Texas Department of Information Resources Launches Website Accessibility Scanning Program

The Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) has announced a new program to assist state agencies, local government entities, and institutions of higher education in improving the accessibility of their public websites for people with disabilities. DIR will utilize web accessibility scanning services from Virginia-based Deque through a DIR cooperative contract with Knowbility, Inc., an Austin-based accessibility services vendor.

This new program will help agencies ensure that their websites are accessible to all Texas citizens, regardless of ability, by improving accessibility levels of public facing web pages. The service scans and analyzes key portions of agency public websites and provides precise information on accessibility errors found.

“The Texas Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities (GCPD) understands that full inclusion and accessibility allows Texans with disabilities to participate fully in state government and its programs and services,” said Angi English, Executive Director of GCPD. “This new DIR program will assist Texas government public websites achieve this imperative.”

“This accessibility program is the first of its kind as it encompasses a large cross section of state agencies,” said Karen Robinson, State CIO and DIR Executive Director. “It is a cost-effective approach to improve and monitor key elements of website accessibility for the state, and we believe that it can serve as a model for other states to follow.”

“We are delighted to support DIR’s goal of providing an accessible online experience for government sites in the state of Texas,” said Preety Kumar, CEO of Deque Systems. “Deque’s tools will help to support the important efforts that are underway to ensure that online users with disabilities will be able to access the important information and services that appear throughout the network of sites that the state administers.”

“The program will use a graduated approach, ramping up to bring agencies into the scanned environment over a number of months;” according to Jeff Kline, Statewide Electronic and Information Resources Accessibility Coordinator at DIR. “We selected a scanning model that provides high benefit at a very low cost on a per agency basis. We elected to scan the top 150 pages per agency, which are typically the most frequently visited or most important pages.” Once fully deployed, the accessibility scanning services will include nearly every state agency and state-funded institution of higher education.

For more information, contact statewideaccessibilitycoodinator@dir.texas.gov.

Source: GAATES

Winnipeg Announces 2012 Accessibility Awards

 On October 16, Mayor Sam Katz presented five deserving organizations with the City of Winnipeg’s 2012 Accessibility Awards. The awards demonstrate the diversity of spaces in Winnipeg that are accessible for all citizens.

The following organizations received accessibility awards:

• Parks Canada and Variety the Children’s Charity for the Adventure Playground at the Forks
• The University of Winnipeg for the Richardson Environment and Science Complex
• Manitoba Centennial Centre for the Steinkopf Gardens
• The Province of Manitoba for the Province of Manitoba Birthing Centre
• The Winnipeg Airport Authority for the James Richardson International Airport (Honourable Mention)

In addition, University of Manitoba Professor Kelly Beaverford and the City of Winnipeg Public Works Department received special recognition awards.

“The accessibility awards are an excellent way for us to take note of the real progress our city is making in terms of accessibility and inclusive design,” said Mayor Katz. “As Mayor, I am proud to see organizations and individuals ensuring that Winnipeg is a city of opportunity for people of all abilities.”

The City of Winnipeg Access Advisory Committee makes the selections for the annual awards.

“Today, we will reflect on ‘Universal Design’ from an international perspective,” said committee chair Councillor Ross Eadie.

“The committee conducted site tours and came away impressed,” said committee coordinator, Chris Sobkowicz. “The Richardson Environment and Science Complex, for example, used colour to identify different floor levels, placed tactile indicator strips at all stair locations, and provided colour identifiable and fully accessible washrooms on each floor and other features. University of Winnipeg planners and Number Ten Architectural Group should be very proud of a job well done.”

Source: GAATES

Report on the Accessibility of Communications Technology Released

Interesting news on the accessibility front this month with the release of the first biennial report to Congress on the Communications and Video Accessibility Act (CVAA). After all, nothing says “interesting” like “biennial report to Congress."

The CVAA, which was passed in October, 2010, is an extension of the Communications Act of 1934 and, in a nutshell, is meant to ensure that communications and media services, content, and equipment are accessible to users with disabilities. It will require that things like smartphones are accessible, as well as video programming on television and the Internet.

Under the CVAA the Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau (CGB) of the FCC must report to Congress every two years on how it’s going. This month’s report is the first of those and, while the full implementation of the many facets of the CVAA is still underway (and full compliance of some aspects won’t be mandatory until next year or beyond), the report provides a few interesting nuggets on the current state of accessibility for communications technologies.

