While researching Amazon’s Accessibility, we discovered just how desirable it can be to have Alexa read to us. Amazon’s well known, much loved, voice assistant will read Kindle e-books with her voice or play Audible audiobooks, all you have to do is ask.
This is surely one of the easiest options available for reading books. It’s a natural for people with vision loss, and a great convenience for anyone who wants to continue reading while they do other things. Ironically, Alexa’s skills do not even come under the heading of ‘accessibility’, yet it is the functionality we’ve been waiting for.
Amazon Fire 7 tablet unboxed
We learned more about this fantastic feature in an email from our friend Steven. He wrote, “I purchased the brand new Fire 7 tablet.” Fire tablets vary in screen size, storage capacity and price starting at $60. “It is hands-free using Alexa vocal commands to open a book, pause the book, fast forward, go to a different chapter, etc. All of which I saw demonstrated at the (Amazon Books) store. Alexa is built in to the Fire tablet, no additional devices are required.” He appreciated his in-store experience. “The sales person was great, totally setting up and downloading my tablet and it was fully functional when I left the store, except for connecting it to wifi when I got home.”
Steven’s in-store approach can no longer be duplicated, since Amazon has closed all 24 of it’s physical book stores. Another good option is to phone Amazon’s Accessibility Customer Service at 888-283-1678. They can help you make the purchase online and walk through the setup which requires entering a wifi password and Amazon account.
The very same voice commands that control the reading on the tablet, do the same on an Amazon Echo speaker. Alexa can read Kindle books that are authorized for Text to Speech or Screen Reader Enabled. It seems the majority of books are eligible, just be sure to check before you buy a Kindle book.
Alexa will also read your Kindle and Audible books on an iOS device or Android, although it’s not quite as hands-free or as agreeable as it is on an Amazon device. In this case you would open the Alexa app and tap the button to ask.
Amazon Alexa speaker next to smart phone with Amazon apps
How to Ask Alexa
Kindle Alexa commands:
– Read my Kindle book “To Kill A Mockingbird”
– Play
– Pause
– Resume
– Stop
– Skip Back / Skip Ahead
It is Alexa’s very own familiar voice that reads the Kindle books, and she’s a very good reader. Audible books are read by an array of professional readers including authors, actors and celebrities.
There is something magical about dictation. Spoken words are rapidly turned to text. The instantaneous nature is pretty amazing, but the best thing is dictation takes the place of typing.
Whether you have a visual impairment, or not, typing on a tiny touchscreen keyboard is a tedious task. That is why more and more people are becoming dictators.
In Apple iOS devices, Dictation is available whenever there is a keyboard on screen. The Dictation button is the microphone icon at the lower right corner or left of the Space Bar, depending on device. If the microphone key is not there, first go to Settings and click General, next click Keyboard, now go to Enable Dictation and turn on.
Here are the steps for dictating with iPhone or iPad.
Tap on the Dictation / microphone button below the keyboard and be prepared to start speaking following the single ding tone.
Finish speaking and tap again, you will hear a second single ding and your spoken words will appear in the text field.
(With Apple’s VoiceOver screen reader use a two-finger double tap to activate Dictation, and a second two-finger double tap to stop, VoiceOver then reads the text aloud.)
iPhone screenshot shows microphone button on search bar and below keyboard.
Speak clearly for best results. Noisy environments will create conflict. Dictate one sentence at a time for accuracy. Correct errors on imperfect transcripts or delete all and try, try again.
To include punctuation, just say so. Finish a sentence with a “period” or a “question mark.” Follow a salutation with a “comma“ or a “colon.” Also say, “new line,” new paragraph,” “all caps,” “apostrophe,” “hyphen,” or “exclamation mark.”
Practicing can actually be fun, so go ahead and do it. You’ll be a powerful dictator in no time!
Volunteerism is alive and well as demonstrated every day in the Be My Eyes app. The concept was conceived in 2012 by furniture craftsman Hans Jørgen Wiberg, who began losing his vision twenty-five years prior. It was his idea to provide access to sighted assistance for people with low vision or blindness. The app name leaves no doubt about its purpose. I recall being incredibly impressed in the early days of BME, when there were 150,000 volunteers, today there are over 6.4 million helping more than 480,000 people with vision loss. The fact that so many are interested in lending their eyes to a total stranger, is a testament to humanity.
