The Information listed below was taken from The Dialogue Magazine
New Spanish Social Security Administration website
The Social Secuirty Administration has launched a website especially for people who speak and/or read Spanish. Useres can apply for retirement benefits, get estimates of future benefits, apply for Medicare and prescription programs, and learn about other Social Security Administration services all completely in Spanish. For more information go to http://www.segurosocial.gov
The information listed below was taken from Talking Book Topics
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) provides assistance for people with disabilities
Individuals who are blind or visually impaired may download hundreds of the most popular federal tax forms and publications from IRS.gov. These products range from accessible PDF’s to e-braille formats and are accessible using screen-reading software and refreshable braille displays. Visit IRS.gov, then select the Accessibility link on the lower right hand side of the page to download these forms and publications. A video that highlights IRS products and services for people with disabilities is available at
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4PfzKqpXmg
People who are unable to complete their tax return because of blindness, visual impairment, or a physical disability may request assistance from a local IRS Tax Assistance Center, a Volunteer In come Tax Assistance (VITA) site, or a Tax Counseling for the elderly (TCE) site. To find a Tax Assistance Center near you, visit IRS.gov, select Contact Your local IRS Office. You may find a nearby VITA or TCE location (both are sponsedred by the IRS) by calling (1800) 906-9887. Publication 907, Tax Highlights for Persons with Disabilities, explains the tax implications of certain disability benefits and other issues and is available at IRS.gov in HTML and PDF formats. Visit www.IRS.gov and enter “accessibility" in the search box for more information.
YouTube Viewer, and IDEAL Self-Voicing News Reader. The news reader simplifies access to select news websites and reads articles from these sites using text to speech. Currently, the movie viewer enable its users to enjoy audio description on 50 movies that are in the public domain, with additional movies to follow. IDEAL Webmath was designed to make it easier for students with print disabilities to access and use Discovery Education's WebMath, a site that help students learn how to solve math problems ranging from simple addition to trigonometry and calculus. The IDEAL Accessible YouTube Viewer simplifies the process for locating and viewing popular videos through the use of special-interest channels, Additional information is available at Apps4Android
Information listed below was taken from The Braille Forum
Tactile IPhone Guide
National Braille Press now offers the iPhone Tactile Screen shot Quick Reference Guide which is designed to introduce visually impaired iPhone users to the various screen layouts and functions of some of the most basic apps. Tactile diagrams of the screens show the layout of the status bar, home screen apps, keypad, contacts, calendar, Apps store, ibooks, and iTunes. The guide also introduces users to the Siri function and many of the gestures used to manipulate the various apps. The guide has braille, large print, and tactile diagrams all in one book for $27. This publication is designed to be a supplement to more in depth iPhone manuals such as "Getting Started with the iPhone" and "Twenty-six Useful Apps for Blind iPhone Users." All three books are available through NBP on its website at National Braille Press or by phone at 1-888-965-8965.
Information listed below was taken from The Braille Forum
New Assistive Technology Resource
About.com has recently established an assistive technology website to inform and assist people with disabilities. Current hot topics of the site include Ipad and iPhone
accessibility, the Zoom Twix Magnifier, and Nuance Dragon dictation programs, The site's coordinator, Andrew Leibs, seeks input from individuals who are visually impaired, Success stories, comments, and questions are encouraged. Send e-mail to Readers can also
Assistive Technology Guide Readers can also sign up for a weekly assistive technology newsletter. The new site is Assistive technology
Information listed below was taken from The Braille Forum
Sudoku Touch
Perkins Products offers Sudoku touch, the braille and print edition of the popular number game. The game pack includes a wooden game board with tile storage drawer, 40 print and braille puzzles in levels from easy to advanced, classic grid to hold tiles in place, large and small tiles with large print and braille, and print and braille solutions book. For more information, visit Support Perkins
Information listed below was taken from The Newsreel Magazine
Walmart has a new program called Scrip ttalk. You can get your medication by mail.
When calling the Envision America they will enroll you in the Walmart home delivery. Call 1800 890 1180 to enroll.
Information listed below was taken from The Braille Forum
Increased Usability for Sprint Customers
Sprint now offers a free version of Code Factory’s Mobile Accesssibility software for customers who are visually impaired. The software, called Wireless Accesssibility, can be installed at no cost on Android 2.1+ phones on the Sprint, Boost Mobile and Virgin Mobile Usa networks with specific service plans. The software uses touch-screen navigation and input along with synthesized speech read-back to provide users access to all call funtions, web browsing, e-mail, contacts, alarms, texting, GPS, calendar and basic phone functions. For more information, visit http://newsroom.sprint.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=2194
New E-book Accessibility
Christopher Toth, a blind software developer, has designed QRead, an e-reader for the blind. It gives individuals using screen readers access to both PDF and ePub formatted books and documents. The software enables users to open and tab between an unlimited number of books; insert an unlimited number of bookmarks; skim through a text by percentage; and search for specific passages with its “Find” feature. QRead works with Jaws for Windows, Window-Eyes, Super Nova, System Access, and NVDA. For more information, visit http://www.q-continuum.net/
Information listed below was taken from The Braille Forum
Barrier-Free Park
Morgan’s Wonderland is a fully accessible amusement park which sits on 25 acres northeast of San Antonio, Texas. The park includes wheelchair-accessible rides; the Sensory Village, which is a cluster of themed spaces such as an auto fix-it shop, grocery store and TV station that offer sensory stimulation through colors, lights, sounds and textures; the Sand Circle, designed so even folks in wheelchairs can play in the sand; an amphitheater, the Garden Sanctuary; a picnic area, and an 8-acre fishing lake. Other accessibility elements include braille signage, a 3-D model of the park, and 18 wheelchair-accessible restrooms. Admission for people with disabilities is free; the cost for family, friends, caregivers, and the general public is nominal. For more information about the park’s atractions or hours of operation visit www.morgansWonderland.com
The information listed below was taken from The Braille Monitor
Join a Free Voice Chat Community on the web:
Would you like to have lots of fun and meet other blind or visually impaired people from
Across the country and around the world? Do you like challenging games, old-time radio, adaptive cooking techniques, chess book clubs, product presentations, real time technical assistance with your computer, and more? If this is what you are looking for, join us at Out-of-Sight. We offer over forty different chat rooms with something for everyone! This site is made up of the friendliest and most courteous folks you are likely to meet on the Net. The Out-of-Sight community is made up of a set of free user friendly voice chatrooms, and all you need is a microphone to get started. To become a member and join our Out-of-Sight free chat community, go to the website http://www.out-of-sight.net If you have any questions or need assistance logging in, contact webmaster@out-of-sight.net We hope to talk with you soon. “Catch the vision-it’s Out-of-Sight!”
