Upon reading a product evaluation I wrote of a stand-alone tabletop DAISY and audio book player, a representative of Shinano Kenshi wrote asking for an evaluation of the PLEXTALK PTN2.

First Look

The PLEXTALK PTN2 is roughly 9 inches by 7 inches and about one inch high, giving it a footprint very much like the digital talking book player distributed by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS). The PLEXTALK PTN2 has 27 buttons (or keys) on the top face of the unit, an external speaker grille in the upper right corner, roughly 2 by 3 inches, and a connector for an AC adapter on the back. On the left edge are slots for a secure digital (SD) card and a USB port in addition to a 3.5mm headphone jack. On the front edge is a slot for standard CDs; the battery compartment is on the bottom, along with rubber feet for stability. There is no carrying handle; the unit can run on either AC current or battery power.

In the box with the unit is an AC adapter, user's guide on DAISY CD, and a snap-on cover with holes exposing only the basic, essential keys. (More about that below.)

Initial Test Drive

After taking the unit out of the box, it's fairly easy to test it immediately. As is always wise when using any product for the first time, plug it in and press the "Power" button. Anyone familiar with other PLEXTALK products will recognize the charming chimes indicating that the unit is working on the issued command. It immediately chimes once, announces "Please wait" in a clear female voice, and then repeats the PLEXTALK chiming waiting sound for about ten seconds before announcing whatever media is detected onboard. The inclusion of the user's guide on DAISY CD offers a perfect opportunity for acquainting oneself with the product.

The sound quality of the PLEXTALK PTN2 is outstanding. Even this writer with a hearing impairment can hear it loud and clear from across the room. The synthetic voices for text-to-speech are the familiar Samantha and Tom and are sufficiently distinct. When playing music or an audio book, the sound quality is excellent.

Those 27 Keys

At the bottom of the unit is the familiar "Play/Pause" key in the middle with arrow-shaped "Rewind" and "Fast Forward" keys to either side. Directly above this trio is the 12-key telephone-style keypad used frequently for navigation, menu selections, and other functions. In a column to the left of these buttons are four distinctly-shaped keys: the "Menu," "Bookshelf," "Go To" (heading, page, etc.), and "Bookmark" keys. Directly above the telephone-style keypad are three control columns: "Tone," "Volume," and "Speed." Although the user's guide counts these as three buttons, I count them as six since each has an up and down control with a distinct split between them. On the right-hand side of the machine is an "Information" key, a "Sleep" key, the "Power" button, an "Eject" for CDs, and a close pair of title keys ("Previous" and "Next"), which are used when navigating from one media type to another or one folder to another within a given media source. Again, these appear to be two buttons although the user's guide refers to them as one.

When first powered on, the PTN2 remembers the last content played and announces that content's source. If that is the material you wish to hear, you can simply press "Play." The "2" and "8" keys will give you information regarding the mark-up available (levels 1, 2, and 3, for instance), and the "4" and "6" keys are used to move backward and forward accordingly. The "Go To" key, depending on the type of content played, allows you to move by heading, page, or percentage within a given file. The "Bookshelf" key is used to rotate among CD, SD card, and USB thumb drive, all of which can be onboard at any given time. Navigating among the various media sources can also be done using the "Title" key on the right. The "Bookmark" key can be used to set up to 10,000 bookmarks. There is, however, no voice or highlight bookmark feature available but, instead, only numbered bookmarks, the numbers for which can either be user defined by entering a number from the keypad or automatically set by the PTN2. Once bookmarks have been set, however, you can access a bookmark list, navigating through your bookmarks with the "4" and "6" keys or by entering the number of a specifically desired bookmark to move directly to it.

The Mask

The PTN2 comes with a snap-on cover called a mask that is molded to fit securely over the face of the unit with pieces that grip the sides. When the mask is in place, only a few of the unit's keys are available to the user. These include the three keys at the bottom ("Rewind," "Play/Pause," and "Fast Forward"), the five keys at the right ("Power," "Sleep," "Eject," "Information," and "Title"), and the "Tone" and "Volume" controls at the top. One question that immediately arose is why "Tone" and "Volume," but not "Speed," controls have been selected as the most essential to have available to a user with more limited technical ability. That small caveat aside, this may be a useful feature in some situations, such as for teaching or when the unit is used by children or those with limited tactile sensitivity.

What Can It Play?

The PTN2 can play a wonderful array of file types and formats: DAISY, .TXT, .DOC, HTML, and a variety of audio formats, including WAV, MP3, and OGG. If a file contains both DAISY text and audio, the PTN2 will only recognize one or the other.

I loaded the unit with content of every type (a CD, an SD card, and a USB thumb drive all at once) and found the results both impressive and puzzling. While the unit was able to navigate among all three sources, representing a wide array of format types, some content was inaccessible. On the USB drive, for example, there was a folder of audio files and a folder of text files played perfectly. A third folder, however, containing both audio and text files of the same content, revealed only the text. If I hadn't known the audio files were there, I would not have been able to discover them. You can work around this problem by removing the text files from the folder or by placing the audio files in a separate folder, but the initial roadblock is bewildering. Other PLEXTALK products share this particular quirk of requiring all content to be placed in its own folder, and in this instance, even if the content is the same but is represented in more than one format, each must have a folder of its own.

Quirks aside, it warrants mentioning that included in the smorgasbord of content loaded for the above experiment were books drawn from three of the most popular sources for readers who are blind or visually impaired (Bookshare, NLS BARD, and Audible.com), and the PLEXTALK PTN2 played all of them beautifully.

A Few Special Features

The PLEXTALK PTN2 does a few things that competing products do not, and it does them very well. First, as mentioned above, the PLEXTALK plays audiobooks and other materials downloadable from Audible.com. Secondly, although it has no other recording capabilities, the PLEXTALK can backup an audio CD, including commercially available CDs, to an SD card. The process is a simple one but does take some time. To back up a CD with approximately 50 minutes of recording, for example, the process took about 25 minutes. The procedure is completely simple (press the "9" key to begin and "8" to confirm), and the PLEXTALK chiming sounds continue throughout the process to let you know something is actually happening. When finished, the unit announces that the backup is complete. When CDs are copied in this manner, they are placed on the SD card in a folder entitled "PLEXTALK Backup," which is created by the unit itself.

On a more random note, the PTN2 does have time and date announcement features, a sleep timer, and an automatic shut-off after 15 minutes when operating on battery. While none of these are likely to be deal breakers for many customers, they are convenient features that warrant mentioning.

Conclusions

The PTN2 is a compact unit with fabulous sound quality that will meet most listening needs of customers who are blind or low vision. It plays content from CD, SD, and USB sources and can play a wide variety of formats from the most popularly used content sources. In addition to music and audio books, it offers clear text-to-speech capabilities and is, thus, able to play plain text, Word, and HTML documents.

It does not have wireless or recording functionality other than the ability to back up a CD to an SD card.

Product Information

Product: PLEXTALK PTN2

Price: $375

Available from: available from a variety of dealers, including IRTI, Active Forever, Maxi-Aids, and others.

