I am one of the people who acquired my disability in my late forties.
I have to say I was stunned at the cost of access equipment.
It strikes me that what we need is a advocacy movement to bring the attention
of the public to what is happening.
This thread has developed into a really useful debate which needs to be aired
more widely.
Also it has made me really think about the barriers which exist to prevent us
getting the equipment which is needed.
Somebody said on this thread that there weren't many really poor people
around, I am afraid that just isn't true.
How anyone in developing countries can cope is beyond me!!
I usually use this site for purely selfish reasons, but this has really woken
up my conscience.
Great Thread, thanks to all.
Jeff
PS still haven't replace my Braille Sense, turn it on every morning in the hope
it has come back to life.
At least though I can consider an expensive replacement.
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of CJ & AA MAY
Sent: 05 July 2020 11:41
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: acquiring a disability and using access tech was RE:
Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and Human Rights, your participation
in this crucial dialog is absolutely appreciated
It can only be healthy for the access companies to have some competition; this
way they will not rest on their laurels and will need to keep their prices
competitive.
Alison
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of martin
wilsher (Redacted sender "martinwilsher" for DMARC)
Sent: 05 July 2020 11:32
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] acquiring a disability and using access tech was RE: Re:
Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and Human Rights, your participation in
this crucial dialog is absolutely appreciated
HI. Changed subject line to reflect how discussion is about to shift.
Building in access to mainstream products has massive beneifits, not just for
those who are already disabled, but for those who become so. I recently had a
question from someone who was losing their sight and had other difficulties.
They were using an iPhone, and were convinced they would have to junk the phone
and go to another product that would cost £££ I told them not a bit of it, and
showed them ways to use the phone, voiceover, and also swipe to speak etc.
building in access to mainstream products is the way to go, and with narrator
and apple and android doing just that, the third party solutions are going to
have some stiff competition very soon. Add into that the growth of voice driven
tech, and wham.
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Redacted
sender "terence.moody" for DMARC
Sent: 05 July 2020 11:25
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely appreciated
Steve,
Quite so, and this seems to me to be a very good arrangement, especially if
adopted more widely. As I said in an earlier post: " … if providers accept the
obligation (either voluntarily or legally imposed ) to build in accessibility
from the ground up (think smart phones?) … The costs… would be spread across
all customers for the technologies involved - which means most of the
population in developed countries, which seems fair enough if you think of it
as a form of social insurance.
Best regards,
Terry
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Steve Nutt
Sent: 05 July 2020 11:10
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely appreciated
But remember, you pay more for Apple products in the first place, so basically
they have chosen the model that everyone pays for your screen reader.
You also pay more because their support networks, IE shops, are superb.
All the best
Steve
--
Computer Room Services
77 Exeter Close
Stevenage
Hertfordshire
SG1 4PW
T: +44(0)1438-742286
M: +44(0)7956-334938
F: +44(0)1438-759589
E: steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
W: https://www.comproom.co.uk
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of CJ & AA MAY
Sent: 05 July 2020 09:59
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely appreciated
Yes, I did think when this thread started and folk pointed out that research
has to be paid for, that there are companies like Apple who provide free access
to most of their products.
Alison
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of Amro Bilal
Sent: 04 July 2020 21:10
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely appreciated
Hello Mostafa,
I would’ve participated in this thread more constructively if I knew it would
make the slightest difference. As long as MS aren’t doing their bit in making
Windows accessible like Apple does, we will remain under the crunch of the
mighty Jaws.
Kind regards,
Amro
On 04/07/2020 04:32 pm, Angels Desk (Redacted sender angel238 for DMARC)
wrote:
** To leave the list, click on the immediately-following link:-
The reason you stated justifies the cost of the product. You get what
you pay for.