These biennial reports (among other things) must provide assessments of the current state of accessibility compliance with the following of sections of the law:

1. Section 255: Telecommunications equipment and services - Including wired, cordless, and wireless telephones, fax machines, answering machines, voicemail and voice over IP (VoIP).

2. Section 716: Advanced communications services - Including e-mail, short message service (SMS) text messaging, and instant messaging, as well as video conferencing services.

3. Section 718: Mobile phone Internet browsers

To assess compliance, the CGB solicited feedback from users, consumer groups, manufacturers and industry groups. Feedback for this round was sparse, again given that compliance with all provisions is not yet mandatory. However, given the feedback received, the CGB came to the following conclusions about initial efforts to comply with the CVAA:

• Users who are blind or low vision have consistent problems using new telecommunications devices (those covered by section 255), with the big exception of the iPhone. The feedback in the report from the American Federation for the Blind (AFB) said “Apple’s iPhone continues to be the only smart phone providing truly equal access at no extra cost to users with vision loss.”The situation is better for hearing impaired users, with the CGB concluding that telecommunications services and equipment “generally are meeting the hearing aid compatibility needs of people with hearing disabilities.” However, in the report, the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) said that some mainstream phones have still have issues with speakerphone or Bluetooth features providing good enough sound quality for users with hearing disabilities.
• The CGB couldn’t properly assess the accessibility of advanced communications services, due to inadequate feedback. Although, they do say that the industry is currently taking steps to ensure that communications technology and services will soon have a wide range of accessible functionality.
• The Commission did not assess the accessibility of mobile phone browsers, since they have not yet issued rules for implementing the provisions of the law.

The big take-aways? Well, mainly that the implementation of the CVAA is still in its infancy; we should know much more by the time of the next binennial report in 2014. What we do know now is that, for smartphones, the problems are more significant for visually impaired users and, for them, the only real choice currently is the iPhone. Also, manufacturers and content providers are currently working towards meeting full compliance with the law by the required due dates.

Source: it world, GAATES

W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 Approved as ISO/IEC International Standard

The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and the Joint Technical Committee JTC 1, Information Technology of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), announced approval of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 as an ISO/IEC International Standard (ISO/IEC 40500:2012).

“This important accessibility standard, which is already widely deployed internationally, can now benefit from additional formal recognition from ISO/IEC national bodies,” noted Jeff Jaffe, W3C CEO. “Such recognition is expected to increase internationally harmonized uptake of WCAG 2.0 by governments, business, and the broader Web community.”

“ISO/IEC JTC 1 is very pleased to bring on board this most important of W3C accessibility standards, given the increased interest in accessibility among JTC 1 National Bodies in recent years,” said Karen Higginbottom, Chair of ISO/IEC JTC 1. “We also expect that ISO/IEC recognition will encourage greater convergence around WCAG 2.0, further driving development of supporting tools and software.”

International Harmonization of Accessibility standards benefits all

WCAG 2.0 has been adopted or referenced by many governments and organizations. Following the passage of the United Nations Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities, an increasing number of countries have been seeking solutions to address their treaty commitments for information technology accessibility for people with disabilities.

“The ISO/IEC imprimatur increases the avenues for adoption of W3C technology and guidelines,” noted Judy Brewer, Director of the Web Accessibility Initiative at W3C. “In some countries, policies require that nationally adopted technical standards must be ISO/IEC. Formal approval by JTC 1 of WCAG 2.0 will increase deployment, reduce fragmentation, and provide all users with greater interoperability on the web.”

WCAG 2.0 was first submitted to the ISO/IEC JTC 1 process for Publicly Available Specifications (PAS) in October 2011. W3C has been an approved JTC 1 PAS Submitter since November 2010, and is one of nine organizations that are currently approved. To learn more about W3C and the ISO/IEC JTC1 PAS Submission process, see the W3C PAS FAQ and the JTC 1 website.

WCAG 2.0 is a stable standard with extensive supporting resources

As an ISO/IEC JTC 1 Standard, WCAG 2.0 is now also available from ISO/IEC, while it remains a stable international W3C standard with extensive supporting resources. JTC 1 recognition neither changes nor supercedes the existing standard, which remains freely available from the W3C website along with multiple W3C authorized translations of WCAG 2.0.

W3C provides a number of supporting resources for managers, developers and policy-makers, in addition to the WCAG 2.0 standard, including WCAG 2.0 Overview,WCAG 2.0 at a Glance, How to Meet WCAG 2.0: A Customizable Quick Reference, Techniques for WCAG 2.0, and Understanding WCAG 2.0.

