Attention, blind Akkoma users! I will be writing to the developer with my concerns about a few problems with accessibility on this platform. Most should be easy to resolve. Please let me know if you find any more, and also state what browser and screen reader you are using. Note: This is in reference to the site itself, not to your client of choice. I will post about that separately. For the record, I use NVDA with Firefox.

• Many buttons are unlabelled and simply say "button". This is true on the main page as well as when viewing posts and tabs in profiles. Most work once pressed. They just need to be labelled.
  
• Searching for people, tags, groups, and posts is inaccessible. I can enter the edit field and write my text, but then, there are two unlabelled buttons next to that. The first simply takes me back to the edit field. The second does nothing. I am assuming this is a submit button that doesn't work via the keyboard.
  
• It is impossible to view followers, as well as those whom I follow. I can see the numbers of each but not the people and groups themselves.
  
• I cannot read my own profile without editing it. There appears to be no link where I can simply view it, either as myself or anonymously. If I go to my page and am not logged in, however, I can view it. I can also easily edit it when logged in.
  
• The page renders very differently in Chrome than in Firefox. In Chrome, I can't see anything but my notifications, so I can't get to my page or the other timelines.

#accessibility #Akkoma #blind #Blob.cat #Chrome #Fediverse #fediverse #Firefox #JAWS #NVDA #html #ScreenReaders #SemanticHtml #Supermium #Windows

Hi #blind community. I am searching for two programs for #Windows.
1. A accessible client to work with multiple calendars via CalDAV
2. A program which can work as a to-do-list.

I do not want to use #Outlook for this since I am in the process of getting mostly rid of #Microsoft #Office.

Thanks for any help!

I have a good friend, for real, that is slowly going #blind. Is there a good plugin for #thunderbird
to read emails without involving a #bigCorp ?

I'm thinking of
1) Open email in window,
2) click button that says "read aloud"

She is not blind yet, this would be like training wheels to get her use to using a screen reader while she can still see a little.

#FLOSS #FOSS

Unser Webshop hat eröffnet! https://oskars.org/b/ Hier bekommst du Schilder mit deinem eigenen Text. Der Schildgenerator erzeugt dir eine Voransicht deines Schilds. Unsere Schilder mit Blindenschrift Braille und Profilschrift sind von Menschen mit Seheinschränkung oder Blindheit entwickelt worden. Begreifbare Zeichen laden zur Teilhabe ein und sorgen für Orientierung. #make #blind #inklusion

Decided to sign up for #Codeberg, the #GitHub alternative that the Fediverse at large is insisting is worth a try and, in some cases, claiming will improve project contributions by avoiding some of the GH antipatterns. I expected to find some #accessibility issues; this is the modern web, after all.

I did not expect a fully inaccessible visual CAPTCHA with no workarounds. I'm unable to solve it, so I cannot create an account.

In short: If you want people who are #blind or #lowVision to contribute to your projects (you do, right?), Codeberg is currently not an #accessible platform.

Fellow #Blind #ContentCreators, have any of you found a decent free website platform that is #accessible and usable by someone who isn't a professional web dev? I'd hoped to go with Neocities, but their hCaptcha doesn't seem to let me use my cookie. I need, at this point, a free option, sadly. Any suggestions? Boosting greatly appreciated.

I have looked everywhere, but I can't find this post from 11 February! It isn't showing up in my Sent timeline. So if it is on my profile, and/or if you have seen it, I apologise.

I am not closing my account here, but I need to try something other than Friendica, due to accessibility issues. I am considering Akkoma, but am open to other networks if they are compatible with Mastodon.

I am seeking an instance with the following specifications.

Accessible interface (I use a screen reader called NVDA). If it uses Semantic html and isn't cluttered, that's a great start. I would prefer it to be compatible with Mastodon so that I could also use TweeseCake as a client. I need to easily be able to access things such as notifications, follow requests, my own posts, to be able to search for tags, people, my posts etc.

Posting limit of 5,000 characters or more (more preferred.

Ability to pin, unpin, edit, and delete posts.

Ability to filter content, so that I don't see certain words or phrases. (This doesn't work with TweeseCake, so it's not as important as the rest, unless the site is so accessible that I can use it often.)

Ability to select between seeing all posts of someone or only some, and to choose whether to let someone follow me without my seeing his posts or to follow him completely. (Friend versus Subscriber on Friendica).

