5 ms·

How much overlap is there between the accessibility needs of differently abled people (e.g. blind) and the needs of typically-abled people that want more modes

How much overlap is there between the accessibility needs of differently abled people (e.g. blind) and the needs of typically-abled people that want more modes of interaction with their devices? The reason for my question is two-fold: I am not vision impaired (yet) and, selfishly, I would love to be able to interact with a powerful small computer (e.g. smartphone or a car/bike computer) as richly as I do with my desktop without having to look at it. And I imagine, if that modality of interaction becomes mainstream for geeks/hackers then it would greatly accelerate the development of tools that the blind community would benefit from. Any suggestions for tools that I can play with in this context?

User23 5y ago
If you have iThings, try using them with VoiceOver and screen curtain[1]. I have a blind friend with absolutely no usable vision, not even light sensitivity. She uses VoiceOver and screen curtain along with a pair of AirPods and uses her device as well as anyone. One thing she does is turn the text to speech speed way up. Edit: Also as a piece of trivia, the blind community generally uses the term "sighted" to refer to people with normal (or at least correctible) usable vision. [1] https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201443 https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201443
microtherion 5y ago
It's more than an overlap: I would argue that there really is a _spectrum_ of interaction wants and needs. On one end, you have people with no vision at all. Some of them prefer extremely high speech rates. Others do not. Some may additionally have other interaction limitations (motor control, etc). Then, you have sighted people who cannot look at a screen at the moment — e.g. because they are driving a car, because their device is at some distance, or because the device doesn't even have a screen. You have sighted people who get tired reading long form text, or who need text read back to them as they type to support their spelling. So screen readers are absolutely not a one size fits all product. Even Apple provides a ton of user configurable choices for their screen reader.
gumby 5y ago
This is an important factor in the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires accommodation when buildings are renovated, accessible govt web sites etc): everybody benefits. Everybody has a (often slightly) different set of faculties and they can often change transiently (e.g. even a skilled athlete can injure a limb). Making things “accessible” can be useful in unanticipated ways.
sterlind 5y ago
I use hunt-and-peck and vimium for navigating websites and desktop windows. They weren't created for people with disabilities but they work well with my dictation software (Talon) so I can work when my arms fail on me. Talon might also be worth your time. Since you're able-bodied you'd find it inferior to keyboards for most things, but it's a very hackable way to interact without using your hands. Combined with a screen reader you'd be all set for using a computer while biking.

User23 5y ago

If you have iThings, try using them with VoiceOver and screen curtain[1]. I have a blind friend with absolutely no usable vision, not even light sensitivity. She uses VoiceOver and screen curtain along with a pair of AirPods and uses her device as well as anyone. One thing she does is turn the text to speech speed way up. Edit: Also as a piece of trivia, the blind community generally uses the term "sighted" to refer to people with normal (or at least correctible) usable vision. [1] https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201443 https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT201443

microtherion 5y ago

It's more than an overlap: I would argue that there really is a _spectrum_ of interaction wants and needs. On one end, you have people with no vision at all. Some of them prefer extremely high speech rates. Others do not. Some may additionally have other interaction limitations (motor control, etc). Then, you have sighted people who cannot look at a screen at the moment — e.g. because they are driving a car, because their device is at some distance, or because the device doesn't even have a screen. You have sighted people who get tired reading long form text, or who need text read back to them as they type to support their spelling. So screen readers are absolutely not a one size fits all product. Even Apple provides a ton of user configurable choices for their screen reader.

gumby 5y ago

This is an important factor in the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires accommodation when buildings are renovated, accessible govt web sites etc): everybody benefits. Everybody has a (often slightly) different set of faculties and they can often change transiently (e.g. even a skilled athlete can injure a limb). Making things “accessible” can be useful in unanticipated ways.

sterlind 5y ago

I use hunt-and-peck and vimium for navigating websites and desktop windows. They weren't created for people with disabilities but they work well with my dictation software (Talon) so I can work when my arms fail on me. Talon might also be worth your time. Since you're able-bodied you'd find it inferior to keyboards for most things, but it's a very hackable way to interact without using your hands. Combined with a screen reader you'd be all set for using a computer while biking.