Diet Coda

I have always felt that the iPad would be a perfect device for Web Design, but I have not yet found the perfect web editor to accomplish this. I have tried Markup, Gusto and others to accomplish this but none of these completely made a great experience as some editors on the Mac or PC could. On Mac OS X, Panic Software wrote a wonderful piece of software called Coda that has been around for many years. Now, Panic has brought Coda to the iPad and has called it Diet Coda. Diet Coda lets a web developer write code and upload that code directly to a web server. This app also lets a user login to their web server through SSH for server administration needs. So how well does this app work for VoiceOver users?

Diet Coda as good as it is, does not allow for much VoiceOver support. The app is very graphical in nature, but Panic Software did not label all of its buttons to work well with VoiceOver. This is very obvious from the beginning. Once a user sets up a site, It is impossible for a user to pick which site they want to work with, because Diet Coda does not have text labels or accessibility hints to help the user figure out which site they are selecting.

Other than that the app is lacking a few features I think would make this app Stellar. One of these include the ability to have offline site storage like Coda for Mac OS X. I also think that iCloud or Dropbox support would also go a long way to make users happy.

Conclusion

While Diet Coda is a great app, I cannot recommend it for very low vision or blind users, because of the lack of VoiceOver support. Otherwise, this is a very good app except for the essential need for Internet support. If your iPad does not have internet, then this app will be useless to you. This is why I feel this app needs to have offline support. Otherwise the feature set provided by Diet Coda is a great benefit to any on the go web developer.

Say hey to HeyTell!

Since the creation of iOS and Android, users desired the ability to use push to talk functionality on their devices. HeyTell has been released to fulfill this requirement.

How does it work?

First, HeyTell asks you who you are by requesting that you pick yourself from your contact list. It is a good idea that you make sure you have your information in your contact list. Once you have identified yourself, then you can start using the app.

You will first need to know someone that uses HeyTell. If you do, find them in your contacts by selecting the select contacts button. Once you find the person’s name, you can double tap and select send via email or sms. Once they accept your friend request you can start talking to that person.

When you want to talk to someone, all you have to do is select that person in the conversations list and double tap and hold on the press to speak button. When you are done just let your finger go off the phone. Your message will be instantly sent, and the person can respond. the same way. You can also see previous messages by tapping the more info button near the person’s name, and there is an option to switch between speakers on the phone. HeyTell also has extras you can purchase to make the app do different things.

If you are not in the app when someone sends you a message, the app will get a push notification and alert you to a new message.

Observations

For one of the first apps of its kind, HeyTell is a very well designed app. The creator had VoiceOver users in mind and has labeled every button. I also understand that it is necessary to sometimes use iAd, but in this app the ad covers part of the conversation window which can make this area quite clutterd. I would also like to see group messaging, and forwarding be implemented, but I am sure these things will come in later. The interface to this app is very clean and basic, and I myself notice some of the techniques they used as I am an iOS developer myself. I think the creators followed the guidelines well, and I wish other iOS developers would do the same.

Conclusion

At a very low price tag of FREE, I think HeyTell is a must have if you prefer push to talk conversations. I have not had the chance to look at the Android version of this app, so if anyone would like to comment please do so. I am also working on an Android accessibility website called drainable.net, so once that is up I would like to get some good reviews of Android accessibility, and I think I will start with HeyTell.

Push 4.0 for iOS.

Several weeks ago, Christina posted an article on the benefits of push notifications through the free app called Boxcar. As stated, Boxcar lets you push all messages from your twitter, Facebook, RSS feeds, and even growl notifications. Push 4 is another app that is on the app store that states the same functionality, but does it work as well for the blind?

About Push 4

Push is another app that lets you push alerts to your phone through the use of push notifications, which is probably the app is called Push. Push supports the pushing of Twitter, Facebook, Email, and RSS Feeds. Push 4 also supports many different APIs for developers to make their apps compatible with Push. Push 4 also supports many different sounds just as Boxcar does. These sounds are different of course.

How does Push work?

When you start the app for the first time, you must first create an online account at the Push 4 website. This is at http://www.4push.com. Once you have created your account, you can use your selected email and password to log in to the app. Once you log in, you can select the services you wish to use. The login process uses standard controls that are compatible with VoiceOver.

