Audible is a website that sells downloadable audio content including books, periodicals, and radio programs, for play on a computer or other device. Audible offers several membership plans along with the option to purchase products individually.

An accessible version of the site, geared for screen readers, is at Audible Access. It works well with a Mac or PC. Since the company is owned by Amazon, you can use the same e-mail address and password for an Audible account as you do for Amazon. It's very handy that material can be downloaded from the website straight to an iOS device without installing any software on your computer.

This article discusses the accessible website, downloading content onto the Audible iOS app, and using the Audible app. An iPhone 6 with iOS 8.4 was used for this review.

Getting Support with Audible

Free, live technical support for Audible is available 24/7 at 888-283-5051. Support staff members are trained to work with people who are blind. With your permission, they can access your computer to assist in the set up process.

The Audible Accessible Website

The Audible Access home page and all subsequent pages are uncluttered and easy to navigate. At the time of this writing (August 2015), new users can take advantage of a free trial of one audiobook. The registration form is clear and controls are labeled. Note: Although book information can be viewed in the Audible iOS app, purchases cannot be made within the app. All content must be purchased from the website.

Finding Content

Audible's website contains a search form where you can enter a title and/or author. To review search results, use the screen reader's forms hot key. Depending on whether you are using a Mac, iOS device, or a PC to choose how results are sorted, there is a pop up menu or a combo box. For example, my results are sorted by relevance. Next is a box to choose how many results are displayed per page. Results are listed directly under that box.

For each result, you will find information such as the title link, author's name, narrator's name, release date, price, length of reading, and more. There are options to add the book to your cart or to add it to your wish list.

Activating the book's title link loads a page with additional information including the publisher's summary and reviews from other readers. Use your headings hot key to get to the publisher's summary.

Audible also has an Advanced Search link to a form to enter more parameters including length, abridged/unabridged, and language. Another option is to activate one of the site's numerous category links. Examples of categories include Fiction, Non-Fiction, Business, Newspapers, and Bestsellers.

Purchasing Content

Audible has many different membership plans. Detailed information can be found on the website or via technical support. Prices for non-members are higher. The price for members is one credit per book, but Audible sometimes runs specials.

Once you have chosen a book or other content and added it to your cart, go to the top of the page and use the forms hot key to find the "Go To Cart" button near the top of the page. This same hot key is useful for moving around the page. Above the item in your cart will be related items that Audible recommends. Eventually, there's a "Next Step" button. Below this is information about the contents in your cart including title, author, and an option to remove the item.

Another "Next Step" button is below this information. When activated, a new page will load and you will need to sign into your account. On the next page will be a "Complete Purchase" button.

Your Library

The list of items in your Library is stored by Audible in the Cloud and on your computer. When you make a purchase, the content itself is not physically on your computer or device until you actually download it. When you purchase content from Audible, it is placed in your Library, a link to which is located on your homepage. Purchased content remains in your Library permanently so it always available. To play purchased content on your computer, you need to download Audible's software Technical support can assist you with this process.

Using the Audible iOS App

The Audible iOS app is free in the App Store. Once the app is installed and opened, there are two buttons at the top left of the screen.

The first button is labeled "Cloud" and lists all the content in your Audible library. The second button, "Device," lists only the content you have downloaded to your device. Next is a search box and parameters for sorting results. From the "Search" button, slide your finger down to the "Refresh" button. Activate the "Refresh" button to add new content. No sound is played to indicate the Library is finished refreshing but it will be done in less than a minute.

Next, activate the "Search" button and enter the name of the title or author. For each result, you will find a title and a "Menu" button. Double tapping on the title will start the download process. By swiping right and left, VoiceOver will speak the download progress. When enough of the title has downloaded to begin playback, VoiceOver will add that the title is ready to play. Double tap on the title and the book will start playing. There is no audio notification that the book has completely downloaded. However, swiping on the title will cause VoiceOver to speak the book's title, author, and length. Below the title is a menu that includes book details and rate and review.

There are five tabs at the bottom of the screen: My Library, Discover, Player, Me, and More. The My Library tab contains a list of all the content you have purchased. Near the top of the screen are buttons for sorting your library by different parameters including by title or author.

The Discover tab contains recommendations that Audible has chosen based on your previous purchases. By default, the Bestsellers category is selected. At the top left corner of the screen is a "Categories" button. When activated, an extensive list of categories is displayed. Double tapping on a category will display a list of recommendations specific to that category.

Once a title is selected, there are options to add the book to your wish list, a button for a book summary and another button for reviews. There is also a Search button on the right side of the screen. The Discover tab will provide a lot of information about Audible's diverse content.

The third tab is Player. This tab controls your book or other audio program as it plays. All controls are labeled. At the top left corner of the screen is a "Close" button followed by a Player "Volume" button and a More menu which includes a sleep timer and "Share" button for social media. Keep swiping right and you'll hear how much time is left in the book, the chapter number, how much time has elapsed in the current chapter, and how much time remains in the chapter. Next is the total number of chapters and the book's title, followed by a "Jump Back" button, a "Play" button, a "Jump Forward" button, and a "Speed" button. By default, speed is set to 1X or normal speed. Double tapping on the button will cycle through additional options. The "Chapters" button is next and shows all the chapters and lets you jump quickly to one. The final control lets you add a bookmark.

The fourth tab is labeled Me. In the upper right corner is a page selector. The first page is Listening Time. This can be set to Today, Daily, Monthly or Total Time. The second page is Badge Collection and the third is Listening Level. The final page is Titles in Your Library. This has the number of titles for each year that you have been a member.

The final tab is More. In this tab, the first option is News. Selecting this option displays news from Audible. The next option is Settings. The first control here is a button to sign out followed by your user name. Next is a button to refresh your Library followed by a "Sync Device Position" button. This is followed by a Contact Us heading. Information is clearly displayed for contacting by phone and e-mail. Next is the Download Settings heading. The first option here is whether to only download on Wi-Fi rather than also downloading on your cellular network. This may make a difference in the data usage of your cellular plan. Next is a button to choose download quality, followed by a button to choose whether to download by parts. Double tap on each button to view options. The next heading is Playback Settings. The first control is whether to disable Auto Lock. Next is a button labeled "Jump Forward/Back." Activating this button gives options for the "Jump Back" and "Jump Forward" buttons on the player.

Deleting a Book

Any content purchased from Audible is always available, even if you delete it from your device. Delete a book by going to the My Library tab. Activate the "Delete" button, which is to the left of the "Refresh" button. Flick through the items on your device until you locate the one to be deleted. Below the title will be a "Menu" button and then a "Delete" button. Double tap the "delete" button.

Conclusion

Audible is an excellent option for obtaining audio content. This site is easy to navigate. Customer support is excellent and the iOS app works extremely well with VoiceOver.

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Though touchscreen smartphones have seen significant accessibility improvements over the past half-decade, physical voice-over-Internet-protocol (VoIP) phones continue to have a host of accessibility issues. VoIP phones are those that use the Internet instead of standard phone lines or cellular service to make and receive calls. Services that use VoIP include Magic Jack and Skype but also include networks operated by Cisco and other companies for businesses. For this article, I will be focusing on softphones, accessible alternatives that allow access to the features of largely inaccessible physical business phones. The solutions described in this article have been tested by AFB and have proved to be very accessible and usable.

Accessibility Issues with VOIP Phones

Phone features such as making and receiving calls can be achieved through touch or memorization but there are two distinct accessibility issues with physical VoIP phones. The displays on many VoIP phones are not back-lit and often have low contrast text, which can make it difficult to read for people with low vision. Font sizes on the screens are often small, compounding this issue. Though VoIP phones use physical buttons that can be discerned by touch, they also often use softkeys that change function depending on circumstances which allows for the inclusion of more features. The current function of a softkey is presented on the digital display above the key, and with a lack of alternative feedback for visual changes on the display, it can be difficult to memorize what the function of a softkey will be at any given time. AFB staff research has yet to find a stand-alone physical VoIP phone that presents display information in an accessible manner—whether through speech output or through high contrast/large font—to someone with a visual impairment. Because of this, many advanced phone options are not available to someone with a visual impairment.

Softphones as Accessible Solutions to Physical VoIP Business Phones

The most effective current solution for accessing all of the functions of a business VoIP phone is to use a softphone. A softphone is a piece of software that emulates the features of a physical VoIP phone. Users can install a softphone on their computers or smartphones in order to complete the tasks that would normally require a physical phone. Softphones are available on all of the major platforms including Windows, Mac, Android, and iOS. Some softphones have been created specifically to be accessible, while others are mainstream products that are accessible to screen readers. This article will discuss four of these softphones: two that are compatible with the Windows platform, one with iOS, and one with both Android and iOS .

Accessaphone Softphone for Windows from Tenacity

Accessaphone is a softphone by Tenacity designed to provide VoIP access to those with disabilities. Accessaphone connects to a physical VoIP phone and the phone's microphone provides input and the phone's speaker provides output. It works with multiple VoIP networks including Alworx, iCore, NEC, Shortel, and Cisco. One license costs $1,500, with a discount available for buying in bulk.

AFB tested Accessaphone with NVDA, Window Eyes, and JAWS. Accessaphone also includes an option for the Windows SAPI engine to voice program controls as well as caller ID. NVDA provided the best access to the application as it would read the function of each element when the control was focused. JAWS and NVDA were able to read all controls, but Window Eyes could not read the table that contained the call log information.

Accessaphone provides keyboard shortcuts for nearly every function imaginable, which makes navigation intuitive and efficient. Most controls are standard windows elements and the interface can be navigated with the keyboard both using the Tab key or the Arrow keys. With shortcuts for accessing items such as answering and ending calls as well as performing functions such as transferring with keystrokes, Accessaphone was the most efficient softphone tested.

