explore additional apps, and follow the app on social networks.

Settings

The first option in the Settings menu is Voice, which toggles the app's speech on or off. Perform a one-finger double tap to toggle. Above the Voice toggle is a picker for adjusting voice volume.

The next heading is Music, which toggles the app's music on or off and allows you to adjust the volume as for Voice. The app's default setting uses its own music for all parts of a workout. However, this can be changed by double tapping on any of the workout parts and choosing the music you want.

Next is a heading labeled "Overlay Displays." There are two options in this section. The first is a switch to show the number of calories burned during the workout. The second shows heart rate. A heart rate monitor is required to use this feature.

The final heading is Health. This lets you choose to share Pocket Yoga information with the Apple Health app. To get out of the Settings menu, use the "Done" button in the upper right corner.

Poses

It is important to do yoga poses (positions) correctly. Activating the "Poses" button will load a page with several sorting options and the names of the various poses. From the top of the page, flick right. The first control is a "Search" button. Activating this button will bring up an edit box. Enter the name of a specific pose and activate the "Search" button at the bottom right. A list of results will be displayed. Double-tap on the desired result. Flicking right past the "Search" button are two more buttons, "Images" and "Text." Make sure Text is selected.

On the bottom of the screen are four sorting buttons: "Name," "Category," "Subcategory," and "Difficulty." Activating any of these buttons provides various ways to sort the poses. For example, activating the Difficulty option sorts into three categories: beginner, intermediate, and expert.

To read the description of a particular pose, double-tap on the name and then use any technique, such as flicking down with two fingers, to read the description. Information provided will include the benefits of each pose. Activate the "Poses" button in the upper left corner to get back to the list of poses.

Choosing a Routine

From the home screen, activate the "Ocean" button. The next page gives a brief description of the Ocean style workout and provides options to choose duration, difficulty, and environment. The final option is "Start Practice."

If you aren't familiar with yoga poses, consider listening to the routine first and reviewing the poses that you'll need. Sighted assistance may be helpful.

Doing a Routine

Once the "Start Practice" button is activated, Pocket Yoga will play music and the voice will begin speaking. Each time a pose is given, you will initially hear a description of how to do it. After the warm-up, poses will come at a faster rate without description. There are a few instructions that are not poses and therefore have no description. For example, the instructor will say the word "soften." There is no yoga pose with that name. With sighted assistance I learned that "soften" means to relax the body. Flick around the screen to find the number of calories burned.

Pause the routine by activating the "Home" button. When you reload the app there will be a "Back" button in the upper left. Next will be how many minutes of the routine have already been completed, the percentage of the routine completed, and how much time is left. Next will be a "Finish" button and the number of calories burned so far. Flicking right, there are three buttons: "Previous Pose," "Play/Pause," and "Next Pose." Finally, there is a "Sound Control" button. Activating this button will give you access to the voice and music volumes. Once done, activate the Dismiss Pop-Up option. This will bring you back to the "Play" button.

Conclusion

Although Pocket Yoga is not perfectly accessible, it is quite good. You will be able to make sure you learn the poses correctly and track your progress.

CARROT Fit 7 Minute Workout, Step Counter and Weight Tracker

CARROT Fit takes a humorous spin on exercise, offering intense 7-minute interval workouts via "a sadistic AI construct with one simple goal: to transform your flabby carcass into a Grade A specimen of the human race."

CARROT Fit's Home Screen

The first button on the screen is "Settings." The next is "Start Workout." Next is a button to select your avatar. The final two buttons are "Profile" and "Store."

The first category in Settings is General. Within this category are options to set speech to either chatty or terse. The next control turns sounds on or off. The next option is measurement units. The options are US, UK, or Metric.

The next option sets reminders. When this button is activated there are options to set reminders for workouts and weigh-ins. Reminders are set by using pickers to set the time and using buttons to set the days. Unfortunately, only one time can be entered for workouts and only one can be entered for weigh-ins. When done setting reminders, activate the "Back" button in the upper left.

The next Settings option is Punishments. When this button is activated, there will be a list of the punishments that can be disabled, though you will find there are punishments that cannot be disabled.

The next heading is Sync. The first option is whether to sync your data with Dropbox. The next option is whether to sync your data with the Apple Health app. To do this, activate the button and make your selections.

The next heading is Profile. The first option is a button to edit your profile. You can choose what CARROT calls you, enter your age, and enter your height.

The remaining options in the Settings menu are locked and you must exercise to unlock them.

The "Start Workout" button is the next option on the home screen. When it is activated, CARROT will make a sound and say something. The next button after "Start Workout" is "Avatar." Double-tap which of the several options you want to use.

The next button is "Profile." To edit your profile, activate the "Edit Profile" button in the upper left corner. At the bottom of the page is a "Rewards" button. Activating this button will display a list of options available for a particular number of points. Activate the button associated with each reward to learn details. The next button is "Weigh-In." Here is where you will enter your weight. Carrot will respond to your weight loss or gain.

The final button on the Home Screen is "Store." This is where you can make in-app purchases such as an exercise booster pack.

The Workout

After activating the "Start Workout" button, two new buttons will appear on the screen, "Begin Workout" and "Instructions." The first time the "Begin Workout" is activated, CARROT will clearly explain each exercise. After that, CARROT assumes that you know how to do them. Activating the "Instruction" button brings up a list of all exercises. There is a button for each exercise. When activated, CARROT will say something snarky. Flick down with two fingers and CARROT will read the step-by-step instructions for the exercise. There are buttons for the previous and next exercises. The "Back" button is in the upper left corner. This will bring you back to the list of exercises. Get out of the list by activating the "Close" button in the upper right corner.

Exercises have different names. For example, Can't Get Ups are crunches and Territory Markers are squats. To review instructions for an exercise while in the middle of the workout, double-tap the screen. Three buttons will appear: "Resume Workout," "Instructions," and "Quit Workout." CARROT offers congratulations when a workout is completed. Quitting the workout will make her say something rude like, "Are you a quitter, Meat Bag?" There will then be an option to resume the workout or quit.

More Exercises

An Exercise Booster Pack is available from the CARROT store. The first time the booster pack is used, CARROT will again speak instructions for the exercises. From then on, Carrot will mix the new exercises into the original exercise group.

Conclusion

This app is very accessible and can be a lot of fun. It's a good way to get exercise in very little time. Just remember that CARROT may not always be nice.

CARROT Hunger

If you are looking for a high-spirited and unique way to count calories and track your workouts, CARROT Hunger might be for you. CARROT Hunger definitely has an attitude.

VoiceOver and CARROT Hunger

There are some issues with this app, but it is definitely useable. When flicking on the screen, you may hear the iOS error sound or VoiceOver may not say anything. Drag your finger on the screen until you hear VoiceOver begin to speak, then try flicking on the screen again.

Another issue with the app is that sometimes VoiceOver will lose focus when you are entering text into an edit box, which can cause the virtual keyboard to disappear. Double-tap on the edit box again or try moving your finger on the screen. The iOS dictation feature works when entering information such as the name of a food.

Profile

When CARROT Hunger is first installed, you need to create a profile. Long strings of numbers may be spoken during this process—just ignore them and use the edit fields. The first category in the profile is General. Enter your name (or whatever you want CARROT Hunger to call you) in the first edit field. The default is Meat Bag.

There are additional edit fields for gender, birth date, height, and current weight. The next choice is Activity level. CARROT Hunger will present several options. The next edit box is Your Greatest Fear.