Built on the kind assistance of humans, the BME app is now testing a “Virtual Volunteer” powered by ChatGPT-4. If you want to be part of the beta testing process, there is a registration page on the app, but no guarantee you’ll get in, there is a waiting list. In a post on Mashable, one of the participating testers, Lucy Edwards, is reported to have used the conversational AI tool as tour guide, food blog, reader of restaurant menus and fashion catalogs, language translator and personal trainer. It will be very interesting to see how this develops, live human kindness vs. Ai chatbot.
For now the all-live volunteers are able to offer their service, at times that are convenient to them. BME creates an opportunity to give back in a sort of micro-lending kind of way, in small increments of time, free of rigid scheduling commitments. The visually impaired user is able to call for help whenever it is needed, without feeling they are imposing. The volunteers are logged in because they are ready and willing to help someone, possibly you.
The app, available for iOS and Android, is designed with a fittingly friendly user interface.The two main options on the uncomplicated homepage are “Call a Volunteer” -or- “Get Trained Support”.Expert company representatives are available in the categories of: Assistive Technology, Beauty & Grooming, Blindness Organizations, Careers, Civic Engagement, Food & Beverage, Home & Cleaning, Personal Health or Technical Support. Participating companies include: Google, LinkedIn, Microsoft, Spotify, Pantene, Hadley, Lighthouse San Francisco, Accessible Pharmacy, Rite Aid and more.
The service is active in 150 countries and available in 185 languages.When you call a volunteer, BME sends out the request to the nearest available volunteers by location and language.There is no limit to the number of calls or time spent, however it is best to say, at the start of a call, if you expect the call to be lengthy.The app provides a rating system to register feedback about your experience, good or bad.
Here are 100 Ways to Use BME. I have used the app for assistance reading a thermostat, setting the oven temperature, reading hand-written notes and product directions.All these encounters with BME volunteers were pleasant, constructive and successful.There is a “Community” tab at the bottom of every page worth exploring for inspiring stories from users and volunteers.
And, by the way, all Be My Eyes Services are free.
Blue and white Be My Eyes logo with white text on black background.
Vision loss is an element of aging, but that is not to say it is out of our control. To what degree we experience changes in eyesight actually has a good deal to do with nutrition and lifestyle. It is really never too soon to begin taking care of your eyes. Starting young and developing good habits can help maintain visual function for the long term. No matter where you’re at in life, thinking about preserving your precious sight should compel action. Here are 5 good habits that can counteract the degenerating aspects of aging on the eyes.
Ripe tomatoes with fresh basil, garlic, and herbs.
Eat right and save sight.
Enjoy a nutrient-rich diet, emphasizing fish high in omega-3, a colorful assortment of whole fruits and veggies, along with plenty of citrus and lots of leafy greens, legumes, olive oil, nuts and grains.
The Mediterranean diet is known to keep the heart and brain in peak condition and to lower the cancer risk. A new study shows it can also significantly lessen the long-term effects of age-related macular degeneration. Read more about the study from American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO).
Prevent sun damage and injury to your eyes.
The importance of shielding eyes from the damaging rays of the sun cannot be overstated. Be sure your sunglasses block out at least 99% of UV rays. Wear safety goggles or protective glasses when engaged in sports or when working with hazardous and airborne materials. Read our 10 tips on keeping your eyes protected.
Don’t smoke.
Smoking is the most common factor in developing macular degeneration. It also contributes to cataracts and damage to the optic nerve. Smoking causes vasoconstriction, which restricts the blood supply to the eyes.
Get your eyes checked annually.
An annual comprehensive eye exam is essential at every age. It will help keep your eyes healthy and detect any early changes or the onset of disease. Early detection remains the most important factor in preventing loss of sight.
Give your eyes a break.
The computer screens our eyes spend so much time trained on, can and will cause blurry vision, dry eyes, difficulty focusing and general strain to the eye, neck and back. Get into the habit of giving your eyes a rest every 20 minutes by looking away for at least 20 seconds and refocusing into the distance.
And, yes, now is the perfect time to take that break. Go ahead…look away.
Post first published Oct 07, 2018 and updated Mar 17, 2023.
As spring kicks off, let’s be mindful about taking steps to prevent accidental injury to eyes. Accidents happen in an instant, but 90% can be avoided with the proper protective eyewear. It may also surprise you to learn that nearly half of eye injuries occur at home and are caused by household repairs, yard work, cleaning and cooking. Pay attention and don’t take risks. Protect yourself and those around you.Enhance your awareness and avoid a regrettable situation.If an injury occurs, get medical attention immediately.
