Hi Garth,
I started to explore Mastodon after hearing the same thing as you. Many
people with visual impairment are using it because it's quite
accessible. This is part of a bigger project of what Cearbhall was
telling in the minutes.
Feel free to pass your mastodon username in private.
If I'm not mistaken, you are talking about this course:
https://www.hartgen.org/mastodon, in case others are wondering. It's
currently priced at 50 pounds, but I've also found this page [1] with a
great tutorial on how to use Mastodon with a screen reader but also
contains an introduction to what Mastodon is.
I am still unsure which is the best client app at the moment, but I use
the official app on Android and I find it good.
All the best,
Adrian
On 2023-12-10 06:53, garthlong50@xxxxxxxxx wrote:
Hello Adrian,
Greetings.
I read in the Cork meeting notes that you are a 'Mastodon' user.
I paid for and did the whole course from Brian Hartgen and it really helped me.
It was my personal growth project for 2023.
Do you use 'twesecake'?
This is my platform for going into 'Mastodon'.
Brian on his course, offer some very good 'Jaws' scripts.
What is noticeable and unique to 'Mastodon' is that it has 2 million users; but many disabled people use it.
Like Jonathon Mosen from MushroomFM and Mike Feer who wrote Personal Power for IOS users.
The Canadian Society for the Blind promote 'Mastodon' often.
I myself do not like the new job of being busy on a 'micro blogging site'.
Hence, I only track 'Brian Hartgen' toots.
The name for the multiplicity of different servers in 'Mastodon' is 'Fediverse' or Federation of Servers.
Essentially, it should help all users with good governance and keep out 'hate speech' and other anti social behaviour.
Do have a browse at brian@xxxxxxxxxxx as he is a great Trainer and a very solid Blind Champion.
I as a total blind user find it difficult and still so busy and its like decorating my house through the post box.
Very small areas to move around in and very busy but for most 'VIPS' it should be a sinch.
All the best,
Garth Long
Cobh
From: fb-exchange-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <fb-exchange-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Adrian T
Sent: 09 December 2023 19:56
To: fb-exchange@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [fb-exchange] Re: Cork Notes 9th. December 2023
Pretty busy meeting today. Well done Cearbhall for covering everything in your minutes.
Thanks,
Adrian
On 2023-12-09 17:29, Cearbhall O'Meadhra wrote:
In attendance: 9 participants
With Christmas getting closer and closer, Our eager members discussed the news that Be My AI is officially entering an open beta phase for iOS and Android users and in coming weeks will be available for hundreds of thousands of Be My Eyes users worldwide.
Be My AI will start being distributed to all existing iPhone users this week. The full roll-out will take a few weeks, so be sure to keep your app updated so you will have access to Be My AI as soon as it is available to you.
To use Be My AI in everyday life, open the Be My Eyes app, click on the 'Be My AI' tab, and take a picture.
Stuart opened the meeting by sharing a full description of a large Christmas tree by Be My AI. He showed that the user can chat and ask Be My AI further questions to get more information.
Cearbhall asked for advice on the best way to introduce NVDA to an older person who was new to Windows and screen reader usage. Someone mentioned the resource of Sharon's Shortcuts as an invaluable resource to turn to. Others reported that Vision Ireland has an excellent series of online training courses for users of Windows with either JAWS or NVDA. The sessions are online at vi.ie and more information and registration can be found on the web site or by email to training @ vi.ie
Ken told of his work with Possibility Labs who are beta testing the Welcome Service in his home town in Cork. Currently up and running at Edinburgh Airport, the app, called 'Welcome' by the Edinburgh-based company Neatebox, allows people with disabilities to set up a personal profile and request assistance in advance from the airport and other facilities. The destination venue gets an email to say that the passenger is coming and what type of assistance is required: i.e. Visually Impaired or wheelchair or elderly, etc. He praised the quality of the assistance provided and looks forward to a future rollout of a great service.
Adrian and Ger are thrilled that Be My AI is now available for android users. The service is free but there is a fee-paying version that gives a more expert guidance and more detail.
Adrian and Stuart have been making use of the free AIRA Legacy app on both Android and IOS. Aira Legacy is an app that connects people who have low or no vision to a live agent who can serve as their eyes. Using the camera on the user's mobile device, the agent can see what is in front of the user. The agents can simply read information, help guide the user through unfamiliar places, assist with public transportation, and so much more, the options really are endless! Aira is available for Android and Apple devices and is free to download. For users who need Aira on a daily basis in many different places, subscription plans are available and range from $29 per month to $199 per month. For users who only need Aira sometimes in only a few places, Aira offers limited and ongoing promotions that provide free access, free access when using certain products such as JAWS screen reader, as well as free access in a growing number of public locations. Full details of the range of services offered along with plans and prices can be found at their web site: https://aira.io/plans-and-prices
All this travel talk brought on a lengthy discussion of the experience of travelling in Ireland on trains and buses. Stories of the difficulty of coping with packed trains and buses for long journeys with a guide dog.
Jackie had some difficulty with the MyNCBI skill on Alexa. experimenting at the meeting, revealed that the service is now called my vi smart hub.
There was only one Borrow box user at the meeting but, for the record, it was reported that the app is working properly once more. It was unusable for most people for the past 10 days! No explanation has been given.
Ann Marie is using Duolingo to translate English into any other world language. We had samples of its use with Spanish, and reports of its use for German, and Japanese situations. Duolingo is the fun, free app for learning 40+ languages through quick, bite-sized lessons. Practice speaking, reading, listening, and writing to build your vocabulary and grammar skills.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.duolingo&hl=en&gl=US
It was noted that one could use the ChatGPT app to instantly translate phrases and likewise, google translate in conversation mode.
Ann Marie sought advice on magnifying the QR code on the iPhone. Ken demonstrated the only solution which he has found to work involving:
1. Line up the image;
2. Turn Voiceover off;
3. Pinch the screen wider with thumb and finger;
4. reload Voiceover and continue .
Adrian noted that this action is much simpler in android and works well with Talkback
Adrian introduced a social network called Mastodon. Mastodon is a free and open-source software for running self-hosted social networking services.[a] It has microblogging features similar to Twitter, which are offered by a large number of independently run nodes, known as instances or servers, each with its own code of conduct, terms of service, privacy policy, privacy options, and content moderation policies.
Each user is a member of a specific Mastodon server that can interact seamlessly with users in any other server. This is intended to give users the flexibility to select a server whose policies they prefer, but keep access to a larger federated social network. Mastodon is a decentralized, open-source software-based social network that operates on user servers. Unlike Twitter, which is operated by one centralized entity, Mastodon has thousands of distributed servers known as "instances.
For Android/ Talkback users:@accessibleandroid@mastodon.social
https://mastodon.social/@accessibleandroid
For IOS users: Mona is a Mastodon app packed with customization features. Optimized for Voiceover.
https://apps.apple.com/ie/app/mona-for-mastodon/id1659154653
In the coming weeks, Adrian will begin to experiment with members of the Exchange club in the use of the network.
That's all for now!
The meeting ended.
All the best,
Cearbhall
m +353 (0)833323487 e: cearbhall.omeadhra@xxxxxxx