In the next part of the Profile, choose if you want to lose, maintain, or gain weight. Although VoiceOver reads the fields as edit boxes, double tap and VoiceOver will speak an option, double tap again and a new option will be spoken. Continue this procedure until you find the correct option for you. It is possible to manually enter the number of calories to eat per day. Be aware that occasionally the keyboard may vanish when entering information. Flick around the screen or double-tap on the edit box. This problem also sometimes occurs when entering calories or exercises.

CARROT Hunger Home Screen

On the CARROT Hunger home screen there is a "Record Calories" button, a "Diary" Button and a "Menu" button. Activating the "Menu" button loads a page with more options. There are buttons labeled "Profile," "Store," "Reminders," "Help," "Settings," and "About." At the top is the "Record Calories" button. Sometimes flicking on the screen does not read all the buttons. Try starting from the bottom of the screen and flicking left. Another option is to slide your finger on the screen.

To make changes to or create a profile, activate the "Profile" button. The "Store" button opens a page for in-app purchases.

The "Reminders" button lets you set up specific reminders during the day. CARROT Hunger can remind you to log your calories for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and end of day. When double tapping on an option, VoiceOver does not indicate that the option was selected. Near the bottom of the screen will be pickers for hour, minute, and AM or PM. When finished entering a reminder, activate the "Done" button in the lower right corner. To remove a reminder, double-tap on the option; the "Remove" button is to the left of the "Done" button.

The Help section contains a lot of information on logging foods, logging exercises, and daily reports.

The Settings option is where voice and sound toggles are located. You can also choose measurement units such as pounds or kilograms. Review selections by tapping on the edit box. This gesture will cycle through the various options.

The next section is Punishments. This is where you choose how CARROT Hunger responds if you exceed your calorie limit. The next section of Settings is about syncing CARROT Hunger with other apps such as Dropbox. The final section is about using gestures to control CARROT Hunger functions. Unfortunately, these gestures conflict with VoiceOver's gestures.

Logging Calories

Begin the process by activating the "Record Calories" button. CARROT Hunger will suggest items to log. There is a search box you can use to find a food. It is possible to enter information by using the dictation feature. By default, CARROT Hunger will search recent foods. There is a "Search All Foods" button, which will appear if no recent results were found. Review results and select the correct one. CARROT Hunger will instruct to review the number of servings. If you ate one serving, activate the "Submit" button. If you ate more than one serving, change the number in the edit box before activating the "Submit" button. The correct number of calories will then be added to your calorie tracking. If you explore the screen, sometimes CARROT Hunger will tell you how much exercise you need to do to burn off those calories.

Once foods are entered, the most recent items will appear near the top of the screen, along with CARROT Hunger's suggestions. Foods can be entered by just filling in the Calories Consumed edit box. There is also an option to add a new food that isn't in the app's database. A bar code scanner is also available if you can see or locate bar codes. The scanner option is at the top of the page.

Logging Exercises

By flicking right with one finger past the calorie section, you'll encounter the option to switch to Exercise View. In this view, you can search for an exercise. There is also an option to add an exercise that is not in the database. Controls are similar to those used to enter calories. When exercises are added, CARROT Hunger adjusts the number of calories you can eat.

Short Cuts

It is easy to access many features from the CARROT Hunger home page. Performing a two-finger double tap will bring up options to search foods, search exercises, and scan a bar code. This is a very convenient way to access frequently used tools in the app.

Diary

The diary keeps a list of everything you have eaten, in chronological order. Calories burned through exercises are also included.

Conclusion

Although there are some focus issues with this app, it is very easy to use. An excellent feature is that it says the amount of exercise needed to burn off calories you've consumed. Since it's free, consider giving CARROT Hunger a try.

Product Information

Pocket Yoga
Version 4.0.0
Cost: $2.99
CARROT Fit 7 Minute Workout, Step Counter and Weight Tracker
Version 3.1.9
$2.99
CARROT Hunger
Version 1.0.1
Cost: Free

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Many AccessWorld readers who have used a computer since the 80s and 90s may well recall the first time they were introduced to playing games on their Macs or PCs. Like the sighted community, people who are blind could use their computers not only for work, but to have fun as well.

Although there were a few games written specifically for people who are blind, many in the community turned to text adventure games for enjoyment. These games could be played by everyone, sighted or blind. With a few exceptions, there were no graphics involved, and the only limitations on game play were the simplicity of command structure required by the game engine and the imagination of the player. Simple typed instructions such as "Read the book" and "Examine the door" could open up a whole new world in seconds.

Over time, highly sophisticated games for desktop and mobile platforms drew the sighted community away from text adventure games. Some really creative offerings from companies such as GMA Games allowed the visually impaired community to enjoy a rich world of immersive audio and spatial game play as well. For many, however, the memories of playing text adventure games were never far away. In fact, The BrailleNote from HumanWare added the ability to play text adventure games as one of its many features. As mainstream technology such as the iPhone brought increased access to mobile computing, apps such as Frotz brought text adventure games to a younger audience who had possibly never experienced this type of game play before.

As enjoyable as text adventures are to play, there are challenges, some unique to players with visual impairments and others that affect all players. Since all responses must be typed out, many gamers with visual impairments who are playing on tablets and smartphones use Bluetooth keyboards or voice dictation in order to speed up the process of game play. Also, many games in the text adventure genre include very difficult puzzles—such as a maze that requires the player to draw a map on paper in order to solve it—with one wrong move meaning a player spends several hours only to discover he or she has reached a dead end. Finally, many text adventure games feature very basic plots and characters who merely complete a series of tasks to accomplish a goal. For example, the game character might be lost in a forest and need to complete several puzzles to find his or her way out. More recent text adventure games include more detailed story lines, more advanced sets of commands for carrying out actions, and more fully developed characters that, together, bring the gaming experience closer to that of reading a good novel.

A New Way to Play Games

Over the past three years or so, the California-based company Choice of Games LLC has released a series of text-based games, playable on several platforms including the Web, Android, and iOS, that bring together the simplicity of a multiple-choice exam with the vivid writing of a bestselling novel. As an example of one of the games in the Choice Games lineup, let's take a look at Choice of Robots.

In this game, which includes a 300,000-word storyline, you play the part of a robot designer. The game spans 30 years of your life. Will you design robots that take over the world? Will they be killing machines or gentle creations? Will you engage in romantic relationships with humans, or robots? Will you obey the law or break it? There are a myriad of choices to be made, making the game very re-playable.

Playing Choice of Robots

Because this game is text-based, any screen reader should be able to handle the Web-based version with no problems at all. The Android version of the game was not tested for this review, but the iOS app was tested with no significant issues encountered. While new content is not read automatically either on the Web or when using the iOS app, it is quite easy to read the text of the game, make choices using a series of radio buttons, and move to the next screen in order to continue playing the game.

Using an iPhone 6 running iOS 8, VoiceOver reads the first line of text on each screen. A two-finger swipe down reads the contents of the screen. The first radio button in any series of choices is checked by default. VoiceOver reads each radio button as "one of one" even if there are three or four choices available. The "Next" button can be quickly reached with a four-finger tap at the bottom of the screen.

As you progress through the game using the iOS app, you will find a button labeled "Home Back" at the top of the screen. Activating this button will allow you to continue playing the game from your last saved location, restart the game from the beginning, read the game credits, learn about more games offered by the company, read the Choice of Games blog, subscribe to a newsletter in order to learn about new titles, and finally, share game information with your friends on social media. You can rate the game in the app store from the "Share" option as well.

