Blind/vision impaired Digital Technology & Online Media news

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The Android accessibility journey: a vision impaired user perspective

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Despite the Apple iPhone leading in accessibility, many blind and vision impaired users eschew it in favour of Google Android phones. Dr Scott Hollier, who is legally blind, talks us through how he has made Android work for him.

In 2009 when the iPhone 3GS first appeared with a wealth of assistive features, it seemed like the Holy Grail of accessibility had been achieved. Before its launch the words ‘touch screen’ were often followed by ‘inaccessible’. But all of this changed when Apple bundled in the VoiceOver screen reader, the Zoom screen magnifier and the high contrast features into iOS.  

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eReader producers continue fight to avoid accessibility

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eReader manufacturers Amazon, Kobo and Sony have petitioned the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to seek  exemption from laws requiring products to be accessible to users with disabilities.

The issue for the companies centres around the 21st Century Video and Communications and Video Accessibility Act requiring any product offering ‘advanced communication services’ to be “accessible to and usable by individuals with disabilities”.  However, the companies argue that their budget eReaders, including the Amazon Kindle, are used primarily just for reading, and therefore the Act should not apply. The companies argue that adding accessibility features would lead to products being more expensive, heavier and with shorter battery life.

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Accessibility celebrated at game developer awards

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The development of games designed to include people with disabilities will be recognised at this year’s Australian Game Developers Awards with the introduction of the Accessibility Award.

Presented at the Game Connect Asia Pacific (GCAP) conference, the awards recognise excellence and innovation in games developed in Australia. For the first time, they have added accessibility as an award category. According to the conference website, accessibility is defined as “mainstream games that make an effort to avoid unnecessarily excluding people with motor, cognitive, hearing speech or vision impairments.”

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Australia and New Zealand Internet Awards winners announced

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Organisations that recognise the need to address web accessibility and digital inclusion were among those celebrated at the Australia and New Zealand Internet Awards (ANZIAs) held last night in Wellington, New Zealand.

The awards, run by the .au Domain Administration (auDA) and InternetNZ, are designed to recognise the achievement of organisations which use the internet to benefit the community in innovative ways.

Work Ventures won the Internet Access and Digital Skills award for its program to help reduce the digital divide, which includes provision of free access to the Internet at technology hubs, refurbished computers for disadvantaged people, and training. The program particularly targets indigenous youth in remote areas, refugees and seniors.


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