Tag: Accessibility

Understanding the Differences Between Blindness and Visual Impairment.

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Understanding the differences between blindness and visual impairment is crucial in order to properly provide support and resources for those who have these conditions. While both blindness and visual impairment involve a decreased ability to see, blindness refers to a complete or near-complete loss of vision while visual impairment is a reduced ability to see, even with correction. This article explains the differences between these two conditions, the causes of vision loss, and the impact on daily life. It also provides information on resources and support available for those affected by blindness and visual impairment, including assistive technology, rehabilitation programs, and advocacy groups. With over 2.2 billion people globally having a near or distance vision impairment, it is important to understand these differences to provide the necessary assistance to those affected.

Blindness vs Visual Impairment: Understanding the Differences

Blindness and visual impairment are two related but distinct conditions. Blindness is a complete or nearly complete loss of vision, while visual impairment refers to a decreased ability to see, even with correction. The differences between blindness and visual impairment can be seen in the extent of the vision loss, the causes of the loss, and the impact on daily life

Extent of Vision Loss: How Blindness and Visual Impairment Differ

The extent of vision loss is the most obvious difference between blindness and visual impairment. Blindness is defined as a visual acuity of less than 20/200 in the better eye with the use of corrective lenses, while visual impairment is a visual acuity of 20/70 or less in the better eye with the use of corrective lenses. This means that a person who is blind has such severe vision loss that they are unable to perform many daily tasks, such as reading, driving, or recognizing faces. In contrast, a person with visual impairment still has some residual vision and may be able to perform some daily tasks with the use of visual aids or assistive technology.

Causes of Vision Loss: What Leads to Blindness and Visual Impairment

The causes of vision loss also differ between blindness and visual impairment. Blindness can be caused by a variety of factors, including genetic conditions, traumatic injuries, eye diseases such as cataracts or glaucoma, and diseases that affect the entire body, such as diabetes or multiple sclerosis. Visual impairment can also be caused by these same factors, but it can also be caused by more minor vision problems, such as nearsightedness or farsightedness, that can be corrected with glasses or contact lenses.

Global Impact of Vision Impairment: A Look at the Numbers

The World Health Organization (WHO), estimates that at least 2.2 billion people globally have a near or distance vision impairment. In at least 1 billion – or almost half – of these cases, vision impairment could have been prevented or has yet to be addressed.

According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), approximately 12 million people 40 years and over in the United States have vision impairment, including 1 million who are blind, 3 million who have vision impairment after correction, and 8 million who have vision impairment due to uncorrected refractive error. Additionally, the CDC estimates that 6.8% of children younger than 18 years in the United States have a diagnosed eye and vision condition. Nearly 3 percent of children younger than 18 years are blind or visually impaired, defined as having trouble seeing even when wearing glasses or contact lenses.

Impact on Daily Life: How Blindness and Visual Impairment Affect Everyday Tasks

The impact of blindness and visual impairment on daily life can also differ. Blindness can have a profound impact on a person’s life, making many everyday tasks, such as cooking, cleaning, or navigating unfamiliar environments challenging. People who are blind can do many things independently, however they may require assistance from family members, friends, or paid caregivers to perform daily tasks. A person who is blind may also require mobility aids such as a white cane or guide dog to navigate unfamiliar environments.

Alternatively, a person with a visual impairment may find some tasks more difficult, but with the use of visual aids or assistive technology, many people with visual impairment are able to live independently and perform daily tasks with minimal assistance. However, visual impairment can still have a significant impact on daily life, particularly for older adults who may have trouble reading medication labels, seeing road signs, or performing other tasks.

Support and Resources for Individuals with Vision Loss

The impact of blindness and visual impairment can also extend to personal relationships and work life where it can affect their psychological and social well-being. A person who is blind or visually impaired may experience feelings of isolation, depression, or anxiety, and may have trouble forming and maintaining relationships with others. They may also face stigma and discrimination in the workplace and in their communities, which can limit their opportunities and negatively impact their quality of life.

There are various organizations and resources available to support individuals with blindness and visual impairment. These resources include rehabilitation programs, support groups, and assistive technology. Rehabilitation programs provide individuals with training and support to help them learn new skills and adjust to their blindness or visual impairment. Support groups offer a safe and supportive environment for individuals to connect with others who are facing similar challenges.

Assistive Technology: Tools to Help Individuals with Vision Loss

Assistive technology can help individuals with blindness or visual impairment complete tasks and engage in activities they enjoy, such as reading, writing, or using a computer.