Decisions, Decisions

Many games, both in the text adventure genre and otherwise, largely plan out the course of events that will take place. It is up to the skill of the player to accomplish certain tasks and thereby complete the various missions or levels of the game. In Choice of Robots, you have a great deal of control over how the story unfolds. Detailed descriptions of people, places, and events within the game give it the feel of a really good book. Because characters in the game are so well developed, there are times when you might actually take quite a bit of time deciding how you want to proceed. Do you really want to attack a police officer? Do you want to have a relationship with a person of the opposite sex or the same sex? Do you wish to play the game as the person you really are, or do you want to take on a dramatically different persona? As in real life, the decisions of others alter how your life will unfold as you move through the story. The command structure of the game makes it possible to move rapidly through the various chapters of game play, while the rich detail of the game makes it possible to do more than simply choose options without giving them any real thought.

Wrapping Up

At the time of this writing, there are over 30 titles listed on the Choice of Games website. There is also a game engine that allows users to write their own games, and the site hosts several "user-made games." The website also states that the company is looking for writers, as well.

The keywords "choice games" on the app store will yield many results. Be sure to download the game offerings with Choice of Games, LLC beside the title. Some of the games are free with in-app purchases, while others are either $2.99 or $4.99 each. The first two chapters of each game can be played from the website at no cost, with a purchase required before the story can be completed.

If you are looking to recapture the fun of playing a text-based game, or if you have never played such a game before, Choice of Games may be just what you are looking for. Give Choice of Robots a try—you will most certainly enjoy the game, and you may be surprised at what you learn about yourself in the process.

Product: Choice of Robots
Developer: Choice of Games, LLC
Platforms: Online, Steam, iOS, Android, and Kindle
Price: $4.99 (Play the first two chapters free online.)

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Contemporary technology has stepped up to meet the challenge of significant hearing loss head-on with some amazing tools. Today, there are many options for augmenting residual hearing. The Phonak ComPilot is of note for its performance, but also in that it is an example of "wearable" technology.

The ComPilot is a tiny listening device that serves as a direct link between your ears and your phone, your portable book player or other audio device, your computer, your TV, and other devices. It is a necklace of sorts, designed to work with a variety of Phonak hearing aids. When it is around your neck, all manner of sound can be delivered directly into your ears.

When you don't want to hear the audio generated by any device, but only to hear the sounds in your environment, the ComPilot can serve as a remote control for your hearing aids.

Description

The ComPilot is a silver and black rectangle, roughly 2 inches by 2.5 inches, with a rounded top and a neck loop that acts as an antenna attached to holes on either side on the top edge. Sound streaming is only possible when the ComPilot is worn around the neck.

On the front face are a microphone grill and a large center button, called Main. There is a slider switch on one side for powering on and off and two very tactile buttons on the bottom of the face for volume adjustment. On the left side are two more buttons, Connect and Home, and on the bottom edge are three connectors: a mini-USB for charging the unit, a port for connecting FM devices, and a 3.5mm jack for connecting audio devices via audio cable.

The ComPilot package includes the unit, the neck loop antenna, an audio cable for connecting to audio devices, a mini USB cable, and an AC adapter.

Other accessories and components for connecting are also available, but let's first talk about what the ComPilot can do in its basic form.

Your Personal Audio Smorgasbord

You can connect up to eight devices to the ComPilot and cycle from one to the next with a press of the Main button. You can mix and match devices as well as the types of connectivity used to stream the sound they produce.

Examples of devices are phones, Bluetooth devices, FM devices, or audio devices connected via cable to the 3.5mm jack. In other words, you can use the ComPilot to listen to your phone, radio, TV, Victor Stream, Book Sense, computer, or any other audio generating device that comes to mind.

With the audio cable plugged into both the ComPilot and another audio device, such as your computer or an MP3 player, you can eliminate the need for headphones. Sound from the source device is channeled directly into your hearing aids and not heard by anyone else in your environment.

Phone Calls

Once paired via Bluetooth with your iPhone or other smart phone, the ComPilot allows you to channel phone calls directly into your hearing aids. When a call comes in, you will hear the name or number of the caller directly through both hearing aids. Press the Main button on the front of the device to answer. If you wear two hearing aids, the caller's voice is heard in both ears. Your own voice is picked up by the ComPilot's microphone. You can end the call from the ComPilot by pressing the Main button. A few other phone functions can be managed directly with the ComPilot itself, such as switching to another phone, muting your end of the call temporarily, or accessing voice dialing. Personally, I found it easier to control such functions on the phone itself.

The quality of sound during phone calls is such a personal matter that I offer my opinion with some reluctance. At my end, the incoming sound was sometimes clear and sometimes a bit blurred. Similarly, some people tell me that I sound very clear when using the ComPilot to speak, while others have commented that it produces a fuzzy sound quality and, while tolerable, it's not as comfortable to listen to as when I am speaking into the phone directly.

While the sound clarity of phone conversations seems to vary, the quality of other audio content is consistently excellent.

If you have audio content on your phone such as audio books or music, sound can be streamed via the ComPilot, delivering the sound directly into your ears without wires or carrying the phone in your hand. As with all Bluetooth connections, range is up to about 30 feet.

FM

If a small FM receiver is plugged into the FM port at the bottom of the unit, you can pair the ComPilot with an FM device for clear sound over a greater distance. Handing off your FM device to the lecturer in a large auditorium, for example, you can sit wherever you please and hear the speaker's voice loud and clear via the FM connection on your ComPilot.

Remote Control

In order for any streamed sound—whether via Bluetooth, FM, or audio cable—to be channeled to your hearing aids, the ComPilot must be worn around the neck. When not in use for phone calls or listening to content from other devices, however, the ComPilot can be detached from the neck loop and held in the hand to serve as a remote control for your hearing aids.

When using the ComPilot as a remote control, you can increase or decrease volume and cycle among the various programs available on your hearing aids. An audiologist must configure both the hearing aid programs and the ComPilot remote control function.

Accessibility

The ComPilot was not designed with people with visual impairments in mind, but it is accessible. All buttons are easily identified by touch. While there are a plethora of visual indicators to determine what's going on, the device also has audio beeps and speech alerts. It can announce when audio or Bluetooth is connected, announce an incoming call, announce when a Bluetooth device has been paired, and so on.

Although a version of the print manual is available online, it uses images to refer to the buttons on the device, rendering this vital information inaccessible to someone using a screen reader.

I spent a ridiculous amount of time trying to guess which combination of keys to press to begin Bluetooth pairing until I finally asked a friend to look at the picture for me!

Once you have learned the various key sequences, the device is completely accessible to a person who is blind or has low vision. Because the ComPilot can pair with up to eight devices, you can easily switch from an audio cable connected to your computer to the phone when a call comes in, to another phone, a Bluetooth capable book player, your TV, and FM device and so on with ease.

More importantly, the streamed sound of your favorite music, book, news, or drama is crystal clear and delivered directly to your ears.

Product Information

The ComPilot is intended for use with Phonak hearing aids.
For more information about the ComPilot and accessories, visit the Phonak website.
Product: ComPilot
Price: approximately $350
Manufacturer: Phonak, info@phonak.com
Available from: your hearing care specialist or online from various sources, including Amazon.

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In the August 2013 issue of AccessWorld, I reviewed a one-stop reading solution for iPhones and iPads called Voice Dream Reader. Voice Dream Reader is an app that reads Bookshare and other eBooks, PDF files, and other documents aloud using high quality speech. The developer, Winston Chen, was not familiar with VoiceOver when he created the app, but after receiving a number of e-mails describing how much more useful the app would be if he would label the buttons and such, he improved accessibility. Additionally, subsequent to our AccessWorld review, Chen implemented a new VoiceOver-friendly method of marking text for cut and copy operations (described later) that can be significantly easier to perform than the standard iOS reverse pinch gesture.

