Blind and Visually Impaired Community
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What are some things blind people don't have access to? How can people who are responsible for regulations or other voluntary sighted people help? (self.Blind)
submitted by temperoftheking
Hi everyone,
I've been a lurker here for a while. Lately, I have been thinking about ways of overcoming accessibility issues blind people face: apps such as Be My Eyes, the increase in audiobooks and audio-described movies etc. So, what I've been willing to ask is this: What are some accessibility problems (might be general or specific) you face on a regular basis? Are there contents you can't access which could be made available by a sighted person or a group of sighted people? Can you think of any regulations or simple tools/devices (such as accessible pedestrian signals) which could make life easier for you?
I wanted to ask this because it might be the case that some sighted people could volunteer for a suggestion they think they can do or we can try to raise the public awareness for a regulation etc.
Thank you for your answers. Looking forward to read them all!
I've been a lurker here for a while. Lately, I have been thinking about ways of overcoming accessibility issues blind people face: apps such as Be My Eyes, the increase in audiobooks and audio-described movies etc. So, what I've been willing to ask is this: What are some accessibility problems (might be general or specific) you face on a regular basis? Are there contents you can't access which could be made available by a sighted person or a group of sighted people? Can you think of any regulations or simple tools/devices (such as accessible pedestrian signals) which could make life easier for you?
I wanted to ask this because it might be the case that some sighted people could volunteer for a suggestion they think they can do or we can try to raise the public awareness for a regulation etc.
Thank you for your answers. Looking forward to read them all!
hawkeye053 12 points 3y ago
Making all websites able to be navigated with "Jaws" (only certain ones tailored towards low/no vision ones can be used)
Mandating any pure electric vehicle produce some sort of noise for when you cross the street.
In Japan, almost all appliances have braille on the controls, why not in North America? (Or globally for that matter)
Easier to navigate TV input controls (unable to use voice activated remotes unless the correct input was already selected.
I'm sure we'll think of more...
Mandating any pure electric vehicle produce some sort of noise for when you cross the street.
In Japan, almost all appliances have braille on the controls, why not in North America? (Or globally for that matter)
Easier to navigate TV input controls (unable to use voice activated remotes unless the correct input was already selected.
I'm sure we'll think of more...
temperoftheking [OP] 2 points 3y ago
These are all great suggestions. Thanks, they are eye-opening for me.
1- It is terrible that almost all websites completely ignore that blind people exist. It couldn't be THAT hard to at least try, would it? I mean, maybe there aren't many things to do about some apps/websites that are completely based on images/videos (Instagram etc.) but text-based websites such as news sites have no excuse.
2- Wow, never thought about the fact that electric vehicles don't produce any noise, which could cause a huge problem if/when they become a lot more common.
3- The braille on appliance controls is a problem I have never even thought. I have never seen one with braille up to this point, to be honest. And it is something so crucial. I have always thought of problems like folding clothes, organizing etc. but never thought about problems about appliances themselves. When I think about it, none of the appliances I have gotten up to this point had braille even in their manuals.
About the first point, there is a follow-up I was wondering: Are there any specific websites/apps or types of websites/apps that you'd wish to be able to access? Maybe, if many people send e-mails or try to contact the developers, they may be willing to do some changes to their websites to make it JAWS-friendly etc.
1- It is terrible that almost all websites completely ignore that blind people exist. It couldn't be THAT hard to at least try, would it? I mean, maybe there aren't many things to do about some apps/websites that are completely based on images/videos (Instagram etc.) but text-based websites such as news sites have no excuse.
2- Wow, never thought about the fact that electric vehicles don't produce any noise, which could cause a huge problem if/when they become a lot more common.
3- The braille on appliance controls is a problem I have never even thought. I have never seen one with braille up to this point, to be honest. And it is something so crucial. I have always thought of problems like folding clothes, organizing etc. but never thought about problems about appliances themselves. When I think about it, none of the appliances I have gotten up to this point had braille even in their manuals.
About the first point, there is a follow-up I was wondering: Are there any specific websites/apps or types of websites/apps that you'd wish to be able to access? Maybe, if many people send e-mails or try to contact the developers, they may be willing to do some changes to their websites to make it JAWS-friendly etc.
regicide85 2 points 3y ago
I'd use Instagram a hell of a lot more if people actually entered alt text. Like many people in the blind community, I'm partially sighted and would benefit from knowing what the image is instead of trying to decipher it. Since many people don't even know what alt text is, much less how to enter it as IG doesn't readily present the poster with this option, virtually no personal users use it, and very few advertisers do either. This problem isn't unique to Instagram, and many screen readers end up reading the image source code and it's really a drag.
RJHand 2 points 3y ago
Use seeingai. Works better than trying to educate people who aren't even interested in the first place. There are definitely some that are but a lot more that aren't. I say this as someone who used to try and speak personally to people about it, it was clear I wasn't having much luck. I've learned to just do what I can in this situation. Seeingai works or if you use voiceover at all it guesses what pictures are on instagram too.
coarsing_batch 1 points 3y ago
Never understood this thing about people saying that hybrid vehicles don’t make noise. They do. They have a very specific sound, and I can always tell when Amy’s Taxi is going by, because I know exactly what the hybrid sounds like. It’s not as loud, sure. But there’s definitely a sound there. Almost like a very high-pitched whine.