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With the holidays rapidly approaching, it's time for AccessWorld's annual evaluation of online shopping websites. This article will look at Amazon's accessible site and the Bed Bath and Beyond, JC Penny, Old Navy, Target and Toys"R"Us websites. For this evaluation, I used Windows XP, Internet Explorer 8.0, and Window-Eyes 7.5.4.1.

The advantages of online shopping are that it can be done any time of the day, there aren't any crowds, and store websites can sometimes have additional items available. Do not wait until the last minute to do your online shopping. Websites can run out of items, and the shipment might not arrive in time.

Before making purchases, do some comparison shopping. The same item might be found on several different websites. For example, the same toy might be at Amazon, Target, and Toys"R"Us. Review shipping costs carefully since they can vary from site to site. Many retail websites give the user the choice to sign up for e-mail alerts, which usually provide information about upcoming sales and offer coupons. Be sure to also study the homepage as well because websites frequently feature items or brands that are on sale.

Getting Started

Be sure to visit only reputable websites. There are sites which appear to be legitimate but are not, and you don't want your personal information to get into the wrong hands. Websites can change at any time, so there might be a difference from when this article was written to its publication date.

Screen reader users should be familiar with their reader's navigation keys for "Search," "Forms," "Links," and "Headings." This will make viewing a website easier than going through it line by line. It might be necessary to use a screen reader's mouse hot keys, so familiarity with them can also be useful.

All online retailers use forms for searching and choosing items. Most search forms consist of an edit box and either a "Search" button or link to execute the search. Some search forms also include a combo box for choosing a department or category. Check boxes can be used to narrow results or choose other parameters.

When making purchases, the website will ask you for basic information, including your name, address, phone number, and credit card number. Some sites offer the option of keeping your card number on file to make future checkouts simpler. Many sellers are now using PayPal as a payment option. PayPal allows the user to set up an account and can be used by many online retailers. For more information, visit the Paypal website.

Amazon's Accessible Website

The simplest of all the websites in this article is the accessible version of Amazon's website. Each page is uncluttered, and all elements are clearly labeled. Although the site has a huge number of products, not all of them come directly from Amazon. Some come from third party retailers. Usually, if an item is sold directly from Amazon, it will qualify for free shipping if the total order is at least $25 or more. Keep this in mind since shipping costs can add up.

The website loads with fifteen links and a search form consisting of an edit box and a "Search" button. Links on the page include "Today's Deals," "Music," "DVD," and "More" categories.

In a sample search for a CD, I entered "Maroon Five" in the edit box and activated the "Search" button. When the next page loaded, there was another form with the same search term in the edit box plus a combo box to choose a department. However, there were also links showing the most popular search results. The first available link was Overexposed (Deluxe Edition), and under the title was the name of the artist and, then, information that the item was eligible for free shipping and the price.

Activating the product link brought up a new page with a button to add the item to my cart, information that the item was sold by Amazon (not a third-party retailer), and a link for product details, which I activated. The track list was presented on the next page. This page did not contain a button to add the item to the cart, making it necessary to go back to the previous page. Once the item was added to the cart, there was a button to checkout as well as a search form to look for more items. When I selected the "Checkout" button, information indicating that the order qualified for free shipping was on the top of the next page.

You create your account on the first checkout page. There is an edit box for an e-mail address followed by two radio buttons. Select the one that indicates that a new account needs to be created. On the next page are edit boxes for entering your full name and choosing a password, and on the following page, there are several edit boxes for your address and phone number. The next page is where you choose shipping options. If the order qualifies for free shipping and the indicated method of shipping is quick enough, make sure that the radio button is checked since it is not checked by default. The remainder of the checkout process is straightforward.

Getting Help

There is a "Help" link on the homepage and on some other pages as well. Topics are clear and easy to navigate. If live help is needed, it cannot be accessed through this website. Go to Amazon's website and activate the "Help" link. Next, activate the "Contact Us" link. When the next page loads, sign into your account or, if an account hasn't been created, just enter your e-mail address. On the next page, there's a combo box to choose an issue. Further down the page is information to choose the way you want to interact with customer service. You can send an e-mail, have them call you, or do live chat.

Conclusion

This is an excellent website, especially if you are new to online shopping. All form controls are clearly labeled, and the pages aren't cluttered. The only negative is that live help cannot be accessed through the accessible version of the site. However, by using a screen reader's "Links" hot key, the regular site can be easily navigated to get live help.

Bed Bath and Beyond

This is a good website for getting gifts for the entire home, staying true to its name with having much more than just items for the bedroom and bathroom. The site opens with 128 links and a search form consisting of an edit box and a "Search" button. Another option is a link to shop by brand.

Activating the brand link brings up a list of categories, including "Gifts," "Casual Dining," and "Wall Décor." Underneath the list are links for each letter of the alphabet to shop by brand. For example, activating the letter "K" link brings up a list of brands beginning with the letter K, of which I activated the link for Keurig. There are, then, links for various subcategories, including "Seasonal," "Gifts," and "Kitchen Electrics." The results can also be sorted by price and by color. Under each link is the number of items available for that link. Activating the "Under $20" link brings up a variety of results, which, in this instance, includes an assortment of coffees and teas in cups for the Keurig brewing system. The search results are found using the "Table" hot key. Once the link is activated, the subsequent results are also located with the "Table" hot key.

Each result includes the item's name and price, and there is also an edit box for quantity. Activating the link for the item's name brings up a more detailed description, including reviews by other customers. There's an "Add to Cart" link to put items into the cart for purchase.

To determine if the item is in the cart, use the "Cart" link near the top of each page. To find the item in your cart, use your screen reader's form control to find the edit box for quantity. Under the item will be radio buttons to choose whether the item should be shipped or picked up at a store. Under the cart contents is a link to keep shopping and a button to checkout. On the next page, there are edit boxes to log in if you already have an account. The website states that it is not necessary to create an account, but it can make future shopping more convenient. Either way, you will need to enter your name, address, credit card number, etc.

The checkout form is easy to navigate, and all form controls speak. There are options within the form to receive e-mails and/or text messages from Bed Bath & Beyond. By default, these boxes are checked. The next page is where the shipping method is chosen via radio buttons, and free shipping is automatically chosen when available. There is also an option to have the item gift wrapped for an additional charge.

Getting Help

Phone help is available at (800) 462-3966 or (800) GO-BEYOND. In addition, on pages where items are presented, there is frequently a button for a live chat.

Conclusion

Although this website has many links and categories, it is accessible and not cluttered. The easy access to live help is another plus.

JC Penny

This website offers many clothing choices, jewelry, and gifts for the home, loading with 84 links. There is a search form consisting of an edit box and a "Search" button. Further down the page are links to shop by category, including "Kids," "For the Home," and "Jewelry & Watches."

When I activated the "Jewelry & Watches" link as a sample, it brought up a page containing links for different types of jewelry, including fine jewelry and fashion jewelry. These major categories can also be found using the headings navigation key. Under each major category are specific types of jewelry, including "Earrings," "Bracelets," and "Necklaces." The fine jewelry links also include silver and gemstones.