In this review I will take a look at a brand new offering from the same developer, an iOS editor called Voice Dream Writer. In addition to the cut and copy operation mentioned above, other features that make this app exceptionally useful for VoiceOver users include two different proofreading modes, accessible spelling and homophone checkers, markdown support, and an outlining feature that makes it a simple matter to navigate and edit large documents.

Getting Started

The first time you start Voice Dream Writer (which will be referred to as Writer for the rest of this article) you will be asked whether you wish to store your documents on iCloud (default), or on your device. Documents on iCloud are automatically synched between and among all of your devices, but you need a network connection to access them.

The Writer screen displays six tabs across the top. From left to right they are:

• File Manager: Here you can select and open any document you have saved to your device or synched with iCloud, depending on your settings. You can sort Writer documents by name or date modified. You can also rename or delete documents.
• Add Document: Here you can create and name a new document or load one from your device, iCloud, Dropbox, Box, or OneDrive.
• Export: Here you can copy your entire document so you can paste it elsewhere; send your document with another app using the standard iOS Share Sheet; or export the file to another location, such as Dropbox or OneDrive. You can export your file in one of several document types, including plain text, RTF, Word, Pages, and HTML.
• Audio Settings: By default, Writer uses your VoiceOver language and voice to read text. You can select another built-in iOS voice for Writer and set the language and speed separately for document review and proofreading. If you own Voice Dream Reader and have purchased additional high quality voices from Ivona, NeoSpeech, or Acapela, you can access and use them in Writer.
• Visual Settings: Use this tab to select the most accessible font style and size, from 10 to 40 points. Other settings allow you to adjust line and character spacing, set paragraph style, and adjust side margins and color palate. You can also set a highlight to scroll as each word is spoken.
• Tools: Along with Help and About buttons, the Tools menu offers a word count, and the app's text search control. Enter a word or phrase to be searched and Writer will offer up a full list of appearances. The app will voice the sentence in which the word appears, and you can use a one-finger swipe up or down to move through the list and have each successive appearance spoken. Double tap any occurrence and the app cursor moves to that location. The Tools tab also contains controls to "Find misspelled words" and "Advanced Settings." I will discuss each of these below.

Creating a Document

After you create and name a new document, or load in an existing document, you can enter text using the three standard methods: the onscreen keyboard, a Bluetooth keyboard, or voice dictation. In the Voice Settings menu there are keyboard echo options to speak word or sentence when typing. These will announce the selected text element as you go.

You can use any of the VoiceOver rotor controls such as character, word, or line to navigate and edit your text. The iOS autocorrect and next word prediction features are also available.

If you have ever tried to navigate a large document or use the standard VoiceOver reverse pinch gestures to highlight text for cut or copy, you will appreciate the extra Writer controls that appear between the text window and the word predictions. The first two, Show Outline and Show Word Finder, will be discussed later. The others include:

• Cursor: One-finger double tapping this control causes Writer to voice the word located nearest to the cursor, and whether the cursor is positioned at the beginning, middle, or end of that word. It then reads the entire sentence for additional context. If you now one-finger swipe up or down, VoiceOver is disabled in favor of Writer's built-in speech, which can move the cursor by character, word, or sentence, depending on how the cursor movement unit (see below) is set.
• Cursor Movement Unit: You can swipe up or down to set this to character, word, or sentence. This determines how the Writer cursor moves, both as you review text and use the select text control (see below) to mark text for cut and copy.
• Select Text: Move your cursor to one end of the text you would like to mark, tap this button, and now, up or down swipes will mark your text as you move by character, word, or sentence. Perform a double tap to summon the Cut, Copy, and Paste options. Voice Dream Reader users will already be familiar with this method of selecting text. New users will doubtless agree this method offers much finer control than the VoiceOver reverse pinch gesture.

Proofreading

The next control in line is the "Start Proofreading" button, which initiates a read-all from the beginning of the sentence where the cursor is positioned. A two-finger double tap stops and starts the reading. The app uses indexing to keep the text cursor synchronized with the reading cursor. When you pause the text the cursor is positioned at the last word spoken; it doesn't appear several screens down, as can happen with other editing apps.

Writer offers two default proofreading modes, Natural and Detailed, which you can toggle between in the Audio Settings menu. By default, Natural mode speaks the text as-is, without punctuation, paragraph marks, misspelled words, etc. Detailed mode announces all of these and more, and it pauses between each spoken word so you can perform a final word-by-word review without becoming distracted by context, which can be difficult when proofing a document using a standard computer or mobile screen reader.

By default, the Detailed mode announces each letter of a misspelled word, and also spells out homophones. Homophones are words that sound alike but are spelled differently. Did you write "principal" with the P-A-L ending when you meant "principle" with the P-L-E? N-E-W when you meant K-N-E-W? MS Word's grammar checker does a good job flagging these mistakes, but Writer is the only mobile document editing app I have tested that enables you to make these checks using VoiceOver.

Homophone checking can be extremely useful, but at times it can also be rather tedious. Imagine proofreading this observation about a soup recipe: "I do not know whether or not to add some more thyme." Every word in that sentence would be flagged and spelled out as a homophone. You can toggle homophone checking off and on in the Audio Settings menu, but perhaps a future version should include the option to only check and spell the 50 or so most common homophone errors.

The Audio Settings menu also includes toggles to instruct Writer whether or not to announce misspelled words and capital letters, and to check for extra spaces and new lines. This allows users to create custom Natural and Detailed proofreading modes that speak as little or as much as desired.

Markdown Support

Writer supports a subset of Markdown, which is an easy way to include tags for headers, lists, and other formatting elements in a text file by adding a few special characters.

• Surround a word, or group of words, with asterisks (*) to create italic text, and put two asterisks (**) at each end to create bold text.
• Type a pound sign (#) at the beginning of a paragraph to create a first-level heading. Two pound signs create a second-level heading, three pound signs a third-level heading.
• Use a minus sign (−) at the beginning of a paragraph to create a bulleted list. Type a number followed by a period and a space to create a numbered list.

When you use the Export menu to save a document that contains markdown into an MS Word, Pages, RTF, or HTML file, the markdown is automatically translated into standard headings, lists, italic, and bold text. Markdown is especially useful for VoiceOver users, as it is the only text-editing app I have found that allows you to properly identify headings and other text attributes with VoiceOver.

Unfortunately, Writer does not include an import feature. You can export to MS Word, Pages, RTF, and HTML formats, but you can only create or edit plain text files, and attempting to load a formatted document leads to a "File must be in plain text" error message.

Outline Mode

If you have ever tried navigating a very long document using VoiceOver with Pages or Word for iOS, you know it can take a lot of three-finger scrolling and flicking before you finally find your place. Others often begin their work by creating an outline, then going back to fill in the details. Writer includes a feature that can make both of these tasks significantly easier. You'll find it by double tapping the "Show Outline" button on the main Writer screen, or by performing a three-finger swipe to the right.

Writer's Outline view allows you to set the lowest outline level to headings, paragraphs, or sentences. The app will then display accordingly. For example, if headings is your lowest level, Writer will allow you to quickly swipe left or right from heading to heading, assuming you have at least one in your document. If you choose paragraphs, swiping will move you from paragraph to paragraph, while announcing headings. Choose sentences and all three will be announced.

The Edit button near the bottom of this screen offers three choices for each element: edit, reorder, and delete. Delete removes the entire sentence, paragraph, or heading section. To move the element, double tap and hold the "Reorder" button until a tone sounds, then slide your finger up or down. Writer will announce the new position as you go. This is significantly easier than marking a block of text with the iOS pinch gesture, then using the rotor's Edit feature to change the order of your sections, paragraphs, or sentences.