People with visual impairments are at risk in particular,because they may be unable to see objects coming at them.For this reason, the use of personal protective eyewear is highly recommended, during all activity indoors and out, to avoid accidental damage to an eye. Choose polycarbonate lenses for all glasses, they are shatterproof and offer 100% UV protection from the sun.
Wear protective glasses or goggles when using chemicals, cleaners, aerosols and sprays.
Everyday household items like Knives, forks, scissors, paper clips and wire hangers can accidentally cause injury. Handle with care.
When cooking food that splatters always wear protective eyewear and use a grease shield.
Attend to hazards that can cause falls. Secure rugs and eliminate clutter. Improve contrast and lighting. Be aware of sharp edges. More about this on the OE Patients Podcast Episode 2: Don’t Take the Fall, Prevent it
Image shows kids wearing protective sports glasses and helmets
Outdoors
Take precautions when outdoors on windy days by wearing wraparound sunglasses to shield your eyes from flying debris, dust and particles.
Protect eyes while gardening, mowing the lawn or using a leaf blower.
Do not give children sharp objects, or toys with projectiles or toy guns that fire.
Choose ASTM approved protective eyewear, not sunglasses, for sports, particularly sports with balls, bats, racquets, pucks or sticks.
Even opening champagne bottles can be hazardous to eyes and should be handled with caution. Point the bottle away from your face, and the faces of others. Do not shake the bottle and cover the cork with a towel so it doesn’t fly.
Stay away from do-it-yourself pyrotechnics — leave the fireworks to the professionals. Not even sparklers are a good idea, unless wearing protective goggles. The nation’s ophthalmologists issue advisories for July 4th in anticipation of increased fireworks related injury, especially to bystanders and children.
Post first published Jun 30, 2022 and updated Mar 16, 2023.
As navigation apps go, for people with visual impairments, Soundscape was one of the few worth discussion. It enhanced awareness of our surroundings, like walking with a friend who describes the environment. So it is disappointing to share the news that Microsoft has discontinued its development. No longer available on the App Store or on Google Play, users with the app currently downloaded to a device will have it until the end of June 2023, at which time it will stop functioning.
The announcement from Microsoft says, in part, “The Soundscape code is now available as open-source software on GitHub at https://github.com/microsoft/soundscape, so that anyone can continue to build on, and find new ways to leverage, this novel feature set for the growing navigation opportunities in today’s world. As Microsoft Research continues to expand into new accessibility innovation areas, we hope the open-source software release of the Soundscape code supports the community in further developing confidence and utility of spatial audio navigation experiences.”
We, too, hope the code helps in the development of new applications and that Microsoft Research will continue to expand into new accessibility innovation.
Microsoft Soundscape 2018: A Review Of What It Can Do
Microsoft is clearly on a mission to advance accessibility for people with vision loss, and that is a very good thing. The past six months have seen the launch of two significant new apps to iPhone users, both intent to give us the information we are unable to discern visually.
The first app, Seeing AI, has very quickly become a crowd favorite. It’s ability to instantly read short text (signs, addresses, labels, and packaging) is reason enough to use it. It also reads documents, product barcodes, currency, color, handwriting and more.
The newest app in this collection is ‘Soundscape,’ a navigation tool, described as a “map delivered in 3D sound.”Not to be confused with the GPS app you’ve been waiting for, there is no turn by turn directions, no specific guidance from point A to point B. And, as we experience with all GPS, there is the issue of accuracy. Putting that aside, this app still has much to offer.
Soundscape provides an enhanced awareness of what’s around you. It’s kind of like walking along with a friend who is pointing out stores, restaurants, structures, and intersections. The information comes in 3D stereo sound, information about what is on your left comes to you from the left, what’s on the right comes from the right, and what’s in front comes from the center. The audio is impressive.
With progressing central vision loss, I have not been privy to the specifics of my surroundings for a while. There is something wondrous about knowing what’s around me in any given spot.You might think you would get used to the not knowing, but the curiosity never really subsides. Soundscape is a bit of a thirst quencher in this way.
Like all technology, you need to work with this and find out what it can do. At first, I must admit to being frustrated by the free-floating information about what’s “around” without any clues for getting to it. Then I started to appreciate the narrative as I learned about places near and new to me. To get this type of information before, I would ask someone I’d be walking with to “Please tell me everything that’s on this street.” The Soundscape app basically does that, just not exactly.You must be aware and accepting, that there is a margin for error.