When I activated the "Earrings" link within the fine jewelry section, the results could again be found with the headings navigation key. The list was broken down by type, such as "Hoop Earrings" and "Stud Earrings." Using the headings navigation key again displays a list of options for metal and color, such as gold, silver, gemstone, etc. Typing the heading key one more time presents the option of sorting by price. However, when a price link is activated, the new page opens with options for earrings across all price ranges. Confusingly, before the results are listed, there are links to sort the results in several ways, including prices organized from low to high. Another option is to use the website's search form, the results of which can be found with the headings navigation key. Again, there are still several options on how to sort the results, including by price and customer rating.

Each listing contains an item link, a rating, and the price. Activating the item link loads a new page, which has the same basic information plus a brief description, item reviews, and a link to add the item to your bag. When that link is activated, the page does not re-load. Verification is done by finding the "My Bag" link to show the number of items you have selected and the total price. The "Checkout" button is accessible once the "My Bag" link is activated. The checkout process uses edit boxes, radio buttons, and a combo box.

Getting Help

JC Penny has live phone help at (800) 322-1189. Online help is also available.

Conclusion

This website requires some work and patience. It is usable, but consider looking at other websites that are easier to navigate.

Old Navy

The Old Navy website, good for clothing gifts, opens with 239 links, including categories for "Women," "Men," "Girls," and "Boys." The search form consists of an edit box, a combo box, and a "Search" button. When using the search form, results can be found by using the "Headings" hot key or by using form controls to find the combo box to sort results.

When I activated the link that said "Men," the site brought up many different results, including sizes and garment types. The easiest way to navigate the page is to use the find text command and search for the words "Shop Our Favorites" or "Shop by Category." Under "Shop Our Favorites," I chose a link for performance fleece.

The results for that link can be found by using the screen reader's "Headings" hot key. Underneath the heading "Main Content" are all the results with each one listing the item category and price. Activating the link for "Men's Logo Performance Fleece" loaded a new page. Garment specifications can be located by using form controls. Arrowing up a few lines will give some additional information about the item. There are buttons for selecting color and size plus another button to add the item to the bag. Further down on the page are washing instructions and a brief description of the garment. To ensure that the item is now in the bag, use the "Headings" hot key and search for the shopping bag. Once done shopping, activate the checkout link.

The checkout form is straightforward, and shipping information is presented at the beginning of the checkout process. As of this writing, shipping is free with a $50 purchase.

Getting Help

Old Navy has live help at (800) 653-6289 or (800) OLD NAVY. There is also online help available.

Conclusion

This website has many reasonably priced items. Although there are many links, the site is well done, and information is relatively easy to locate. Having live help available is another good feature.

Target

Target offers items in many different categories, so consider this site for one stop shopping.

When the homepage loads, there are 158 links. The search form consists of an edit box and a "Search" button. To find links for each department use form controls to locate the search. Arrow down to find various department links, including "Men," "Women," "Toys," and "Electronics." Under the name of each link is the option to expand the link to show more results. For example, activating the "Electronics" link brings up a list of featured items. Activating the "Expand Electronics" link brings up a new page where various electronics categories, such as GPS, cell phones, and MP3 players, are presented. The only way to quickly get to the results is to use the screen reader's "Visited Link" hot key. Underneath "Visited Link" is the list of subcategories, one of which is "iPads and Tablets." Activating that link brings up a new page with expanded results. The easiest way to get to these results is to use the "Headings" hot key and find the words "Narrow By." There are several ways to narrow results. The website lists selections by price or type of item. Selections are made with check boxes.

For this article, I checked the box for iPads, and a new page automatically loaded. I found the results by using the "Headings" hot key and finding the words "Sort By." Another option is to use the "Forms" hot key and get to the combo box for sorting results, but there are many other form options on the page to get through.

Each result had the item's name, a brief description, a price, and customer ratings with an option to read customer reviews. It also stated that the iPad is eligible for free shipping. I searched for the link for the Apple iPad 2 Color (white), and the results for the next page were found using the "Headings" hot key. Finding the item name or the form control can be used by getting to the edit box item quantity and, then, using arrow keys to read the product information, and this page offers a much more detailed description of the item. There is a button to add the item to the cart. To determine whether or not the item has been added, find the word "Cart," and next to the word is the number of items selected.

When you have completed your shopping, find the "Checkout" link. Directly under it is information about everything in your cart. The next page is for either signing into an account, or you can activate the "Continue" button, which will offer you the option to create an account later in the process. All form controls speak in the checkout form. The shipping method is selected via a combo box rather than the usual radio buttons or check boxes.

Getting Help

Target offers live help at (800) 591-3869. Online help is also available.

Conclusion

With some practice, this site is relatively easy to navigate. Target has a wide selection and good prices, making it a good website to visit.

Toys"R"Us

If you don't want to deal with the insanity of a toy store around the holidays, consider this website. It's also good if you don't know exactly what to get for the person on your holiday list. Beware that this website has a major accessibility issue.

The homepage loads with 164 links and a search form consisting of an edit box, a category combo box, and a button to execute the search. Links to item categories, including "Action Figures," "Dolls," "Musical Instruments," and "Preschool," can be located by using the "Headings" key and finding "Shop by Category."

If you're not sure what to get, use the "Age" link to find appropriate recommendations. When the new page loads, use the "Headings" hot key to find "Shop by Age." Underneath the heading will be links to sort by age.

I activated the link for children 3–4 years old. The new page contained links to narrow results by gender, brand, and price. The "Headings" hot key works well to move between criteria. Under each link is the number of items available for that link, and I selected the $20–$30 price parameter.

The new page offered the same criteria to narrow results even further. This time I selected the Fisher-Price brand link and, after that, the link for the Dora the Explorer Dora Tunes guitar for $21.99.

The item's page contained a great deal of information, including age recommendations, product description, and reviews. The information can be found by searching for the item's name or by using a form control to find the edit box for item quantity. Use arrow keys to review all the information. There's a link below the quantity edit box to add the item to the cart.

Unfortunately, both in Internet Explorer and Firefox, a pop-up comes up when an item is added. The pop-up gives the alert that an item has been added to the cart, and it offers options to checkout or continue shopping. I required sighted assistance to learn the information and navigate the options to choose whether or not to keep shopping or checkout.

Assuming you can get past the pop-ups each time an item is entered and when you choose to checkout, the remainder of the checkout form is straightforward, and all form controls speak.

Getting Help

Live help can be reached at (800) 869-7787. Online help is also available.

Conclusion

The website doesn't have any serious accessibility issues until it is time to add items to the cart. Fortunately, there are other options, including Target and Amazon, if you don't want to deal with the cart on Toys"R"Us.

The Bottom Line

Using many online retailers does take patience, and some websites are better than others. Fortunately, there are several options from which to choose. Don't hesitate to call customer service if you need help, and if you're not happy with the assistance you get, try another website.

Above all, start your shopping early.

