Living Blindfully

Latest Episodes:

Episode 86:WayAround, the easy to use labelling system that works with the phone you always have with you Nov 25, 2020

Show notes

Chances are that you’ve tried one of the many audio labelling gadgets that have come and gone over the years. They were all handy, but it was another device to carry around, charge or have a fresh set of batteries to hand, and potentially lose. What is you could have even better functionality using the smartphone you have with you anyway? This episode is all about WayAround, a system that uses the NFC reader on most Android phones and on all current iPhones. It’s simple to use, elegant, and it works. I’m now using to label everything from clothing to household items. I’ll speak with Jessica Hipp from WayAround, then give you a demo of the iOS app.

Episode 85:US election craziness, remembering our old tape recorders, Apple feedback and more Nov 21, 2020

Show notes

Kia ora Mosen At Largers. A reminder that this podcast is indexed by chapter. If you listen with a podcast client that offers chapter support, you can easily skip between segments.

Here are the topics covered in this episode, and the time in the file for each. Intro,0:00 US political musings,2:15 Family circumstances have caused me to rethink my politics,11:45 Memories of tape recorders you have used,20:30 New Zealand's COVID contact tracing app,1:03:57 Old tape recorder and new iPhone Mini,1:06:43 The latest state of Android andChromeOS,1:08:36 Can anyone recommend a small Bluetooth keyboard?,1:09:32 Apple Feedback starts with naming your iPhone,1:11:38 Mac privacy concerns,1:12:50 MFI hearing aid problems largely resolved,1:18:50 iMessage weirdness,1:32:43 Email keeps coming back,1:33:48 Just Press Record and stereo recording,1:37:22 Election thoughts and iPhone 12 findings,1:39:19 Lak of widespread Microsoft Soundscape availability,1:42:08 Talking microwave perhaps a bit patronising?,1:44:46 In the Bonnie Bulletin, Bonnie's got a Mantis and many tape recorder memories,1:48:20 Closing and contact info,1:58:42

Episode 84:US elections and voting systems, a miscellany of tech topics, new iPhone feedback and more Nov 14, 2020

Show notes

Kia ora Mosen At Largers. A reminder that this podcast is indexed by chapter. If you listen with a podcast client that offers chapter support, you can easily skip between segments.

Here are the topics covered in this episode, and the time in the file for each. Intro,0:00 More comments on the US election and voting system,2:15 Why are so many people unwilling to wear masks?,20:32 Getting a US iTunes account when you're not in the US,29:50 Speech cutting out in Windows,34:14.288. This section makes reference to the Silenzio app for Windows. This link will download the executable file. In praise of the Blind Shell Classic,36:17 Looking for an accessible stand-alone Internet radio,38:59 Subscribing to SiriusXM Online outside the US,40:21 Talking smart oven,44:46 More technology memories,47:48 Problems with Zoom screen sharing,50:21 Controlling Lire storage,53:58 The good old podcast app for Windows question,56:02 Making the HumanWare Victor Reader StreamBluetooth-capable,57:36 Niche hobbies and accessibility,58:58 The old Blind Side Podcast Alexa skill,1:01:56 Our Apple Feedback Section begins with comments on Apple Music,1:04:02 iPhone SE battery life and handy shortcuts for managing your battery,1:06:48 SimpleNote cross-platform note taking app,1:13:47 What's causing all this iPhone verbosity?,1:15:20 Can't get VoiceOver to use the Siri voice on Apple Watch series 6,1:19:35 MFI hearing aids and the iPhone 12 range,1:22:13 Yea for new iPhones,1:26:33 DIY password management,1:32:16 Feedback on various past topics,1:36:08 More on the future of mobility,1:40:46 More misc feedback,1:45:22 Reading faster with a screen reader,1:48:44 Closing and contact info,1:50:45

Episode 83:An Apple special. First impressions of the iPhone 12 Pro Max, demonstration of the lidar-based people detection feature, and a discussion about the new Apple Silicon Macs Nov 14, 2020

Show notes

Yes, I know I originally said I would skip a new iPhone this year, but some people are just beyond help. I'll give you my initial impressions of the iPhone 12 Pro Max as a blind person running Apple's VoiceOver screen reader after 24 hours of use.

The reason I purchased a new iPhone after all was because of the exciting world of Lidar. Heidi Taylor joins me as we demonstrate the People Detection feature, designed specifically for blind people and built into the latest version of iOS.

Then I'm joined by Katie Frederick and Janet Ingber to discuss Apple's One More Thing event in which they announced the release of the first three Macs based on Apple Silicon.

Episode 82:Review and demonstration of the Mantis Q40 Braille display from APH Nov 10, 2020

Show notes

The Mantis Q40 from APH is a 40-cell Braille display with a qwerty keyboard. At the time of recording this review, you can use it stand-alone with its built-in apps, plus as a display for your PC, iDevice or Mac. In this comprehensive review, I’ll describe the Mantis and what it can do, discuss where it does well and where it falls short. The Mantis Q40 is available from APH in the United States. International distribution is being handled by HumanWare. You can learn more about the Mantis Q40 on the APH website.