Extensive profile with keywords. (Keywords may be a Friendica feature, so can be skipped.)

Most people write in English and are not politically, technologically, or gaming obsessed. No radicals of any pursuasion. (the English bit is just to help me find friends on my particular instance.)

Free speech (nothing illegal or homophobic). I personally avoid obscenities.)

If such an instance exists, please tell me. I found https://akkoma.fediverse.observer/list[7] but that's just a list with no real information about each instance. I would have to go through over 400 of them, choose the ones from the UK, Canada, and America (they're the most likely to have English instances), then go through those to see if they meet my requirements, but that's ridiculous.

I am not a programmer, so please don't suggest I start my own instance or join a network that is not set up with a webpage and/or to accept a client, as I know nothing about these things other than that they run on Linux and I'm a Windows user. I just want something that works. Also, if there are any demonstration instances, please let me know. I heard of one where accounts only lasted five days, but it seems to be gone.

#accessibility #Akkoma #blind #Fediverse #Friendica #Glitchsoc #html #instances #NVDA #Mastodon #screenreaders #TweeseCake #Windows

I wish I could watch more foreign shows but there are just not good enough applications that read the subtitles while the show is going on in real time. I'd love to watch some of my grandmother's novellas because I've been curious about them but unfortunately, as a #Blind person, it isn't possible to read subtitles and they speak spanish way too fast for me to understand completely. Having established screenreaders do this would really be nice. #TV, #Streaming, #Media

I tried to post this to the Friendica support forum, but it kept timing out when I entered my information. I am now attempting to subscribe to their e-mail list. However, I thought I would write this here so that those who know coding, etc. might be able to offer a solution, or at least, to pass this on to the developers.

I joined Friendica in October of 2024, when Facebook decided to shut down their Basic Mobile site (not app). I am totally blind, and their main page is a nightmare to use with a screen readre (NVDA in my case). I chose Friendica because of the huge character limit, the ability to edit and delete posts, local posting, extensive profiles with keywords, and the ability to connect with all sorts of accounts in the Fediverse. For the most part, I am enjoying my time here. However, I am noticing a lot of inaccessibility on the Friendica page. I am not a programmer, but I'm guessing this is at the core of the software and is not due to the instance I'm using (friendica.world). I am also guessing that the page is not written in HTML5 and does not follow WCAG guidelines, though I may be wrong about that. If not, I strongly urge the developers to review them and implement them if possible. If so, perhaps, some changes can still be made that would make this a more screen reader-friendly site. Note that I tried this with Firefox and Supermium (a direct fork of Chrome).

Mostly, I use TweeseCake to access the site, but there are some things I can't do with that client. All of the following refer to the site itself.

• There is a list of links at the top of the page that acts like a menu. This causes many problems while trying to perform basic tasks, particularly editing posts and handling notifications. I can't always activate said links/menu either.

1A. I can't stress how frustrating editing posts is. It sometimes takes over ten minutes. The "edit" option is a link/menu, and it can only be found via another menu. Once I finally find and activate it, I hear the sound indicating that I have entered focus Mode. Usually, this means that I am in an edit box and can type. However, in this case, I am taken back to the main page, as if I never entered the option to edit my post. Using e to try to find an edit box doesn't help, as it just sends me to the replies to different comments. So I am forced to find the post, and start all over again. The only way I can do this successfully is to try to tab through the links/menu at the top of the page (when it works), then through other posts, until, finally, I am placed in an edit box where I can type.

1B. When I go to the Notifications" link, I have to tab to "Mark all System Notifications as Seen". This isn't even a regular link, as I can't copy and paste the text from it. Once I tab to and out of that, I can then read my notifications. But here is what I have to do if I want to see follow requests.
1. Try to get the notifications link to work, then click on it.
2. Tab to marking notifications.
3. Perform a search for the word follow.
4. Click on the link of the notification that someone wants to follow me. I open this in a new window, to try to keep the original one available.
5. Make my choice as to whether to approve that notification, then close that window.
6. Return to the main window. Only now, I am not where I left off. Instead, I am placed back at the beginning of the page and the Notifications menu is not open.
7. Repeat steps 1 through 3.
Ideally, I should be able to go to a normal notifications link, perform steps 3 through 5, then return back to the link, and perform steps 3 through 5 again, as many times as necessary, without having to repeat 1 through 3.