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It's the time of the year when we revisit one of AccessWorld's annual traditions. As the holidays approach, each year AccessWorld endeavors to offer a smorgasbord of gift giving options to its readers in the form of the holiday gift guide. For the past several years, I've had the privilege of writing for Blind Bargains, a website that includes deals and shopping advice year-round. In this article, I hope to bring you some of the hottest items we've featured on the site as well as other popular gift ideas for that special someone on your list.

Some General Background

I should preface this article by stating that shopping for a person who is blind or visually impaired should be a similar experience to shopping for anyone else. Growing up, I was just as excited as the next guy to get a new CD, a box of chocolates, or a gift card to my favorite store. Below, I've attempted to highlight some of the areas where you may wish to take some additional considerations. Electronics, for example, is a category to pay attention to because many electronic items are equipped with inaccessible touch screens. That being said, many stereos, televisions, and other electronics include buttons that can be learned or memorized. If you're unsure, purchase your item from a merchant that offers a post-holiday return policy.

Stocking Stuffers

Although the price or budget may be small, many inexpensive gifts can be quite valuable to the recipient, allowing you to get a lot of bang for your buck. Consider a bulk pack of AA or AAA batteries to power all of those electronic gadgets. These can be had for around $10–15 online. If your recipient is a gadget hound, a thumb drive or memory card is almost certainly a welcome gift. The price of 32-gigabyte flash drives has fallen tremendously over the past year, and you should expect to pay under $20 for a drive of this size. When buying a memory card, remember that several different sizes and formats exist, so attempt to figure out the types of cards your recipient uses before making a purchase. If you are buying for an Apple lover, an iTunes gift card is usually a safe bet. These can be used to purchase iPhone apps, music, movies, TV shows, and books among other items, and even a card in a small denomination, such as $10 or $20, can prove to be quite useful as many items can be had for $0.99.

Many kitchen gadgets can also act as excellent stocking stuffers. Blind Mice Mart offers sets of braille measuring cups and spoons for $27. These feature braille markings on each piece, allowing for easy identification of the size of each spoon or cup. For the baker in your life, the Slice Solutions Brownie Pans can save time and give you perfectly cut desserts every time. Simply pour the batter into the pan, and your edibles will be precut once cooked by the metallic bars inside the pan. Blind Mice Mart also offers one of the largest selections of braille cookbooks, many available for under $25. If you're not sure, double check to make sure your recipient is a braille reader as not all people who are blind or visually impaired read braille.

Apple Stuff

You may be familiar with accessibility features on Apple's iPhone, but many other Apple devices also include features designed for the blind. The latest generation Apple TV units ($99) offer the ability to play many types of media through your television, including Netflix and Youtube content as well as Major League Baseball and other live sports games. Plus, if your recipient already owns another iOS device, he or she can wirelessly send content to their Apple TV units using AirPlay.

On the lower end of the spectrum, the iPod Shuffle and iPod Nano offer VoiceOver controls similar to their more popular and more expensive brethren. Users are told the name of the current song and can navigate audible menus with ease. Most models produced in the past couple of years include these features, but be sure to check for VoiceOver support if purchasing an older model.

If you are buying for someone who is craving the Apple experience but doesn't wish to pony up for an expensive data plan for a new phone, the latest (5^th generation) iPod Touch offers practically all of the features of the iPhone without the cell phone feature. The iPod Touch is available in sizes all the way up to 64GB and starts at around $200.

Other Electronics

When it comes to electronics, Apple isn't the only game in town, however. If you know someone who is just looking for a basic music player, many affordable options are available with simple controls. Players enhanced with the Rockbox software, which adds talking menus and other accessibility features to portable media devices, are also available. While setting up a player with Rockbox is simple, Accessible Electronics takes care of the grunt work for you and offers models specifically configured and tested with this software ($70 to $100).

The Google Nexus 7 is a budget tablet running the latest version of the Android operating system. At $199, it's a potentially affordable way to dive into the world of tablet computing. While not all features and apps are accessible, they can be used to browse the Web, check e-mail, or listen to music among many other tasks. AccessWorld evaluates these features in-depth in the October 2012 issue.

If someone on your list loves chatting online, consider a USB headset microphone. These are great for online games, Skype, or just chatting with a group of friends. Logitech offers several reasonably priced models for under $50. For the audiophile, consider the Blue Yeti USB microphone, which can be had for around $100. The Blue Yeti features higher sound quality and can also be used to produce podcasts or other professional audio content.

Some Other Ideas

One-cup coffee makers have become all the rage in recent years, and models by Tassimo and Keurig are mostly accessible. Many feature one-button operation, making it simple to brew a tasty beverage. A few models also feature a touch screen, so check this before making a purchase. The Keurig B60 Special Edition Brewing System ($125) features raised buttons for each cup size and a dedicated "On/Off"s switch. Some advanced features, such as brewing a beverage at a specific time, may require assistance.

Blind Adrenaline offers an online gaming platform for those serious about card and parlor games. A monthly subscription starting at under $6 gives access to several adaptations of popular titles, including Texas Hold'em, Hearts, and Spades. The site also features regularly-scheduled tournaments, offering lots of opportunities to play against friends and win prizes.

For the book lover, consider a subscription to Bookshare ($75 new members, $50 renewals). Bookshare offers over 100,000 titles in accessible formats that cover virtually any subject. Titles can also be downloaded and played on iPhone and Android phones and most popular accessible digital book players. Note that Bookshare memberships are free for students. Alternatively, Audible.com offers a large collection of titles in audio book form as well as accessible apps for a variety of platforms. A monthly subscription gives the user credits he or she can use to listen to the latest titles as they become available.

Shopping Tips

As the holidays approach, there are several things you can do to ensure you get exactly the items you're looking for and at the best price. Many websites, such as Black Friday Ads, offer a sneak peak into the deals available on Black Friday, traditionally the busiest shopping day of the year. Many of these deals will also be available online though you may need to be quick to snag the item you are looking for. Some items sell out in a matter of a few minutes.

We also track some of the best holiday deals with a focus on accessible merchandise at Blind Bargains. Pay special attention to our annual holiday shipping guide, which tells you when to order that gift so that you receive it before Christmas. Blind Bargains apps for iPhone and Android are also available. Accessible World, an online voice chat community, produces two stocking stuffer shows each November that present a variety of merchants talking about their latest offerings. Indeed, it's quite possible to do all of your holiday shopping online and avoid the crowded store aisles completely. To that end, be sure to check out Janet Ingber's companion article on the accessibility of online store websites, found in this issue.

In summary, shopping for a relative or friend who is blind or visually impaired may seem like a daunting experience. However, thinking of them as you would think of anyone else on your list will go a long way to ensuring a happy holiday season for all. I hope this article serves to give you some ideas and starting points for your shopping.

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Dear AccessWorld readers,

Last month, AccessWorld celebrated Disability Employment Awareness Month. We took the opportunity to focus on employment and provide information about employment resources, strategies, and insider perspectives. Good job search strategies and resources are important all year long, so I encourage you to look back at last month's issue if you may have missed it and forward information to anyone you know who may be looking for employment or better employment opportunities.

