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We made a bot for slack which provides voice summary for web pages, it is invoked by @larynxBot [URL] to get the audio summary of web content right inside slack

We made a bot for slack which provides voice summary for web pages, it is invoked by @larynxBot [URL] to get the audio summary of web content right inside slack[1]. I didn't specifically target this as utility for visually impaired users(as we weren't able to test with such users), but was under opinion that it would help them if someone from the team shared links with our bot. Reading your comment & that of others reg accessbility on slack makes me wonder if even when audio summary of URLs is received, whether someone with accessbility issues can click the player button. [1]:https://larynx.io/#larynxBot https://larynx.io/#larynxBot

mlang23 7y ago
Blind users already have their favourite screen readers. There is almost zero need for custom audio summary or alike features. Those are feature from sighted people for sighted people. But they have almost zero relevance to people relying on accessibility.
- Abishek_Muthian 7y ago
  That makes perfect sense, thanks. Are there screen readers capable of providing summary if needed?
  - mlang23 7y ago
    To answer that, I'd need to know what you actually mean by summary. Most screen readers present an overview of the number of HTML elements in a page when it just loaded. Something like "5 headings and 28 paragraphs".
    - Abishek_Muthian 7y ago
      By summary I meant, summarising an entire web article into couple of sentences.
      - mlang23 7y ago
        Oh, you are indeede refering to automatic text crippling? No, thanks, I wouldn't touch such a thing. That is not what accessibility is about.
ascar 7y ago
Why would you want to provide audio summary of a page in the first place instead of providing a text summary? Reading text is about 2.5 times faster than listening to speech. And regardind accessibility, blind people can use their screenreader to get an audio version of the summary. On the same topic: your landing page does a bad job of displaying what your app does and why it is useful for me as a user. I had to watch the "how to use" video to get an understanding.
- Abishek_Muthian 7y ago
  larynxBot is part of the larynx platform, where one could share any content along with their own voice. Users who received larynx content said they liked the voice summary of web content which their contacts sent to them & asked for a feature to summarise web content on-demand. Hence, we released it as bots for Messenger, Telegram, Twitter & slack. I agree that the website portion of larynxBot can do a better job at explaining it.

mlang23 7y ago

Blind users already have their favourite screen readers. There is almost zero need for custom audio summary or alike features. Those are feature from sighted people for sighted people. But they have almost zero relevance to people relying on accessibility.

Abishek_Muthian 7y ago
That makes perfect sense, thanks. Are there screen readers capable of providing summary if needed?
- mlang23 7y ago
  To answer that, I'd need to know what you actually mean by summary. Most screen readers present an overview of the number of HTML elements in a page when it just loaded. Something like "5 headings and 28 paragraphs".
  - Abishek_Muthian 7y ago
    By summary I meant, summarising an entire web article into couple of sentences.
    - mlang23 7y ago
      Oh, you are indeede refering to automatic text crippling? No, thanks, I wouldn't touch such a thing. That is not what accessibility is about.

ascar 7y ago

Why would you want to provide audio summary of a page in the first place instead of providing a text summary? Reading text is about 2.5 times faster than listening to speech. And regardind accessibility, blind people can use their screenreader to get an audio version of the summary. On the same topic: your landing page does a bad job of displaying what your app does and why it is useful for me as a user. I had to watch the "how to use" video to get an understanding.

Abishek_Muthian 7y ago
larynxBot is part of the larynx platform, where one could share any content along with their own voice. Users who received larynx content said they liked the voice summary of web content which their contacts sent to them & asked for a feature to summarise web content on-demand. Hence, we released it as bots for Messenger, Telegram, Twitter & slack. I agree that the website portion of larynxBot can do a better job at explaining it.