For more information, visit www.w3c.org, GAATES

Optelec Drives Low-Vision Innovation with the Compact 7 HD.

Optelec U.S. Inc., a world leader in innovative and life-changing assistive technology for people who are blind and low vision, on October 10 announced the launch of the much-anticipated Optelec Compact 7 HD electronic video magnifier.

Designed for users with low vision, the Compact 7 HD offers a truly portable, large seven-inch widescreen with high definition image quality, extreme simplicity and an attractive style. Watch the video below:

The Compact 7 HD makes the every day struggle of reading the newspaper or viewing photos easier for people with vision loss due to retinal eye diseases such as macular degeneration, glaucoma, cataracts and diabetic retinopathy.

“We speak with thousands of users every month and we continuously hear that those who need a higher magnification enjoy portability but also require a larger screen for every day reading,” said Ivar Illing, Optelec International Product Manager. “The Compact 7 HD fills the gap for this solution with a larger field of view, continuous magnification from two up to 24 times and customizable settings. It’s unlike anything else on the market.”

Weighing less than 1.4 lbs, the Compact 7 HD is easy to take anywhere. For an effortless user experience, the Compact 7 HD features clearly visible and simple to operate controls with powerful functionality.

“Our customers are searching for ways to cope with their low vision and Optelec’s products can have a profound impact on their lives by optimizing the remaining vision,” said President of Optelec U.S. Inc., Stephan Terwolbeck. “The new Compact 7 HD provides high image quality and has a simple design that won’t leave our users frustrated and discouraged.”

The 8-megapixel high definition and auto-focus camera keeps the display text, photos and objects sharp and clear. With only “one-touch” to open, the Compact 7 HD tilts to a raised position for a comfortable and ergonomic viewing angle. The Compact 7 HD also incorporates dual-viewing modes. First, while opened it moves smoothly over reading materials. Secondly, the design allows for distance viewing up to three feet away—perfect for viewing a wall temperature display, daily calendar and more.

Key Features of the Optelec Compact 7 HD:
•Continuous magnification of 2X – 24X
•7-inch high definition full color TFT widescreen display
•Immediate reading with “one-touch” to open and power on
•4-hour continuous use rechargeable battery; large icon battery status
•Patented indirect LED lighting system for even, glare-free illumination
•8-megapixel high definition and auto-focus camera
•Large icon settings and information menu to save user settings
•Adjustable brightness with 19 high contrast and photo viewing modes
•Two reading positions
•Snapshot function with audio indication sounds
•Carrying case, wrist strap and a microfiber screen cleaning cloth
•Portable and lightweight at only 1.4lbs (22.6 oz.)
•Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.1 x 1.1 inches
•2-year standard warranty

An estimated 21.5 million adult Americans have reported they either “have trouble” seeing, even when wearing glasses or contact lenses, or that they are blind or unable to see at all, according to the 2012 National Health Interview Survey. With the right tools, assistive technology like the Compact 7 HD can improve their quality of life, independence and mobility.

The Optelec Compact 7 HD is now available through the Authorized Optelec Dealer Network. For more information about Optelec and our range of simple and effective low vision solutions, contact us at 800.826.4200 or visithttp://www.Optelec.com or http://www.ShopLowVision.com.

Source: GAATES

New Version of Nokia Screenreader Now Available on the Nokia Store

The highly popular Nokia Screen Reader application, which was released late in 2011 for a limited range of devices and languages, has now been extended to include support for virtually all Nokia Symbian devices released in the last few years. In addition, it now supports a much wider range of languages. And the best part for users: it keeps being a free application!

“We’ve received fantastic feedback since the launch of Nokia Screen Reader 10 months ago,” explains Eduard Sánchez, CEO at Code Factory. “It’s been a great leap forward for affordable accessibility, and Nokia is to be credited for supporting the project. However, many users were disappointed that their phone or language was not supported. With the release of Nokia Screen Reader 1.3, we are delighted to be able to greatly extend the availability of Nokia Screen Reader both in terms of devices and supported languages, to once again break down the barriers of accessibility.”

Major features of v1.3:

• Support for a much wider range of languages: English, Spanish, French, German, Portuguese, Finnish, Swedish, Italian, Danish, Dutch, Greek, Hindi, Norwegian, Simplified Chinese, Turkish, Arabic, Croatian, Lithuanian, Bengali, Bulgarian, Catalan, Hungarian, Malaysian, Serbian, Slovak, Tagalog, Ukrainian, Vietnamese and Icelandic. Note that some of these languages do not have a corresponding Nokia HQ voice, so it is recommended to use the Nokia standard quality voice for these languages.

