3 ms·
This is a pretty big question, but roughly: Edited to Add: I completely didn't see your last question! Put simply, I couldn't find a job anywhere so I had to
by escapologybb 8y ago
This is a pretty big question, but roughly:
Edited to Add: I completely didn't see your last question! Put simply, I couldn't find a job anywhere so I had to start my own company, it's as simple as that. I would absolutely love to be DevOps at a company and get to play with a really big network, I Would be good at the job and have the chops to carry it off but no opportunities so far. I'd also love to get into more penetration testing, security research types that which is where my real love is what most places want me to attend a place to do the work. No can do unfortunately, which is slightly mystifying when you consider you're hacking networked computers!
Anyway, onto my computer setup:
* Retina iMac 5K[1] for when I can get to my office
* MacBook Pro[2] for when I can't
* TrackerPro[3] camera which tracks a small silver reflective dot on my glasses converting my head movement into cursor movements on-screen
* A Buddy Button[4] To give me my mouse clicks
* Apple's integrated Switch Control[5] accessibility software gives me an on-screen keyboard which I can customise to control every feature of my laptop, iMac and my iPhone. (Full disclosure: I helped to beta test this stuff)
* Komodo labs Tecla Shield[6] Bluetooth adapter which enables me to connect the button under my right index finger to my phone, it also enables me to use the chin controller in my wheelchair to control my iPhone. That is pretty sweet. *
* DragonDictate for Mac[7] is whether used for voice dictation 90% of the time, it's what I'm using now to write this comment. Nothing really comes close to it. Also, Sennheiser headsets; don't bother with anything else.
That's the basics, but my whole house is voice controlled essentially using the very awesome https://home-assistant.io https://home-assistant.io home automation software. I can control the curtains, every light in the house by the LIFX lightbulbs, open the front door, play music, mess around on twitter, monitor how much electricity I'm using etc etc etc.
There's also 1.4 million metric crap-tonnes of shell scripts, AppleScript's hand like I've built up over the years to solve lots of little problems are far too numerous to list. Brett Terpstra writes some amazing software I use everyday.
Hope that answered your questions and was useful, feel free to ask whatever you like :-)
[1]: https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/buy-mac/imac/27-inch https://www.apple.com/uk/shop/buy-mac/imac/27-inch
[2]: https://www.apple.com/uk/macbook-pro/ https://www.apple.com/uk/macbook-pro/
[3]: http://www.inclusive.co.uk/trackerpro-p2436 http://www.inclusive.co.uk/trackerpro-p2436
[4]: http://www.inclusive.co.uk/buddy-button-p2606 http://www.inclusive.co.uk/buddy-button-p2606
[5]: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201370 https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT201370
[6]: https://gettecla.com/products/tecla-shield https://gettecla.com/products/tecla-shield
[7]: https://www.nuance.com/en-gb/dragon/dragon-for-mac.html https://www.nuance.com/en-gb/dragon/dragon-for-mac.html
Switch Control means that with one button I can have an able-bodied person turn on my new laptop, iMac, iPhone or whatever and from that point on I can do anything an able-bodied person can do. Apple has their faults, but their accessibility stuff is absolutely phenomenal it really is. I would love to use open source software on some souped up Linux laptop but the software doesn't exist to allow me to physically interact with them yet. Yet.
Apparently the new Google phones have very recently gained similar switch functionality but I haven't got my sticky mitts on one of them yet to try.
* If any of you guys are reading this, how is the new version coming along?
- Abishek_Muthian 8y ago(OP) This is a great list! Much appreciated. +1 for Apple's attention towards accessibility, definitely underrated feature set in Apple products; but I can understand why :)
- escapologybb 8y agoNo worries, my pleasure. As for Apple, they do make very very shiny things but that would not be enough to keep me with them if it wasn't for the accessibility stuff. I've always really wanted an alien ware laptop, but I can't use them! (Is it bad that I think that's one of the worst things about being quadriplegic?)
- GordonS 8y agoWow, the TrackerPro sounds great - there's a whole world of tech here I know nothing about! Do you think it works well for you? I remember trying DragonDictate on Windows in the 90's, and it was light years ahead of anything at the time, but still not 'good enough' as an alternative to keyboard entry (for me). A lot of time has passed, so I imagine it's a lot better now - do you actually use it for inputting code, or just for general text? (like HN comments :) Also, thanks for taking the time to answer and educate so fully!