The greatest benefit I derived from this app is the telling of street names, numbers, and intersections. Before Soundscape, my best method for figuring out what street I was on was to ask Siri, “Where am I?” That approach also not always accurate. Using ‘My Location’ lets me know what street I’m on and what intersection is coming up. I love that!
Microsoft’s Soundscape app main screen.
The Soundscape app has a cleanly designed interface with the following options:
Menu
Select, or search and save, reference points.
Manage Call Outs by selecting the information you want to be called out automatically like Places and Landmarks, Intersections, Destination Distance, Bluetooth Beacons Indoors and Location Updates. Here you will also find Help and Tutorials and Settings.
Set a Beacon
Select a specific location and audio beacon will indicate when you are facing the direction of your selected location, it will not set a path or take you there.
Call Outs On/Off
My Location
Gives you current location, direction facing, nearby roads and points of interest.
Around Me
Tells you about one thing in each direction: ahead, to right, behind you, and to the left.
Ahead of Me
Helps you discover what’s coming up ahead.
Holding the phone flat in your hand with the top facing the direction you are heading will enable it to function like a compass.
Soundscape and Seeing AI apps eat up battery power, so it is well advised to always carry a backup.
It’s very safe to say this is just the beginning for Soundscape and Seeing AI. Microsoft will surely continue to develop and improve these technologies. Try this in your city.You’ll help the progress by sending feedback to [email protected].
And don’t forget, you can always call the Microsoft Disability Answer Desk for help at 800-936-5900.
Please note that this article was not paid for, affiliated with, or endorsed by any third-party companies. The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author’s.
This post was originally published March 16th, 2018 and updated on February 20, 2023
One of the dreaded benchmarks for a person with progressive vision loss, is the inability to drive. It represents an enormous reduction in freedom and independence. Not being able to get into your own car and go where you want, when you want, is, quite literally, immobilizing. When a fully autonomous vehicle appeared on the horizon, it seemed to be the perfect compensation. This was no pipe dream, technology most certainly, we believed, could give us back the ability to drive. But it has not materialized, and now we are left to wonder, when? Is this vehicle a complete over-promise? Will technology ever actually rise above the level of assisted driving?
To classify as driverless or totally autonomous, a car must be capable of sensing its environment and moving safely with little or no human input. One of the predicted benefits of this super-smart technology is the minimization of traffic collisions, which was also expected to significantly improve safety and reduce the cost of insurance. But the data show human drivers are way better than driverless vehicles. Bloomberg BusinessWeek’s report on the subject (October 2022) is definitively titled, “Even After $100 Billion Self-Driving Cars are Going Nowhere.” Decades in development, they are still not able to safely negotiate left unprotected turns, weather conditions, animals, construction or crossing guards.
We can hold on to the belief that one day our cars might drive themselves, but it’s time to get real about the likelihood. It’s true there are cars and trucks out on the open road, right now, testing the software, but they’ve been out there for awhile and, for sure, not yet ready for mainstream consumption.
Google’s autonomous automobile project began in 2009 and was spun off in 2016 as Waymo (short for a New Way Forward in Mobility). To date the company has logged 10 million miles on roads and 20 billion on simulators. In the Phoenix area, they operate the only self-driving taxi service to the public, that does not have backup safety drivers in the vehicle. They believe autonomously driven vehicles could also help people who can’t drive—whether elderly, blind, or disabled—to get around and do the things they love, and we are inclined to agree.
Image shows person driving Tesla on Autopilot.
Tesla’s Autopilot has been commercially available since 2015 and is widely known for its consistent improvements in performance and precision. However, the fully autonomous Tesla has never been delivered. Tesla’s operating instructions clearly stipulate that drivers keep hands on the steering wheel at all times, ready to take control. As good as the technology may be, there have been too many deadly crashes attributed to an error in the software’s response. Elon Musk Tweeted a message, in October 2022, siting ‘issues’ with the latest version of FSD, then noted, ‘this is to be expected.’
There is no shortage of work being done in this area. Fleets of self-driving cars are testing technology for Ford, General Motors, Mercedes, Jaguar, Volkswagen, BMW, Kia and Hyundai, to name just a few. Apple began developing driverless technology in 2014 and today operates the third largest fleet of test vehicles in California, behind GM and Waymo. Uber, a company that once staked its business model on self-driving cars, sold its driverless car subsidiary to Aurora Technologies, while Lyft continues to develop the sector.
