RE: Advice for a programmer losing vision?
- From: "Ken Perry" <whistler@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: <programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 15 Jun 2009 17:35:36 -0400
I think you got a couple good posts of advice for screen readers plus
magnification so I will say as a Access technology instructor in Canada I
found that screen reader plus magnification will save you a lot of pain
later. You can get used to the screen reader before you have to use it and
not use it when you don't want to. I am also now a full time programmer and
100% blind so vision means little in the coding world if you're willing to
work at it.
Now with that said you had mentioned cepstral. I do like cepstral but the
problem I fine with voices like it and realspeak solo, and even neo speech
which all have linux versions is while they sound better they have a hard
time emphasizing where they should and end up sounding more mechanical in
the end than Elequence and TT speak. Unfortunately Elequence is no longer
being compiled for Linux and for those who think it never was just look at
the Braille plus running OE linux and using that engine. Anyway The only
good speech right now for linux that does decent at pronouncing and sounding
is TT synth which is just VIA voice from IB updated. You can buy it
anywhere from $5 bucks to $45 bucks I am not sure the $5 is really legal but
I have seen people get it for that much. Their home page is at:
http://www.ttsynth.com/
It has a link where you can listen to it. It is mechanical but it does a
better job of really speaking what is there.
Ken
From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Bill Cox
Sent: Monday, June 15, 2009 2:46 PM
To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: Advice for a programmer losing vision?
Thanks, Jackie, and everyone for the replies.
I have to say, it's a load off my shoulders knowing that many other
programmers succeed with visual impairment. I'm more adaptable than most,
and am pretty sure I'll do OK. The emacspeak project looks most promising
to me in my situation (long-time emacs hacker, with peripheral vision that
should work long-term). I'll be able to use apps I'm familiar with with
magnification sometimes (like skype). I'm having trouble installing any
speech synthesizer it works with on my Kubuntu 9.04 x64 system, though.
I'll post to the emacspeak list, and if I have to, I'll write some support
for other speech synthesis back-ends.
Not that it's critical now, but if I'm going to bother writing a back-end
for emacspeak to support another speech synthesizer, which synthesizer would
you recommend? I've installed both festival and espeak. I've also listened
to demos of Cepstral, which sound much better to me.
Thanks,
Bill
On Mon, Jun 15, 2009 at 2:12 PM, Jackie McBride <abletec@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
Hi, Bill:
1st, I do know what you're going thru. It bites.
U asked a question about whether u should use magnification or
screenreader. generally speaking, the conventional wisdom has it that
once you're at 5x magnification or above, productivity decreases to
such a level that screenreading software should be employed. This is
not to say that being able to zoom in on a particular spot might not
be helpful, but that it takes so much time to navigate the screen
using magnification that productivity suffers. It should also be noted
that eyestrain using magnification software can result in headache &
fatigue. Often, if system requirements permit, screenreading software
& magnification can function together to create a more powerful
solution than either technology alone.
Regarding learning braille, there are a variety of factors to
consider, including tactile sensitivity & desire to learn. I recommend
it for those who can, but, for example, many w/diabetic
retinopathy/neuropathy find it to be more frustrating than it's worth.
I really suggest that u not only avail yourself of the resources on
this list, which are considerable, but also contact your state
vocational rehabilitation department/commission for the blind, as the
case may be. They should surely be able to assist u, especially as it
relates to learning braille. Also, Hadley School for the blind in
Winnetka, IL, has braille courses, though I think u probably have to
be legally blind in order to access those.
Please let me know if u think I may be of further assistance.
On 6/15/09, Haden Pike <haden.pike@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> The orca screen reader, part of gnome, supports magnification.
>
> Haden Pike
> Email: haden.pike@xxxxxxxxx
>
> --------------------------------------------------
> From: "Holdsworth, Lynn" <Lynn.Holdsworth@xxxxxxxxxxx>
> Sent: Monday, June 15, 2009 11:16 AM
> To: <programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> Subject: RE: Advice for a programmer losing vision?
>
>> And there must surely be a plethora of free and cheap screen
>> magnification solutions for Linux. Anybody know anything about those?
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> [mailto:programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Tyler
>> Littlefield
>> Sent: 15 June 2009 16:09
>> To: programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> Subject: Re: Advice for a programmer losing vision?
>>
>> Bill,
>> Something you might check out is the speakup project found at:
>> http://linux-speakup.org
>> They have a mailling list, and a good community.
>> Basically speakup is the community for one of the linux screen readers
>> that is out, that uses espeak,flite,or festival.
>> HTH,
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Tyler Littlefield
>> Web: tysdomain.com
>> email: tyler@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>> My programs don't have bugs, they're called randomly added features.
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Bill Cox" <waywardgeek@xxxxxxxxx>
>> To: <programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>> Sent: Monday, June 15, 2009 9:03 AM
>> Subject: Re: Advice for a programmer losing vision?
>>
>>
>>> Thanks, Jim.
>>>
>>> It makes me feel a lot better to hear you say that. I've been here
>>> before,
>>> with the typing problem, and there wasn't much of any community at the
>>
>>> time
>>> to help. Yes, I will most likely stay in the linux world, though I
>> would
>>> not rule out controlling linux boxes through cygwin bash shells and
>> emacs
>>> like I did before. I also hope to help with development of some of
>> the
>>> tools being used.
>>>
>>> Bill
>>>
>>> On Mon, Jun 15, 2009 at 10:47 AM, Homme, James
>>> <james.homme@xxxxxxxxxxxx>wrote:
>>>
>>>> Hi Bill,
>>>>
>>>> You can definitely be productive as a programmer in your situation.
>>>> According to me, you have come to the right place to ask these kinds
>> of
>>>> things. We have a lot of great people on this list. Do you want to
>> stay
>>>> in
>>>> the Linux world?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Thanks.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Jim
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ----------
>>>>
>>>> Jim Homme, Usability Engineering.
>>>>
>>>> 412-544-1810.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Note: I will reply to email and voice mail within four hours.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people
>> with
>>>> talent.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> "Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent."
>>>>
>>>> - Calvin Coolidge (1872-1933)
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> *From:* programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:
>>>> programmingblind-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] *On Behalf Of *Bill Cox
>>>> *Sent:* Monday, June 15, 2009 10:32 AM
>>>> *To:* programmingblind@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
>>>> *Subject:* Advice for a programmer losing vision?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Hi.
>>>>
>>>> Sorry if you get a lot of first-time dumb posts, like this. I've got
>> a
>>>> rare genetic defect that's causing me to lose my central vision.
>> It's a
>>>> lot
>>>> like macular degeneration, but I'm only 45 years old. I've been a
>>>> programmer all my life, and have succeeded in dealing with disability
>>>> before. I could not type for three years. I mostly program in C on
>>>> Linux.
>>>>
>>>> What tools should I learn, what forums should I join, and what skills
>>>> should I develop to stay a productive programmer? I'm very good at
>>>> building
>>>> custom environments, which I did when I couldn't type. For example,
>>>> should
>>>> I bother with Braille, and which screen readers are best for mail,
>> web
>>>> browsing (and which browser?), and controlling shells and emacs? I
>>>> expect
>>>> to have peripheral vision for a long time. Do programmers with only
>>>> peripheral vision fare better reading text up close, or using screen
>>>> readers?
>>>>
>>>> Thanks,
>>>> Bill
>>>>
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Change the world--1 deed at a time
Jackie McBride
Check out my homepage at:
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& please join my fight against breast cancer
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