Information listed below was taken from The Braille MonitorCarroll Center offers Three Diabetes and Visual Impairment Courses
The Carroll Center is pleased to announce the third course in its new series of online courses for patients, families, and professionals; Disabetes and Visual Impairment; A New View for Health Professionals. The Commision on Dieteitic Registration approves 30.5 contact hours for this self-study. The American Association of Diabetes Educators, an accredited approver by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s COA and the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education as a provider of continuing pharmacy education, provides 23.5 contact hours of continuing education credit. Many other health professions accept the Carroll Center’s certificate for continuing education credit. Thanks to private foundation funding these courses are currently free. The curriculum for the newest course was developed by Margaret E, Cleary, Rn, Ms, CVRT*, who has over thirty years of experience as a rehabilitation nurse, diabetes educator, and certified vision rehabilitation therapist at the Carroll Center. “I anticipate that at the conclusion of this course health care participants will be far better able to aid patients who have diabetes and visual impairment in developing a therapeutic healthful, and productive lifestyle,” Cleary said. Brian Charlson director of computer training at the Carroll Center, supervised the technical aspects of the project, which features Moodle )Modular Object Oriented Dynamic learning environment), a software platform that provides the sighted reader with complete and easily accessed materials while allowing the visually impaired student easy access through his or her own adaptive technology. For more information about these new online courses, read the FAQ’s or contact Brian Charlson at (617) 969-6200, ext 224. Register for these new diabetes and visual impairment courses by following the appropriate link below;
A New View for Patients and Families, http://carroll.org/online-courses/diabetes-and-visual-impairment-a-new-view-for-patients-and-families/
A New View for Vision Professionals, http://carroll.org/online-courses/diabetes-and-visual-impairment-a-new-view-for-professionals/
A New View for Health Professionals, http://carroll.org/online-courses/diabetes-and-visual-impairment-a-new-view-for-health-professionals/
Information listed below was taken from The Braille Forum
Free voice chat communication
Would you like to meet other Blind or Visually Impaired people from around the country or around the world?
For more information check out http://www.out-of-sight.net
The information below was taken from the magazine The Braille Forum
Accessible IOS App Camp
The Carroll Center for the Blind will host an Accessible IOS App Camp. This camp is geared to middle and high school aged students who are blind or visually impaired. No experience with Apple products is necessary; training will include hands-on instruction geard to assist with multiple devices. Instruction will include using the built-in Voice Over screen reader and Zoom screen enlarger, locating and downloading apps; interacting through social networks; listening to books, music, podcasts, and Internet radio; playing games; browsing the internet; sending/receiving e-mail; navigating with the GPS; using the camera to scan print materials such as bar codes and money; making calls; and texting.
When Aug 13-17 2012.
For more information and an application contact Dina.rosenbaum@carroll.org
Information listed below was taken from Talking Book Topics
Hadley School launches blinded veterans initiative
The Hadley School for the Blind in Winneka, Illinois, is recruiting blinded veterans from across the country to enroll in its Adult Continuing Education Program. As part of the Blinded Veterans initiative, veterans may receive free distance education on subjects such as business and entrepreneurship, independent living skills, and braille literacy. For more information call 1-800-323-4238 or visit The Hadley School website.
Information listed below was taken from Talking Book Topics
Accessible Sudoku game available from Perkins
The Perkins School for the Blind is offering its wooden Sudoku set, which has tiles labeled in both braille and large print, for $79. For more information visit Perkins online store or email PerkinsProducts.
Information listed below was taken from Talking Book Topics
Affordable computers available for blind or visually impaired users
The Texas Center for the Visually Challeged (TCVC) offers refurbished computers to blind and visually impaired residents of the United States and Canda in exchange for $100 donations. Computers are customized for accessibility and come with speakers, a sound card, and a demo copy of the screen reader Window-Eyes, as well as audio and large-print tutorials. For more information visit the TCVC website or call Bob Langford at (214) 340-6328.
Information listed below was taken from Talking Book Topics
Pedestrian Safety Handbook updated
The American Council of the Blind (ACB) recently released an updated version of its Pedestrian Safety Handbook, orginally published in 1999. The publication includes a guide to advocating for pedestrian safety improvements that discusses specific regulations, Case studies of successful efforts are included in an appendix. The handbook can be found online at http://www.acb.org/node/625
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