VTGO508 Softphone for Windows From IP Blue

VTGO508 from IP Blue is another Windows softphone, primarily for the Cisco network, that has been designed to be accessible to those with disabilities. VTGO508 uses a SAPI engine to voice the interface as well as the caller ID. It does have hotkeys for certain functions (such as call log and address book), but not all, which can make performing some functions tedious. For example, to answer the phone you must first navigate to the Answer button instead of simply being pressing a hotkey. The interface is rather cluttered because it contains digital representations of the physical telephone keypad. In addition, many of the controls are not labeled when viewed by a screen reader and the built-in text-to-speech does not describe them in most cases. Compounding the issue is the fact that the user is not able to configure SAPI to only speak certain information such as the caller ID. In addition, several controls are represented by symbols without accompanying text due to the fact that the interface actually resembles a physical Cisco VoIP phone. This can make it difficult for low vision users to determine what controls will do when activated. Even with these issues, the software was usable and I was able to accurately perform phone tasks using VTGO508. VTGO508 is entirely digital, using the computer's speakers for output and an attached microphone for input. It retails for $750.

3CXPhone Softphone for iOS from 3CX

3CXPhone is a free, mainstream VoIP client for the iOS operating system. It uses Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) to make VoIP calls. SIP is a common VoIP protocol with free and low cost options available. Because of this, it is compatible with many VoIP providers. The app's appearance is similar to the standard iOS Phone app. Once you set up your SIP account you will be placed on the dialer activity screen. The only issue when using 3CX is that the Settings, Contacts, and History buttons are not labeled. In our tests, we found that, since the buttons are static, it was possible to use VoiceOver custom labels to label them properly.

Linphone Softphone for iOS and Android from Belledonne Communications

Linphone is an accessible SIP softphone for both iOS and Android. It also resembles the standard iOS Phone app in some ways. The static elements, such as Dialer and Contacts, are labeled correctly; however, on the iOS-compatible version of Linphone, the Contact information from incoming callers is not labeled correctly. The History tab shows the contact name and call status (Incoming/Outgoing/Missed) so it is possible to determine who has called and make calls to others successfully. The Android version of the app is essentially identical to the iOS version but does not contain the issue in which contact information isn't displayed during a call, making it an accessible SIP softphone for that platform.

The Bottom Line

The four softphones reviewed here provide the best access to advanced VoIP phone features thus far. Accessaphone is very accessible and efficient but is rather expensive. VTGO508 is not nearly as efficient but still usable costs nearly half the amount of that Accessaphone does. If you use SIP for your VoIP, 3CXPhone3 and Linphone provide some of the best access to VoIP on the iOS and Android platforms. They are both free and, though there are other accessible softphones, these were the best in regards to both accessibility and features during our testing.

Product Information

Product: Accessaphone
Developer: Tenacity Operating
Price: $1500

Product: VTGO508 Compliant Softphone
Developer: IP Blue
Price: $750

Product: 3CXPhone for 3CXPhone System
Developer: 3CX
Price: Free

Product: Linphone
Developer: Belledonne Communications
Price: Free

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Desktop computing has changed a lot in recent years. Where office workers were once routinely issued desktop PCs, many organizations now provide laptops, or even tablets, instead. Form factors for desktop video magnification have evolved, too, bringing smaller footprints and tighter integration that allows some magnifier users to view images from a computer and video camera on a single screen. Northstate Assistive Technology's Revolution 22-inch, a video magnifier combined with an Android tablet, is an interesting case in point, with something to offer both office workers with low vision and home users looking for a space-saving magnification and computing solution.

The Revolution 22-inch consists of an Optelec MultiView HD video magnifier, attached to an HP Slate 21 Pro All-In-One, an Android-based tablet computer. Unlike most tablets, the Slate Pro isn't handheld or battery-powered. It features a 21.5-inch display, and has the footprint of an LCD monitor you might find on a desktop. The MultiView HD magnifier is bolted to the back of the Slate Pro, allowing the camera head to rise above and in front of the monitor. With two presses of a button on the monitor, you can switch between Android tablet mode and magnifier mode.

Caption: The Revolution 22-inch All-in-One Magnifier and Tablet

Android on the Desktop

Several PC manufacturers, such as HP, Acer, and Lenovo, sell Android-based all-in-one tablets.. Some all-in-ones are marketed as family PCs, or extensions to a home laptop, while others end up in offices, replacing traditional PCs. HP markets the Slate Pro to business users, though Northstate sees wider applications for Revolution in the assistive technology world, where consumers with limited space may also find the all-in-one approach desirable.

The Revolution's 21.5-inch widescreen HD monitor is far larger than any handheld tablet, giving users with low vision more room to work—especially helpful when using magnified text. Because the monitor sits upright, working with the Revolution in Android mode feels more like using a PC than a handheld tablet. You can use standard Android touch gestures, or the included wireless keyboard and mouse, while in tablet mode. Our test unit shipped with Android 4.3 (Jellybean), and was user-upgradable to version 4.4 (KitKat.) We chose to upgrade to KitKat (version 4.4.2) for testing. There is currently no way to upgrade to the current Android version 5.0, Lollipop.

The unit has both 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, and 100 megabit Ethernet networking, and two USB 2.0 ports, plus an upstream USB port. The included 16 GB of storage doesn't provide much room for local files, but the unit includes an SD card reader, and pre-installed Cloud apps that give you options for remote storage of documents and media. The tablet can't truly be called portable, though you can use the handle on the camera housing to pick up the somewhat bulky unit, if you need to move it. Northstate also sells a rolling carry bag.

Video Magnifier

To switch from table mode to camera mode, you press a button on the front of the Revolution monitor, then press again to confirm your choice. With the Slate Pro tablet bolted to the front of the camera housing, the monitor sits approximately two inches above the eight by ten-inch base of the unit, which, in turn sits directly on your desk or table. The camera housing includes ports for power, and the controller pad you will use to zoom and adjust other camera settings. The camera arm sits on a horizontal track, so you can move the arm containing the camera head left or right as you work. The sturdy metal arm rises several inches above the monitor, and then bends 90 degrees, like an elbow. The camera head is mounted at the end of the jointed, horizontal forearm. You can pivot the camera head itself, to choose one of the Revolution's three viewing modes: text view, distance view, or self view. You can also turn the entire arm to change the orientation of what you're viewing.

The Optelec MultiView is an HD camera with magnification up to 70x. Its features are similar to other desktop magnifiers: there are eight color modes, including white/black, green/black, blue/yellow, and gray. Line markers and window shades allow you to concentrate on a viewing area by placing guidelines onscreen, or by blanking the screen to isolate the area where you want to focus. You can freeze the current image, lock focus, and use the white balance adjustment to further enhance the image you're viewing. You can adjust zoom and color modes using buttons on the camera head, or from the controller pad, which has large, high-contrast buttons for all image controls. Buttons feature white icons on a black background, but they unfortunately aren't labeled. The Optelec manual includes a guide to each button's function, so you'll need to memorize them. When you press a button, onscreen text confirms the action you've taken.

When you rotate the camera head to switch between text view, distance view, and self view, the Revolution remembers the last settings you used in that mode. For example, if you're putting on makeup in self view mode, using true color, then turn the camera downward to focus on a document you would like to read, the camera will remember the last settings you used while working in the new mode. It also zooms in or out to the magnification setting you used previously. Rotate the camera again to view a white board across the room, and the settings update. Perhaps the white board is easier to see with white balance set to cool, and a medium magnification. Use distance mode to view objects that are 10 to 15 feet away. Swing the close-up lens away from the camera to engage distance viewing.

Darkening the Revolution

The diversity of magnification, viewability, and color contrast needs of people with low vision creates challenges for all access technology vendors. Many people with low vision rely on high-contrast text, and inverted colors to use computers and mobile devices effectively. The Android operating system did not include an inverted colors feature prior to the release of Lollipop 5.0. Since Revolution can't currently be upgraded to Lollipop, those who rely on inverted colors will find the tablet partially inaccessible. Though the home screen environment, settings, and the included Accessible Editor text editor all feature a dark background/light text interface, most of the pre-installed apps, including the two web browsers, do not. Many apps available from the Google Play Store offer dark themes, but many more do not, and system-wide color inversion apps we tested do not work with KitKat. If you typically use inverted colors or dark themes, you can certainly use TalkBack instead, and/or enable magnification and text enlargement options to compensate. These options will suffice for some.

With its plentiful color modes, the Revolution's video camera is accessible to people with a wide variety of color and contrast needs, though the position of the camera above the monitor may not be ideal for some. If you normally view text on a screen at close range (less than two inches), you will need to either adjust the position of the Revolution camera so that your head does not obstruct its view, or you will need to increase magnification to a level that allows you to view the screen from a greater distance that usual. This is largely a matter of personal visual acuity, and we strongly recommend that you test drive the Revolution if you are accustomed to working very close to the screen, and especially if you have not used desktop video magnifiers extensively. It is also likely that many who do a great deal of reading with the Revolution will want to consider purchasing the optional x-y table.

Text-to-Speech 1.0

Northstate offers two versions of the Revolution 22-inch, Basic and Professional. The units are identical. The Professional version adds a second camera, used for scanning, and performing OCR on text documents, and the result is converted to speech. The USB camera fits into a bracket on the camera housing, behind the screen, and can be flipped downward when not in use. When scanning, the camera extends outward from the left side of the monitor. You'll need to position the Revolution accordingly, leaving enough desk space to accommodate documents you want to scan. We had a bit of difficulty installing the camera into its bracket on the camera housing. We resolved the problem by straightening the bracket slightly.

The text-to-speech option also relies on an Android app called OCR Reader. It has its own spoken interface, and extra-large buttons. Launching the app activates the camera, and the image it sees appears in the center of the screen, flanked by the app controls. There is no way to zoom or crop the image you're about to photograph, though you can increase or decrease its brightness. When you double-tap the image, OCR Reader takes a photo, then immediately process it and begins reading aloud. You also have the option to photograph and save one or more images for later processing.