Sent from Mail <https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986> for
Windows 10
*From: *martin wilsher <mailto:dmarc-noreply@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Sent: *Saturday, July 4, 2020 11:20 AM
*To: *access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
*Subject: *[access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely
appreciated
I pay for jaws because if something goes wrong, you have someone you
can
talk to and say, "is it me, or is the software bust? Reminds me of a
time
when I installed a copy of jaws for that copy to take every other copy
down
with it, nothing would run properly, and jaws was screwed on my system
to
the point I couldn't use any previous version of the screenreader. I
leapt
to system access as an emergency solution and sight and sound batted
on my
behalf with FS who initially denied it was their problem. Turned out
it was
a jaws issue, as a tech at S and s looked at logs of my computer and
saw
where jaws was busting. FS caved in and made the general fix in six
weeks.-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of
Steve
Nutt
Sent: 04 July 2020 12:15
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely
appreciated
Hi Jackie,
I'll tell you what justifies the price in my opinion.
I had a serious crash issue with Office 365 Outlook and JAWS a few
months
back. I had the same crash with NVDA.
It seemed to be a problem with screen reader hooks in general, but
JAWS came
out with an update a few days later. NVDA I had to wait at least a month.
That's the difference.
What you're paying for is support for the most popular programs, and
to be
frank, I couldn't do without that support for my job. So it really
depends
on priorities of the individual.
All the best
Steve
--
Computer Room Services
77 Exeter Close
Stevenage
Hertfordshire
SG1 4PW
T: +44(0)1438-742286
M: +44(0)7956-334938
F: +44(0)1438-759589
E: steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
W: https://www.comproom.co.uk
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of
Jackie
Brown
Sent: 03 July 2020 17:09
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely
appreciated
To be fair though, JAWS tends to be discounted at this time of year,
as are
the SMA prices. And if you can't afford JAWS even at the discounted
price,
then you have Narrator and NVDA. I know this is contentious, but we
do
receive PIP to assist with such costs. I know there are charities who
offer
grants, though I appreciate you have to jump through a lot of hoops to
avail
of them. I guess it depends what you consider to be more important in
what
lifestyle choices you make, there is no such thing as a free lunch. I
sometimes wonder what is being done to JAWS every single year to
justify the
SMA, but it's important to me to use it so I accept that it has to
keep
up-to-date with Microsoft if I want to continue using Windows. For
example,
you won't get away with using Microsoft 365 or Microsoft Edge if you
continue to cling to an older version of JAWS. That means having to
pay for
the updates, that's just the way it is if you want to shop or bank
online
safely. If nobody paid for JAWS updates, and there were no SMA
pathways,
your computing experience would begin to deteriorate pretty quickly if
you
wanted to keep updating Windows. Yes you could stay put on an old
version
of JAWS running on an old version of Windows, but your options would
decrease substantially.
If you resent the FS model, learn the Mac and depend solely on Apple
for
your accessibility, thousands of blind people do and love it.
Kind regards,
Jackie Brown
Email: jackieannbrown62@xxxxxxxxx
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of
goshawk
on horseback
Sent: 03 July 2020 16:42
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely
appreciated
since the scrapping of window-eyes by FS, I would disagree, as that's
one
choice less now.
Simon
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jackie Brown" <jackieannbrown62@xxxxxxxxx>
To: <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Friday, July 03, 2020 9:03 AM
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human
Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is absolutely
appreciated
Hi Steve and David
I agree with you both. I jump to NVDA and Narrator when I have to,
but I do think JAWS has it when it comes to proofreading and Braille
support.
It's a pointless argument anyway, people have to do what they are
comfortable with, and at least there are more screen reader choices
than there used to be.
Kind regards,
Jackie Brown
Email: jackieannbrown62@xxxxxxxxx
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of
Steve Nutt
Sent: 03 July 2020 08:51
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is
absolutely
appreciated
Hi David,
This is why I agree with you too.
If you are a home user, or hobbyist, then NVDA or Narrator is enough.
But if you need advanced screen reading, then it currently has to beJAWS.
What other screen reader for example, offers text analysis? This is
crucial to me to make presentable documents.
I agree that NVDA and Narrator far out perform JAWS in aspects such
as
responsiveness, but that is not enough for someone in employment.
All the best
Steve
--
Computer Room Services
77 Exeter Close
Stevenage
Hertfordshire
SG1 4PW
T: +44(0)1438-742286
M: +44(0)7956-334938
F: +44(0)1438-759589
E: steve@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
W: https://www.comproom.co.uk
-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx> On Behalf Of
David Griffith
Sent: 03 July 2020 00:19
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: Freedom Scientific, between Capitalism and
Human Rights, your participation in this crucial dialog is
absolutely
appreciated
Whilst I am sympathetic to the frustration expressed here I believe
that I will be a Jaws user for the foreseeable future. This is
because
I consider access not just a matter of principle but of practicality.