As you know, there is now a chill in the air, and the days of fall are well upon us. It's time to start thinking about the holiday gift-giving season. I know, I know…I can't believe it, either. Summer completely passed me by. Ready or not, the shopping season is just around the corner, and the AccessWorld team wants you to be ready with gift ideas for those in your life of all ages who experience vision loss.

In this issue, J.J. Meddaugh provides great gift ideas ranging from low-tech household items to high-tech productivity tools. Some of his ideas are "high-dollar" whereas others are "nearly priceless." Janet Ingber, once again, takes us on a virtual tour of popular online shopping sites and provides advice, tips, and tricks to get the most from your online holiday shopping experience.

The AccessWorld team hopes this issue will give you ideas and inspiration for finding just the right holiday gifts for your family and friends with vision loss.

I am also excited to announce the update of the AccessWorld search tool. The updated tool uses the Google Mini platform to allow AccessWorld readers to more quickly and efficiently search the current and back issues for topics or authors of interest. When you type a word or phrase into the "Search Phrase" box or an author's name into the "Author" box and select the "Submit" button, search results will appear, by default, in a newest to oldest order. You can also view the listing in reverse chronological order by selecting the "Oldest to Newest" option. Another way to display the results is by "Best Match." The "Best Match" option displays the articles in order with the highest number of occurrences of the search term listed first.

I encourage you to try out the newly updated AccessWorld search tool and send me your feedback.

The AccessWorld team wishes you and yours health, happiness, and prosperity as we enter the holiday season.

Sincerely,

Lee Huffman

AccessWorld Editor-in-Chief

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

This letter is in response to Janet Ingber's October 2012 article entitled "What's on this Page: A Review of the SayText, Prizmo, and TextDetective iOS Reading Apps." This article was well researched, and because of the review, I intend on purchasing [TextDetective], which seems to be more promising as a scan and read software for the iPhone. Thanks to the author of this article and much continued success in delivering this insightful information to the public.

Respectfully,

Brendan

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

ZoomText has been provided to me at work for years, and I use it on a daily basis. I have a sort of love/hate relationship with it. When it works properly, it's great. Unfortunately, it's buggy, memory-hogging software ,which frequently bogs down the computer, freezes, jumps unexpectedly, and does other things it's not supposed to do. It's the DocReader feature more than anything else that keeps me from wanting to switch to some other screen magnifier program. Nothing else on the market seems to be really comparable.

I was just upgraded from ZT 9.1 to ZT 10 last week, and I can already tell its problems haven't been fixed. If anything, they may be worse. The new features seem to have bloated it, causing it to perform more sluggishly on my computer. I've had to shut it down and restart it several times. Today, I was trying to work in the MS Access Forms Designer, and the way the screen kept jumping when I was trying to drag a field into position had me just about ready to throw the computer out the window.

I don't know just what is wrong with ZoomText's inner workings, but to use programmer jargon (I'm a programmer), I suspect it has memory leaks, threading conflicts, or some other such issue. I'll continue to use it, but I really wish either Ai Squared would clean it up, or some other company would come out with something better, perhaps with something such as the DocReader included!

Regards,

Laura

Response from AccessWorld Editor

Hello Laura,

Thank you for reading AccessWorld and writing in with your comments on October's ZoomText article.

I want to make sure you are aware of Ai Squared's tech support services. On the Ai Squared website, you can find information to diagnose problems you're having, contact then with questions, learn more about the software, and take advantage of their remote services. Technicians can remotely access your computer to change settings to make ZoomText work most efficiently with your particular computer.

I would recommend contacting them to see if they can offer any suggestions.

Sincerely,

Lee Huffman

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

This is great information.

I have just read the article in AccessWorld written by the Career Connect Program Manager, Joe Strechay. I was wondering if he could share some resources for high school and college students related to internships available through the federal government.

One young person we worked with had two internships with agencies of the federal government, and they really helped her develop self-confidence and experience.

For people with limited paid work experience, an internship or a volunteer position with responsibilities helps provide work experience.

Thanks,

Mary Beth

Response from AccessWorld author Joe Strechay

Hello Mary Beth,

Listed below are a few internship opportunities that may match your interests.

1. Student Programs: U.S. Department of State Student Experience and Pathways Programs. The U.S. Department of State offers two programs for high school, undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate students who are interested in interning in a foreign affairs environment.
2. The White House Fellows Program. For people interested in interning in the Presidential administration.
3. Disaboom.com. Internship opportunities available through the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD).

The federal government is one way to go, but I strongly suggest getting as many internships as possible. I know they were beneficial to me. Any opportunity to get your foot in the door, create connections, and prove your work ethic is an asset.

Many large corporations offer internship programs, and some even offer programs specific to people with disabilities. In this blog post I wrote for NY Creative Interns, you can find some of my tips and advice on interning with a visual impairment.

Sincerely,

Joe Strechay

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I just read Joe Strechay's October article entitled "The Impact of the Popular Media on Public Perception of People with Disabilities." What a great article. I have a son who is blind from ROP [Retinopathy of Prematurity]. He is now 16 years old. When he was in pre-school, I wrote to PBS/Sesame Street suggesting that they might want to include visually impaired kids on the program for the very reasons you point out: to "develop a level of comfort and promote some understanding in viewers." It would also let kids like my son "see" that there are lots of other people just like him. When that happens, it makes us feel better about ourselves.

PBS wrote a nice letter back, thanking me for my input, but I don't think it did much good. To this day, they have kids with Down syndrome, kids in wheelchairs, and kids with hearing impairments on the show but very few kids who are blind or visually impaired. The inclusion of all those kids helps generate disability awareness as you pointed out, but I think we in the blind community need to push harder at public relations.

Sincerely,

Deborah

Dear AccessWorld Editor,

I really appreciated reading Mark Richert's hard hitting article on the failure of the federal government to enforce Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. I'm grateful that he used his legal and analytic talents to read the report and to present the findings in an easily digestible manner. While the topic is not humorous, his levity allows the reader to digest the material with little effort.

This is a crucial issue if we want to improve employment and promotion possibilities, and it is likely to grow in importance over time. Thank you, Mark Richert, for bringing it to the attention of AccessWorld readers.

Best regards,

Bonnie

AccuWeather to Provide Emergency Weather Alert Information to the Blind and Print-Disabled via NFB-NEWSLINE

The National Federation of the Blind (NFB) and its newspaper service for the blind, NFB-NEWSLINE, have announced a collaboration with AccuWeather, an online weather information service, to provide emergency weather alerts to blind and print-disabled subscribers throughout America. NFB-NEWSLINE is a free audible information access service that provides over 300 newspapers and magazines to the blind. The AccuWeather information service will be offered on NFB-NEWSLINE, giving people who are blind and print-disabled instant access to emergency weather alerts.

Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), said: "The lack of access to emergency weather alerts has been a persistent problem for the blind, and now with the combination of AccuWeather alerts and NFB-NEWSLINE, an innovative source of this critical information has been created for the blind of America. With the inclusion of the AccuWeather information service, NFB-NEWSLINE continues to be on the cutting edge in providing independent access to much-needed information to the blind of America."