When you process a photo you have taken, OCR Reader attempts to straighten the image, if it's crooked, and then speaks any text it finds aloud, highlighting the words as it reads. You can pinch to zoom in and tap to read text from a specific point in the document. OCR Reader has nine color combinations you can use to customize background and text color for optimum reading. You can also use OCR Reader's wrapped mode to view just the processed text, rather than the original document. Though documents you scan are saved as images, there's no way to save or manipulate text output.

Revolution's text-to-speech camera is useful for taking a quick look at mail, receipts, or other documents you don't need to refer to later. And OCR Reader's feature-light interface gives it the feel of a 1.0 product that could benefit from further development. Finally, the software's own speech isn't compatible with Android's TalkBack screen reader. If you use TalkBack when working, you'll need to turn it off in order to use OCR Reader with speech. These limitations make it difficult to recommend the Revolution Professional over the Basic model, which is $700 cheaper.

RTFMs

The Revolution package includes two printed manuals: an Optelec-produced guide to the MultiView HD, and Northstate's overview of the tablet/magnifier combo. The 12-page Revolution manual features 16-point type, and a drawing of the Revolution unit, with easy-to-see numbers indicating the various components and controls. The provided instructions cover setting up and connecting the unit, and switching between tablet and camera mode. There's also a one-page FAQ, which introduces screen zoom and the TalkBack screen reader. Though a full Android tutorial is beyond the scope of these instructions, it would have been helpful to include resources for new Android users, and especially a list of touch gestures. Other topics we suggest for a future edition of the manual include: basic network connectivity and setup, and a pointer to the Google Play Store, and the many Cloud service apps that are pre-installed on the Revolution tablet.

Eight of the 12 pages in the Revolution manual are devoted to the PageReader software used to operate the optional text-to-speech camera. This section is effective and thorough, but it would be helpful to warn TalkBack users that PageReader has its own speech, and does not play well with TalkBack. Using Accessibility Shortcut to turn off TalkBack before opening PageReader will yield the best results.

The MultiView HD manual uses 12- to 14-point type, along with line drawings that illustrate the unit's components, and the best ways to position the camera for close-up, and distance viewing. A somewhat larger font would be an improvement, as would larger, clearer drawings indicating the unit's features. The overview images will be difficult for some low vision users to interpret, because the lines are thin, and the drawings rather two-dimensional. Of course, using the video magnifier to view these instructions and images will be helpful to many purchasers, but a true large-print manual would be welcome. The instructions themselves are straightforward and complete.

The Bottom Line

The Revolution 22-inch is an innovative access technology product, with many applications for those who spend a lot of time working in an office or home environment. If the Android operating system is sufficient for your computing needs, and you use a desktop magnifier on a daily basis, the Revolution provides an elegant, space-saving solution. For those who require inverted colors to accessibly use a PC or mobile device, Revolution is probably not a viable choice, until a version running the Lollipop operating system becomes available.

Product Information

Product: Revolution 22-inch
Price: $2,995.00 (Basic) or $3,695.00 (Professional)
Available from: Northstate Assistive Technology, 877-682-0452

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Manufacturer's Comments

First, I would like to take this opportunity and thank AccessWorld for reviewing the Revolution 22″ All-In-One Magnifier and Tablet.

In providing comments on the article, the first item I would like to address is that generally, it is not advised to upgrade operating systems without first checking with software vendors to see if it will work with the new operating system. These issues arise all the time in the Windows Operating systems. Although the Android systems tend to be less susceptible, there is always the opportunity for incompatibility. Thankfully, our staff has been very much on top of any upgrades that have been available on the Revolution Tablet, and the OCR Reader application is compatible with JellyBean, KitKat, and Lollipop operating systems. Since the application is deployed through the Google Play Store, updates are instantaneous, easy, and free to the owners of the Revolution.

I am a bit perplexed with the statement that the OCR Reader has a feature light interface. Given the fact that one can change between multiple voices (male and female), 16 different languages, save and load documents, view in original or wrapped mode, pinch to zoom a captured image, and convert a saved image into editable text with a 3rd party application. Many believe the OCR Reader App is a very fully featured application. Are we through with improvements? Never. Our staff is continuously looking to make the app better and easier to use, but with a highly accurate read back starting in approximately 7 seconds, it stands up well against any scan and read machine currently on the market.

With respect to the compatibility of the OCR Reader app and TalkBack, this issue has been addressed and fixed. In the OCR Reader app, the user has the choice now to select between single-tap and double-tap menus. If you will be using TalkBack, it is recommended to select the single-tap menu setting which allows for the single and double-tap requirements of TalkBack. This update was sent out through the Google Play Store, so all Revolutions in the field, as long as they have internet connection, will have received the update to their machines.

Portable vs. Transportable. The Revolution falls into the transportable category, where the unit can be moved about the home or classroom; however, for users that require a highly portable product, they may want to consider the Revo2Go which utilizes the same proprietary software in a smaller, battery-operated, 12.2 inch Android tablet.

Again, I appreciate the reviewer's time and participation in evaluating the Revolution and AccessWorld for publishing the article. Any other questions about the Revolution can be directed to NorthState Assistive Technology at 877-682-0452.

Sincerely,
Cory Hanosh

For most of us, there are few things in life that are more important than obtaining and maintaining a good job. As important as this is, it isn't the easiest thing to do. In fact, for some, it can be quite a challenge. It's one thing to know your own strengths and weaknesses, but it's quite another to organize all that information in a way that is both informative and interesting to a potential employer. For people who are blind, it can be especially difficult to get paperwork filled out, read and respond to correspondence in a timely manner, and make sure that résumé you just spent hours working on looks visually appealing.

The Internet has become an invaluable tool for blind people all over the world. It is possible to search the Web for jobs, correspond with companies via e-mail, and more easily format that shiny new résumé you just created in a way that will catch the eye of the sighted community.

One of the most powerful tools available today is the professional social media platform known as LinkedIn. This website provides a place for people with skills to connect with other people who need those skills. Sounds like a win-win for everyone, right? It sounds even better for a blind person who already has good screen reader and Web surfing skills. That only leaves one question: is LinkedIn accessible to those who use a screen reader to navigate the Web?

Getting Up and Running with LinkedIn

Over the past several months, it seemed that almost every time I checked my e-mail, there was a message from someone inviting me to connect with them on LinkedIn. Many of these e-mails were from people I knew, and some were from people I wasn't familiar with. I had never bothered to sign up on LinkedIn, but I always intended to. After all, the sign-up process was free. One day, for no particular reason that I can articulate now, I decided to go ahead and sign up with the service. I honestly don't recall whether I was using my computer or my iPhone to read e-mail on that particular day. I do know, however, that the sign-up process was painless. A simple e-mail address and password were all that was required, and I had a LinkedIn account. I went about completing other tasks that day, and didn't explore the site further.

After taking on the assignment of writing this article, I went back to LinkedIn and signed in with my credentials. That's when the adventure really began. LinkedIn is all about connecting with other people. I gave the site permission to access my Facebook account and e-mail contacts so that I could find out who in my networks was already using the service. I was pleasantly surprised to find that a number of people who I know well or am somewhat acquainted with were already on LinkedIn. I enjoyed looking through the short descriptions they provided about themselves. Some of my friends had skills, and even side businesses, that I didn't know about. I was able to select the people with whom I wished to connect, and send them an invitation easily. I was next presented with a list of my contacts who were not yet members of LinkedIn and could select those I wanted to invite. After sending out several invites, I very quickly received a couple of e-mails from people who very politely but firmly requested that I not send them any more LinkedIn invitations. One gentleman told me that he had experienced problems opting out of e-mails from LinkedIn, and he didn't wish to go through that experience again. By and large, though, the vast majority of responses I received were quite positive.

I used a Mac for my first exploration of LinkedIn, so I decided to give the iOS app a try. I chose to receive notifications from the LinkedIn app, and boy did I get several! I actually enjoyed finding out in real time when other LinkedIn members connected with me. I was able to take a look at their LinkedIn profiles from the app, in much the same way that I had done from the Mac. As I read other people's profiles, I realized that I hadn't really taken the time to set up my own. I used the LinkedIn app on my iPhone to complete this process, and found it to be fairly easy to accomplish. I had already written a short one-line description of my skills, but I added more information such as where and for how long I attended college, what my major was, and what my current jobs were. Being self-employed, there wasn't just one simple answer to that last question.

With my wife's help, I took a photo of myself and added this to my profile as well. With the addition of the photo, I felt satisfied that I now had an acceptable LinkedIn profile for others to view, whether they were blind or sighted.

Over the next several days of exploration, I discovered that LinkedIn is like a good text adventure game. It can be engaging, you never know what surprises are just around the corner, and you can find yourself suddenly transported to a whole different world without warning. What do I mean by this? Whether you are viewing LinkedIn as a sighted person, or as a blind person using a screen reader, you will discover that the site is huge! There are all kinds of opportunities available. You can join groups of other like-minded people—I found several groups for musicians—you can explore job possibilities, and you will never run out of people with whom to connect. Activating a link on the website can take you in a whole new direction, and it can sometimes be tricky to retrace your steps. This is especially true for a blind person who can't quickly glance at the screen, but must explore it in greater detail with their screen reader of choice.

In previous articles, I have made mention of Amazon, a Website that is familiar to anyone who uses a computer, and the Blackboard service used by many college students and instructors. In both cases, I stated that accessibility to these sites was a challenge, not because they were not well designed for screen reader users, but because of their sheer size. The same concept applies to LinkedIn, as far as I am concerned. I used the site with Safari on the Mac running VoiceOver, JAWS for Windows, Window-Eyes, NVDA, and the LinkedIn iOS app on my iPhone. Each screen reader behaved differently as one would expect, but they all performed as they should. The trick, as far as I am concerned, is making good use of web-surfing techniques on whichever screen reader you choose to use.