Many of these companies have projected a year in which they expect to have full self-driving cars on the road, but that we’ve learned must be taken with a grain of salt. And even when they do get some driverless cars on the road, will they be accessible to the sightless?
This post was originally published October 26, 2021 and updated December 12, 2022
Scam calls, emails and text messages have significantly increased. They attempt to defraud you by tricking you into revealing personal, credit or financial information. So prevalent they have spawned an industry of theft known as phishing by email, smishing by text, and vishing by voice call. Federal Trade Commission data released in 2022 shows that consumers reported losing more than $5.8 billion to fraud in 2021, a whopping increase of more than 70% over the previous year. Of the 2.8 million fraud reports received by the FTC, imposter scams were the most commonly reported, followed by online shopping scams; fake prizes, fake sweepstakes and fake lotteries, and scams involving phony internet services or nonexistent business or job opportunities.
The scams are coming at you on a daily basis, designed to rob your money or steal your identity. They often target older adults with bogus threats related to debts owed or a family member in trouble. When fraud is directed at you personally, it is frightening and very dangerous to your financial accounts. To avoid falling prey, be aware, and be vigilant; although the scenarios presented in scams are fake, the potential for losing thousands of dollars is quite real.
Do Not Engage
Don’t Answer. The absolute best and most effective advice for avoiding phone scams is…do not answer unfamiliar calls, emails or texts. If you answer a contact and realize it could be a scam — disconnect immediately and do not answer when they attempt to contact you again.
Set Call ID. If vision loss prevents you from seeing incoming phone numbers, consider setting your phone to announce the incoming call, or assign a special ringtone to your favorite callers. Contact your carrier to find out if they offer options for blocking calls identified as spam.
Don’t Give Information. Beware of any call or message asking for your personal information including social security number, Medicare ID, date of birth, username, password, mother’s maiden name or credit card info. Government agencies and legitimate businesses do not ask for personal information by phone. Email or text message, if someone does, it is most likely fraud. Confirm the request independently with a call to the company or agency’s customer service line.
Do Not Send Money. Don’t be pressured to send money urgently. Beware of requests for payments by wire transfer, preloaded debit or gift cards, Google Pay, and Bitcoin. Unusual payment methods are almost certainly indicative of a scam
Don’t Be Fooled by phone numbers or email addresses that appear to be legitimate; both can be easily faked by scammers.
Senior man with serious expression talking on phone.
Be Aware Of These Scams
Social Security Scams will try to convince you that someone is fraudulently using your SS# or there is a judgment against you which may lead to your arrest. Never respond to calls or messages of this nature.
Medicare Scams will claim new Medicare cards are being issued or that you are eligible for a free medical device. They will ask for your Medicare and banking information. This is a fraud. Hang up.
IRS Scams involve a call to demand immediate payment for taxes owed, using a prepaid debit card or wire transfer. Hang up on this scam and do not return calls to voicemail messages. The IRS does not collect taxes by phone or request unusual payment methods. The fraud can be easily confirmed by calling the IRS directly.
Grandparent Scam calls or email involve a con artist posing as a family member, lawyer or law enforcement agent reporting serious trouble that urgently requires a wire transfer of funds for bail money, lawyers fees or other fictitious expenses. Don’t believe it, verify the whereabouts of your loved one independently.
FBI Scams claim you are under investigation and demand a fee to avoid arrest.
Fishing Scams involve calls, texts and email that impersonate Apple, Verizon, American Express and JP Morgan Chase, among many others, to claim your account has been compromised and you need to reset. Do not call the number or click the links provided. Instead, verify by calling the company’s published customer service number.
Lottery and Sweepstakes Scams Call or email to inform you that you have won the big prize, but must first pay taxes or fees before it can be released to you. There is absolutely no winning; you can only lose on this one.
No matter what type of scam, the best advice is the same: Do Not Engage! Don’t respond to suspicious calls. If you pick up a questionable call, hang up immediately. Do not call back. Don’t open suspicious emails and don’t open attachments or click links.
Always Protect Your Private Information
Don’t share your passwords, keep them private and update regularly.
Shred documents that contain personal or financial information before discarding.
When using an ATM, cover or block the keypad when entering your PIN.
Use direct deposit for paychecks, tax refunds, benefit payments, etc.
Review financial statements monthly and correct errors.
Review credit report yearly and correct issues.
This article was originally posted July 13, 2019 and updated December 8, 2022.