Once you log in, you must add your desired services. To do this, tap the button in the lower left of the screen. This button is not VoiceOver compliant. VoiceOver will say, “P2″ instead of settings or whatever the developer intended it to say. On the main screen, you can also see the latest notifications you have received in a table, and you can select the any service by tapping the inboxes button. This screen also contains the compose button which allows the user to write their own notifications on the fly. I am not sure why a user would need this, but it is there.

To add a service, you must first tap the, “P2″ button then select the service you would like to add. Once you have done this, you must use the button at the top to sign in to the desired service. Once this is complete, you may finish filling in the desired settings, like the sound, the type of notification and so on. This all appears to be VoiceOver compliant. Push does also offer a help section here if you have trouble.

Conclusion

While this is a great app, it is still lacking when compared to its rival Boxcar. Boxcar has more services, a more polished interface, and even a better price! Boxcar is a free app, except for the fact that ads are shown on the screen at some points. There is an in-app purchase to remove this however. Push 4 costs $1.99, and then has a $9.99 in app purchase to unlock full notification bandwidth which I am not fully sure what this is. As a user who has tried both these apps, I strongly recommend Boxcar. Nice try Push, but not nice enough for the functionality and price. It is also hard to use Push with VoiceOver due to the settings button which is integral to this apps use.

Get free Push Notifications on Your iPhone or iPad with Boxcar!

Boxcar

One of the amazing features of the IOS operating system is the ability to receive notifications of new events right on the home screen of your chosen device. Apple calls these handy little message notifiers “push” notifications. Push is native to many apps these days, since such a handy feature is bound to increase marketability, but not everyone is happy with the basic system. Along come new apps, specifically designed to enhance the “push” experience with more services, more accounts, and customizable settings.

Some are paid apps, like Push 4.0. This is fine. The basic app is only ninety nine cents, and in app purchases of more features, each about a dollar, are available. What about people who don’t want to pay even a dollar to enjoy enhanced push, though? Boxcar is your answer. Boasting fifteen available services to push, customizable sounds for each service, multiple e-mail and twitter accounts, and, for the light sleepers among us, a quiet time feature with selectable times, boxcar is no pushover when it comes to push. The best part is, it’s free! There are adds, but they are very unobtrusive, and you can disable them for a five dollar in app purchase if they are too bothersome.

How It Works

Thankfully for the growing population of visually impaired apple users, this app is completely voiceover compliant. I as a completely blind user, had no trouble at all with any aspect of the interface.

The first time the app is opened on a particular device, a sign up screen appears, asking the user to either “sign in” or “sign up.” There are both labeled buttons, and button labels on the screen. Voiceover recognizes and reads both of these, so don’t be alarmed if each option seems to appear twice. As a new user of the app, tap “sign up.”

This leads to a services screen on which “add a service,” “device settings,” and all available and added accounts are displayed. Select “add a service.”

A new screen appears, showing all available services. Just tap one to go to the setup page. For this review, I chose to register for Facebook, one of the easier services.

Tap Facebook to go to its setup page. You should see or hear the “cancel” button first of all. Below that is a heading with the service name and the save button. Below that are sign in and settings options including, “sign in to Facebook,” “Message Settings,” “Instructions and Help,” and several others. select “Sign in to Facebook” to get started.

You should see a log in screen. Type in your phone or e-mail, and password, then tap “Go” on the keyboard.

If everything has gone as it should, you’re now asked to allow or deny the app. Tap “Allow” to allow the app to give you notifications of messages, comments on your status, and other things.

From here you can customize your sounds by tapping “Sound.” Switch the switch buttons to have boxcar notify you of facebook mail, messages, and if you would like the app to display an update badge.

Tap “Instructions and Help” if you need setup instructions for any service. They’re very clear and helpful.

Finally, to save your settings and account log ins, tap “Save” at the top of the screen. You might see an add. Just tap the “Back to Home Screen” button to return to the services screen where you can add another service or account, view all your messages, or change your device settings. Incidentally, “Device Settings” is where the quiet time feature is located.