Is LinkedIn Aware of the Needs of the Blind?

Jennison Asuncion is the senior staff technical program manager responsible for accessibility at LinkedIn. He has worked in the area of accessibility for the past 10 years, and has been with LinkedIn for the past 2 years. Asuncion was a LinkedIn user before he went to work for the company. As a blind person who uses a screen reader himself, accessibility is more than just a job. It matters to him on a personal level as well.

The LinkedIn website conforms to Web accessibility standards, so it works with all screen readers. Asuncion points out that all screen readers behave differently on the Web, so anyone who uses multiple screen readers is encouraged to explore the site with all of them. The site makes use of heading level implementation, as well as meaningful labels for links and buttons. If you have had an unpleasant experience using the site in the past, it might be worth paying frequent visits to LinkedIn to determine how things may have changed since your last visit. Accessibility is important to the company, and constant improvements are being made all the time. Asuncion stresses the need for good Web navigation skills when browsing the site with a screen reader. The use of heading navigation commands, text search commands, and exploring form controls will all be helpful. Also, familiarity with the site will make the experience less frustrating for the frequent visitor to the service.

The LinkedIn accessibility team welcomes feedback from its users. In addition to feedback from users of Windows screen readers, the team has heard from those using Mac, iOS, and even Linux. Asuncion says they have not yet received any feedback from Android users at the time of this writing.

When asked if he had any tips for blind people who might want to get the most out of LinkedIn, Asuncion stressed the need to add a photo to the site. This is an important visual component to one's profile, and should not be neglected even if, as I did, one needs to gain sighted assistance to accomplish this task.

Asuncion also stresses the need for a complete profile. You might want to include volunteer work that you have done, along with the professional skills you choose to add. Whether or not a person wishes to mention the fact that they are blind is a personal matter, although Asuncion laughed when he remarked that a profile photo of someone standing beside a guide dog might give that fact away.

Another important tip is to spell check everything. It might be worth writing your profile information in a Word document, and checking for spelling and formatting errors before you add this information to the site.

Finally, Asuncion says that, although he is blind and has personal insight into the needs of screen reader users, the needs of people with all disabilities are important to the LinkedIn accessibility team.

Getting Even More Out of LinkedIn

While most people will probably be quite happy with the free version of the site, LinkedIn has four premium subscription plans available to anyone who wishes to get even more from the service. Two of these plans are geared toward consumers, while two are aimed at enterprise.

The Job Seeker plan, which runs $29.99 per month, allows for direct messaging of job recruiters, shows the user a report of who has viewed their profile over the past 90 days, and can move the user to the top of a recruiter's applicant lists.

The Business Plus plan, which comes in at $59.99 per month, adds the ability to contact anyone on LinkedIn, even if you aren't connected with him or her. It also allows for more advanced job search filtering tools.

Here is an article describing all four premium plans in detail.

A USA Today article entitled Seven Ways to Take Your LinkedIn Profile from Mediocre to Amazing provides good suggestions for writing an effective LinkedIn summary, using visual elements to spice up your profile, and making use of LinkedIn groups.

The Bottom Line

LinkedIn is a very popular and powerful tool for connecting with other professionals around the world. The company is aware of, and cares about the needs of all of its customers who have disabilities, and the needs of the blind community have been, and continue to be addressed. While I find the site to be a challenge at times, I believe that I can learn to use it effectively for my needs, and I encourage others to give it a try. Feel free to write to the LinkedIn accessibility team with questions or suggestions.

Product Information

Product Name: LinkedIn
Price: Free

Comment on this article.

Related Articles:

• Computers for the Blind: Opening Worlds—One Computer at a Time by Bill Holton
• 2014 Employment Resources for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired by Joe Strechay

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• Become an Amadeus Pro Maestro, by Jonathan Mosen: A Book Review by Jamie Pauls
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October is here, which means it is National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM). That is right; it is time to "get your NDEAM on" with all kinds of disability employment activities and awareness projects. This is the year to stop believing "okay" is good enough, and it is time to push hard for improvements. In the past year, there have been positive improvements, but we still have a long way to go.

Focus on Recruitment and Disclosure

Due to the Rehabilitation Act's Section 503 utilization goals, there has been a lot of motion by federal contractors and subcontractors to recruit people with disabilities and to encourage current employees to disclose disabilities. In monitoring job announcements and contacts with corporations, an effort is being made to creatively recruit and maintain employees with disabilities. AFB CareerConnect has offered to assist by creating blog posts, social media posts, and messages to subscribers to announce specific employment opportunities. AFB CareerConnect is more about inspiration, assisting individuals with career exploration, preparation for navigating the employment process, advancement in employment, and e-mentoring. AFB CareerConnect staff can be utilized by corporations in efforts to encourage current employees with disclosure. CareerConnect staff can assist with this by speaking on personal experiences, providing stories of mentors, addressing positives and negatives of disclosure in the workplace, and providing engaging stories. As AFB CareerConnect Program Manager, I have provided services and made presentations to all types of audiences. Corporate recruitment representatives have also sought out AFB CareerConnect staff for assistance on strategies for recruiting more individuals who are blind or visually impaired

Transition Services

The ratification of the Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act (WIOA) offers a larger focus on transition services provided by state vocational rehabilitation agencies and their contractors. In fact, state vocational rehabilitation agencies will be spending 15 percent of their service dollars on pre-employment transition services. For most states, this is a lot more than in past years. This legislation goes into effect July 2016. Transition services provide students with activities on career exploration, employment skills, work experience, and so much more. The focus is to provide students with a better opportunity for success in employment with earlier preparation than in the past. The legislation provides a consistent focus, which is something that has been missing, and the use of partners in the education arena is encouraged. The fact is, transition services have been provided through many forms, but with a consistent and widespread implementation, the goal is improved success rates for the future.

AFB CareerConnect Teen Employment Workshops

AFB CareerConnect is a resource for these state vocational rehabilitation agencies through online content, and staff can provide workshops and events. Over the last three years, AFB CareerConnect has conducted over 70 teen employment workshops with students from around the United States. This experience provides CareerConnect staff with insight into some of the most compelling employment obstacles and best practices for job search strategies. From September 1, 2014 through August 30, 2015, the AFB Teen Employment Workshop series had 25 sessions with 573 youth participants. AFB continually looks to see how it can bring these workshops to more audiences.

The United States Business Leadership Network

The United States Business Leadership Network (USBLN) has been a strong advocate for connecting employers with job seekers with disabilities. The USBLN connects and provides employers with guidance on the policies and structure within organizations to help employers embrace and support disability. The USBLN developed a tool called the Disability Equality Index (DEI), which was modeled after the successful Corporate Equality Index that assisted with large strides for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) population in the past. The DEI offers employers the ability to assess their organization on many levels, as to their ability to support employees with disability through policies and hiring practices. The USBLN is a membership organization for employers, and there are local leadership networks around the United States. If you are an employer or connected with employers, encourage their participation with these types of groups. The USBLN supports a widening of diversity in the overall workforce, including the hiring of underrepresented populations such as people with disabilities and veterans.

In addition, the USBLN CareerLink Student Mentoring Program offers college students a great opportunity to participate in a structured mentoring program with corporate professionals as mentors. The program links college students with disabilities to corporate mentors, which over 50 percent of the mentors have disabilities. The program has seen great success and expansion due to the impact made.

AFB CareerConnect has partnered with the USBLN by developing a session for its mentors and mentees on the disability disclosure process and current initiatives. AFB values the work that the USBLN is doing to move the needle for the employment of individuals with disabilities.

Technology and the Employment Process: Benefits and Challenges

In most cases, the employment process involves the submission of employment information online via a job portal. At this point, even if you are able to submit your resume and cover letter via e-mail, you still need to be able to access online job opportunities. Many large companies still have inaccessible job portals or utilize platforms that are poorly designed for accessibility—a disappointing reality in a time when such importance is placed on user experience. Many companies trust their contractors or an automated check to determine if their website is accessible, when true accessibility assessment takes education and understanding. The AFB Technical Solutions Program Manager, William Reuschel, works with businesses and organization on recognizing the complexities of accessibility. His team provides consultation on the development of and fixes to websites and apps for businesses around the United States. The team can coach developers on navigating through the standards and evaluating their current state of accessibility.

The AFB Technical Solutions team is passionate about innovation and bringing access. AccessNote, an accessible note taking app designed by the AFB Tech team to be used with keyboard commands, has been released for Android and the Apple iOS platform for free. The team has provided an update to the AFB AccessWorld app by adding a powerful search feature and customized appearance. The team also developed the new version of the CareerConnect app that includes access to the CareerConnect profile. In addition, the team developed the AFB Vision Connect app, which allows users to search for their local services and connect to a variety of online resources.

Last year, the importance of LinkedIn and accessibility was discussed, and there has been some major progress made in the accessibility of the LinkedIn app. See the review in this issue for much more on the accessibility of LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a large player in access to employment. LinkedIn users utilize the job search feature, network with other professionals, monitor and comment on groups, and are recruited by businesses via their LinkedIn profilesb.

Useful Apps and Innovations for Accessible Job Searching and Profesional Productivity

The KNFB Reader app offers access at a cost, but it is a pretty useful app for individuals who are blind. The app provides the ability to access print documents, menus, and a lot more in your life and employment through an app solution. People are using the app to get access, and the developers continue to add new features.

The Be My Eyes app is a free app that allows people to volunteer to video chat in order to provide visual assistance to people who are blind or visually impaired. People use this app for access to all kinds of information ranging from captchas to thermostats in hotels.