• I can't just go to the site and enter an edit box to post. I must go through a menu to find the link to do so. Yet there is an edit box for searching for content, tags, etc.
  
• Some pinned posts don't always read properly. I can see my name, when I posted, that it's pinned, a public message, tags (if applicable), buttons for resharing, etc., and the number of comments. But I cannot simply read the post itself. ""Comments" is also a button, not a link. Even when I expand them, I still can't see my post, and finding the button again to close them takes a lot of time, as posts also have their own buttons. Note that unpinned posts are read properly.
  
• While the process of editing my profile is completely accessible, finding the edit option might be slightly confusing for new users, as it requires entering yet another link/menu, this time with the user name as the title..
  
• If I go to a profile of someone not on Friendica (usually Mastodon) and wish to reply to a post, after I enter my credentials, it takes me back to my profile, not to the relevant post. It only worked once.
  
• The Friendica app for Windows is basically the site itself. I don't understand this at all.

If you want to see a truly accessible site, try this link. I don't work for them, though I do have an account there.

http://www.dreamwidth.org

Please, if any changes can be made, I urge you to do so. The site is otherwise a pleasure to use, but my frustration at not being able to easily perform such basic tasks is increasing.

#accessibility #blind #coding #Chrome #Developers #Dreamwidth #Facebook #fediverse #Firefox #Friendica #HTML #HTML5 #NVDA #ScreenReaders #TweeseCake #WCAG #Windows

What are the differences between Diaspora, Pleroma, Hubzilla, Hometown, and Glitch? How do they compare to Friendica as far as features? I've heard there are Mastodon instances that allow for longer posts, editing, and deletion. Do they also allow for extensive profiles with keywords, etc? Are there any other networks I should know about? Finally, will the interface of the page on Friendica change depending on my instance? Maybe, it's just a matter of changing that! If I changed to another network, I'm guessing I couldn't export my profile, followers, etc. there. Most importantly, I need something that is truly compatible with Mastodon, because that's technically what TweeseCake was designed for. Since Friendica is very compatible, I can use TweeseCake without any problems.

#accessibility #blind #clients #Diaspora #Fediverse #Friendica #Glitch #Hometown #Hubzilla #Mastodon #NVDA #Pleroma, #TweeseCake #Windows

I left Facebook in October of 2024 precisely to avoid inaccessibility, clutter, and frustration of their main site. Now, I am feeling the same thing with regard to Friendica. I joined here because of the extremely long character limit, the many sites with which I can interact, and the fact that I can edit and delete posts, as well as post locally. Whenever I try to edit a post on the main site, I have problems. This has been true since day one. Now, I'm going to my posts, and instead of seeing the content, I'm only seeing my profile and the tags. I have to go through that same process of editing just to be able to read what the post is. Yes, I use TweeseCake most of the time and it works well, but I have no way of searching posts. So I must use Lukol or try to use Friendica itself to find them, which isn't easy either, unless I tagged them with something unique. On Facebook, I would type my name, a few words from the post, and it would show up. I also have no way of simply sorting comments on TweeseCake as I do, for example, on Luna for Reddit. So I have been missing people's replies to my posts, because I keep getting notifications and other things in my timelines that bury said replies. That may be my fault, as I have several people marked to show all posts. Still, their posts shouldn't show under Mentions if they're not tagging me or replying to my posts, and yet, they do.

I just want to find a site that is easy to use like the Basic Mobile version of Facebook used to be or like Dreamwidth still is, or a client like Luna for Reddit that makes Friendica truly accessible. TweeseCake is 98% there, but there are still a few things that I can't do on it. Perhaps, a dedicated Windows client would be best, and no, I don't mean some strange app that looks like the website.

I would try another instance, but I have a feeling that it will look similar, since it's based on the same software. If I am wrong, please tell me, and I will gladly switch!

#accessibility #blind #clients #Friendica #frustration #LunaForReddit #NVDA #TweeseCake #Windows

As someone who is totally blind, the Fediverse is the only place where I have ever been able to follow people such as photographers, artists, or even those who post pictures of their cats or the food they ate. The reason is that most of them use alt text. They take the time to describe the images that my screen reader can't recognise. Some write the descriptions themselves, and others use tools such as altbot. Some worry that their descriptions aren't good enough, especially when they are new at this. Let me assure you, not only are they good enough, they are extremely appreciated! If the rest of the world thought as you did, it would be a much better place. Don't hesitate to ask if you're unsure of something, but never think that we don't notice your effort.