Episode 81:The Biden Harris victory, another Apple event coming up, new iPhone pre-orders, Google Lookout for Android and more Nov 07, 2020

Show notes

Kia ora Mosen At Largers. A reminder that this podcast is indexed by chapter. If you listen with a podcast client that offers chapter support, you can easily skip between segments.

Here are the topics covered in this episode, and the time in the file for each.

Intro,0:00.000 My thoughts on the US election,2:15 Listener feedback on the US presidential election,18:26 Random and frivolous thoughts on the election coverage,44:56 Apple feedback starts this week with the iPhone 12,49:02 Yet another Apple event in the coming week,1:01:56 iPhone SE battery life feedback from owners,1:08:03 Demo of new object detection in the iOS 14 Camera app,1:21:32 Problems updating to iOS 14,1:24:05 Using Outlook for iOS,1:25:23 Demonstration of Google Lookout,1:29:21 Comments on various topics,1:40:49 Hearing aids and echo location,1:46:15 Comments on RSS,1:51:29 The Bonnie Bulletin. Bonnie has her husband back,1:54:32

Episode 80:Have the news come to you accessibly with Lire RSS Reader for iOS Nov 04, 2020

Show notes

There are services that curate the news for you. Some learn about your tastes over time. But there are downsides to having algorithms choosing your news. Still, such apps are tempting because so many news sites are cluttered, full of ads and have varying levels of accessibility.

An RSS reader is the answer, and my favourite for iOS is called Lire. With this one app, you can read news from your favourite websites with all the clutter stripped away, and the level of customisation with VoiceOver is remarkable.

In this episode, I speak with Kunal Sood, the developer of Lire RSS Reader following a recent rewrite of the app. We learn about what inspired him to write Lire and how it became one of the best examples of VoiceOver accessibility in the App Store.

Then, I'll take you through a demo of Lire from a blindness perspective.

Episode 79:US election day nears, Apple brings yet another accessibility breakthrough, the future of blind travel and more Oct 31, 2020

Show notes

Kia ora Mosen At Largers. A reminder that this podcast is indexed by chapter. If you listen with a podcast client that offers chapter support, you can easily skip between segments.

Here are the topics covered in this episode, and the time in the file for each.

Intro,0:00 I'm testing a new gadget,2:15 Election day looms in the United States,3:25 Where do you get your news?,8:18 The mantis and low carb,9:25 Why did New Zealanders vote against legalising marijuana?,12:15 The Conversation Builder app,16:00 Choosing a sound mixer,19:04 Plenty of Apple feedback starting with iPhone SE battery life,21:41 The app Switcher. To close or not to close?,30:00 What value do people find in Apple Shortcuts?,34:40 Screen protectors that don't get sticky,43:55 Apple One is here,46:05 iOS 14.2 golden master introduces game changing lidar features for blind and low vision iPhone 12 Pro users,47:13 Recorded on the iPhone 12,54:48 The future of mobility,1:02:02 Voting,1:21:44 Apple Watch sounds the alert,1:28:14 The Bonnie Bulletin. Thou shalt not covet the Mantis,1:33:19 M20,Closing and contact info,1:45:38

Episode 78:Ned Desmond talks the Sight Tech Global virtual technology conference and more Oct 28, 2020

Show notes

In this episode I'm joined by acclaimed technology journalist Ned Desmond. Ned is leading a team putting together a new virtual conference on blindness technology called Sight Tech Global, which has an impressive selection of speakers lined up. Because it's virtual, you can attend from the comfort of home, and it's free.

We'll learn a bit about Ned, why he has created this conference and some of the speakers you can look forward to. We'll also discuss the way assistive technology is covered, or sometimes just ignored, by the mainstream tech press.

To learn more and register for Sight Tech Global, you can visit http://SightTechGlobal.com

Episode 77:Will guide dogs go the way of the horse and buggy, lots of Apple comments, disability immigration discrimination and more Oct 24, 2020

Show notes

Kia ora Mosen At Largers. A reminder that this podcast is indexed by chapter. If you listen with a podcast client that offers chapter support, you can easily skip between segments.

Here are the topics covered in this episode, and the time in the file for each.

Intro,0:00 Will guide dogs go the way of the horse and buggy?,3:07 Listener comments on guide robots,17:46 Apple questions and feedback,33:26 Hopefully not jinxing it but have tamed the Apple Watch battery Beast,41:55 Is battery life on the iPhone SE2020 terrible?,54:28 A new iPhone 12 user,59:20 Blindness education,1:05:04 A first time voter,1:10:26 1Password questions and feedback,1:13:33 Getting into Sonos for surround sound,1:20:12 Envision AI problems sorted,1:24:35 Immigration disability discrimination,1:26:10 Hearing aids and echo location,1:41:11 Comments on a variety of topics,1:47:08 The Bonnie bulletin with a very contented guide dog handler,1:52:53 Closing and contact info,2:02:29

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