Twitter is just as easy to add as Facebook, and the trends and searches services are even easier if you add twitter first. E-mail, however, is a bit trickier. Definitely read the help on this one. Depending on your e-mail client, you might have as many as three steps to go through both on your device and your computer. Gmail proved the trickiest, with google asking to verify the custom forwarding address Boxcar assigns to each e-mail account. Boxcar only keeps the from and subject information of an e-mail, not the actual message, so be sure to check your inbox for the full messages when you get a chance.

Thoughts

This app is well worth a look, especially if you haven’t paid for one yet. Instructions are clear and concise for those of us who enjoy simplicity in our technology. For the less visually inclined, voiceover works flawlessly with this app. Actually, the developer could probably afford to remove the text labels beside the buttons on the new user screen if the buttons themselves have icons. Voiceover speaks them just fine. Be sure to read the instructions if you aren’t sure of what to do, and this app will be your new best friend.

Favorite Apps of 2010

Hey Everyone.

I figured I would share with everyone which apps I used the most in 2010, and would like to hear what apps you have used this year.

1. ZumoCast

ZumoCast has proven an invaluable app for my daily use. I can access all of my files from home, and listen to media while on the go. I usually use this app on the iPad instead of the iPhone though.

2. The Weather Channel.

I use this app every day to find out how the weather will be as I head off to work. I really like the organization of this app, except  I do not like some of the VoiceOver labels.

3. Unibus (iBus-Mobile)

Even though this app went down for a while, it is still the best app for finding out the next bus times for a particular stop.

4. AOL Radio

AOL Radio is an awesome streaming music app from CBS. It may not be the most stable app, but the channels are good and it is free. They even have channels that you can’t find anywhere else, like the video game sound track channel.

5. VLC Media Player

VLC Media Player is one of my favorite media players for the PC and Mac. Now it is for iOS. VLC for iOS allows you to play just as many video formats as you can on your own computer. This is a good app for iPad users, and is also good in conjunction with ZumoCast.

6. Audible

The Audible app is a good way to download your Audible books straight to your iDevice. You can even get achievements for listening to books!

7. iWork for iOS

iWork for iPad is a fully featured Office Suite. It is still good for on the go use, but can do any desktop based work if a bluetooth keyboard is present.

8. IM+ for iOS

IM+ is the best instant message app for VoiceOver users. with IM+ you can chat with people from almost any network. You also only have to have one app instead of a special VoiceOver only app like Fring.

9. Facebook for iOS

Facebook for iOS is an awesome app for social networking. the sections are well designed, and in a design similar to the iOS home screen.

10. Prizmo for iOS

Prizmo has to be one of my favorite apps for iOS. With Prizmo, a user may scan documents by taking pictures of each document, and then convert that document to text, business cards and more. I am also waiting to see how DocuScan for iOS will do from Serotek Corporation when it is released on the App Store.

Conclusion

So those are several of the apps that I like, and use every day. I would love to know what apps everyone else is using on a daily basis, so please leave comments with your favorite choices.

First up, IM+ for iPhone/iPad/iPod Touch

This week, I thought I would start out with a good an interesting app. Well, it seems that I have found one good enough to report on.

SHAPE’s IM+ for iOS devices has been in the App Store for a long time providing instant message capabilities to iOS users. Since release, IM+ has used the same technique that all other im clients in the App Store have used. This technique is that when you send or receive a message, Voiceover will read the sender and the timestamp, but not the message. This issue has prevented blind and visually imapired users from using multi service clients on their devices.

Today, Apple approved the newest version of IM+. One of the new features added is the ability to use Voiceover with this application. SHAPE changed their software so any user can browse the name, time, and message separately from each other.  What this means is, blind users can now log in to all of their instant message services from just one program and get full functionality from it.

There is still one drawback however. IM+ is not a free download from the App Store. The price for IM+ is $10.00, which is kind of steep for an instant messaging client.

The most notable alternative however, is offered by Fring. Fring also offers an instant messenger client that supports many services, but Fring segregates blind and visually impaired users by requiring the download of a voiceover compatible version of their software. This version however does not have all of the functionality of the regular app. Fring’s biggest asset however, is that both versions of Fring are free apps in the App Store.

In conclusion, there are finally options out there in the App Store for the blind. Which app to use is left up to you, but let us know which im apps are your favorite by replying to this post.