#appreciation #accessibility #altbot #alttext #blind #blindness #fediverse #gratitude #images #inclusivity #peoplewhocare #pictures #technology

Dear friends, #screenreader users, #blind users and #accessibility professionals in particular.
Are you using chat over traditional email as provided by #DeltaChat / #DeltaLab / #ArcaneChat?
I like it uses traditional email infrastructure, is federated, supports end to end encryption, rich content including audio / voice messages. I have even recognized @adb has implemented screen reader accessibility specific features into the android app.
However I have quickly tried electron based app on linux with orca screen reader, exchanged a few messages back and fort between two of my personal accounts using the DeltaChat app and thunderbird and I haven't found the user experience verry appealing. I can't understand how to effectivelly navigate in the list of conversations and list of messages.
Therefore I would be interested to hear a few comments from people knowing this platform better. How accessible is it on different platforms?
On the desktop is the electron based app a prefered choice?
Also some other questions. For the best experience, do I need a new email address or can I use my existing self-hosted one I have already configured in thunderbird?
Ffeel free to point me to a FAQ, some up to date introductory documentation if you think my questions don't make much sense please.

I am vaguely aware of something called Lemmy, which is similar to Reddit, including the inability to delete posts. Why, I don't know. Anyway, I read that it can interact with Friendica. But I'm confused regarding finding forums, joining them, and posting to them. Usually, I go to a website, enter friendica.world, am taken to my homepage, and then authorise the connection. But this seems different. Can anyone help me? Also, I primarily use Tweesecake, not the main site, so I have no idea what the bit about widgets means.

https://wiki.friendi.ca/docs/post_to_lemmy_from_friendica

#blind #fediverse #forums #Friendica #Lemmy #posting #Tweesecake

Being #blind is fun. Just encountered a visual captcha with no audio option. So I used JAWS Picture Smart to get AI to read me the text of the visual clue, which I typed in and got through. So basically I'm a human who needs a robot to prove to another robot that I am not a robot. Without my robot, the other robot would have thought I was a robot. Also I was trying to make a payment on my PAP machine, which really should in itself indicate that I am not a robot. #Disability #Disabled

Israeli medical team provides humanitarian aid in Ethiopia – Israel News https://www.byteseu.com/?p=614228 #blind #Blindness #Ethiopia #Health #HumanitarianAid #Israel

Any recommendations for a simple espresso machine that my elderly, #blind (only has some peripheral vision) father-in-law can use on his own? Auto-off would be HUGE, as the lack of this function is what has killed his other machines (he often forgets, due to cognitive decline). Mr. Coffee no longer makes his preferred model, and this latest one was a used EBay purchase.

Dude makes & drinks four espresso shots in a single mug every morning. Whew! Made of much sterner stuff than I!

#Blind #WordPress users, how do you make sure your colors are #accessible? I was editing one of my posts and saw this message:
"This color combination may be hard for people to read. Try using a brighter background color and/or a darker link color."
I'm using GeneratePress and want my site to be fully accessible to as many people as possible. Any tips for accessible color combinations or tools to check contrast?
#Tech #WebDevelopment #Website #Blog #Technology #Accessibility #ColorContrast
@mastoblind @main @accessibility

Blind People Problems:

Lately I'm encountering instances where people writing substitute a small letter L for a capital i. For example writing Al (AL) instead of AI (ai).

This fools the eye, but not the text-to-speech engines used by blind and low vision users to listen to the text.

This morning I copy and pasted the title of a novel from the story graph and it turned out that the word Idea was written with an L (ldea) instead of a capital i.

I wonder what is behind this phenomenon. Is it a virtual keyboard speed writing thing? Saving the user the extra click on the shift key?

What is for sure, this practice is bad for accessibility.

Edit:

Since not everyone sees all the replies I'll summaries:

The main possible explanation for the use of an l in place of a capital I, was the use of OCR to digitize text in an image.

Considering the fact that OCR is built into mobile OSs and apps these days it is quite possible that is was used and as a type of AI it is clear why it would not understand the context and mistake identical letters for one another.

A second possible reason suggested in the comments was that people are trying to obscure the use of the term AI from filters or crawlers by using the wrong letter.

#BlindPeopleProblems #accessibility #blind #LowVison #TTS #TextToSpeech

So questions for #Blind #Edgucaters, #teachers, #school staff and anyone in the #education field as a whole.