You can also perform a one-finger swipe up to return to edit mode, with your cursor at the beginning of the selected heading, paragraph, or sentence.

At first glance the Outline view may seem a bit cumbersome, but once you've grown accustomed to it you'll begin to save a lot of time scrolling or trying to position your touch cursor.

Word Finder

The last major Writer feature we will discuss here is the Word Finder. Access this aptly named feature by either double tapping the Start Word Finder icon or performing a three-finger swipe to the left. Use Word Finder to perform the following tasks.

Look up a Word

The Word Finder includes a trio of controls labeled "Definitions," "Phonetic Search," and "Meaning Search." Select one of these, and then activate the text box at the upper left of the screen and type in a word. Double tap the online keyboard's "Search" button and the onscreen keyboard will disappear and be replaced by your search results.

The Definition option searches not only for words, but also for many common phrases, such as "once and for all," and "notwithstanding."

If you are uncertain of the proper spelling of a word, spell it phonetically, then use the Phonetic Search option. Writer does an excellent job finding the proper spelling for both common and obscure words. For example, when I typed in E-X-C-U-P-A-T-R-Y the very first result was the word I was looking for: exculpatory.

Writer's Meaning Search acts like a sort of thesaurus. When I entered the word "Fast," for example, I received 115 results, ranging from the usual "brisk" and "hasty," to words and phrases for which I could discern only the vaguest semantic connection. For example, "Blue Gum," which the Writer dictionary defines as a "Tall, fast growing timber tree with leaves containing medicinal oil," was halfway down the results list. Happily, or should I say propitiously, the most useful choices were almost always near the top of the list.

When you start Word Finder with the text cursor on a word, that word is automatically placed in the search box. You can edit the word, replace it, or simply tap Search. Highlight any of the results and one-finger swipe up or down to look up the word. You can also perform a second Meaning Search on any phonetic or Meaning Search result, again and again, ad infinitum.

When you finally find the perfect word, swipe up to the Insert option, which inserts the word or phrase into your Writer text.

Spell Check an Entire Document

Use the "Find Misspelled Words" option in the Tools menu to start a spell check. The Word Finder will open, with a swipe-scrollable list of misspellings. As you scroll up and down the misspelled word is announced, along with the sentence in which the word appears.

At this point you can make corrections manually, or open the Word Finder. In this mode each successive misspelled word will appear in the text edit box, with a list of possible replacements below. Highlight the correct spelling and then use the Insert option to make corrections (it would be helpful if the Insert control were renamed Replace here to avoid confusion).

Note: If you prefer to use the three-finger swipe method to summon Word Finder and Outline mode, you can remove their buttons from the screen via the Tools, Advanced Settings menu.

Composition

Composing and editing documents using Writer is significantly easier with a Bluetooth keyboard. Entering text with the touch keyboard, I often found myself accidentally entering a "best prediction" word instead of activating one of the rotor control buttons, which are located just above the predictions. Dictation did work the same as it does in other apps, and this quickly became my preferred method of entering text, which I could then correct with either a Bluetooth or onscreen keyboard.

Conclusion

I see little advantage to using Writer to create short notes. I prefer the iOS Notes app, or an app called Captio, which includes a control that will send your note to your e-mail box with one double tap.

Students and office workers who wish to use their iPhones or iPads to take notes in class or in meetings will enjoy this app, especially when paired with a Bluetooth keyboard. Entering text is as easy or easier than other iOS note taking or word processing apps, and reviewing what you have written is significantly easier—especially if you use Markdown. Begin each new topic or important takeaway with a minus (−) or pound sign (#) and the important takeaways will be a few Outline swipes away.

For me, and likely for many other VoiceOver users, this app would be significantly more useful if it were able to import formatted documents. If that were the case, documents created on Macs or PCs could be edited on the go, then given a thorough proofreading before a final save and send.

Since I do not take notes in a classroom, or attend many on-site business meetings, I will likely not use Voice Dream Writer a great deal—at least not until the developer has added support for RTF file imports, at the very least. This does not mean I will delete this app from my iPhone, however. The version I evaluated for this review is version 1.01. These are early days, and Winston Chen, the app's developer, has a demonstrated track record of listening to users' suggestions and requests and going to great lengths to respond to them with app enhancements and innovative new features. I look forward to seeing what he has planned.

Product Information

Voice Dream Writer
Developer: Voice Dream LLC
Price: $9.99
Requirements: iOS 8.1 or later. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch.

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Officially, it's known as the Annual International Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference, but to most, it's simply referred to as CSUN. Each March, roughly 5,000 researchers, teachers, accessibility experts, exhibitor representatives, and technology enthusiasts gather in San Diego to share new products, learn from others, or simply do a whole lot of networking.

To continue an AccessWorld tradition, in this article I highlight several of the new and noteworthy products exhibited at this year's conference. Once again this year, AFB sponsored exhibit hall interview coverage on Blind Bargains; visit the CSUN15 audio page for lots of interviews from the conference.

KNFB Reader App Gets More Features, Coming to Android

The KNFB Reader app for the iPhone was released last September, and Sensotec NV along with KNFB, LLC seized the opportunity to demonstrate the app at its booth alongside an early Android version. In its first few months, KNFB Reader consistently appeared on some of the App Store's top app lists, including a stint as the top ranked app for productivity based on sales. The app is now also being translated into several languages including Spanish, French, German, and Turkish.

Jim Gashel, KNFB Chief Technology Officer, hinted at some of the forthcoming improvements for KNFB Reader, including the ability to translate documents in real time and an improved automatic mode for continuous reading using a stand. As for Android, Gashel expects a release within the next couple months. Hear from Jim in this Blind Bargains podcast.

iYomube OCR App

A Japanese company called Amedia demonstrated a contrasting app in the booth right next to Sensotec's. iYomube offers what the company refers to as "real-time OCR," with text being spoken immediately after it appears in the camera's viewfinder. The phone could be pointed at anything from a nearby brochure to a far away sign, with results spoken almost immediately. The Amedia booth was filled with potential text targets, which also lead to some confusion as text from several nearby items was often read along with the target text. While it may be possible to use this app with some training, the results we experienced were often garbled, as heard in this example. iYomube also recognizes traditional and simplified Chinese characters as well as Japanese and Korean, and it's quite possible it may do a better job with these languages. It's available now for $29.99 from the iTunes App Store, and it is accessible using VoiceOver.

Google's Big-Time Presence at CSUN

Just three short years ago, Google attended CSUN with just a few research staff. This year, Google was represented by approximately 60 employees, including representatives from many Google services. Whether it was Google Docs or Android, Google Wallet or Chrome, someone from just about every major Google service made an appearance at CSUN. Google demonstrated improvements to Docs on mobile devices as well as with screen readers like NVDA. Guests could use Google Glass to get real-time feedback while wandering the exhibit hall. While the company certainly has more work to do to improve the accessibility of some of its websites and apps, it seemed evident that this wasn't the same old Google when it comes to accessibility.

Math Accessibility, and a Nemeth Tutorial from APH

A lot of focus has been placed on accessible math notation and equations in recent years. Notetakers from HumanWare and HIMS now include support for Nemeth Code, and Duxbury has improved its translation engine to include support for Nemeth input.

At this year's CSUN conference, attention turned to the latest version of MathPlayer, a plug-in that allows for the display of mathematical symbols and equations embedded in webpages and documents. In last year's CSUN recap article, we mentioned that support was emerging, with Window-Eyes as the first screen reader to support in-line math equations. Since that time, expanded support has emerged in both Window-Eyes and NVDA in Microsoft Word and in popular Web browsers, while JAWS 16 includes some initial support in Internet Explorer. It's a lot to digest, but Sina Bahram, David MacDonald, and CB Averitt broke it all down into bite-sized pieces that help explain the current state of things. Check out this presentation summary to learn more. In short, access to math tutorials, lessons, and equations is becoming much more widespread and these improvements will help both math students in school and professionals who wish to enter science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields.

