All Cool Blind Tech Shows

In this podcast, Justin goes through how to use the 3D Touch features on the iPhone 6s. He shows us how to do this on the home screen, to peak into things as well as pop into them and finally the settings available for this new feature.

In this Spotlight interview we feature Akash Khanolkar the CEO of CrowdViz. CrowdViz is an iOS app that unites blind people with our trusted sighted assistants. Blind users can receive immediate sighted assistance by connecting to an assistant and it is as easy as a click of a single button.

At the very tail end of August, Voice Dream Reader, the wildly popular book reading app, launched on Android. This opens up a huge potential market, ranging from students who want to read college coursework on-the-go, to professionals who drive a lot and need an easy way of reading materials with high-quality voices. Because of the excellent price range of Android devices, you can now own a book reader for under $100. We've interview Winston Chen who developed the iOS application, which has now grown into a comprehensive app. Getting this to work on Android from scratch was a unique challenge, as it requires a great effort and collaboration between features and platforms. Michael Scott developed the Android version of Voice Dream Reader, and it has many of the same functionality as found on iOS: Bookmarks, various high quality voices from Acapela (at the moment, Ivona is expected in a future update), along with bookmarking support, DRM-free Epubs, bookshelf views, Bookshare, Dropbox,One drive integration, visual adjustment of the document's contents, highlighting, built-in web browser... Just what does it take to develop an Android app anyway? How difficult was it to have all of these features migrate over from the iOS world? What are some future plans for the app? Ultimately, what goals might the team have in mind for its purpose? We sit down with both Michael and Winston to talk about the development and story of Voice Dream reader.

Was your most favorite part of Windows 7 the handy search box that you first landed in when you opened it? Were you fighting against upgrading to Windows 8.1 because you could not be parted with your beloved search box companion? Well, not to worry, as Microsoft has heard you loud and clear. The new Windows 10 start menu combines the traditional look and feel of Windows 7 and merged it with many of the modern features of Windows 8. In this podcast, Cory demonstrates how NVDA is navigating the Windows 10 start menu and shows you how to quickly jump to various sections. Get the best of both the Windows 7 and Windows 8 worlds with the new Windows 10 start menu.

Just when we thought Microsoft’s new modern browser Edge would not be accessible, the folks over at NV Access had to show everyone that NVDA is literally on the Edge. While the functionality demonstrated here is only available at this time in the next release versions of the NVDA software and certainly is not recommended for production environments, the fact that it seems to be working very well gives us a very promising glimpse at what we can expect from Microsoft’s accessibility support and NVDA itself. Give this podcast a listen to hear how NVDA is successfully reading webpages in its virtual browser, just as it always has.

We are back to tell you the latest and greatest when it comes to Windows 10. Join us to hear our take on it and how you can best have an enjoyable experience with this revolutionary new version of Microsoft’s newest release. Cory Martin, Thomas Geczy and Leonid Prazdnik all welcome Quentin Christensen from 22 Point, a blogger and developer who also happens to be writing a book on Windows 10 from a blindness/low vision perspective. To view Quentin's excellent blog, click here. So pull up a chair and join us as we discuss our experiences thus far. Here are the highlights: * Windows 10 will launch on July 29th. The release will be staggered releases starting with desktop/laptops, then phones and Xbox. * The upgrade path for Windows 7/8 will be free if the upgrade offer is used within the first year, however a single user license is estimated at $129/£99/€135 to start. The free upgrade will be free for the duration of the lifecycle of the product it is running on. * Windows 10 is expected to be the last version ever, being upgraded with feature releases as time goes on. There will be a total of 7 versions: IoT, Mobile, Home, Enterprise and Professional, Mobile Enterprise, and Education. * Cortana is improved from the early beta days and now has the ability to dictate E-mail, as well as being more tightly integrated in to the OS with a highly polished feel. * Microsoft Edge will be the new browser from Microsoft, though for legacy support, Internet Explorer will also be offered. As screen reader users we may need to stay away from Edge for the time being, unless you’re willing to run nightly beta software. * Virtual desktops will be offered in Windows 10 and are quite useful, though may pose some key conflicts with other favorite Twitter software in the community. * The start menu has returned to an older style, though still offering the tiled approach for the modern apps. * The notification center has been greatly enhanced and now replaces notification balloons, allowing the user to scroll through and selectively or collectively dismiss notifications. * Screen readers are expected to support Windows 10 at launch, though currently NVDA is pulling ahead of the pack in terms of support. Give the show a listen to hear us discuss all of these highlights and much more. As always, feel free to contact us with any feedback you may have, we’d love to hear from you.

If you are a fan of Android, you might be aware of how different the typing experience on most keyboard solutions can be for the platform. Samsung, LG, and even Google all design specific keyboards which differ in the way they present key layouts or even speak some of the names for keys. For some, typing on Android might also seem slower than on rival operating systems. Usually this sluggish behavior is noticed when your finger makes contact with the keys on the keyboard - it takes a few seconds for the screen reader to announce which key you have touched. Enter the Blind Accessibility Keyboard , a $3 app which is designed specifically for blind and low vision users. Unlike most other products, it announces the key your finger lands on by using the default TTS engine on your device. Other customization options, such as the height of the keyboard, labels for specific keys, and even a settings backup/ restore function are provided for advanced users. In our experience, the keyboard can be a hit or miss depending on your device. For slower, more budget phones, typing might be slower or equal to the current stock solutions. For phones that are better with processor speed, it will probably feel faster and smoother. Other issues, such as not being able to hold the delete key to quickly erase text, are being addressed by the developer in a future update.