There are challenges involved in traveling through airports, always, for everyone. Add a visual impairment to the mix and you’ve got an excellent excuse to just stay at home. A travel companion could solve a lot of the problems, but there isn’t always one available. You can request assistance at the airport, but it may arrive holding a sign you cannot read and pushing a wheelchair you do not need.
For a while now we’ve been thinking the best solution to navigating the inside of an airport would come in the form of an interior mapping system and a really, really smart digital assistant. As much as we love the incredible strides technology is helping us take, navigation systems and digital assistants have not yet proven to be precise enough for this task. While we were waiting patiently for that, we started hearing about something called Aira (pronounced I-ra), a technology that depends on humans for accuracy.
Travelers in London Heathrow Airport.
How Aira Works
Turns out, that even in this intensely technological time, people still provide the most dependable source of assistance. Imagine that. Aira is a service that connects you with an agent via smartphone for live remote assistance, they call it “visual interpreting.” This independence-enhancing accessibility solution could possibly take the pain out of asking for help. You are not disturbing anyone; it is exactly what they are there to do.
The agents are trained to guide you. They can see a 120-degree view through the camera of your phone, much more than you’re seeing. Aira customers are called “Explorers,” and that makes it sound a little like we’re playing a game, but why not, perhaps it will make airport travel fun again.
How Much Aira Costs
Aira is a subscription service, now starting at $29 a month for 30 minutes with an agent, $99 for 120 minutes, and up from there. The service is accessed by a mobile app. Paying subscribers can call an agent for assistance navigating through any airport within the service area of North America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand.
Where Aira is Free
There is also a network of airports that subscribe to Aira and provide free guest access to their customers. At last count, 50+ airports were actively participating in the Aira Network including JFK International, LaGuardia, Newark, Syracuse, Boston Logan, Charlotte Douglas, Dallas Love Field, and Toronto Pearson. A complete list of free airport locations seemed to be elusive. A representative from Aira suggested using the in-app search to find all locations on the network, but that did not render a list either. When in doubt, we suggest calling an agent on the app, or Aira customer service at one of the phone numbers listed below, to confirm if the airport you’re heading to provides the visual interpreting service for free.
Vision loss and credit cards don’t mix well. It’s hard to tell one card from the other, especially now as card designs have moved to flattened surfaces. Not that card’s with embossed numbers and names were all that accessible either. And although the focus here is just on card design, the accessibility of machines used to process payments is another issue in need of solutions. It is a pleasure to report a meaningful advance on the part of Mastercard in these efforts, and we hope they will hold the baton and run with it all the way to complete inclusion.
It was a while ago, in pre-pandemic times, that we heard there was an accessible credit card in the works. The very idea made us smile, its time had finally come. Who was creating this card and what would it be like? The details of the project did not leak, it was very top secret, so we waited for the news to break.
The first glimpse came late last year when Mastercard unveiled Touch Card, a new accessible design standard implementing a system of notches cut into the side of the card. A square notch identifies the credit card, a semicircle notch on debit cards and a triangular notch is for prepaid cards. The positioning of these cut-outs gives the customers the ability to use the right card the right way, by touch. Mastercard hopes the new inclusive designs will help the world’s 2.2 billion visually impaired people more easily identify and manage their cards.
In March, Mastercard began marketing Touch Card with a TV ad, embedded below. It seemed to signal the Touch Card was now available to consumers. But this commercial was actually meant to get people, and card issuers (which are banks), excited about the opportunity to obtain this new product.
Video advertisement for Mastercard’s accessible Touch Care for visually impaired and blind consumers.
Naturally, we wanted to get our hands on the notched cards and try them out as soon as possible, but that was easier said than done. When we could not find the Touch Card online or at a bank, we reached out to Jill Davison in Global Communications at Mastercard. She said, “Thank you for your interest in the Mastercard Touch Card. We are currently working with several Mastercard issuers around the world to bring Touch Card to market. It is our hope that this becomes a global standard universally applied to all cards and not just a feature added upon request. Once we launch with Mastercard partners, the standard will be made available to all banks and networks, and it will be their choice whether to adopt this new card standard.” She also suggested, interested consumers contact their banks and request Touch Card in advance of its issuance.
The bottom line is, Touch Card is coming soon, stay tuned.
