Changes and New Beginnings.

Hello everyone,

I apologize for not writing any new articles on the iAccessibility Report, but a lot is going on, and I think that everyone will like to hear what is coming up.

Future of this blog.

The iAccessibility Report has always been hosted here at iAccessibility.net, but in the future, users will have to go to report.iaccessibility.net or our readers can click the blog icon on the newly redesigned iAccessibility home page.

New iAccessibility Home Page

The new iAccessibility home page will be a place for ou users to come to learn more about our products and services offered by iAccessibility. We have a lot of things planned for this site, so we hope you enjoy the page when it is finished.

Conclusion

Not much will change here at the iAccessibility report, except for the location on the web, and also the frequency in which stories are posted. We promise to post more app reviews more frequently, and I’d also like to see a few new authors and some people comenting on these stories.

iBlink Radio from Serotek

Serotek has built several cloud solutions for the blind and visually impaired that allows users to use their computers to watch descriptive movies. One of the things from Serotek is an app for iOS called iBlink Radio. iBlink Radio allows users to listen to many different podcasts and reader services that are produced by the blind. You can also listen to all of the podcasts from Serotek in this app. With the latest update, users can now connect their System Access Mobile Network, or SAMNet account to iBlink Radio, and enjoy all of the great content that is offered on that service.

How does the app work

iBlink Radio consists of a man menu, which is a table that loads results from the web. From this menu, the user can tap on the most recent shows from Serotek, or they can select a category to browse. This will bring up a new menu of choices. Once the user selects the show they want to listen to, a player with the usual music player controls will appear at the bottom to control the audio.

How to sign in to SAMNet

It is very easy to sign in to SAMNet in iBlink Radio. First, go to SAMNet Sampler, and select login to SAMNet. Once you enter your username and password the page will change, and you will get access to all of your SAMNet content.

Problems with the app.

Even though this update is great, it is not without its flaws. The major flaw that has been found is the player. If the user does anything to manipulate the current position of audio playback the app will start the audio over or crash. This even happens when pausing or resuming audio. It is nice to have an app that can deliver this content, but without a stable player, it makes listening tedious and frustrating to the end user. I also determined that this happens while using the remote control functions from the headphones and the app chooser of iOS.

Conclusion

While iBlink radio is a great app, the unreliability of the player makes this app frustrating and tedious. I would really like to see Serotek fix this problem as I really like using this app. I also would like to pause and resume my audio as well, so for now, I am having to use the Apple podcasts app to listen to the Serotek Podcast Network.

#NFB2012 – Welcome!

If you have heard abut this site from this year’s NFB convention in Dallas, I strongly urge you to subscribe to this site, so you can receive updates on new products, reviews and general iOS news. I hope everyone enjoys the site, and their time at the convention. It only comes around once a year! I hope to see everyone again around the Anatole.

Fleksy – A new way of using a keyboard on mobile devices!

Yesterday, I was able to get a look at the new keyboarding technology from Fleksy. Fleksy is going to be a new app for iOS that lets the user type text without having to use exact placement fingers on the screen. All you have to do is tap where you think letters should be and type a full word, and the app will predict which word you are trying to type. After trying this system, I believe that this app/technology is at least 90% accurate.

How does it work?

Fleksy is a simple and intuitive new technology that lets you type without having to find keyboard keys. To start, you start trying to type a word. Once you are done, swipe right and the app will predict what you typed. If that word is not correct, swipe down or up to get more suggestions. The swipe right also puts a space, and there is also commands to add punctuation as well. Swipe left will also delete the word you just typed.

Conclusion

Fleksy is an incredible new technology that will be making its way to the iOS app store very shortly. The developers have also said they would like to create APIs for other developers to use their technology in other apps. I plan to add Fleksy technology to all future app releases I come out with, and would love to see other developers do the same. If you are here at the 2012 National Federation of the Blind convention, try and find one of their representatives and they will give you a demonstration.

NFB Convention 2012

If you are at the National Federation of the Blind convention this year in Dallas, you can find me around the hotel this week with information on the best Braille apps for your iOS device. If you would also like help with getting used to your device, try and find me. My name is Michael Doise, and I will be around the Hilton Anatole this week. You can also pick up information from the NFB of Texas suite or from the convention information table.

 

I hope to see you this week, and I hope everyone enjoys the convention!

AppBraille

One limitation of any application that uses custom fonts is that that font cannot be copied or used in any other app on an iOS device. Due to some research, this limitation can be overcome. Now, Braille can be copied between apps on all iOS devices.

Look for the AppBraille technology In all future releases of VisualBraille, VisualBraille Lite, PocketBraille Reference, and PocketBraille Lite. Plus some new AppBraille specific apps that include AppBraille Explorerer, and AppBraille editor.

Netflix is back for the blind!

Netflix just updated their app yesterday with two neat things. First is pretty obvious. Netflix now works with the retina display on the new iPad, but the second thing is the best for those who are blind. Netflix adds on their change screen for their update that they have added better support for VoiceOver users. I am not sure what that means, but it sounds like they have made netflix work with VoiceOver again on iDevices. I would love to hear readers thoughts on this or if they have seen it work better now.

FlipBoard for iOS

I know it has been a great long while since I have written a review of an app but I am back to review one of my favorite apps for iOS for accessibility, and its name is FlipBoard. The question here is, if FlipBoard is accessible with VoiceOver on the iPhone and iPad.

What is Flipboard?

Currently, there are several news apps out for iOS, but none are as graphically stunning as clipboard. On the iPad, Flipboard works like a book. When the app opens you are presented with a cover page that shows the highlights of your personalized FlipBoard experience. When you want to go on, simply take a finger and flick left to turn the page. On the second page you can set up FaceBook and Twitter to display in this nice book like view. Flipboard will arrange your posts, pictures, and media in a way that looks wonderful to the eye. On the iPhone, Flipboard does the same thing, but a little differently. Instead of turning the pages of a book, you flick up like a note pad or calendar to reveal each page.Users can also add individual twitter, Facebook and blogs to their main FlipBoard sections for more detailed viewing.

Is it accessible?

In short the answer is NO! Not just no, but NO! Flipboard is not accessible what so ever. A user can not turn a page, click the settings button, or even click on each section. Very few buttons work, and when they do they just say, “button.” This is on both iPhone/iPod versions and the iPad version as well.

Conclusion

I constantly use clipboard having some vision, but if I were to need a news app and I was totally blind or had worse vision than I do now, I would not get this app. There is no accessibility, and there is not a way for anyone who is visually impaired to use this app. I really wish that the developers would work on this, and I urge everyone to get this out there and get some demand for accessibility in Flipboard so everyone can use it.

NFB Convention

Hello everyone. Today and tomorrow I will be at the National Federation of the Blind convention in Austin for the state convention, and we will have PocketBraille reference, and VisualBraille all on display for everybody to see so I encourage everybody to come out and enjoy what we have to offer and hopefully learn a few things as well. Who knows, there may even be a few surprises for some lucky interested people. This may include free copies of my apps so come on by.

PocketBraille Beta Program.

Good afternoon everyone,

I would like to invite my readers to respond to this.

I am starting a beta program for my apps. This program will start with PocketBraille Reference and PocketBraille Lite. Because both of these apps have undergone many changes and editions, I would like to make sure these apps look and sound great before release. If you are interested, please email me at

mikedoise@gmail.com

I will only take a few testers at this time so it is on a first come first serve basis.

 

I would like to thank everyone for reading the blog and for supporting Braille and technology products.