I want the best possible access solutions currently available on my
tech so that I can achieve the best standard of productivity and
quality in the admittedly limited hours of work I perform. I am
nearly completely retired now but would still urge anybody in
employment who is dependent on a screenreader to seek the full
range
of screen reading assistance available. It is tough enough
competing
with sighted colleague to provide best value employee performance as
good as or better than a sighted employee without sacrificing all
the tools at your disposal.
I use not just Jaws but NVDA and Narrator every week in a myriad oftasks.
Unfortunately there are a whole range of situations in which NVDA
or
Narrator just will not cut it and I need to use Jaws. I freely admit
there are occasions that NVDA, and increasingly Narrator, will in
some
tasks perform better than Jaws.
This does not gainsay the truth that Jaws, and especially the Jaws
cursor is required in many situations where NVDA and Narrator both
fail completely.
Just this evening I was having to use a m4b to mp3 convertor. This
is
completely impossible to use with NVDA and Narrator. Both the add
and
convert buttons could only be found by the Jaws cursor.
So to put it bluntly I am not prepared to cripple aspect of my
access
in order to satisfy frustrations against FS. Whether FS can justify
all their pricing structures is another matter. I see no realistic
way
that they could provide Jaws for free. Whilst they remain a third
party business and not part of mainstream OS funding I can seen no
business model which does not require them to employ staff to keep
their products updated in a constantly changing OS environment. An
old
version of Jaws will simply not work today.
. tiff.
The alternative of using largely unpaid volunteer resources with a
small core of employees to update products is the route pursued by
NVDA, but even here there are costs met by donations and grants from
blindness organisations alongside other grants from people like
Microsoft. There is really no free lunch.
David G.
On 2 Jul 2020, at 22:09, Mostafa Almahdy
<mostafa.almahdy@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Freedom Scientific is the largest manufacturer that produces
assistive technology solutions worldwide. Nonetheless, it
manipulates
this throttled market through base policy. At its inception, it
charges visually impaired clients so high to qualify them licensed
to
use Jaws, for certain time. After their license period has expired,
they are required to upgrade, through paying substantial amount to
temporarily use the license again and after awhile, it eventually
expires. You are now trapped in this vicious cycle. To perpetually
use their Jaws, you have got to pay them money, relentlessly. And,
despite what they throw at you in their unvalued mendings, updates
etc, you ought to give them money, with a smile. Even scripts which
are additional elements destined to enhance performance, are going
to
cost you a fortune. Now, the question here shall naturally be, why?
What for do I need to pay all this, to obtain a not so well given
product?
People are generically enslaved to this concept. Jaws has somewhat
influenced its users to unconsciously pay to keep upgraded, without
asking themselves, um, is it really worth it? Freedom Scientific
takes advantage of its broadly mega establishment to tremendously
dominate more people and trammel them into the Jaws immense delusion.
I fortuitously, have wholly emancipated myself from this grave deceit.
Why am I need to be infinitely impounded to such capitalistic entity?
Furthermore, by doing so, Freedom Scientific explicitly violates
human rights declaration recognised by United Nations consignment,
which plainly states, that equal access of information is eminently
professed to everyone. Thence, I mutually urge firm Jaws users and
Freedom Scientific staff to interact with this proposition. I do
not
attempt here to politicise the matter. But for certain, this
conversation has got an ethical scope affiliated with it. I am keen
to stiffen this useful discussion and exchange opinions. I
personally
feel so comfortable using open source solutions. What about you folks?
Do you feel somewhat compelled to stick to Jaws, despite the fact,
that it costs you more than what it actually deserves? Is the money
you pay worth what Jaws offers? I in this undisclosed list, have
included Freedom Scientific representatives, to hear their
perspective as well. I just hope, not to be shunned, disposed or
affronted based on my sentimental notions. I now look forward to
hearing from people, everywhere across the globe. Thanks for
reading,
Mustafa
--
(Seeking knowledge is compulsory from cratle to grave because it is
a
shoreless ocean.)
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