• Added the “Voice” option to the UI, which allows users to choose between the Nokia HQ and the Nokia (standard quality) voices. Nokia HQ will still be loaded by default when Nokia Screen Reader is first installed.

• Support for a large number of new devices. The full set of supported devices is now: Nokia 500, 603, 700, 701, 808 PureView, 5320, 5530, 5630, 5730, 6120, 6121, 6210, 6220, 6700 Slide, 6710, 6720, 6790, C5-00, C5 5MP, C6-00, C6-01, C7, E5, E52, E55, E6-00, E63, E66, E7, E71, E71x, E72, E73, E75, N78, N79, N8, N85, N86, N96, N97, N97 Mini, X6 and X7.

• Support for devices running Symbian Belle Refresh and Symbian Belle Feature Pack 2 (FP2) firmware.

• Support for latest version of WhatsApp v2.8.14, the world’s most popular mobile messaging application.

 To find out more information about Nokia Screen Reader visit, http://codefactory.es/en/products.asp?id=425

To access the Nokia Screen Reader user manual, visit, 

http://www.codefactory.es/descargas/nsr/Nokia_Screen_Reader_Manual_English.htm 

You can download Nokia Screen Reader v1.3 from the Nokia Store (either on your phone via the Store app or by connecting the phone to a computer with the Nokia Suite application installed). Search for “Nokia Screen Reader” to download and install this new version. The direct link to Nokia Screen Reader on the Store is http://store.ovi.com/content/224364. Note that sighted assistance may be needed to download the application from the Nokia Store. The installation process however is completely accessible if you leave Nokia Screen Reader running to guide you through the process.

Source: GAATES

Netflix and NAD Reach Historic Agreement to Provide 100% Closed Captions in On-Demand

Netflix Inc. and the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), a non-profit organization, have submitted a joint Consent Decree to a federal court in Springfield, Mass., ensuring closed captions in 100% of Netflix streaming content within two years.

NAD, along with the Western Massachusetts Association of the Deaf and Hearing-Impaired (WMAD/HI) and Lee Nettles, a deaf Massachusetts resident, brought suit against Netflix seeking that commitment in 2010.

The agreement indicates the parties’ mutual intent to increase access for people who are deaf and hard of hearing to movies and television streamed on the Internet. Netflix began its closed-captioning program in 2010. Netflix has increased captioning for 90% of the hours viewed but is now committed to focusing on covering all titles by captioning 100% of all content by 2014.  Captions can be displayed on a majority of the more than 1,000 devices on which the service is available.

Howard A. Rosenblum, CEO of NAD, the lead plaintiff in this case, said, “The National Association of the Deaf congratulates Netflix for committing to 100% captioning, and is thrilled to announce that 48 million deaf and hard of hearing people will be able to fully access Netflix’s Watch Instantly services.”

“We have worked consistently to make the broadest possible selection of titles available to Netflix members who are deaf or hard of hearing and are far and away the industry leader in doing so,” said Neil Hunt, Netflix Chief Product Officer. “We are pleased to have reached this agreement and hope it serves as a benchmark for other providers of streaming video entertainment.”

Netflix will also improve its interface so that subscribers will be better able to identify content that has been captioned in the period until 100% captioning is achieved.  The parties have asked the court to maintain jurisdiction of the case for four years to assure compliance with the terms of the Decree, and plaintiffs will monitor Netflix’s progress.

“We’re so pleased that Netflix worked jointly with plaintiffs to devise a reasonable and workable way to achieve 100% captioning. The Decree is a model for the streaming entertainment industry,” said Arlene Mayerson, Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund’s Directing Attorney. “DREDF hopes that this is the beginning of opening the internet for deaf and hard of hearing individuals in streamed entertainment, education, government benefits, and more.”

The Consent Decree is available here: http://dredf.org/captioning/netflix-consent-decree-10-10-12.pdf regarding National Association of the Deaf, et al. v. Netflix, Case No. 3:11-cv-30168.

The plaintiffs are represented by the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund in Berkeley, CA, the Oakland, CA law firm Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson P.C., and the Boston, MA law firm Sugarman, Rogers, Barshak & Cohen, P.C.

Netflix is represented by David F. McDowell and Jacob M. Harper of Morrison & Foerster LLP.

Source: NAD, GAATES