Examples of assistive technology include screen readers, magnifiers, and Braille displays. Screen readers are software programs that convert text on a computer screen into spoken words, making it easier for individuals with visual impairment to access and use computers. Magnifiers are devices that enlarge text and images, making it easier for individuals with visual impairment to see. Braille displays are devices that allow individuals who are blind to access and interact with a computer using Braille, a system of raised dots that can be felt and read by touch.

Advocacy and Empowerment: Organizations Supporting Individuals with Vision Loss

In addition, there are organizations and advocacy groups, such as the National Federation of the Blind and the American Council of the Blind, that work to support and empower individuals with blindness and visual impairment. These organizations provide resources, advocacy, and support to individuals and families affected by blindness and visual impairment. They also work to promote policies and programs that support individuals with visual impairment and to raise awareness about the challenges faced by individuals with blindness and visual impairment.

Blindness and visual impairment are related but distinct conditions that differ in their extent of vision loss, causes, and impact on daily life. Both conditions can have a significant impact on a person’s physical and psychological well-being, but with proper support and accommodations, people who are blind or visually impaired can live fulfilling and productive lives.

If you would like to support Life After Blindness and receive exclusive perks, become a patron. Thanks! You can also get in touch by emailing: tim@lifeafterblindness.com

September 3, 2022

Smart Home Accessibility with Shawn Preece and Robyn Christopherson

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Welcome to the weekend edition of v the Life After Blindness podcast.

March 16, 2021

2021 Coverage of CSUN and Axe-con. But don’t quote me on that…

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It’s March, 2021 and that means that assistive technology conference season is upon us once again. Moving from the crowded conference rooms and exhibit halls, this year each conference was completely virtual. So what was that experience like and what did we learn from each conference? I’m joined by Rose Morales and Charles Hiser to break it all down.

Rose is a former trainer with Apple who now works as a lead tester for an online education platform and Charles is a free-lance editor and student of accessibility. He has recently submitted an entry for the Holman Prize. Please watch his video and like it to give him your vote.

Rose and Charles begin by explaining what exactly CSUN and Axe-con are. They also describe how each conference is different this year due to being completely virtual. Each conference had its pros and cons but overall they seemed to offer a positive experience.

As we dive deeper into each conference, Rose and Charles explain what was presented during many of the live and pre-recorded presentations. Topics from these presentations include captioning, audio description and the accessibility of apps and websites, both from the perspective of a company as well as the consumer. Also discussed was self advocacy, artificial intelligence and the future of disability lawsuits and negotiations.

If you have any questions or comments, please send your emails to: tim lifeafterblindness.com.

Please join me again next time as we continue our journey together to find that there truly can be a life after blindness.

March 1, 2021

Audio Games Discussion with Liam Erven and coping with the Pandemic

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Audio games are interactive games played on a computer or smart phone that usually have very little or no graphics. Audio games can have the simplest of interfaces that utilize a screen reader. They can also be fully immersive and interactive with 3-D sound effects, actors and musical scores.

If you would like to support Life After Blindness and receive exclusive perks, become a patron. Thanks!

Before the Games

On this weeks episode of the Life After Blindness Podcast, I begin by talking about some of the things that have been happening to me over the past year during the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, I share several stories from listeners about the issues they’ve had navigating the pandemic as someone who is blind or visually impaired.

Shall We Play a Game?

Next up, I interview Liam Erven from L-Works Games. Through L-Works, Liam produces affordable computer games for those with visual impairments.Liam and I talk about what audio games are and how he got into creating them. Liam also talks about some of the games he has developed and gives his opinion on the future of audio gaming.

If you have any questions or comments, please send your emails to: tim@lifeafterblindness.com

March 2, 2020

An Audio Description Extravaganza! Conversation with Voiceover Artist Roy Samuelson, Activating AD and a Bit of a Rant

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A Blind Point of View – Experiencing Blindness from Birth

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Have you ever wondered about the experiences of someone who has been blind since birth? This week, Tim Schwartz and Maria Johnson will be exploring many things about being blind since birth with Holly Anderson and Darcy Bernard from the Maccessibility Roundtable Podcast.

A Blind Point of View is a new roundtable podcast where people who are blind or visually impaired come together to have a deep dive conversation about all things related to blindness.

In this roundtable, Holly and Darcy describe a variety of situations related to being blind since birth. They both talk about their childhood experiences and how things they “lost out on” are similar to the “loss” someone might feel from losing vision later in life.

They also describe whether they can see or not in their dreams as well as what colors really mean to them.

A lot of fruit analagies are brought up here.

Tim, Maria, Holly and Darcy discuss some of the more politically correct (or not) words and phrases associated to people who are considered blind or visually impaired and whether these terms really matter or not.

The conversation gets really deep as everyone speculates that no matter when you became blind, we are all in it together.