NFB-NEWSLINE subscriber David Denotaris said: "For the first time, I am able to easily gain access to emergency weather service alerts by making a phone call. With the addition of the AccuWeather alerts on NFB-NEWSLINE, I can access the information that I need to keep my family safe. To this day, the alert systems available on television are not accessible to the blind, but now with the AccuWeather emergency warning system on NFB-NEWSLINE, I will have the same information and at the same time as my sighted co-workers, neighbors, and peers."

NFB-NEWSLINE is a free audible newspaper and magazine reading service that provides information to blind and print-disabled readers over the telephone, online, and on the iPhone. For more information or to register for NFB-NEWSLINE visit the NFB-NEWSLINE website, send an e-mail, or call 866-504-7300.

Perkins School for the Blind, Helen Keller National Center, and FableVision Will Lead the iCanConnect Campaign

Many thousands of Americans who have combined loss of hearing and vision may soon connect with family, friends, and community thanks to the National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program. Mandated by the 21^st Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA), the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) established this new program to provide support for the local distribution of a wide array of accessible communications technology.

The FCC is also funding a national outreach campaign to educate the public about this new program. The iCanConnect campaign will be conducted jointly by Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown, MA, the Helen Keller National Center in New York City, NY, and FableVision of Boston, MA. iCanConnect will seek to ensure that everyone knows about the free communications technology and training that is now available to low-income individuals with combined hearing and vision loss. From screen enlargement software and video phones to off-the shelf products that are accessible or adaptable, this technology can vastly improve quality of life for this population.

iCanConnect seeks to increase awareness about the availability of communications technology for this underserved population, so people who are deaf-blind and have limited income can remain safe and healthy, hold jobs, manage their households, and contribute to the economy and the community.

Information about the new equipment distribution program is available online at the iCanConnect website or by phone at 800-825-4595. Additional information is available through the online FCC Encyclopedia.

"With the right technology, people with disabilities can link to information and ideas, be productive, and move ahead," said Steven Rothstein, President of Perkins. "Perkins' most famous student, Helen Keller, exemplified the potential of a person who is deaf-blind. We are proud to have a role in this transformational program."

The CVAA, championed in Washington, DC, by Congressman Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts and Senator Mark Pryor of Arkansas, acknowledges that advances in technology can revolutionize lives. Nearly one million people in the United States have some combination of vision and hearing loss. People with combined loss of vision and hearing as defined by the Helen Keller National Center Act whose income does not exceed 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines are eligible to participate in the new program.

"The mission of the Helen Keller National Center is to enable each person who is deaf-blind to live and work in his or her community of choice," explains Executive Director Joe McNulty, adding, "This critical technology access program accelerates those efforts but only if people know about the resources. iCanConnect is poised to get the word out, coast to coast."

"FableVision's mission is to help ALL learners reach their full potential," said Paul Reynolds, CEO of FableVision Studios. "With this program we advance that mission, helping spread the word about equal access to tools that offer those with hearing and vision loss the transformational power of technology." Reynolds adds, "Now everyone is invited to the technology promise powering the human network."

New Version of Nokia Screen Reader is Now Available on the Nokia Store!

Popular and free application now supports more than 40 devices and 29 languages

The popular Nokia Screen Reader application, which was released late in 2011 for a limited range of devices and languages, has now been extended to include support for virtually all Nokia Symbian devices released in the last few years. In addition, it now supports a much wider range of languages, and it's still a free application.

"We've received fantastic feedback since the launch of Nokia Screen Reader 10 months ago," explains Eduard Sànchez, CEO at Code Factory. "It's been a great leap forward for affordable accessibility, and Nokia is to be credited for supporting the project. However, many users were disappointed that their phone or language was not supported. With the release of Nokia Screen Reader 1.3, we are delighted to be able to greatly extend the availability of Nokia Screen Reader both in terms of devices and supported languages, to once again break down the barriers of accessibility."

Major features of v1.3

• Support for a large number of new devices. The full set of supported devices is now: Nokia 500, 603, 700, 701, 808; PureView 5320, 5530, 5630, 5730, 6120, 6121, 6210, 6220, 6700; Slide 6710, 6720, 6790, C5-00, C5 5MP, C6-00, C6-01, C7, E5, E52, E55, E6-00, E63, E66, E7, E71, E71x, E72, E73, E75, N78, N79, N8, N85, N86, N96, N97, N97; Mini X6 and X7.
• Support for a much wider range of languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Finnish, Swedish, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Greek, Hindi, Norwegian, Simplified Chinese, Turkish, Arabic, Croatian, Lithuanian, Bengali, Bulgarian, Catalan, Hungarian, Malaysian, Serbian, Slovak, Tagalog, Ukrainian, Vietnamese, and Icelandic. Note that some of these languages do not have a corresponding Nokia HQ voice, so it is recommended to use the Nokia standard quality voice for these languages.
• Added the "Voice" option to the UI, which allows users to choose between the Nokia HQ and the Nokia (standard quality) voices. Nokia HQ will still be loaded by default when Nokia Screen Reader is first installed.
• Support for devices running Symbian Belle Refresh and Symbian Belle Feature Pack 2 (FP2) firmware.
• Support for latest version of WhatsApp v2.8.14, the world's most popular mobile messaging application.

To find out more information about Nokia Screen Reader, please read the FAQ. You can also read the Nokia Screen Reader user manual.

You can download Nokia Screen Reader v1.3 from the Nokia Store (either on your phone via the Store app or by connecting the phone to a computer with the Nokia Suite application installed). Search for "Nokia Screen Reader" to download and install this new version. Note that sighted assistance may be needed to download the application from the Nokia Store. The installation process, however, is completely accessible if you leave Nokia Screen Reader running to guide you through the process.

The Beginner's Guide to Echolocation for the Blind and Visually Impaired Released

The Beginner's Guide to Echolocation for the Blind and Visually Impaired by Tim Johnson is now available on Amazon in large print and Kindle versions.

The main goal of this book is to bring better social awareness to the concept of echolocation and make it a more approachable subject for many who may still be hesitant to try. The book teaches the background, uses, mechanics and science of echolocation and provides some basic exercises to encourage readers to experience echolocation first-hand.

Perkins Products Announces New Multi-Sensory Learning Product to Advance Literacy through Braille

People who are sighted can instantly understand the tactile reading system used by people who are blind with the new portable Perkins SMART Brailler. Until now, only specialists or those trained to read the configurations of raised dots could understand braille. Today, the SMART Brailler allows a classroom teacher, a parent of a child who is blind, or a sighted classmate to hear and see what is being brailled instantly with built-in audio and visual output. Perkins Products, a division of Perkins, developed the new device and is ready to ship to schools, rehab centers, and individuals.

The SMART Brailler comes with a Quick Start Guide and an audio overview. Free training videos will be available online. See the SMART Brailler in action on YouTube. For more information and to keep abreast of the availability of this and other related products, visit the Perkins Products website.

Preliminary Results from the American Foundation for the Blind Travel Websites Survey

"The site was awful to use… It took a bloody booking agent to finally make all of the arrangements! It was a confusing mess!"