[deleted] 1 points 3y ago
[deleted]
yourmommaisaunicorn 1 points 3y ago
Going back to your question regarding #1: the original designers of the internet we know now—think Xanga era of social media—designed it with accessibility in mind. What killed it was first MySpace with backgrounds without alt text, then Facebook, and now Instagram. With no duty to make their platform accessible—as the user is not the customer, but rather the product, making it possible to go around ADA laws—all the design knowledge that went with making an accessible internet is going to the wayside.
Alt text is really the beginning of it. Having captions, and an audio description option, on videos is another need. Podcasts should be required to produce a transcript of every episode.
It’s an insult to injury at this point to both be a consumer and product of a service I can’t readily use.
Alt text is really the beginning of it. Having captions, and an audio description option, on videos is another need. Podcasts should be required to produce a transcript of every episode.
It’s an insult to injury at this point to both be a consumer and product of a service I can’t readily use.
bradley22 1 points 3y ago
I’m confused about your first point, when I was a JAWS user I could navigate sites fine and now I use NVDA I still can.
Could the internet be made more accessible for blind and disabled people? Yeah but I don’t think it’s that bad when it comes to screen readers, at least on windows.
Could the internet be made more accessible for blind and disabled people? Yeah but I don’t think it’s that bad when it comes to screen readers, at least on windows.
ElfjeTinkerBell 3 points 3y ago
My personal issue is mainly with electric vehicles. Although I have one good eye and live my life mostly as a sighted person, I rely on my hearing a lot more than average. And both electric cars and electric bikes just pop up from nowhere.
Also, people standing too close to me, for example in the supermarket. When I turn right (blind side) I immediately walk into them. And nope, corona hasn't improved that one for me because people don't understand social distancing.
Another thing I don't rely on, but I think is really bad, lots of traffic lights in my city don't have an audible signal as well.
Also, people standing too close to me, for example in the supermarket. When I turn right (blind side) I immediately walk into them. And nope, corona hasn't improved that one for me because people don't understand social distancing.
Another thing I don't rely on, but I think is really bad, lots of traffic lights in my city don't have an audible signal as well.
DrillInstructorJan 3 points 3y ago
The biggest problems are not really about technology, they're about people's behaviour.
And that is far harder to change than just building a widget.
Although the automatic folding cane that pops up and down in half a second without all the fiddling about would be great.
And that is far harder to change than just building a widget.
Although the automatic folding cane that pops up and down in half a second without all the fiddling about would be great.
temperoftheking [OP] 1 points 3y ago
I agree with all of your points.
I must confess that I probably laughed more than I should have at the final remark about the folding cane but when I think about it, I can't really think of any other kind of design (unless the thickness of the stick changes from top to bottom, but that might not be ideal). Is anybody aware of any other design which is still easily folded, doesn't occupy much space when folded etc.?
I must confess that I probably laughed more than I should have at the final remark about the folding cane but when I think about it, I can't really think of any other kind of design (unless the thickness of the stick changes from top to bottom, but that might not be ideal). Is anybody aware of any other design which is still easily folded, doesn't occupy much space when folded etc.?
thatblindgirl 1 points 3y ago
There’s the telescoping cane.
temperoftheking [OP] 1 points 3y ago
TIL. Thanks.
DrillInstructorJan 1 points 3y ago
Yeah. It just has to have the rigidity and weight of a one piece non folding cane made of carbon, and fold up and down in less than a second without making any attention-seeking noise.
Off you go!
Off you go!
blind_cowboy 1 points 3y ago
I think the biggest thing is education. I'm kind of libertarian so not so big on regulation besides the websites operated by the government or contractors for the government which ar supposed to be the most accessable are often the least. I've learned that no matter how hard you try you really can't mandate how people act.
coarsing_batch 1 points 3y ago
If you want to use indeed, and you apply for a job that requires a typing test, they have made the typing test completely in accessible. So we have to use Aira to read the typing test, and that messes with the typing speed. So it almost works, but not quite. Also grocery stores can be a real pain. Now we have Instacart and some other delivery services where we can see what’s available online, but often when I walk into a grocery store, people really don’t want to help. And imagine not knowing everything that is in the grocery store isles, and only buying things that you know exist.
FoxtheDon 1 points 3y ago
https://acb.org/adp/index.html
Submit a comment to the FCC in their latest proposal to improve accessibility in video content through more audio description
Submit a comment to the FCC in their latest proposal to improve accessibility in video content through more audio description
Eriona89 1 points 3y ago
I live in the Netherlands and what I miss is not al bustops have audio buttons that let you know the bus schedule. Most of them do but the less busy ones don't.
But what I find really annoying is people randomly standing stil on the tactile guiding lines.
But what I find really annoying is people randomly standing stil on the tactile guiding lines.
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