Blind Square offers users access to their surroundings and much more through a mix of GPS technology and Foursquare innovation. It is like Around Me taken to a higher level for individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Find out what is around you within 75 meters with specific utilization of clock directions. Blind Square added a way to run the app without draining your battery by allowing it to sleep. This app is useful, but it is not meant to be a full GPS app for travel. No matter what app you use, an app will not replace the use of proper orientation and mobility skills with a white cane or dog guide.

Aside from mobile apps, there has been a lot of innovation prompting accessibility to be discussed within mainstream media and among many businesses. One such project is Depict, a crowdsourced image description tool to aid visually impaired web users to browse the web with ease. Depict is a two-part project composed of a browser extension and website that provides web users with visual impairments with a platform to request image descriptions from sighted web users. The developer researched common issues faced by Internet users who are blind or visually impaired. The creator of Depict, Niamh Parsley, stated, "I want to get people thinking about web accessibility. Depict deals directly with image descriptions, but is part of a much wider conversation."

2015 Employment Resources Revisited

AFB CareerConnect

The CareerConnect website is a fully accessible AFB subsite dedicated to promoting the employment of people with vision loss. CareerConnect boasts a number of helpful resources, such as articles about the employment process, stories from successfully employed people with vision loss ("Our Stories"), and connections to mentors who are blind or visually impaired and who are employed in many fields. These mentors are great resources for career specific questions, job accommodation information, and more. CareerConnect also offers useful links for job seekers, career exploration, and résumé development tools. In addition, CareerConnect provides useful tools and activities for professionals working with clients who are blind or visually impaired.

Social Networking: CareerConnect Profile

In February 2014, AFB launched the new version of the CareerConnect profile, which turned out to be a much larger change to the program than anticipated. The project involved a massive rebuild of the structure of the e-mentoring program and aspects of the CareerConnect profile. AFB brought a modern feel to the CareerConnect mentoring system, which now allows status updates, associations to mentors, suggested mentors, customizable profile, and new ways to interact.

Maintaining and Advancing in Employment

CareerConnect's Maintaining and Advancing in Employment course is the latest addition to the free, information-rich resources built into the registered section of AFB CareerConnect. The new course follows the model of the fully accessible and self-paced Job Seeker's Toolkit. The Maintaining and Advancing in Employment course offers 25 unique lessons and assignments to assist adults and youth in getting ready to maintain their employment and aim for future advancement. Professionals can sign up for free and associate to users as well. So, stay on the job and prepare to move up the employment ladder with this great resource.

The Job Seeker's Toolkit

CareerConnect's Job Seeker's Toolkit is a free, self-paced online course aimed at people who are new to the employment process. The Toolkit consists of a series of lessons and assignments that cover self-awareness, career exploration, job seeking tools, pre-interview and interview skills, and job maintenance. As you work your way through the Toolkit, you can save your assignments (ranging from your network contacts, to your resume and cover letter, to a list of job leads, to your My CareerConnect portfolio) where they can be accessed for future reference or use.

CareerConnect App, Version 2

AFB launched the free, fully accessible CareerConnect App on June 24. The app offers access to the CareerConnect Blog, Our Stories section, and the Lesson Plans for Teachers and Professionals section. In June 2015, AFB launched version 2 of the CareerConnect app, which added access to the CareerConnect social networking features. Use this feature to connect with mentors and accept connection requests.

NIB CareersWithVision

The NIB CareersWithVision website is the result of a collaborative effort between AFB CareerConnect and the NIB. The NIB has compiled a large list of jobs from around the US within organizations that do work in fields related to blindness, or that have hired people with visual impairments. A unique feature of the site is that you can submit your CareerConnect résumé to participating organizations in order to apply for jobs. This service requires the creation of a free CareerConnect user profile to gain access to the job board, develop a resume, and apply to positions.

Hadley School for the Blind

The Hadley School for the Blind offers online and correspondence courses for people with vision loss in subjects related to blindness skills, business writing, employment, and more. Hadley's exciting program, the Forsythe Center for Entrepreneurship, offers in-depth information and training for entrepreneurs who are blind or visually impaired and who want to start their own businesses. This resource has seen growth and innovation through partnerships with groups like the Veteran's Administration and others.

Accessing Federal Jobs

Federal agencies have two job application methods available for people with disabilities: competitive and noncompetitive placements. Job applicants must meet specified qualifications and be able to perform essential job duties related to any position with reasonable accommodations.

Jobs that are filled competitively are advertised on USAJOBS, the official job-posting site used by the United States government. There are approximately 16,000 jobs available on the site each day. Once you register on the site, you can set up notifications for job advertisements related to selected keywords. Jobs filled non-competitively are available to those with mental, severe physical or psychiatric disabilities who have appropriate documentation as specified by the US Office of Personnel Management.

The US Department of Labor's Office of Disability Employment Policy (ODEP) offers useful connections to resources for self-employment, youth employment, employer advisement, the latest disability policies, and more. This office advises the US Department of Labor and other government agencies on employment issues regarding people with disabilities.

Job Accommodation Network

The Job Accommodation Network (JAN) is an online resource for accommodation advice for all disabilities. The website also allows users to submit questions regarding special accommodations and ADA issues in the workplace. JAN hosts webcasts on the provision of job accommodations, and the programs can be accessed through their website.

Career One Stop

Career One Stop is a free resource provided by the US Department of Labor that allows you to search state job bank databases.

Career Centers

Career centers help people perform research to support professional goals. Colleges, universities, and postsecondary and vocational schools often have career centers, and many are available to the public. You may have to visit, call, or do some online research to find out what is available to you locally. Keep in mind that many career centers maintain robust websites accessible to anyone with an Internet connection, and these sites may offer many free resources and materials. Career centers are often underutilized, and most are eager to have visitors. Some receive grant money to offer services to the community or state, and some actively recruit people with disabilities to their centers.

Vocational Rehabilitation Agencies

Vocational rehabilitation helps people with disabilities prepare for entry or re-entry into the workforce. Your local vocational rehabilitation agency will offer a range of programs, resources, and services to help you prepare for and find work. The range of programs offered by these agencies varies from state to state, so research your local vocational rehabilitation agency, determine what programs and services you are eligible for, and register.

In most cases, these organizations exist to help you become job-ready and find employment. Some may also train you in independent daily living, orientation and mobility, and access technology. These organizations will also know about other available resources in your community and state. To find a local or state agency near you, use the AFB Directory of Services.

Stephen-Bradford Search

Stephen-Bradford Search is an executive consultant search firm that looks to connect the right person with the right job. The motivation and passion from their personnel explodes through the phone. Their core values are accountability, growth, integrity, positive culture, and respect.

The firm is dedicated to improving people's lives by identifying talented individuals and is known as a forward-thinking, highly ethical search firm. Its expertise is in marketing, sales, business development, account management, and operations across many industries, including the following: advertising, beauty/luxury, consumer goods, digital/social media, emerging technologies, and market research for nonprofit organizations. The management and recruiters come from the industries for which they recruit, and they are dedicated to helping clients build their business with people who drive growth and results.

Stephen-Bradford Search is not an organization that is specifically aimed at the recruitment of people with vision loss. It aims to find talented people who are qualified individuals and can get the job done. That said, the firm does have personnel who are visually impaired, and if you are working in any of the fields listed, this is a recommended organization to contact.

Bender Consulting Services

Bender Consulting Services is a highly successful recruitment firm that specializes in meeting employers' needs through the employment of qualified people with disabilities in the technology, science, government, and other employment sectors. The organization has been making a difference for a long time. Joyce Bender also hosts a popular audio show specific to disability and the employment process.

disABLED Person, Inc.

DisABLEDperson, Inc. is a non-profit public foundation with the mission to reduce the extremely high unemployment rate amongst the disabled by providing online recruitment solutions as well as program initiatives. A primary goal associated with this mission is to connect individuals and veterans who have disabilities with employers who are proactive in hiring them. It accomplishes this goal through their disability job matching system.

Another goal is to assist its community members in gaining marketable job skills that will translate into sustainable employment, accomplished through their Microsoft IT Academy program. Recently, the organization has created a partnership with the Council of State Administrators of Vocational Rehabilitation and an alliance with the United States Business Leadership Network. You can visit the Web portals at the disABLEDperson, Inc. website or the Job Opportunities for Disabled American Veterans (JOFDAV) website.

Eyes on Success

The Eyes on Success audio show is an excellent resource to find interviews with successful people who are blind or visually impaired and get employment tips. There are over 200 shows accessible online that offer tips on job seeking and the use of resources. Find out about great blindness-related resources and inspirational stories.

NFB Where the Blind Work

The National Federation of the Blind has a resource that allows persons who are blind or visually impaired to post information about their work. Where the Blind Work is a portal for learning about what work people who are blind are doing.

Project Aspiro

Project Aspiro is a website developed by the World Blind Union around addressing the employment issues specific to the needs in Canada and abroad. This is a career exploration resource that aims to illuminate employment options and programs without a Western-centric focus.

Final Thoughts

During NDEAM, take the time to evaluate your presentation to the public, online, and when approaching employment opportunities. When you step out into your local community or professional community, what brand are you presenting? Every one of us has our own brand, and it is up to us to evaluate that brand to see if it supports our intended message. The perception of the public is their reality of who we are as an individual. Put forth the best brand possible. We all are unique and offer valuable skills. Even the professionals with the best brands have to reevaluate their messaging from time to time. Define the message you want to present in the public, create that message and image, seek feedback, correct your brand, and test your revamped brand in the community. This could be the difference between being employed and not being employed. This doesn't have to cost a lot of money.

Take the time to reevaluate your online presence. Look at your presentation through social media, and evaluate whether this is the professional image you seek. Social media offers both new opportunities and obstacles in the employment process. More and more jobs are released first through social media and associated online contacts. Corporations and recruiters are mining online profiles for qualified and talented candidates.