Everyone wants to get a good deal on travel by reviewing options and then moving on because travel is stressful enough without the added pressures of booking and planning. However, as the quote above demonstrates, many travelers who are blind or visually impaired feel this added stress and confusion when attempting to use travel websites.

The following report summarizes some of the key preliminary results from the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) Travel Website Survey conducted through AccessWorld and the Direct Connect mailing lists.

The Trouble with Travel Website Accessibility

The research examining website accessibility is, unfortunately, limited (Leuthold et al., 2008). Recent Web accessibility research finds four areas where users who are blind or visually impaired encounter accessibility and usability problems: skipping questions, answering multiple option questions, ambiguity with short answer questions, and loss of assessment answers.

AFB found these same problems in the results of the travel website accessibility survey. Sudden changes to webpage layout caused users who are blind or visually impaired to miss entering data into key fields. Users had difficulty selecting dates of travel or destination locations from multiple option interfaces and lost entered data when selecting a link on a webpage or changing the layout of the webpage for better accessibility.

These problems appear to be systemic to travel website design, consistently occurring across different websites. While previous researchers did not suggest any solutions to these problems, it's our hope that more research and activism surrounding these issues will result in tangible solutions and active changes in website design.

Survey Results and Analysis

The AFB Travel Survey ran from December 2011 through May 2012, and there were a total of 111 completed survey responses. The survey was a combination of yes/no and multiple choice questions regarding accessibility tools, frequency of travel website use, preferred access methods, and open-ended questions that allowed for more detail about respondents' experiences with travel websites. Also, by asking respondents to describe what websites they use and what concerns they have, researchers were able to gather richer results than if they had assumed a range of possible answers for users to choose from.

The remainder of this article provides a review of answers to the yes/no and multiple choice questions in the survey, along with some of the preliminary findings from the open-ended questions.

Characteristics of Those Surveyed

Of those individuals who responded to the survey, 74 percent identified themselves as being either blind or visually impaired while 16 percent claimed to work with someone who is blind or visually impaired. Ten percent stated having a friend or relative with a visual impairment. When asked about the frequency of their usage of online travel services (or the usage of a friend, student, or client with a visual impairment), the majority (40.5 percent) claimed to use them occasionally at about two to ten times per year. Fifteen percent claimed regular usage of at least a couple of times each month, 19 percent claimed using them more than 10 times per year, and 16.2 percent claimed rare use of no more than one to two times a year. Nine percent of respondents claimed to never use online sites.

Types of Travel Websites Used

Respondents indicated that 67 percent use travel aggregator websites, such as Travelocity or Kayak, which allow for easy comparison by providing information from different travel search engines in one place. Airline website usage was indicated by 66 percent of respondents, followed by hotel websites at 60 percent. Less popular websites indicated were commuter, regional, and nationwide rail services with 47 percent reported usage and commuter, regional, and nationwide bus travel sites at 39 percent. Cruise or ferry travel websites had the least amount of traffic at 28 percent of reported usage.

Accessibility Considerations

Sixty-three percent of respondents stated that their preferred access to these websites was with their computer. Only two percent preferred using their mobile device, while 23 percent preferred to use both their computer and mobile device. Twelve percent of respondents stated that they preferred to ask for assistance.

When asked about using accessibility tools, 10 percent of respondents claimed to use none of the possible options listed while 22 percent said that their preferred tools depended on the site being used. The majority of respondents (53 percent) stated that they prefer to use a screen reader followed in popularity by preferring to ask another person for help (32 percent). Twenty-three percent reported using color, contrast, and font adjustment on their device. Screen magnifiers were at 19 percent reported usage, and 15 percent reported using a screen magnifier in combination with speech or braille.

When asked if they would use phone booking if it was offered by the provider, 71 percent reported that they would.

Preliminary Findings

Researchers created 21 categorical themes based on these survey responses. The following three categories reflect the top three preliminary findings from the survey's open-ended questions section.

Customer Services

Researchers found that website respondents frequently mentioned problems related to customer service, specifically the use of customer service hotline numbers. The quotation cited at the beginning of this article is representative of these frustrations. Some online travel websites claim to offer users who are blind or visually impaired the option to book with a phone agent while retaining the pricing and discount options found on the website. These users' concerns, however, appear to spring not from the necessity of using the phone booking agent, but from inadequately trained customer service operators that have little or no apparent training on how to assist users who are blind or visually impaired. For example, one respondent mentioned that, even though he repeatedly explained to the agent that he was blind, the agent continued to try to help him navigate the website by asking him to look at specific visual elements on the screen.

Visual Clutter

Respondents also had significant problems related to multiple pop-up boxes, an overabundance of online advertising, and frequent changes to site designs. In addition to the inherent problems related to the visual aspects and screen reader functionality issues caused by the above items, visual clutter also added to the time it took users to complete their reservations. Several users stated that they had to abandon their search because they did not have the time to complete the reservation online.

Calendar Use

Currently, calendars are almost exclusively used to choose dates of travel and destinations on travel websites. The ability to select when you would like to travel and where you plan on traveling is a fundamental part of online booking. Researchers found that, when users described a technical problem with the calendar in their survey response, it was often paired with a customer service issue. This leads to the belief that, when users who are blind or visually impaired are having calendar use problems, they call the website phone number to complete their reservation and then must face the customer service issues described above. This perpetuates a loop of frustration, often causing users to give up entirely or ask for the assistance of a sighted person in order to complete their reservation.

Conclusions and Future Directions

AFB researchers are incredibly excited about this first round of survey results and want to thank all of the AccessWorld readers who responded to the survey as they provided a wealth of information that will hopefully prove useful in improving website accessibility in the future. In addition to moving forward with the survey analysis, researchers hope to conduct website accessibility studies on some of the most popular travel websites and also want to focus on customer relations problems during phone booking. While 71 percent of respondents stated that they would like to have the phone booking option made available to them, this option will do users who are blind or visually impaired very little good unless customer service agents are properly trained to understand their customers' needs.

As this work continues, AFB may need to reach out to companies to advise them not only on their website accessibility issues but on their customer service problems as well. AFB may also be able to help these companies develop specialized training modules for customer service agents and recommend that some agents receive specialized training in disability accessibility with one specialty agent always available during operating hours. Researchers will also be reaching out to you. Starting now, make sure to make your concerns and problems known to the companies you use for travel. Make calls, write letters, and find ways to help educate agents on the types of problems you encounter, and encourage them to share these insights with their supervisors. The results might just be a better booking experience in the future.

References

Babu, R., R. Singh, and J. Ganesh (2010) "Understanding Blind Users' Web Accessibility and Usability Problems," AIS Transactions on Human-Computer Interaction, (2) 3, pp. 73–94.

Leuthold, S., J. A. Bargas-Avila, and K. Opwis (2008) "Beyond Web Content Accessibility Guidelines: Design of Enhanced Text User Interfaces for Blind Internet Users," International Journal of Human-Computer Studies (66) 4, pp. 257–270.