The American Printing House (APH) recently released a Nemeth tutorial that teaches the sometimes confusing math code using lessons and exercises. The lessons are organized by grade level, ranging from first grade where basics like the numeric indicator and equal sign are described, to later lessons that cover algebra, geometry, and other advanced mathematical concepts.

The tutorial uses MathML, which is made accessible by the MathPlayer program discussed above. If MathML is not an option with your screen reader, a backup method for displaying braille characters is also available. Instructions for working with various screen readers are clearly described on the page. You can view the free tutorial on the APH website.

AccessaMed Accessible Prescriptions May be Coming to a Major Pharmacy Chain

We've seen a couple different approaches to providing accessible labels for prescription medication. En-Vision America offers ScripTalk, which uses a specialized machine or a mobile app to read the contents of the labels. AccessaMed uses a different approach, affixing small devices with buttons to each prescription bottle. The advantage, according to the company's Chad Hazen, is that no special device is needed to identify labels. The small devices are one-time use, and there is currently no way to reuse or dispose of the components without taking them to a recycling center. AccessaMed expects to announce that a major pharmacy chain will be using its system, but was not ready to give specifics at the conference. Listen to a Blind Bargains podcast with AccessaMed to learn more.

A Musical Braille Display from Handy Tech

While many companies are looking to fill the mobile niche of smaller and smaller braille displays, Handy Tech is going in a different direction with the release of the Active Star, a new 40-cell display update to its desktop Braille Star series. Active Star features 40 hours of battery life, a magnetic keyboard for typing, and an enclosure slot that can hold a mobile phone. The unique feature of this unit is its ability to play braille music. As a user moves his or her finger across a braille display that is displaying music, a polyphonic synthesizer plays the musical note the user is touching. It's the type of feature that may apply to a very specific niche market, but may be hugely appreciated by musicians. Aside from the music support, the display possessed Handy Tech's usual excellent build quality and will be a welcome upgrade to those who are fond of desktop displays. You can hear the display in action on this podcast.

The Year of Advancements in Visual Assistance

Much has been said about Be My Eyes, a recently released free iPhone app that provides remote visual assistance via a network of volunteers. CSUN offered a couple of additional takes on this theme.

The exhibit hall featured a demonstration of OrCam, a wearable appliance with several recognition functions. When a user looks directly at text, such as at a sign or business card, the device will begin to read what it sees. OrCam also recognizes objects, such as items in a grocery store. Many common brands and products will be included in its database, and recorded tags can be added for additional items. A similar feature recognizes people's faces and will announce who it sees. Users need to train the app to recognize specific faces.

The device attaches to a pair of glasses worn on the head, and transmits audio using bone conduction technology. The glasses are required whether one can see or not, as they are used to hold the device and camera in place. For early adopters who are willing to give some feedback, units will be available this spring for $2,500. The retail price upon final release will be $3,500.

Visual Access, a forthcoming app from TCS Associates, works more like Be My Eyes in that it uses remote workers to provide information about your surroundings or objects of interest. The company employs trained professionals such as orientation and mobility specialists and assistive technology trainers who understand how to describe scenes in a way that is useful and efficient. The tradeoff will likely be price, as the app will have a cost for those who wish to use the service.

Comcast X1 Joins the Exhibit Hall

Comcast has been making waves with the introduction of Talking Guide, available on its modern cable boxes. This was the first year Comcast demonstrated the beta version of the system in action in the CSUN exhibit hall, often drawing large and rather enthusiastic crowds.

Mainstream Companies at CSUN

Other mainstream companies had a presence in the CSUN exhibit hall as well. In addition to its high-end business copy machines with voice guidance, Cannon demonstrated some ultraportable scanners that retail for under $300. The imageFORMULA Scan-tini mobile document scanners are as wide as a piece of paper but only 3 inches long. Paper feeds through the back of the machine via an automatic document feeder and then is pushed out the front of the device as it scans. Both sides of the page are scanned at once. A scan speed of up to 15 pages per minute is an impressive rate for this price point. Scanners like this would be ideal for those who need to read documents on the go, or who don't have room for larger units in their office. The Scan-tini cannot scan books or other thicker materials.

Conclusion

This round-up barely scratches the surface when it comes to talking about everything that happened at CSUN. A quick check of the official #CSUN15 Twitter hashtag reveals nearly 8,000 tweets posted around the conference. From the dozens of informative sessions to the jam-packed exhibit hall, CSUN is still the largest and most influential conference of its kind. This year marked the 30th anniversary of the event, which started out as a small gathering on the CSUN campus before moving to Los Angeles and now San Diego. Given the continued emphases on assistive technology by mainstream companies and the growing population of elderly people with disabilities, it's likely the conference will grow even larger in the future. If technology is in your blood, think about attending CSUN in March of 2016. And whether or not you're able to make the trip to southern California, we'll tell you about it in AccessWorld.

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Dear AccessWorld readers,

The 30^th Annual International Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference, otherwise known as CSUN 2015, was held March 2 through March 7 in sunny San Diego, California. It's impossible to take in all of the pre-conference workshops, educational sessions, forums, technology exhibits, and group meetings, but the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) was there, doing its best to experience as much of CSUN as possible!

AFB staff members were involved in several educational presentations and meetings with national leaders in the mainstream and access technology arenas. In order to help keep AccessWorld readers up to date with the goings on at CSUN, AFB was, once again, proud to sponsor the Blind Bargains podcast coverage of CSUN 2015. The AccessWorld team encourages you to log on to the Blind Bargains Audio Content page, which features great interviews, presentations, and updates on the latest in technology news from the conference.

Among the many presenters at CSUN was Yahoo, who demonstrated their accessible mobile apps for iOS and Android. After the conference, I spoke with former AccessWorld author Darren Burton, and he shared information about his new work as an Accessibility Specialist on Yahoo's Accessibility Team.

Yahoo has really been ramping up its team lately. The Accessibility team is managed by Mike Shebanek, who helped develop VoiceOver and managed the Accessibility features in OS X and iOS. Also on the team are Alan Brightman and Gary Moulton, who created the original Worldwide Disability Solutions team at Apple. Last year, Larry Goldberg, who founded the National Center for Accessible Media and worked for WGBH, recently joined the Yahoo team as well. Topping the list is our own Darren Burton, who not only contributed to AccessWorld, but spent 12 years at AFB, most recently as Director of AFB Tech.

Darren's primary new responsibility is working side-by-side with Yahoo's mobile app developers to make its apps accessible. That means Darren is quite busy, because Yahoo now has over 575 Million monthly mobile app users and over 500 people working on mobile apps for iOS and Android making Yahoo one of the largest app developers in the world!

Since Darren is so close to the app team, I asked him if he could recommend a couple Yahoo apps for us. Darren really likes the Yahoo Fantasy Sports app and the Yahoo Screen (video) app on iOS for iPhone and iPad. He said, "Screen is a great app for viewing trending video clips from over 30 popular providers like Saturday Night Live, Comedy Central, and NFL Now." He also likes Yahoo's News Digest app for Android and thought Android users might be particularly interested in Yahoo's new Aviate app. Darren said, "Aviate is a launcher app that makes Android screen-reader friendly. It adds new screens that organize your apps by category and an A to Z index to make apps much easier to find and launch. It also adds "smarts" by displaying widgets on yet another screen based on where you are, time of day, and what you're doing."