Even the most seasoned professional needs to practice their skills for navigating the employment process. Individuals who have been employed for longer periods might be even more in need of this practice and effort. The employment process has changed, and our skills for interviewing and addressing the needs of new employers may be stale. The employment process is about bringing your skills to meet the needs of an employer. Defining and listening to the needs of an employer can be the thing that gets you a second interview. Each employer is different, and the fact is most interviewers have little to no training in conducting an interview. Most operate on their own biased assumptions of what an effective interview should be. Interviewers don't typically role play or practice the process, especially those who are executives or not human resources professionals. The people who will typically interview you are professionals in a specific field. Take the time to practice your interviewing skills with various professionals who work both in and outside of human resources, This is a lot of time and preparation. We all have misjudged our own skills and proficiency in this area.

Besides getting your brand to the highest level, take the time to give back to the community. Make the effort to schedule time to assist in creating a better awareness around the employment of individuals who are blind and visually impaired in employment. We are more than our blindness and vision loss. We are corporate professionals, nonprofit managers, retail associates, sandwich artists, scientists, counselors, lawyers, entertainment stars, and so much more. Track the AFB CareerConnect Blog this month, as we will be providing updates throughout the month on possible activities or new resources.

Comment on this article.

Related Articles:

• 2014 Employment Resources for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired by Joe Strechay
• AFB CareerConnect: A Resource for Job Seekers with Vision Loss by Joe Strechay and Detra Banister

More from this author:

• 2015 AFB Leadership Conference Highlights by Joe Strechay
• 2013 Employment Resources for People Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired by Joe Strechay

Dear AccessWorld readers,

October is Disability Employment Awareness Month, and AccessWorld is once again taking this opportunity to focus on employment with articles that provide strategies, insider perspectives, and information about employment resources.

October is a time to celebrate the skills and accomplishments of American workers with disabilities. Further, it's a time to illuminate and discuss the employment barriers that still exist and, with renewed vigor, pursue their removal.

The effort to educate the American public about issues related to disability and employment began in 1945 when Congress enacted a law declaring the first week in October as National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week. In 1962, the word "physically" was removed to acknowledge the employment needs and contributions of individuals with all types of disabilities. In 1988, Congress expanded the week to a month and changed the name to National Disability Employment Awareness Month.

In observance of this month-long celebration, CareerConnect Program Manager Joe Strechay has once again contributed his expertise to this issue. This month I am also sharing the Editor's Page with Joe to bring you his unique personal perspective on the employment of people with vision loss. He writes:

Having traveled extensively around the United States and met with professionals, job seekers, teenagers, and adults who are blind or visually impaired, I have had the opportunity to learn about employment issues from all sides.

In that vein, I am often asked the question, "What is the major factor affecting whether or not a person with vision loss is or is not employed?" Too often, I feel, people want to highlight a single reason as the major cause for the differential between being employed or being unemployed. Instead of offering one reason, I assert that the underlying factor is that there is such inconsistency around the United States in the training and preparation of people with vision loss from an early age through adulthood.

Neither public nor private services are created equally, and for that matter, no government or private entity offers those services in the same manner. This issue is larger than just vocational rehabilitation. It includes preparation in schools, nonprofits, various state agencies and services, and other important variables, including family involvement. There are a lot of fantastic programs and services available, but any given region may be strong in one service and lacking in another. I know this is obvious, but it needs to be said openly: our field needs to address our weaknesses and diligently work to make improvements.

Each job seeker with vision loss has his or her own challenges. Unfortunately, I still see a level of learned helplessness among young people with disabilities, even among the brightest. Learned helplessness refers to an individual being taught that things will be done for them, which allows them to not attempt to initiate or do things on their own.

This type of thinking sometimes extends to the perception of job seekers that vocational rehabilitation is designed to find them jobs, but that is not its purpose. Vocational rehabilitation specialists definitely can help and guide, but they are not job placement professionals. Job placement is an art; it is a mix of sales, community relations, and having a well-defined pool of applicants.

Job seekers battle the perceptions of employers about vision loss and their own perceptions about navigating the employment process. At the same time, the technology divide between those who have appropriate access and mainstream technology and those who have orientation and mobility training, and those who do not, is apparent. Those with O&M training and technology skills have a better chance at finding, obtaining, and maintaining successful employment. In addition, job seekers are all individuals with strengths, skills, and weaknesses. All individuals have limitations, and not every job seeker is going to be—or wants to be—a computer programmer, accountant, teacher, mechanic, or maintenance worker. But most people do want to be productive and employed citizens.

I encourage everyone with vision loss to pursue every avenue of education and training possible. I encourage you to embrace and learn to skillfully use technology. Take it upon yourself to seek out resources such asCareerConnectand AccessWorld as well as theCareerConnect appand theAccessWorld appto assist you with career readiness. Ultimately, it is your life and your career, and you are responsible for it. Take action! By working hard, obtaining education and skills, and seeking out and using resources available to you, you can find the job that's meant for you!

Joe Strechay, CareerConnect Program Manager

Detra Banister, AFB CareerConnect Employment Specialist, adds:

Career exploration is one thing job seekers can do to help make a sound, viable decision about their future in the workplace. A tremendous number of careers are available to people with vision loss. As an Employment Specialist, I know of at least 300 occupational fields in which blind or visually impaired workers are succeeding and finding delight in their work.

Developed nearly 13 years ago, AFB CareerConnect has proven to be a very popular, interactive tool that presents professional employment information, career exploration tools, and extensive job seeking guidance from experts in the field for students and adults with vision loss and the professionals who work with them.

For the purpose of expanding employment opportunities for people with vision loss, CareerConnect providesemploymentandjob searchinformation, helps new job seekers and students who are blind or visually impairedexplore careersandfind mentorsthrough our fun, new social networking system, helps users learn aboutinterviewing skills, resume building, disability disclosure, or any number of other topics related to a successful job search. Another helpful and inspiring area isOur Stories. These are firsthand accounts of life in the workforce from workers with vision loss. The icing on the cake? Just about all sections of CareerConnect can lead you to a blind or visually impaired mentor who can answer questions and provide guidance about working life! Using all these tools to help you reach your employment goal—now that's what I call a winning performance!

This October also marks the four-year anniversary of the AccessWorld app. I'm very excited to announce the app has now been downloaded over 5,000 times. If you have an iPhone and haven't yet downloaded the app, I encourage you to do so.

I hope you enjoy this issue and will join AccessWorld in recognizing and celebrating the inroads individuals with vision loss, and all types of disabilities, have made in the world of employment.

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

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

Stepping Over The Threshold: Windows 10 In 10,000 Words, Thoroughly Reviewed by Tamas Geczy is an excellent article! This will help me in my decision to upgrade in the future.

Sincerely,

Kate Morse

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I noticed lately that Leo Laporte has been recommending Chromebooks to average users instead of Macs or Windows laptops.

His rationale is sound: the Chromebook is stable, simple, and most everything you want to do nowadays as an average user is on the web. Plus, its PowerWash feature makes it a snap to fully erase it and start again.

I work at a college, and after helping many students struggle with complex applications, Windows glitches, and browser craziness, I'd like to start recommending Chromebooks too. I'd especially like a device with a "power-wash" I could loan to students like a library book; it would be so easy to erase their stuff to get it ready for the next borrower. And all any borrower would need is a Google account. They could install whatever apps they need.

But, I don't believe the ChromeBook is a truly accessible thing. Eighty percent of my students are sighted, but how can I in good conscience as a blind person recommend an inaccessible device?

I tried ChromeVox a couple years ago, and though it could read text and move to elements, I couldn't figure out how it could actually make any Google apps accessible. I would often Tab around some site or app and ChromeVox wouldn't utter a peep.

I was, however using it on Windows, and I keep wondering if it's better on a ChromeBook.

Can the AccessWorld authors get hold of a modern ChromeBook and do some testing, both for speech and magnification users?

Deborah Armstrong

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I'm mildly frustrated there was no discussion of any spell check feature in Bill Holton's September 2015 article, Office for Mac 2016: A First Look at Accessibility.

I've completely kicked Pages to the curb on my iPad, replacing it completely with Word. But, I had hoped I could learn something regarding the accessibility of the spell check feature on the Mac. I'm aware of the keystroke that initiates a spell check in Mac mail, and I assume the same keystroke works in Word 16 for Mac, but it would have been helpful to get that confirmation. Having said that, I understand better than most the cruel taskmaster that is a word count. I've no doubt you were hard against it, and clearly you thought through what could be most profitably included for the benefit of the largest number of readers.

Sincerely,

Nolan Crabb

Response from AccessWorld author, Bill Holton

Thanks for your e-mail. You are correct. I did miss adding spell checking to the article.

I found it best to use the usual Apple/VoiceOver spell commands. These are Command+Option+CTRL+E and Shift+Command+Option+CTRL+E to locate the next and previous misspelled word respectively. Once a misspelled word is located, alternate spellings are available using the Shift+Option+CTRL shortcut menu hotkey.

Announcing Burns Braille Guide: A Quick Reference to Unified English Braille

We're very pleased to announce the recent publication of the revised Burns Braille Guide: A Quick Reference to Unified English Braille, Second Edition, by Mary F. Burns.

Burns Braille Guide is a reference guide to Unified English Braille for translation of print to braille or braille to print for teachers of students with visual impairments and others who have need for braille translation. This revised and updated edition reflects the range of changes introduced in the transition from English Braille American Edition (EBAE) to Unified English Braille (UEB).

Burns Braille Guide is 110 pages long and is now available in paperback for $24.95. The electronic formats, e-books for $17.50 and online subscription for $14.95, will be available shortly.

Coffee House Press Announces Conversion of 80+ Titles Formatted for Visually Impaired Readers

Inspired by a long-time reader, endowed with a grant administered by VSA Minnesota, Coffee House Press has converted more than 80 of their titles for use with screen readers that make text accessible to readers who are blind or visually impaired.