An unknown app named OneStep Reader mysteriously appeared in an iOS app update. It became clear upon opening it, this was an old app with a new name. The app, formerly known as KNFB Reader, was taken over from the National Federation of the Blind by Sensotec. Beyond the name and the ownership change, not much else is new, even the $100 purchase price remains the same, which is likely to be its greatest barrier to growth, considering there are many good alternatives at fractions of that cost. It will be interesting to see what Sensotec has in store. Perhaps the most impressive note to this story is how far the OCR technology has traveled to arrive at this place, and how far we’ve come in our expectations.
The article below, published in 2018, provides a brief history of KNFB Reader.
Do you need help reading mail, package info, handouts, cooking directions, price tags, signs? There’s an app for all that. The KNFB Reader converts text to speech, instantly.
It is worth noting: this is technology with a pedigree. Developed by Ray Kurzweil, currently Director of Engineering at Google, he is the father of OCR (Optical Character Recognition). In its original form, it took shape as the Kurzweil Reading Machine for the blind. The year was 1976, the machine was the size of a dishwasher and the cost: $40,000.
In 2008, Kurzweil and the National Federation of the Blind joined forces to introduce the first mobile version of the reading machine. It ran on a Nokia phone and was priced at a shocking: $3,000.
Just a few years later, the much anticipated KNFB Reader App for iPhone (and iPad) was delivered to the App Store. The Android and Windows apps followed, and they’re all compatible with their respective screen readers.
The KNFB Reader app opens the camera. The right side of the screen offers a “field of view report” to assist alignment of the picture. Tap the left side of the screen to snap the photo. In seconds, the text appears and the reading aloud begins. It’s fast, accurate and relatively easy to use.
The app includes a quick start guide and manual. Read and save multi-page documents. Multiple languages are supported. Set to automatically save files to Dropbox, Microsoft OneDrive, or Google Drive. In recent updates, you can make calls, send emails, and open links directly from documents. You can even contact someone from a business card.
This is relatively easy to use, but like all new things, it may require a bit of acclimating. Practice makes perfect! The incredible benefit is well worth the effort.
You just might start wondering how you functioned without it.
Please note that this article was not paid for, affiliated with, or endorsed by any third-party companies. The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author’s.
Originally published on August 3, 2018 and updated on April 14, 2022.
The light was changing from amber to red when I turned left onto Main Street. My stepdaughter and I were on our way to a workout on a rainy Saturday morning. From the passenger seat of my trusty Subaru, she screamed — at what, I did not know.
Although we made it through the intersection without hitting an oncoming car that I did not see, our hearts were racing before we hit the gym. On the way home, I wondered about the car’s fitness, but the sudden mechanical failure turned out to be mine.
A few days later, my eye doctor stopped examining me, picked up his desk phone and speed-dialled the head of ophthalmology at the university. “There’s someone you must see right away,” he said.
On Dec. 1, 2011, I received a diagnosis of Stargardt disease, an inherited retinal disorder that affects central vision. Genetic testing showed that my mother carried the mutation, and my father contributed a common variant. One in 10,000 are afflicted with this rare condition, which often presents in childhood. I was lucky to have reached the age of 50 before I had to give up my keys. But I was in shock.
Since the first day behind the wheel of my father’s Ford truck when I was 14, I knew that driving would be my portal to other worlds. He wanted me to gain skills early and comprehensively. What better way than in the old ’48, with its manual transmission and well-worn body? With an enormous shift on the column and a clutch the size of a discus, it took all my strength to wrestle the gears, and of course my timing was poor.
I stalled often at first, while my father sighed and whistled “I Can’t Get Started.” On a dozen springtime Saturday mornings, I practised in the flat, empty pasture at my grandfather’s farm in rural Illinois. After finally finding the rhythm from first to second and then to third gear, it was time to advance to reverse. “If you need to back up, it’s hard to see where you’re going,” my father — who had been a soldier and a prisoner of war — said with unusual gravity. “You need to feel it.”
My father was resilient in this gear. This trait was my genetic inheritance from him, and a defining one, as I would come to appreciate after my diagnosis.
Once I mastered reverse in the hulking Ford, I drove my own car with confidence and what I might call desire. In the Midwest, roads are long and straight, with great distances between things. I wanted to feel the pedal under my foot, getting me to a new place under my own power.
That feeling persisted throughout my life. Working as a classical music agent, I once sped 200 km/hr in a Mercedes sedan through the night in the Swiss Alps to deliver a cargo of artists to a gig on time. The independence I felt whenever I turned on the ignition filled my whole body with energy and a taste of freedom.
