A bit of a change, looking at Astronomy from an Accessibility Point of View
James Webb Telescope
Lots of good image descriptions.
https://webbtelescope.org
Audio Universe
exploiting the potential of audio to explore our Solar System, converting light in to sound
YouTube Solar System space Ship Trip
http://audiouniverse.org. An interesting approach to exploring the universe by
The The Audio Universe webpage
https://www.audiouniverse.org/home
JAWS 2023, Fusion 2023 and ZoomText 2023 were Released on October 25 US Time
Three areas in JAWS I’ve noted are:
- The new ‘at a glance’ feature;
- More work refining ‘notifications history’;
JAWS now runs on ARM 64 processors.
A Chat about my New Apple Watch Ultra
It is not just an Apple Watch for me, but a fully functional workout watch.
Here are My Review Notes
Watch OS 9 Software Implications on Ultra
Larger screen allowing better view by people with low vision, and much easier to see in bright light.
Larger 49mm diagonal screen does make it easier for VoiceOver gestures, particularly for the VoiceOver rotor: two finger rotate clockwise or counter clockwise.
3 finger gestures for speech and screen curtain no longer need to be done diagonally across screen, but side by side which is usual on iPhone.
Access to the online QWERTY keyboard is easier with export by touch rather than having to use the flick left or right gesture to navigate the keyboard quickly.
Hardware Implications
Ultra Titanium adds better strength for wear and tare on physical unit as against stainless stell or aluminium.
Cased raised above glass for side protection as knocking against objects such as walls etc.
Having a flat glass surface surrounded by the case rather than curved glass edges, does make it easier to directly access complications using the actual case as a guideline for Voiceover users: very much like with the iPhone.
Dedicated action button on right between speakers allowing specific apps to be executed: eg workout app with a specific routine which some people make find slow es[especially when trying to use the watch as a training tool.
A personal siren can be activated via the actions button alerting people around that person needs help or assistance.
Dual speakers produce loud and clear voiceOver speech or speech output via Siri, particularly important when navigating with Maps or asking where you are or using apps in noisy environments.
Speakers are not as distorted when wet by being in a shower, in the rain, going for a Wim etc. Speech is software, but not distorted.
3 microphone array in conjunction with dual speakers allow clear two way phone calls to be conducted.
Better microphone array means better responses from Siri in response to requests: no more “can you repeat that” due to noise.
Raised panel on left edge of watch makes it easy to find the Side button with the Digital Crown protruding slightly above for easy location whilst being protected from the side by accidental Digital Crown touch’s.
As only one model, cellular and GPS, user can add mobile phone/data when ever desired without having to purchase another watch.
36HR battery life (will give security for people using the watch during the day or over two days where the watch may not be able to be charged. I.e. with cellar access, a person always has the means of being able to contact someone if they need help for assistance: no dead battery leaving a person without the means of contacting people.
Dual frequency GPS (l1 plus L5) more precise GPS positioning (especially of L5 with tall buildings or signal reflection), of particular concern to people who are blind or low vision.
All previously existing Apple Watch bands will work with the Ultra.
A Sort of Review of the Pixel Watch with accessibility on Double Tap
Not a positive review, but have a listen.
By the way, it’s 32 mins in to the episode.
https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/double-tap/id1309267346?i=1000584243393
iOS 16.1 Major bug with Mail Preview on, VoiceOver reads Preview of Wrong msg
Fix for the moment, turn Preview of messages off in settings, Mail.
https://applevis.com/blog/apple-releases-ios-161-ipados-161-bringing-many-fixes-voiceover-users
Using Your iPhone as a WebCam for You’re Mac
You’ll need 2 things, iPhone XR and above running iOS 16, and a Mac running Mac OS 13.
My poor iPhone X missed out, got very excited to have a dedicated iPhone-WebCam on my Mac mini, o’well, I’ll keep using my iPhone 12 Pro.
Just bring your iPhone near you’re Mac, have it locked, and you’ll be in webCam mode with the Mac.
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT213244
Rediscovering the Usefulness of my iPad Pro 12.9 (original) and my Smart Keyboard
Having the keyboard as part of the folding case makes very convenient for just popping it open and start typing.
The layout of the Settings screen, Mail etc, with the main items on the left, and on the right the expanded screen for that item.
Split View, where you can have one app on the left and the other on the right: I’m back to using Twitter on the Left and Notes on the right when doing research for Talking Tech etc.
It is just a bit more than I can do on the iPhone.
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