Close your eyes. Shut them tight. Now read this column. Tough, huh? That’s the challenge that 1.3 million legally blind people encounter in the U.S. when they cannot see yet want to use technology today.
The National Federation of the Blind made news recently with the announcement that the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Syracuse University will not distribute Amazon’s Kindle “e-book” reader until the company makes changes that will allow vision impaired students to use the device.
Amazon has said they are working on a solution, but there is no timetable for release.
Electronic books are a fast-growing segment of the tech market, but they are not the only area where technology has lagged behind the needs of the visually impaired. So many devices from TVs to DVD players, stereo systems or even home appliances are heavily menu driven today. Yet the makers of these items do not embed audio or tactile “haptic” settings that would allow the blind to use them effectively. And that’s a big problem.
At the massive annual circus known as the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) this year, attendees were treated for the first time to an unusual sight. There, tucked in among the lavish trade show displays of tech companies from around the globe was a booth from a Davis, CA based group called Sendero. What made this booth different was that it was staffed entirely by people who were blind. When one stopped by and talked with them, they were happy to demonstrate a wide array of commonly-used tech products that had been easily modified for their use.
The next CES show is coming soon (January 7-10) in Las Vegas. If you go, seek out Sendero and the people from the National Federation of the Blind. What they say and show you just might open your eyes.
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