In this podcast, Justin shows us how to add web pages to the home screen on iOS. He also demonstrates how to give the icons custom names and launch them. You can support the Cool Blind Tech Community By giving us a 5 star rating in iTunes. CBT would like to thank our loyal listeners for listening to this podcast by inviting you to join our Community and possibly join the CBT Team, where you can submit your own podcasts or articles.

In this podcast, Yannick gives us an introduction to the new Samsung Galaxy S6, and its own screen reader named Galaxy Talkback. Feel free to send Yannick any comments or suggestions below or via twitter at @YPlassiard. CBT would like to thank our loyal listeners for listening to this podcast by inviting you to join our Community and possibly join the CBT Team, where you can submit your own podcasts or articles.

The Nexus Root Toolkit is a very useful utility which can help you easily root your Google Nexus device. Despite its name however, this utility has much more to offer. It can lock or relock your bootloader, help you flash custom and stock roms, perform a backup and restore of your device among many other things. In this podcast, we walk you through the NRT interface and demonstrate a few of its features. Please keep in mind that NRT relies on ADB and Fastboot in order to work properly. Let us know which features you find most useful!

iOS has transformed the lives of many users with a range of physical and learning disabilities. Learn how to create apps that leverage the power and simplicity of Apple's assistive technologies to make them accessible to the broadest audience possible. Hear about the latest advancements in iOS accessibility and how you can take advantage of them today. You can support the Cool Blind Tech Community By giving us a 5 star rating in iTunes. CBT would like to thank our loyal listeners for listening to this podcast by inviting you to join our Community and possibly join the CBT Team, where you can submit your own podcasts or articles.

Building on the strong accessibility support in iOS, Apple Watch offers assistive features like VoiceOver and Zoom. Gain insights into how these accessibility features work on Apple Watch, and how to make sure your app can be accessible to all users. You can support the Cool Blind Tech Community By giving us a 5 star rating in iTunes. CBT would like to thank our loyal listeners for listening to this podcast by inviting you to join our Community and possibly join the CBT Team, where you can submit your own podcasts or articles.

What a busy week! We return with another VIP Roundtable podcast, with me as your host alongside Hugo, Nelson, and Justin. This year's WWDC event was a large one, as it is where Apple reveals to us its mysteries at their core. OK, maybe not quite, but we did gain a nice glimpse into what is coming down the pipe especially in terms of software. Join us as we talk about Mac OS 10.11 and how mature the platform might be, iOS 9 and its features or surprises, along with the Apple Watch which is becoming so much more, quicker than people have thought. The big push for Apple this year dealt with making iOS more aware of your routine and habits, while keeping your privacy intact. Can they pull it off? Will the new Apple Music be good enough to gain interest for people? We also talk about a new assistant on the block, which could seriously Hound both Apple and Google and their artificial intelligent creations. Cool picks: * Tomi Brain Baths * Nelson: Periscope ( Android Version is here) * * Justin: the WWDC app from apple. * Hugo: the newly released NLS Bard app for Android

Greg, Leo and Cory welcome a new crew member, Dan Mathis to the show to discuss what's new and up-coming with the world of Google and the latest from Google IO. First up was the newest version of Android, Internally Code Named: Macadamia Nut Cookie, which is focusing on polish and quality It was announced that Android M should be available for Q3 2015, September of this year. The newest version of Android will initially be Launched on most of the flagship Devices: Nexus 5, 6, 9 and player, though the Nexus 7 likely will not be supported. Not to be out-done, Google is launching Android Pay which is coming to any devices with NFC running KitKat or above. Android pay will allow a user to just unlock and place the device on a compatible terminal. Additionally, Android M will allow Android Pay to work with third party apps. Along with Google Pay, Fingerprint reader support will be globally be available in Android M. As part of the shiny new polish, Android M introduces Doze, which is a state of deep sleep where the device senses whether it has been motionless for an extended period of time and manages it's power consumption accordingly. Android M devices will be introducing USB-C support. USB-C connectors work regardless of which way the cable is connected and support USB 3. Additionally, USB-C connectors support higher levels of power transfer. Continuing the new shine, Android M overhauls permissions. Apps will request permissions on an as-needed basis and are individually controllable. If needed, the possibility exists to revoke particular permissions. Audio is not to be left out as well, with volume granularity being enhanced with extended customizability. Chrome has been improved with site-customized tabs and tighter integration in to the OS for apps to display web content. Last but certainly not least, On Tap, will now be hanging out in your Google Now on your home button. This feature will be an Opt-in option for privacy reasons. While we can only speculate at the possibilities as it is Not available yet in Android M betas. What is it? A feature which will automatically attempt to find information based on your current activity and the context of the content you are viewing. Google certainly has some interesting new projects in the works: * Project Jacquard: Conductive cloth for wearables. * Project ARA: Building phones which have replaceable components * Project Vault: SD card with its own OS and encrypted data store. * Google Photos: Specific cloud service which is cross-platform for storing photos automatically. The new service supports facial recognition and has unlimited storage. * New Version of Google Cardboard: Now compatible with iPhone and larger devices. * Project Soli: A hand-motion tracking system that allows us to interact with our devices without even touching them. Gestures like volume control could be controlled with hand movement. * Android Wear: Introducing low-power black and white viewing mode. * Project Brillo: A stripped down version...

When you improve your app's accessibility, you improve your product for everyone, including the billion people worldwide who live with a disability. This talk will introduce you to Android accessibility services and show how they make your app work in new ways for a wide range of users. You will learn some accessibility best practices, and get introduced to new automated testing tools that bring accessibility into your existing app development workflow.