I am a university student who originally planned to double major in computer science and elementary education, but I’ve recently faced some concerns that I’d like to address.

I’ve been told that pursuing a teaching certification might not be advisable because schools may be reluctant to hire a teacher with low vision, who is mostly blind, to manage a classroom of thirty or more students. This has been quite upsetting.

My dream was to work with elementary students, focusing on #STEM subjects and teaching technology-related topics like understanding tech, its role in the world, and the basics of programming. Now, I find myself uncertain about what path to take.

Working with kids, especially those in elementary school, is my biggest passion, even more than tech or music. It’s something that would truly fulfill me. Since I can’t have kids myself, guiding and teaching young learners is the next best thing. It’s a career I’m committed to and want to excel in.

Being advised not to pursue a teaching certification and to focus solely on computer science has been quite discouraging. I’ve been told to study elementary education as a secondary focus and combine it with my computer science studies. This might involve developing educational systems for kids, but it would likely mean limited direct interaction, possibly just during product testing, which isn’t enough for me.

So, I have a few questions:

1. Are there any educators with #Blindness or #LowVision challenges working with elementary students? If so, in what capacity do you work with them?
2. How has your disability affected your effectiveness in the field?
3. What challenges did you face in getting certified and qualified, and how did you overcome them?
4. What obstacles have you encountered in the classroom and with colleagues, and how have you addressed them?

If these questions don’t apply, what advice can you offer me in pursuing my goal of working with children? While tech is a focus, I’m open to being flexible, as long as it’s an area I’m confident in.

Finally, if teaching isn’t possible for me, what other career paths would you suggest that align with my goals?

I’d really appreciate any support
and engagement in this discussion.

Boosts welcomed and appreciated.

#BlindEducators #Teachers #Education #AskMastodon #VocationalAdvice #University #TeacherLife #OvercomingAbleism

To #blind people: I'm seeking someone who knows how to use #BrailleBlaster with large books. I need help understanding page numbering and getting it working in a book I'm transcribing and proofreading.

I've tried following the manual and asked for help on the BrailleBlaster mailing list, but the explanation given by another list member didn't help. I can't afford Duxbury and the other translation software I've tried, Sao Mai Braille, doesn't support a lot of US standards for UEB.

I would really appreciate any help with this!

#Braille #BrailleProofreading #BrailleTranscription #tech #technology #AssistiveTechnology #Accessibility

@mastoblind @main

#Introduction. Transferred to a new instance.
Hello, I’m Aaron! I’m proudly blind, having lost my sight to retinoblastoma as a child. I have an amazing wife, who is also blind named Joyce and an adorable 2-and-a-half-year-old son, Liam. Originally from the Philippines, I’m now based in Milan, Italy.
I’m passionate about blindness-related topics and accessibility. My interests also include ham radio, aviation, and space exploration. Oh, and I love new gadgets! Even though I can’t always afford them, I’m always excited to explore new tech!

In case anyone is interested, here are my other socials:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aaronjohn0412
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/aaronjohn0412
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@aaronjohn0412

#Blind #Blindness #Accessibility #BlindPride #Filipino #Pinoy #Pinas #Philippines #Milan #Italy

So ...let's face it. A LOT of folks in tech circles are somewhat amazed a fully #blind person can even find the power button on a computer, let alone operate it professionally. I am such a person, and I'd like to bust that myth.
It's also true that many #hacking tools, platforms, courses etc. could use some help in the #accessibility department. It's a neverending vicious circle.
Enter my new twitch channel, IC_null. On this channel, I will be streaming #programming and #hacking content including THM, HTB and who knows what else, from the perspective of a #screenReader user.
What I need, is an audience. If this is something you reckon you or anybody you know might be interested in, drop the channel a follow or share this post. Gimme that #infoSec Mastodon sense of comradery and help me out to make this idea an actual thing :) https://twitch.tv/ic_null #tryHackMe #streamer #selfPromo

People of the #fediverse, especially those creating various services, there are alternatives to HCAPTCHA when you ask people to create accounts or login. Despite HCAPTCHA's propaganda, HCAPTCHA is not truly accessible to #blind people. It requires us to give up our privacy if we choose the cookie option. The text alternative doesn't work most times. I just tried to sign up for a /kbin server at https://redit.buzz and wasted 30 mins on HCAPTCHA.

Please be #inclusive!

#accessibility