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My career as an accessibility specialist affords me the opportunity to travel around the country for conferences, exhibits, and other events. Travel is one of the most fun and rewarding parts of my job, and it allows me to experience cities and local culture that I may not have been able to otherwise. Through all of this, I have become a rather seasoned traveler by necessity, developing many skills and tricks for navigating through airports and other unfamiliar areas. Janet Ingber discusses what to expect when going through airport security in the September 2012 issue of AccessWorld, but this is only one part of the travel experience. Below, I offer some antidotes and ideas for airport travel based on what I've learned over the past several years of my business and personal travel.

Before I continue, it's worth reminding you that these tips and ideas are merely my personal method for traveling independently. Your comfort level, mobility experience, and common sense may all dictate whether or not these tips are also suitable for your situation. Also, travel is not always an exact science. Many situations can occur on the day of a flight, such as gate changes, cancelations, and unforeseen delays. Remember that these are events that affect everyone who is traveling, not just you.

To Ask or Not to Ask for Assistance

Much of the discussion surrounding independent, efficient travel is about whether or not to request assistance when traveling. By assistance, I'm referring to an escort, motorized cart, or other means to transport you from one gate to another. When I first traveled, I often accepted whatever the airline offered me in the interest of time, laziness, or other factors. However, as time went by, I came to the conclusion that this so-called assistance was causing me more harm than good.

Let's put aside any philosophical arguments about blindness and focus on the actual travel experience for a moment. When I was offered assistance by an airport or airline representative, it was often less than I bargained for. Sometimes, I would wait at the gate for 10 to 15 minutes for someone to show up. If this person did finally arrive, they often were hard to understand, adding uncertainty to my journey. If they offered a sighted guide, it was often difficult to explain to them proper techniques, or the guide walked at such a painfully slow pace that I felt like I could read an entire novel before I arrived at my gate. Were there some good assistants? Absolutely, but more often than not, I felt like my time was being wasted.

Self-Sufficient Travel

The alternative to not asking for assistance, going it alone, can seem quite daunting, especially if you've never done it before. I've experienced that uncertainty as well, but I started to realize the numerous advantages this method offers. Here are some tips that I've used to help make the airport experience manageable.

Before you Go

Much of my independence in traveling is gained before I even step foot in the airport. If I am planning to travel to an unfamiliar airport, I will attempt to learn a bit about its layout before I get there. Wikipedia is a good source for this information and can provide such tidbits as how many gates are in each concourse, if there is a tram or other transportation that goes between concourses, and where the gates for a particular airline are located.

If I will be going through a connecting airport or plan on having some additional time, I will scope out the airport's website for a restaurant guide. Many airport sites now include specific information on each available eatery, including the nearest gate to the restaurant. A review site like Yelp can offer additional clues as to the most popular or best restaurants at a particular airport.

I also maintain easy access to my flight numbers and gate information, so I know where I should be headed after passing through security and at the connecting airport. A great service for managing travel information is TripIt, which allows you to see all of your flight, hotel, and other itinerary info in one place. This can be viewed on the TripIt website or with its free iOS or Android apps.

Checking In

If you can, obtain your boarding pass before arriving at the airport. This will allow you to jump straight to security if you have no bags to check and avoid any customer service agents who may be overly persistent about offering help. Many airlines now offer mobile apps for checking in and obtaining boarding passes, negating the need for a printer. In our tests, these apps are generally accessible for retrieving boarding information. If I do need to speak to someone to check in for a flight or check a bag, I have recently started to specifically ask the agent to not add any special assistance requests on my reservation. Sometimes, they will add such requests without asking you, leading to an awkward situation later in your travel.

Getting Around the Airport

In many airports, gates are arranged in numerical order in long hallways. Some airports have all of the gates on your left or right side while others will have odd numbered gates on one side and evens on the other side. Food courts, gift shops, kiosks, bathrooms, and other services will also often be present along these concourses. There are usually steady streams of people walking in either direction down the concourse, making it easy to stay on track. Sometimes, I will ask passersby what the nearest gate is to me and attempt to determine if the numbers go up or down in the direction I am facing. This is also where that all-important food information comes into play. If I know my favorite restaurant is near gate B-7, I can seek it out on my way through the concourse.

If I'm going to be connecting to another flight, I will verify the gate information as soon as the first flight has landed. You are free to use your cell phone as soon as the airplane touches down on the runway. This usually allows for ample time to check your connecting flight information, so you know your next gate before you get off of the plane. This double check method has saved me on several occasions as gates often change before takeoff.

Who knows, you may get lucky and have your connecting flight at the gate right next door.

Handling Delays

Let's face it. Flights are not always on time, and while your initial reaction may be to get frustrated, this doesn't help the situation. Before I go to the airport, I attempt to look up the available flights for that day from my airline. This step may seem a bit tedious, but you will thank yourself if your flight is delayed because you will already have an idea of other flight options to get you to your destination. If your flight arrives late and you are going to miss your connecting flight, avoid the long customer line that is likely to form and call the airline's toll-free number. I can remember one instance where my first flight was stuck on the runway for over an hour and it was clear I was going to miss my connecting flight. I called the airline during this downtime and explained the situation and had my new flight booked before I even left. Also, if your flight is delayed and you have not boarded the plane, do not go far from your gate. A common misconception is that a delayed flight will not become less delayed. If your flight is delayed for two hours but the airline finds another plane in the meantime, they can and often will reschedule the flight to leave earlier. I have seen many novice travelers stranded because they left to get food or explore the airport and missed their new boarding time.

Retrieving Baggage

If you must check baggage, there are a couple of things you can do to make the retrieval of your luggage a simple process. First, an audible luggage locator can help you to quickly find your bag as it travels around the carousel. This allows you to press a button, which will activate a beeping locator in your bag. Also, consider marking your bag with brightly-colored tape or another distinctive element. Asking someone to locate a black suitcase will likely result in frustration as there may be 20 other black suitcases on the same carousel.

A Further Word about Assistance

I want to clarify an important distinction between getting airport assistance and asking for help. I have no shame in asking for help when I need it. I don't have a photographic memory or an on-call mental map of every airport, and sometimes time is of the essence. However, I prefer to do this on my own time and intuition. Sometimes, I will strike up a conversation with my seat mate and learn they are traveling to the same city I am, or I will find someone who is also headed toward baggage claim or ground transportation. I have no shame in following someone, and it's always interesting to meet new people and hear about their lives. I just don't want an airport or airline to dictate when I need help and control my life.

Independence is your Right

Despite what any airport employee may try to tell you, you cannot be forced into accepting any assistance that is offered to you. You have the right to choose the accommodations or lack thereof that is best for your situation. Just because a security guard may say it's easier to push you around in a wheelchair doesn't mean you are obligated to take their help. You can always say, "No thanks."

Conclusion

Traveling through unfamiliar spaces can seem like a daunting experience. Remember that many people, blind or sighted, share the same challenges that you do and are also moving through an unknown space. If you are scared of missing your flight, try arriving at the airport a bit earlier than normal until you get used to traveling by yourself. I hope some of these tips and ideas will help you to become a more ambitious and independent traveler. There's an entire world out there just waiting for you to visit.

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