Audio description
Milestones and open mikes at the Other Film Festival
American theatre takes audio description to a new level
Previewing Access 2020 – can we predict the future?
A mix of speculation and building on current real-world trends and experiences, the panel will discuss a variety of themes based around disability access to television and related services in 2020:
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How to audio describe a YouTube video
Audio description is an additional audio track that provides a description of the visual elements of a video, TV broadcast or performance. Unlike closed captions, which are becoming widespread across the web, audio described videos are rarely available online.
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Five highlights of Language and the Media
Accessible consumer technologies and the cloud: VisAbility Tech Outlook 2014
Presented at the VisAbility Tech Outlook 2014, Dr Scott Hollier covers the journey of Assistive Technologies (AT) from the hardware-based solutions of the 1980s, to the wide range of affordable AT options available today (including accessibility developments of Windows, Mac, iPhone and Android). The importance of the cloud in relation to the future AT is discussed, including its benefits and issues for consumer accessibility.
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Assistive technology: choice never greater
That’s the message delivered today to attendees of the VisAbility Technology Outlook conference in Perth, Western Australia by Media Access Australia’s resident accessibility expert, Dr Scott Hollier.
Dr Hollier said that assistive technology had had a long history with hardware-based text-to-speech technology being showcased in 1981, and SAM (Software Automatic Mouth) being released in 1982 for early personal computers from Atari, Apple and the Commodore 64.
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Californian DVD kiosks to be accessible after court settlement
In settling the class action, Redbox has agreed to incorporate audio guidance, tactile keyboards and other accessibility features into its kiosks. One kiosk at each location will have the features within 18 months, and they will be extended to all of its kiosks within 30 months. There will also be 24-hour phone assistance available at each kiosk.
In addition to this, Redbox will pay US$1.2 million to the class of aggrieved persons in California, and US$10,000 to each of the individuals who made the complaint. It will also pay court costs.
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ACCAN announces Apps For All Challenge winners
The challenge, announced earlier this year, was run by the Australian Communications Consumer Action Network (ACCAN) and the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), and sponsored by Telstra.
Prizes for the winners included the Telstra Prize of $1500 in cash, promotion through Telstra’s social media and a one-off opportunity to participate in a mini-incubator experience with Telstra’s own in-house app developers and technology specialists.
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