If you would like to be a part of the conversation or have an idea for a future roundtable, please get in touch with either Tim or Maria. Thank you so much for listening to A Blind Point of View!

February 26, 2020

An Audio Description Extravaganza! Conversation with Voiceover Artist Roy Samuelson, Activating AD and a Bit of a Rant

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It’s an audio description extravaganza on the Life After Blindness Podcast! First, I speak with audio description narrarator and voiceover artist, Roy Samuelson about the creation process and the current state of audio described content. Then, I show you how to turn on the audio described track within 5 of the top video streaming services. And finally, I share my thoughts on the availability of audio description, accessibility and the future of AD.

If you would like to support Life After Blindness and receive exclusive perks, become a patron. Thanks!

A Conversation about audio description.

Roy Samuelson is a voiceover artist and audio description narrarator who has lent his voice to well over 500 national network episodes and blockbuster films. This includes NCIS, Lethal Weapon, Star Trek Picard, 1917, Spiderman Far from Home and Spiderman Homecoming, . Roy is also known for his voiceover work on many popular video games and television commercials.

Roy begins our conversation by talking about what audio description is by comparing it to color commentating on a live sports event. He then describes the process of creating an audio description track beginning with the writing, the recording and editing. He explains the maticulous planning and creativity that goes into producing an audio described track.

Roy discusses his excitement over how much audio description has grown in recent years. He is particularly excited about new streaming services as well as work behind the scenes that will continue the growth of and access to audio description.

Roy is a big believer in advocacy. We talk about consumers asking for audio description for The Dark Crystal series and Daredevil on Netflix. In each case, the community spoke up and they got results.

Next, Roy tells me about how he got started doing voiceover work and how that has affected how he narrators an audio description track. Roy played a gangster in the former Great Movie Ride at Walt Disney World where he was really able to sharpen his acting and narration skills.

Roy has a passion for storytelling and connecting to an audience. In this interview, Roy definitely demonstrates that passion and the dedication that it takes to create an audio description track.

He continues to learn as well as teach, conducting occasional workshops for other narrators.

I am so grateful that Roy took some time to speak with me for this interview. He tells so many great behind-the-scenes tidbits and anecdotes. It was such a joy to speak with him!

If you would like more information about Roy Samuelson, you can visit his website, and follow him on Facebook and Twitter.

Additional resources for audio description that we discussed are:
The Audio Description Project from the American Council of the Blind. (ACB)
Audio Description Discussion Facebook Group
On Twitter, follow the hash tags AudioDescription KnowYourNarrator and NothingAboutUsWithoutUs

Todays Tech Tip

Continuing the audio description extravaganza, I show you how to activate the AD track within 5 of the top video streaming services.

You will hear me navigate through the player controls of Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV+, Netflix, Disney+ and CBS All Access. I demonstrate this on my iPhone 7 using iOS 13.3.1.

As a little bonus, I show how accessible most of these apps are and how one in particular is not so accessible.

Just my two cents about AD

To close out the show, I spend a few minutes talking about the current state of audio description and where I hope it will progress to in the future. I also share my displeasure with the way that AD tracks are licensed and distributed.

Overall, I think that the future of audio description looks good. It’s just that the road to get there might be a bit rocky. But as long as we keep advocating for accessibility and inclusion, we will hopefully get there faster and together.

If you have any comments or questions, please send your emails to: tim@lifeafterblindness.com. You can also leave me a voice mail by calling, 201-855-5221.

Please join me again next time as we continue our journey together to find that there truly can be a life after blindness.

February 3, 2020

Interview with Envision AI about Smart Glasses, Because of My Blindness with Maxwell Ivy Plus News about ScripTalk, Accessible Voting and more

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Envision AI is a smart phone app that allows people who are blind and visually impaired to scan text, bar codes, objects, faces and so much more. This week, I speak with one of the founders and developers from Envision, Karthik about bringing the app to google Glass. I also share a new ‘Because of My Blindness story from “The Blind Blogger”, Maxwell Ivey.

If you would like to support Life After Blindness, please donate here. Thanks!

The show opens this week with a brand new musical theme featuring an introduction from my wonderful daughter Alyssa. Please email me and let me know what you think.

In the News:

1. Flicktype Keyboard ranks third overall in paid iPhone apps.

The developers of the popular app Flicktype Keyboard have announced a new pay structure for the app. Also, they announced a new app for the Apple Watch.

In addition to it’s free version that requires copy and pasting of text, Flicktype previously had a monthly cost of $0.99 to allow the keyboard to integrate with your onscreen keyboard anywhere on your smart phone. This also included a version of Flicktype on the Apple Watch. Now, Costa and Ashley Eleftheriou, who develop Flicktype, have changed the cost to a one time payment of $1.99.