Darren told me how Yahoo is getting "social" recently launching a new Accessibility website and Accessibility Tumblr blog (Yahoo acquired Tumblr in June 2013)

The website is designed to welcome individuals with disabilities and help them successfully get started with Yahoo products. It includes several resources for contacting Yahoo, providing feedback, and getting technical support. It also discusses Yahoo's philosophy of integrating accessibility into product development, and how Yahoo's Accessibility Team works side by side with designers and engineers and reaches out to gather valuable feedback from individuals with disabilities. You can check it out at Yahoo's Accessibility Page. The Tumblr blog is a great place to learn tips and tricks for using the accessibility features of Yahoo websites and mobile apps, and to learn about Yahoo's Accessibility Team and its work.

As of this issue, I am pleased to announce that Jamie Pauls has joined the AccessWorld team of authors. You may be familiar with his work as a former host of ACB Radio's Main Menu technology show and, more recently, the host of the SeroTalk Podcast. AccessWorld is excited to have him contribute to the publication, and I am sure readers will appreciate his technology knowledge and experience. Be sure to read his articles in this issue.

As part of AccessWorld's special CSUN coverage, please be sure to read J.J. Meddaugh's article in this issue, which highlights some of the technology shown in the CSUN exhibit hall.

It's not too early to mark your calendars and save the date for the 31st annual CSUN conference from March 21st to March 26th, 2016, again being held at the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego.

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

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I work with a blind student as an Instructional Assistant. I have struggled along with her in the area of math. Reading the article The Future of Braille Technology: Perspectives and Implications, by Deborah Kendrick, I feel a multi-line braille display would be very helpful. I look forward to the day it becomes available.

Sincerely,

Flora Barcenas

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

Thank you Janet for your excellent coverage in the article Focus on the Hospitality Industry, Part I: A Guide to Online Reservations for Marriott and Hyatt Hotels, by Janet Ingber. This is been a long time issue when I wish to explore hotel sites for traveling. I look forward to the follow up articles. Awesome job!

Thanks,

Dan Thompson

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

After reading A Review of the Odin VI: An Accessible Feature Phone from Odin Mobile, by Bill Holton, I called the representative of Odin to get a few more details. Answers led me to the conclusion to stick with Samsung's Gusto II. I was told that the Haven is no longer in production. Unless I misunderstood the Odin rep, it can only hold 5 pre-set numbers, does not have voice commands and, while not a deal breaker, I would have to reenter my entire contact list.

Kind regards,

Arthur Krause

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

Bill Holton's Mobile Phone Technical and Access Support: A Look at AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, and Sprint gave excellent resources! Just what I need.

Thanks,

Barb

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

Thank you so much for this review, A Review of the Be My Eyes Remote Sighted Helper App for Apple iOS, by Bill Holton. I had seen this app, got excited, and sent it to an e-mail group for TVIs and other colleagues in the field.

Within two hours I had an irate colleague, who is blind, saying the app gives the impression blind people are helpless, and was put off by it. I replied that it might not be his need, but for someone else, it would be.

An hour later a TVI replied that she would not support this app, and would never recommend this to anyone. I have felt both irritated and embarrassed at their reaction.

Tools are tools. Some sit in the tool box a long time but boy is it great to have them when you need it. Your examples are perfect…why struggle in the kitchen cabinet trying to find the decaf teabag, or call a family member and then perhaps have to have a long conversation… but I digress.

I am so glad you like the app. I thought it was neat, too.

Best,

Maureen Murphy Lewicki

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I have just read A Review of the Be My Eyes Remote Sighted Helper App for Apple iOS, by Bill Holton, on the new phone app and am keen to see how this app develops in popularity for people like myself who are visually impaired.

I do have one problem, however, no one seems to mention how difficult Siri can be. "She" became SO frustrating to use when I tried to convert from my old Nokia to iPhone in misunderstanding my text messages and even argued with me rather than follow a command, I had to abandon using an iPhone for now.

Do you know if there is work being done at present to improve Siri as a workable application? My experience was so frustrating, having a voice tell me "I'm doing the best I can" rather than read me the text I had dictated is not really being helpful at all.

Other terms in her dialogue included "Okie-dokie, artichokie" and "Off to the cloud it goes" after perhaps the seventh attempt to get my message correct from voice to print version.

But, I am pleased to read about the new app and hope, one day, I will leave my Nokia phone and try Siri again and we can both go off to the clouds together!

Kind regards,

Maribel Steel

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I really enjoy the AccessWorld app on my iPhone but I have a feature request that I think will make it even better.

I like having access to past issues, which are shown by year, but these archives would be much more useful if the app had a way to search them for keywords. Hopefully I can do such a search on the website.

I just wanted to make this feature request in hopes I might see it in a later update.

Take care,

Alan Lemly

Register for the 2015 AFB leadership Conference!

The American Foundation for the Blind's annual Leadership Conference covers the most pressing and relevant topics in the field of blindness and offers many opportunities to learn from the best and brightest minds in our field, make new connections, and reunite with old friends while earning ACVREP and CRC CEUs.

Join us in Phoenix for the joint 2015 AFB Leadership and Arizona AER Conference and make your reservation today at the beautiful Renaissance Phoenix Downtown Hotel to lock in a special group rate of $179/night. This rate expires on March 19, so don't delay. Visit the Marriott reservations page or call 1-800-309-8138 to book your room today.

Registration is now open; register today and take advantage of our early-bird rates! And check out our amazing program for this year's conference. The popular Thursday half-day summits are back, along with numerous exciting break-out sessions on a wide range of topics. We are still perfecting this program, so check back often for updates!

The 2015 Joint AFB and Arizona AER Leadership Conference is proudly sponsored by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Delta Gamma, Google, IBM, Vanda Pharmaceuticals, CTIA, Actuate, AT&T, NIB, American Printing House for the Blind, HumanWare, and Helen Keller Services for the Blind.

2015 M-Enabling Summit: Conference and Showcase

The 2015 M-Enabling Conference will be held June 1–2, 2015 in Washington DC at the Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel.

The two day high-level conference and showcase is entirely dedicated to solutions promoting and implementing accessible mobile communications and services for senior citizens and people of all abilities. During the Summit, participants will gain insight into how accessible mobile applications and services transform customer relations for the private and public service sectors. Further, the Summit will provide the opportunity to network with influential industry and government leaders from around the world.

For more information, visit the M-Enabling webpage, or contact:

Ron Akins
301-493-5500, ext. 3310
akins@ejkrause.com

Pat Hazan-Tessler
301- 493-5500, ext. 3386
tessler@ejkrause.com

Francesca Cesa Bianchi
Vice President, Institutional Relations
G3ict
678-534-8518
fcesabianchi@g3ict.org

Envision Announces Dates and Location for 10th Annual Envision Conference 2015

September 9–12, 2015
Grand Hyatt Hotel, Denver

Envision recently announced that its 10^th annual Envision Conference will be held September 9–12, 2015 at the Grand Hyatt in Denver. Organizers of the program, which gathers specialists from around the globe to share knowledge on the latest findings and approaches related to addressing vision impairment, are now accepting submissions of prospective clinical education and research abstract presentations to be included on the four day agenda. Full details of the 2015 program are available at the conference website.