“Seeing is believing,” the saying goes. What could “not seeing” mean for someone who loved driving as much as I did?
Blindness is a simple, unemotional word for most people — either a descriptor, as in “blind audition,” or, more often, a metaphor, as in “love is blind.” When sight loss actually happens to you, “blindness” becomes a full-body garment, custom made to conform with every contour of your inner and outer frame. It inflects you in a way that is incomprehensible to the sighted world as it influences your movements and interactions. How do you respond to your beloved if you cannot see his face? How do you, as an English major, cope with no longer being able to read? And how do you make sense of your changing self? No other sensory deprivation is so personal and laden with mystery. No one says “hearing is believing” or “smelling is believing.” No, only seeing is believing. Not seeing must be believing something else.
Getting to that something else now occupies the second half of my life in a way that, like the other car at the Main Street intersection, I couldn’t see coming. Like becoming aware of unconscious beliefs, it is a matter of bringing to light that which is not visible. This takes courage and imagination, but after the initial shock I have become aware of hidden resources to be tapped. Over time I have found that the sense of loss and vulnerability brought on by decreased independence can lead to a heightened appreciation for new ways of connecting to others and the world.
John M. Hull, a university professor of religious education who was blind, put it this way: “Should I begin to think of myself as a person disabled by a defect but empowered by a capacity?”
Hull spoke the question into a cassette tape recorder, his only means of writing in 1986. His book, On Sight and Insight, is a transformational account of vision loss. It helped me reframe the experience and develop creative and resourceful strategies to maintain relationships and work. The concept of a new-found capacity requires both inner and outer efforts. For me, this has involved everything from analyzing startling dream imagery, to memorizing regularly travelled routes and landmarks, to attuning my musical ear to pick up nuances in people’s voices and modulating my own in response.
Above all, acquiring skills in assistive technology has been like taking that pasture-driving course all over again. It is a matter of putting fear aside and practising a new transmission. Today there is a virtual showroom of “vehicles” used by people who are blind or partially sighted. Smartphone technology and screen readers now allow for a dazzling variety of applications, in which auditory information is activated by touch and thus provides access to written material at a terrific pace. I can shift through these gears at speed, and if I wander into a blind alley, there are keystrokes for reverse. Reading is well within reach.
Everything speaks now — Alexa, ovens, doorbells. It is no longer stigmatizing to walk around talking to yourself on the street or having your phone talk to you. This is now normal. The game-changing remedy for being blind or partially sighted — “accessibility” — is an accepted gear for the general population. This being the case, never again shall the words “nothing can be done” be used by any eye-care professional when surgical procedures or drug therapies may not be available. Much can be done, and the delivery system — already preloaded in “Settings”— is likely right there in the pockets of both the patient and the practitioner. It takes only a willingness and curiosity on the side of both parties to engage in this exploration of vision rehabilitation. This is the best time in human history to lose sight because patients now have another way to be independent.
I feel fortunate to have received guidance at a vision rehabilitation clinic, as well as services from the CNIB Foundation and a support group established by the Foundation Fighting Blindness. Every patient should be so lucky, but many suffer silently when this life-changing transition is not fully appreciated or addressed by physicians. Early guidance and referrals can create a road map to vision loss that is not a dead end but instead offers promising pathways.
Professor Hull coined a phrase that speaks to me and may resonate with other patients who experience sight loss: “whole-body seer.” As reliance on other senses increases, awareness of the whole body is enhanced. Hull writes, “A whole-body seer is someone in whom the specialist function of sight is now delivered upon the whole body and no longer specialized in a particular organ.”
Such a concentrated state of being may offer as heightened a sensation as driving. Indeed, I have noticed increased awareness and pleasure in all kinds of weather, and a deep desire for nature. With support, I have been able to accept and explore the complexities and the progression of my low-vision condition. I have not been tempted to get behind the wheel again. The day I unwittingly risked my stepdaughter’s life — and my own — shut that door for good. But I’m no longer experiencing the situation as demanding a shift into reverse. I’ve picked up a new set of keys to unlock this new life of mine and am finding my way to somewhere else.
Footnotes
This article has been peer reviewed.
This is a true story.
This is an Open Access article distributed in accordance with the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) license, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided that the original publication is properly cited, the use is noncommercial (i.e., research or educational use), and no modifications or adaptations are made. See:https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/
Reference
1 ↵Hull JM. On sight and insight: A journey into the world of blindness. London: Oneworld Publications; 1997.Google Scholar