Coffee House Press sought to understand how the blind and visually impaired community accessed reading materials, to add substantially to the materials available, and to overcome current limitations, such as membership and other fees required by existing organizations. Starting the practice of having a text file with an easily navigable internal structure, along with print and electronic versions of Coffee House books, provides greater access to their work and establishes this practice as a responsibility of publishers today.

Special attention was given to poetry titles and prose with innovative forms and, in addition to the most recent titles, backlist titles going back to 1990 have been converted.

Among the titles converted are: Prelude to Bruise by Saeed Jones, winner of the 2015 Stonewall Book Award/Barbara Gittings Literature Award and a finalist for the 2015 National Book Critics Circle Award, as well as Dark. Sweet. by Linda Hogan, which offers readers the sweep of Hogan's work—environmental and spiritual concerns, her Chickasaw heritage—in spare, elemental, visionary language. Coffee House Press books formatted for screen readers can be purchased by contacting the press.

Free Community, Culture, and Technology Fair in New York City

On Saturday, October 17th, 2015, the Andrew Heiskell Library, located at 40 West 20th Street, Manhattan, New York City, will turn its library into a hub for representatives from New York's great cultural institutions, premier museums, sports programs, technology vendors, and community organizations, specifically focusing on offerings for people who are blind, visually impaired, or physically disabled. Hear from engaging speakers, have fun with hands-on art, meet people from dozens of organizations, explore tools for independent living, try out cutting-edge access technology, and meet its team of volunteer technology coaches. Organizations in attendance will include: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Lincoln Center, AT Guys, Independent Living Aids, Adaptive Climbing Group, In Tandem Cycling, Touch Graphics, C-Tech, Computer Center for Visually Impaired People, Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program, the Mayor's Office for People with Disabilities, the Office of Emergency Management, and many more.

Find them online at talkingbooks.nypl.org, on Facebook, or contact Chancey Fleet, Assistive Technology Coordinator, at 212-621-0627

NYC Coalition on Aging and Vision Launches Website Designed for Those Needing Vision Rehabilitation

About 2.9 million US seniors are affected by vision impairment and the number of seniors with vision loss is expected to double in the next three decades. In response, the NYC Coalition on Aging and Vision launched a website to help older adults with vision loss receive individualized referrals to vision rehabilitation services.

The website, a central resource for both professionals and the public at large, was designed to make it easier for seniors with vision loss to learn about and access the multitude of services offered by the leading vision rehabilitation providers in New York City. The content covers topics such as vision rehabilitation therapy, orientation and mobility training, coping with vision loss, and information about local support groups. It also provides links to numerous articles about living with vision loss.

Despite the documented need, benefit, and availability of resources, rehabilitative services for people with vision loss are largely underutilized, according to the Vision Coalition, whose founding members estimate that far less than 10 percent of those with vision loss access vision rehabilitation services.

The Vision Coalition's mission is to connect elders to these services, and to work collaboratively to reach a larger number of older New Yorkers who would benefit from developing skills that can help them make best use of their remaining vision.

Empowering those with vision loss is of great concern to an increasingly aging population in need of vision rehabilitation services. Presently, over 40 million Americans are 65 years of age and older. It is estimated that by 2030, this number will grow to about 70 million. With this increase, there will come a growing incidence of vision loss due to such conditions as diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Vision rehabilitation services make it possible for older adults to lead more independent and productive lives.

2016 Migel Medals Nominations Now Open

Professional Award nominees should be those whose career work significantly affects services to people with vision loss on a national level. Prospective candidates include, but are not limited to, professionals with specific training and expertise in education, rehabilitation, assistive technology, vision rehabilitation, personnel preparation, administration or related fields. They may work in the public or private sector and their work should span several years.

Lay/Volunteer Award nominees can be volunteers or professionals not employed within the blindness and visual impairment field whose efforts have supported or extended service to people with vision loss. Professionals from these disciplines may include, but are not limited to, those who develop assistive technology equipment and software, health care devices, and improved medical services.

Nominations for AFB's Migel Medals are due by Friday, October 2, 2015, and should be e-mailed to Scott Truax, Program Manager FamilyConnect.

Nominators should send a one-page description of the nominee and his/her accomplishments, or fill out our online nomination form. You must also submit two letters of recommendation with the nomination.

HelpMeSee Expands Leadership Team to Prepare for Simulation-based Surgical Training

In preparation for the launch of its simulation-based training programs in cataract surgery, HelpMeSee has expanded its leadership team with new roles in training and development. The new positions include Daniel Hutter, MD as Chief Instructor, Michael Moore as Chief Instructor Trainer and Steven J. Moore as Senior Director of Major Gifts and Planned Giving.

"The HelpMeSee campaign has the ambitious goal of training cataract surgeons at a scale needed to address the severe shortage of well-trained specialists," said Jacob Mohan Thazhathu, President & CEO of HelpMeSee. "Our team will lead the transformation of cataract surgical training for a lasting public health impact."

As Chief Instructor, Dr. Hutter will manage the training of the Manual Small Incision Cataract Surgery (MSICS) Simulation-based Training Program (MSTP) Instructors and instructor training delivery process. He will also qualify as one of the first instructors, mentor the Chief and Assistant Chief Trainers, and participate in the validation of the MSTP systems. His work will include assignments at HelpMeSee's overseas training centers. Dr. Hutter is a board-certified ophthalmologist whose interest in global blindness prevention began when he served as a staff ophthalmologist on the Orbis Flying Eye Hospital. He holds an MD from Jefferson Medical College.

In the role of Chief Instructor Trainer, Michael Moore will provide simulation training, classroom training and courseware development expertise to assist HelpMeSee team members who create and deliver MSICS classroom and simulator training. He will also partner with the Chief Learning Officer, Chief Medical Officer and Chief Instructor to develop systems for recruiting instructors. Michael Moore has extensive experience in aviation training and flight safety management, most recently as Manager — Flight Safety for Viking Air Limited, manufacturer of the DHC-6 Twin Otter aircraft.

Joining HelpMeSee as Senior Director of Major Gifts and Planned Giving, Steven J. Moore will play a key role on the development team. In this new position, he will focus on building relationships with both existing and potential major donors while working closely with HelpMeSee's Vice President of Development and Marketing, CEO and Board to expand the campaign's fundraising efforts.

For as long as there have been iOS devices available with built-in accessibility for people who are blind, it seems that there have been books by Anna Dresner to help us learn to use these cool gadgets. Her Getting Started With the iPhone series from National Braille Press has, for many of us, been the voice of calm reassurance in a world of flicks, scrubs, and taps. Just when we thought we had the whole Apple iOS thing figured out, Apple released an entirely new product—the Apple Watch. From the first day that Apple began talking about this amazing new, ultra-hip fashion statement, the blind community began to ask itself whether or not this new product would be as accessible as other recent offerings from the company. As most of us predicted, Apple did indeed build accessibility into the Apple Watch right from the get-go. At $349 for the small Sport edition of the Watch, people quickly turned from the question of accessibility to that of practical application. Would a person really use the watch? How good was VoiceOver accessibility on the watch, anyway? Where was that calm, reassuring presence to help us sort out the confusion when we needed it most?

It didn't take long for the community to start getting answers. Podcasts such as David Woodbridge's Apple Watch 101 series on AppleVis began to answer the most pressing questions. Over time, various other members of the blind community began purchasing Apple Watches and sharing their impressions. Finally, out of the confusion and chaos, the book we had all been waiting for emerged. Dresner has recently released a new, self-published book entitled Watching Without Looking. Costing only $10, this book is definitely worth considering for anyone who owns or is thinking about purchasing an Apple Watch and who needs assistance in becoming familiar with the product. Available in EPUB format, the book can be read using iBooks, Voice Dream Reader, and the Victor Reader Stream, just to name a few options.

Apple Watch from a Personal Perspective

In Watching Without Looking, Dresner returns to a writing style that has served her well in previous books. She shares her first 30 days with the Apple Watch through journaling. She manages to capture the spontaneity of a personal journal, while being careful to alert the reader to the fact that a particularly frustrating problem recorded in her journal was eventually fixed by an update to the Apple Watch OS. She does all this in a style that is not confusing, or jarring in any way.

Dresner thoroughly covers purchasing, unboxing, and setting up the Apple Watch at the beginning of the book where one might expect this information to be placed. She saves a detailed discussion of the physical layout of the watch for a later section of the book—a structure that might make a reader that she will not cover this information adequately. Not to worry, however. Dresner leaves no stone unturned.

Watching without Looking strives to answer many of the questions that readers most want to know. Is it possible to check the time using vibration patterns in a busy meeting rather than using VoiceOver speech? According to Dresner, it is not possible to do so at this time. This is just one example of the many practical questions that are answered in this reference.

Dresner provides many examples of how she uses the Apple Watch in her daily life. Whether it was a gentle reminder to stand up and move around during the day, or gentle taps on the wrist from the watch to help her with turn-by-turn directions to a local donut shop, the watch was a constant companion throughout her day.

The beauty of Dresner's journaling style of writing in Watching Without Looking is a compelling, easy-to-read snapshot of one person's initial experiences with the Apple Watch. The downside of this style of writing is that much of what was true for Dresner may no longer be true for the person using a later version of the Apple Watch operating system. Dresner takes care of this problem by providing many resources in her reference. She makes special mention of the Apple Watch 101 series mentioned earlier, as well as help received from Dr. Robert Carter of the Tech Doctor Podcast. Along with the many references provided in the book, there are also carefully detailed sections on various aspects of configuring and using the Apple Watch. Many of these sections of the book are not likely to change any time soon. The markup in the EPUB text is quite good, so it is easy to move through main sections and subsections of the book in order to quickly and easily locate areas of interest.