The Envision Conference typically offers 90 hours of clinical education and research sessions pertaining to low vision. Participants enhance their ability to:

• describe the most current research and clinical practices in low vision rehabilitation
• recommend appropriate patients who could benefit from low vision rehabilitation
• recognize the multidisciplinary nature of professionals involved in low vision patient care
• assess the potential for patients to maximize functional vision through low vision rehabilitation
• select appropriate resources and adaptive strategies for patients with permanent vision loss
• develop strategies for strengthening the role of low vision on the public health agenda
• address disparities in access to low vision care
• provide opportunities and training to address national eye health epidemics

Many sessions can earn attendees continuing education accreditation through agencies including: the Council on Optometric Practitioner Education (COPE), the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME), the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation & Education Professionals (ACVREP), the Commission on Paraoptometric Certification (CPC), Commission on Rehabilitation Counselor Certification (CRCC), and the Joint Commission on Allied Health Personnel in Ophthalmology (JCAHPO).

Two Scholarships Offered

This year Envision is introducing two scholarships to attend its annual conference. Each scholarship will be awarded to either a full-time student studying clinical areas of low vision rehabilitation (optometry, ophthalmology, occupational therapy, orientation and mobility, or low vision therapy), or to a Ph.D. candidate specializing in research related to low vision applications or clinical outcomes. Scholarships will cover the full cost of registration, but do not include travel or hotel expenses. Students interested in applying for a scholarship should submit a curriculum vitae, at least one letter of reference from a professor or clinical supervisor, a completed application, and a one-page narrative explaining their interest in low vision rehabilitation or research and outlining how attending the conference would benefit their education or career.

Applications are due by April 15, 2015. Notification of acceptance will occur by May 15, 2015.

Survey Research

The Department of Kinesiology, Sport Studies, and Physical Education (KSSPE) at the College at Brockport, State University of New York, is conducting a study to determine the accessibility of hotels and accommodation facilities with the life experiences of people with disabilities. The questionnaire has IRB approval and should take about 10 minutes to complete. The researchers are looking for participants who are people with disabilities, their families, and traveling companions. Results are expected to help improve the accessibility of accommodation facilities.

Contact Information:
Ozkan Tutuncu, Ph.D. Primary Investigator
585-967-8740
otutuncu@brockport.edu

Lauren Lieberman, Ph.D. Research Supervisor
585-395-5361
llieberm@brockport.edu

The survey is available now.

Retinal Consultants of Arizona Announces New Collaboration with University of Southern California Eye Institute

The USC Eye Institute and Retinal Consultants of Arizona are proud to announce a new collaboration enhancing eye care with a specific focus on joint educational and research programs.

The USC-RCA vitreo-retinal fellowship program will provide fellows with top tier training from ophthalmologists who have years of experience in retina and vitreous surgery and have made significant technical and clinical advancements in the diagnosis and management of vitreo-retinal diseases.

Additionally, the collaboration creates an international ophthalmology program for teaching, research, and clinical care. Ophthalmologists from around the world will now be able to receive education from leading doctors at both the USC Eye Institute and the Retinal Consultants of Arizona. The collaboration allows those involved in the program to have access to a wider variety of specialized ophthalmologists, each with their own unique focus and background in the field.

This collaboration further creates an extension program for epidemiological research with a specific focus on Native Americans, as well as clinical care in Arizona. Retinal Consultants of Arizona operates the Retinal Research Institute — the nation's leading independent retina and vitreous clinical research facility — allowing ophthalmologists from both organizations to jointly investigate eye diseases and disorders that are prevalent in specific ethnic groups in the United States and throughout the world.

Through research, clinical care, and education in a wide variety of ophthalmic conditions, USC doctors have made advancements in improving our understanding of the mechanisms that cause eye disease and the way that eye disorders are diagnosed and treated. The USC Ocular Epidemiology Center has conducted multiple community eye health studies to assess and prevent various eye diseases among diverse populations. In addition, advanced eye treatments have been created at the USC Eye Institute, including the Baerveldt glaucoma implant and the Argus II retinal implant.

Headquartered in Phoenix, RCA is Arizona's largest and most experienced retina practice and is a nationally and internationally recognized clinical research facility focused specifically on the diagnosis and management of diseases of the retina and vitreous. In many instances, RCA is the only retina group in Arizona to offer participation in specific research trials that evaluate treatments for blinding eye conditions such as macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy.

Eyes on Success

The Eyes on Success radio show and podcast recently aired a two-part series about various aspects of working from home or telecommuting from the perspective of a blind person. These episodes may be of interest to those seeking employment or who are considering working from home.

In addition, in the archive of over 200 episodes of Eyes On Success listeners can find interviews with many blind people with interesting careers. Simply enter "job," "career," or a particular job title of interest into the search tool on the Eyes On Success website and you will be brought to a page with summaries of the corresponding shows along with links to the audio and show notes for each episode. You can find out more about Eyes On Success, download files from the archives, and connect with other listeners on the web site.

Outreach Statement from the United States Department of Education: Office of the General Counsel

Paragraph 3(b) of the Agreement entered into between the U.S. Department of Education and the National Federation of the Blind provides as follows:

The Department shall, beginning as soon as practicable, but no later than 90 days after the effective date of this Agreement, start to conduct outreach to blind and visually impaired borrowers. Through these efforts, the Department shall provide information about, and solicit input concerning, the accessibility of its websites and those of its servicers, the procedure for requesting alternative formats for student loan-related materials, and how to report problems with accessibility. The outreach shall be conducted via the Department's websites, as well as by posting notices in such publications as the Braille Monitor, as well as through other publications for blind, visually impaired, and large-print readers and newsletters published by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped. Copies of all draft outreach materials shall be provided to Counsel for Complainants for prior review and comment no later than 60 days after the effective date of this Agreement. Counsel for Complainants shall provide any feedback within 45 days.

The Department, consistent with its commitment to making its student loan resources and services accessible to all borrowers, has begun the implementation of its new standards for web accessibility , telephonic access, Word, PDF, and hard copy documents, forms, statements and publication.

The new standards are designed to:

• make student loan-related website materials accessible to blind and visually impaired borrowers
• enable visually impaired borrowers to obtain their student loan statements, notices, and written communications in an accessible format
• enhance borrowers' ability to request student loan-related hard copy documents and publications in alternative formats
• and enable them to independently complete, sign and submit certain student loan-related forms online

Students and borrowers are encouraged to contact their loan servicers to obtain information regarding the availability of alternative formats. To locate loan servicer information on your federal student loan, log in to the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) or contact the Federal Student Aid Information Center (FSAIC): 1-800-4-FED-AID (1-800-433-3243) Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. Eastern time. For additional contact options and other general information, visit StudentAid.gov.

To report problems regarding the accessibility of student loan websites, documents, forms, statements, or publications, borrowers may either: (1) submit a complaint through a link on the Department's website that will be available after April 8, 2015; or (2) file a formal complaint with the Department pursuant to 34 C.F.R § 105.41.

Leader Dogs for the Blind is Accepting Applications for their 2015 Summer Experience Camp

Are you a teenager who could use a week of fun, outdoor activity, and friendship this summer? Does kayaking, rock wall climbing, and tandem biking sound good to you? Would you enjoy the challenge of developing new travel skills and stretching your independence? If so, the Leader Dogs for the Blind Summer Experience Camp was designed with you in mind.

The program combines outdoor activities with things exclusively Leader Dog—audible pedestrian GPS training and the opportunity to spend time with Leader Dogs in training and guide dog mobility instructors. The combination will help you increase the skills you need to live independently!

Summer Experience Camp is for boys and girls ages 16 and 17 who are legally blind. The program is completely free including airfare to Michigan—and everyone receives a free HumanWare Trekker audible pedestrian GPS device to keep. Summer Experience Camp is scheduled for June 26–July 3, 2015. Applications are due by April 1, 2015.

For more information and to download an application, visit the Leader Dogs for the Blind website or call the Leader Dogs for the Blind client services department at 888-777-5332.