@CarrieOnA11y It's great seeing you on this platform. Maybe you've been on it for a while and I missed it. 😀 There's a thriving community out here that's really passionate about blindness assistive technology and so I hope that you find some good conversation out here. Welcome to Mastodon if you're new to it!! #A11y
The issue that I wrote about regarding Brave refreshing a page on its own shortly after the page loads seems to be a Brave issue and not specifically a JAWS issue. It also happens when Narrator is running. I tried testing this with NVDA but it's harder for me to verify because, if the page is reloading, NVDA is not providing any indication that this is happening and my reading position doesn't change.
@Fragglemuppet Hi. No, the BT Speak itself costs $1195.00. The leather carrying case costs $92.95. Also, if you order via PayPal, you may get offers to pay in installments but that is controlled by PayPal and not by Blazie Technologies.
@Fragglemuppet Are you looking for something with Braille output or just speech? If you're looking for a speech-only product, you could research the BT Speak. To be fully transparent, I work for the company which develops that product but it's a product I really believe in. www.BlazieTech.com
@Fragglemuppet Yes and yes, in that order. 😀 I think there will always be a place for specialized notetakers with many blind consumers. Some folks do use them. Others would like to but may not be in a position to afford them. Others who might be in a position to afford them choose not to purchase them and instead prefer mainstream products.
I emailed support@voicedream.com to ask if the $60 annual subscription was the discounted price and they emailed back to verify that it was. This morning I sent them the following reply. Hello. Thank you for the clarification. I am a bit frustrated because your FAQ mentions a blue banner but you should remember that many people who use your app are blind and providing instructions that only mentions color excludes a large portion of your audience. Mentioning a blue banner is certainly fine but a clearly labeled button such as “Purchasing Options” should also be available from within Settings and this should be mentioned in the FAQ. I tried to access this option from Settings but it isn’t properly working with VoiceOver On iOS. It might be good if you would establish a Mastodon account as there are many VDR users on that platform who are providing feedback and many of them are very unhappy about this change. It isn’t so much the subscription but the fact that they claim you promised that one-time purchasers would not have to pay a subscription fee. The mention of a blue banner is also frustrating as well since it gives the impression that you are clueless as to the needs of the very audience you’re trying to serve. We would also rather purchase a subscription from our devices to ensure that the purchase is connected to our Apple ID. Honestly, I think the perception is that you’re a bit out of touch with the blindness community and its needs, partially due to your infrequent communication. I personally love VDR but I think being more engaged with your users would go a long way to restoring trust.
@peertube This is an excellent opportunity for the accessibility community to ensure that accessibility is baked into the design and development process. Not to mention the importance of alpha testing to ensure that the app is fully accessible prior to launch.
Pro-life, practicing Catholic. I'm the marketing director for Blazie Technologies, developer of the BT Speak pocket computer. Opinions from this account are my own. Over 30 years of experience working in the blindness assistive technology field including providing product support and training to blind children and adults. I've been a JAWS for Windows user since v1.0 and have used NVDA since 2009. Using Windows since V3.1 with DOS before that in the early 1990s. I enjoy science fiction and reading Catholic apologetics. My favorite SF shows are Doctor Who and Babylon 5. I love puns. This account posts about all of the above topics.