Other Perspectives On the Apple Watch

The cost of the Apple Watch is not insignificant, and many readers who are considering the purchase of one of these devices might like opinions from other sources besides Dresner's book. Jonathan Mosen recently wrote a blog post about his experiences with the Apple Watch. He mentions that some apps are slow to respond, a fact that Dresner also acknowledges. Mosen also laments the lack of a way to tell time using haptic feedback. Finally, he seems to have had better results with the fitness aspects of the watch than did Dresner. As someone who wears hearing aids, Mosen provides an interesting perspective on the reasons why a person who uses hearing aids would use an iPhone versus the Apple Watch.

In addition to Jonathan Mosen's excellent blog post, AppleVis has devoted a section of its site to the subject of getting started with your first Apple Watch. In addition to David Woodbridge's excellent Apple Watch 101 podcasts, you will find a blog post entitled "An In-Depth Look At Apple Watch Accessibility Features." Finally, AppleVis editorial team member Michael Hansen has written an article entitled "Apple Watch Review: A Device I Don't Need But Wouldn't Want to Be Without." In this piece, Hansen goes into quite a bit of discussion regarding the various bands available for the Apple Watch—a subject that Dresner discusses in her book, but not in the detail that Hansen goes into in his article. Like Dresner, Hansen devotes quite a bit of detail to various aspects of setting up the Apple Watch. One particularly interesting section of Hansen's article talks about a morning when he was forced to not wear the watch for a few hours so that it could charge. Hansen says that he was surprised at how much he missed not having the watch on his arm, even for just a couple hours of the day.

The Bottom Line

Apple is showing serious commitment to its newest product, and there is no doubt that the Apple Watch is here to stay. If you are considering the purchase of an Apple Watch, or perhaps you simply wish to stay abreast of the latest developments in both mainstream and accessible technology, Watching Without Looking is a book definitely worth adding to your library. Priced at $10, and available in EPUB format, this book is well written, well organized, and provides many resources for further exploration. Those resources plus the ones included in this article should give you plenty of material to consider when thinking about the Apple Watch, and whether it is right for you.

Product Information

Watching Without Looking: A VoiceOver User's First Month With the Apple Watch, by Anna Dresner

Available From: Watching without Looking
Price: $10

Available Format: EPUB

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You've probably encountered this during one of your web surfing sessions. You visit a large website, and you discover a control that offers to turn the page into audible text and read it aloud for those who cannot see the screen. If you're like me, this always leads to the question: If I am using a screen reader already, why would I want to have the site also read the page aloud?

Recently I spent some time researching this very question, and I learned that, for one company at least, the answer is: "We would actually prefer you use a screen reader instead of our text-to-speech when a user is comfortable with and acclimated to their device." This response came from Nathaniel Bradley, founder and chief innovation officer at AudioEye, an Arizona-based company that takes an innovative and potentially controversial approach to making the web accessible to all.

The Broken Web

In the early 2000s, Bradley's right eye developed keratoconus, a condition where the cornea becomes thin and stretched near its center, causing it to bulge forward into a conical shape and distorting his vision. "This raised my awareness of blindness and accessibility, and I became involved in several local organizations, including a local reading service," he recalls. "Often I would find myself looking over someone's shoulder as he or she used a screen reader to navigate the web, and I couldn't help but think, 'The Web is broken.' Developers were writing more and more code that was not accessible by current screen readers, either because the new features simply weren't accessible, due to technological limitations, or, more commonly, because the developer had little knowledge of how to format a site for accessibility."

Bradley, an early mobile marketing maven, developed the AudioEye technology, a server-side platform that untangles and reformats problematic webpages on the fly for screen reader and other accessible devices. The technology also provides websites that have adopted its technology with its AudioEye reader for users that are not using assistive technology but who need help accessing website content and utilities. AudioEye's reader technology provides screen reading capability that voices the content using text-to-speech technologies, along with other capabilities that enable individuals with disabilities to navigate, interact, and complete website tasks.

Bradley likens the tool to a wheelchair ramp. "A public building doesn't expect a wheelchair user to bring his own ramp. Accessibility is already there, installed and waiting to be used. The ability to access a website should be equally available."

The AudioEye Web Ally Management Platform

As Section508/WCAG standards became codified, AudioEye delved much further into web accessibility with the AudioEye Web Ally Management Platform.

"We use a combination of automatic and manual testing to audit a customer's web presence," explains Bradley. "Our automatic testing tools can flag many issues, and aid developers in fixing bad heading tags, unlabeled buttons, and other basic elements at the source. But we also test sites manually. It's the best way to locate and flag problems such as incorrect tab order, unlabeled advertisement frames, and keyboard traps—web forms you can't tab out of because the cursor keeps wrapping around to the top of the iframe."

There are dozens of companies and consultants who audit websites for accessibility compliance. Like many of these, AudioEye maintains a library of accessibility modules, sample code that customers can access via the company's Developer Portal. Unlike most other companies and consultants, however, AudioEye can also redress various access issues on the fly using Ally+, a web-based service that corrects problems and delivers an accessible web experience, without the user needing to download any special utilities, plugins, or second-class "text only" webpages.

An AudioEye Case Study

When the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) established an online Consumer Complaints website, the agency began receiving complaints from access technology testers before it even launched. "They discovered and reported the complaint website itself was not accessible," says Bradley.

The FCC had outsourced their complaint desk service to a third party contractor, one that offers similar services across a wide number of governmental agencies and other web properties. Unfortunately, this third party platform was not accessible, and fixing it would take time, since the company used the same code base and servers for all its customers. Making fundamental changes to one site would require those same changes be tested, approved, and rolled out to hundreds of other sites as well. The FCC did not want to wait, however, so they engaged the services of AudioEye.

The AudioEye Ally Toolbar requires that a single line of Java script code be added to each webpage. "We've audited these pages and we know where the accessibility problems are," says Bradley. "We've shared our findings with the developers, and suggested repairs. In the meantime, the AudioEye JavaScript applies remedies to all the identified accessibility issues on the fly, ultimately presenting a webpage that we can certify as accessible with all needed fixes and optimizations in place. This ultimately ensures an accessible user experience for those accessing the website using their screen reader and also, through the application of the Reader, provides an enhanced user experience for those looking to engage the website in a more meaningful way, whether that means enlarging the font, changing the contrast or clicking on areas of the website to have those items read aloud to the site visitor. Consistently, we see 3 to 5 percent of users accessing the FCC site while engaging one of the AudioEye tools made available from the Ally+ Toolbar, which is in addition to those users benefiting from the screen reader optimizations applied throughout the web experience."

Visiting the FCC Consumer Complaints page, a screen reader user is now greeted with the message: "This website is AudioEye enabled and has been optimized for Accessibility. To Explore the AudioEye menu, press Ctrl + Shift + 1. To experience the AudioEye Reader, turn off your screen reader and press Spacebar. Accessibility and Compliance checks complete. Access technology optimizations are active. For Accessibility Statement, Press Ctrl + Shift + 4 Si."

Bradley is quick to note that this is the native webpage. "Screen reader users are not being shunted off to another version which may or may not be kept properly updated," he says. "We are delivering the very same page with the latest content changes. Except for the welcome message and a few screen reader tooltips, JAWS or NVDA users may not even realize these fixes are being applied, and they can move about the page using standard headings, lists, links, and other navigation keys."

Here is one of the FCC complaint site forms as it appears natively without AudioEye intervention.

For me, accessing this original TV complaint form with various screen readers led to various accessibility issues—from unlabeled links to accessing the dropdown menus to select my problem type—billing, loud commercials, etc.—along with naming my service provider and entering my account number.

Here is the same page as it would be delivered to a screen reader user, even if the auto-speak option is not used.

This corrected version had all of its links labeled. The mandatory fields were noted, and the combo boxes to select complaint issues were presented in an accessible combo box.

According to Bradley, AudioEye can monitor their contracted sites continuously for any new accessibility issues that might crop up, report them to the company and add them to their list of site fixes. Each AudioEye site also includes a Help Desk contact form where users can report problems. "We strive to have these issues resolved within 24 hours, and we contact the individual to let them know what happened," Bradley says.

If you're using a screen reader, you will probably not want to have the AudioEye Reader also speaking, but I was able to do both—use my screen reader and listen to the AudioEye spoken text, though I did need to press my screen reader's bypass key before pressing the Spacebar to begin the extra speech.

AudioEye also provides useful options for people with low vision, including font size and various contrast schemes. "Site videos can be closed caption or audio described," says Bradley. "Flashing background images and other distractions can also be removed for [those with cognitive impairments]."

AudioEye is currently rolling out an option to have webpages appear in a font that is easier for individuals with dyslexia to read. Future plans include voice commands and text dictation, along with a chat-based Help Desk. "If the job you want to apply for is closing in an hour, and you can't access the Submit button, you can't wait a day to have an issue resolved. Soon we'll be able to offer assistance with that unusable control immediately," says Bradley.

Summing Up

I explored several AudioEye-enabled websites, and found them quite accessible, both with and without my screen reader running. The webpages were equally accessible on my desktop computer and mobile devices. On the main company website, AudioEye, and onsome other AudioEye-enabled websites, the reader is also available in beta format, though the extra speech is rarely needed, since the pages are properly formatted for touch screen reader users. I found page formatting also accessible on desktop websites, using VoiceOver for the Mac, or one of several Windows screen readers, including NVDA, which is free. But as described above, the AudioEye Reader is only a small portion of what the service provides.

Basically, AudioEye is designed to offer web accessibility as a managed service provider (MSP), defined as a company that remotely manages some or all of a customer's IT infrastructure. Which leads to the question: If a company can outsource it, will they no longer feel the need to focus on accessibility from the ground up, choosing, instead, to fix those things they can at a later date and rely on their outsource provider to do the rest? Or will web accessibility actually improve, because it doesn't really matter where the accessibility comes from, so long as it is there and available?

What do you think? We'd love to hear from you.

Comment on this article.

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