They have also released an Apple Watch only app called Flicktype Watch Notes that costs $2.99. This app allows you to make notes on your Apple Watch and then share them any way you like.

2. Valentine’s Day is just around the corner and National Braille Press is back with a variety of gifts for your sweetheart.

You can shop at NBP for jewelry, magnets, books and of course, Valentine’s Day cards. The Braille cards have a decoder on the back so that if you share it with someone who does not know Braille, they can decipher it.

3. En-Vision America has us covered when it comes to reading prescription bottle labels.

The long awaited ScripTalk app has finally been launched on the iPhone. Previously only available for Android, ScripTalk allows you to scan a special bar code on your prescription that will provide you with all of the important information you need to know about that particular script.

If you would like to find out if any pharmacies in your area have ScripTalk available or just want to get further information from En-Vision America, you can contact them at: 1(800)890-1180.

4. Voting in elections is a right and a privilage.

Recently, United States Senators Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Bob Casey from Pennsylvania, introduced the Accessible Voting Act. The Accessible Voting act would help ensure the full process of voting – from registering to vote, to casting a ballot in person or by mail.

Here is what each Senator had to say about the bill:

“The right to vote is the foundation of our democracy, but exercising that right is not possible for too many Americans. Inaccessible polling places and voting booths, limited access to transportation, insufficient options for casting ballots, and inaccessible voter information websites are all obstacles to voting for millions of Americans,” Klobuchar said. “The Accessible Voting Act would help ensure that we remove barriers to voting for citizens with disabilities, the elderly, Native Americans, and those with limited English proficiency. Our democracy works best when all citizens can make their voices heard at the ballot box.”

“The right to vote is one of the fundamental pillars of American democracy, but that right is under threat due to barriers that prevent or make it hard for older Americans and people with disabilities to cast their ballots,” Casey said.“

5. Dogs are not just man’s best friend, they are also a state mascot?

That’s right. The state of New Jersey has unanimously voted to make there state dog, the seeing eye dog. Of course, Morristown, New Jersey is home to the United States longest running guide dog school – The Seeing Eye.

Over the years The Seeing Eye has paired over 17,000 people with a visual impairment and a guide dog.

Because of My Blindness with The Blind Blogger, Maxwell Ivey.

Each week I like to share a story from a listener that I call, Because of My Blindness. This is your chance to talk about something positive that has happened in your life that might not have otherwise happened if you had not been blind.

This could include something you have learned or someone you have met or an experience you have had. This is a way to find the silver lining of a cloud that can be very dark.

This week, we hear from Maxwell Ivey, aka The Blind Blogger. Listen as he shares some lessons that he has learned along the way.

Be sure to listen to next weeks episode for a longer spotlight interview with Max.

Envision AI works with Google glass and more.

Karthik joins me next from Envision AI. Envision AI is an app for both iPhone and Android that “empowers blind and low vision users to be independent by speaking out the visual world around them.” You can use it to scan short text, full page documents, bar codes, objects and much more.

Due to be released at CSUN in March 2020, the first version of Envision Glasses will have Envision AI working on a Google Glass Enterprise Edition 2. It will incorporate all of the same functionality of the Envision AI app without needing a phone in your hand.

Karthik also notes that Envision AI won’t be limited to just Google Glass. He hopes to bring it to other platforms as they become available.

Thank you so much for listening to the Life After Blindness podcast!

If you have any questions or comments, please send your emails to: tim@lifeafterblindness.com or leave a voicemail by calling: 1(201)855-5221

November 12, 2019

Listeners Share for Blindness Awareness Month, Google Accessibility News And Sleep Phones Discussion with Maria Johnson

A Blind Point of View – Coping with Sight Loss

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Coping with vision loss.

A Blind Point of View is a new roundtable podcast where people who are blind or visually impaired come together to have a deep dive conversation about all things related to blindness.

In this first episode, Maria Johnson from GirlGoneBlind.com and Derek Daniel from LifeAfterSightLoss.com join Tim Schwartz to talk about coping with vision loss.

The trio begins by discussing their hopes for this roundtable podcast going forward. Then, each takes a turn at describing their own journey with sight loss. Tim and Derek explain how sight loss affected and even interrupted their lives at a younger age. However, Maria describes a different experience due to losing her vision later in life.

Derek, Maria and Tim not only talk about the many ways that sight loss changed their lives but share the variety of ways they have coped with it over the years. They each describe different people, groups and other experiences that have helped them.

If you would like to be a part of the conversation or have an idea for a future roundtable, please get in touch with either Tim, Derek or Maria.

October 31, 2019