Best Freedom Scientific Podcasts (2024)

Find out about some of the new features in JAWS, ZoomText and Fusion 2024 updates. Get introduced to Roxana Fischer. Hear about our 2025 Public Beta from Mohammed Laachir. And finally, after two years, re-visit with Eric Damery.By Vispero

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FSCast 248, Back to School: Prizes, Math And More 56:31

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2M ago56:31

56:31

On this “back-to-school” issue: Rachel Buchanan, our director of user education and technical support, introduces Sharkvember and The Next Big Thing contest. Dr. Denise Robinson, the founder of Your Tech Vision, discusses technology, education and math. And finally, Olga Espinola, our test engineer and a highly experienced technology user, explains…

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FSCast 247, An Interview With Oleg Shevkun, and Mohammed Laachir Discusses Our New AI Features 52:44

3M ago52:44

52:44

On this episode, Glen Gordon interviews Oleg Shevkun, our new FSCast host, and passes on the baton. Then, we hear from Mohammed Laachir, a product owner at Vispero, on some exciting AI-related developments in JAWS and Fusion.

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FSCast246, a visit with Dr. Tim Cordes, plus Crystal Jones talks about Microsoft's Disability Answer Desk 1:01:34

4M ago1:01:34

1:01:34

On FSCast 246, we’ll meet psychiatrist Dr. Tim Cordes. He’s been working in addiction medicine for nearly 20 years, and back in 2005 was the second totally blind person to graduate from medical school. Then all about Microsoft’s Disability Answer Desk that can help solve problems related to Microsoft software. Crystal Jones will be here with all th…

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FSCast 245, a demo of PictureSmart chat, all about NLS, and a visit with Gordon Legge 1:02:32

5M ago1:02:32

1:02:32

On FSCast 245, a demo of how PictureSmart just got smarter thanks to the new chat feature. Then Alice O’Reilly, Chief of the Collections Division, and Tamara Rorie, head of Patron Engagement at NLS, talk about the array of free services and devices available to people living in the United States. Plus, we’ll get to know Gordon Legge, Distinguished …

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FSCast 244, a visit with Ana González Arean, plus Nicky Gillies and Cathy Miller from the Louisiana DeafBlind project 52:17

6M ago52:17

52:17

On FSCast 244, we’ll meet Ana Gonzalez Arean. She’ll talk about growing up in Venezuela and becoming a language professor at two universities, but then needing to move to Spain to start a new life for herself. Then, Cathy Miller and Nicky Gillies from the Louisiana DeafBlind project discuss some of the challenges of identifying deafblind kids young…

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FSCast 243, archive of the March 2024 FSOpenLine 47:57

7M ago47:57

47:57

On the archive of the March FSOpenLine, people share their favorite things to do with PictureSmart AI, including how to use it with FaceInView to describe what’s in the background. And of course questions on a variety of other topics including why JAWS place markers sometimes lose their place, why Thunderbird speaks incoming email notifications mul…

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FSCast 242, a demo of PictureSmart AI, and a visit with Anil Lewis 46:49

7M ago46:49

46:49

On FSCast 242, we’ll put the newly released Picture Smart AI through its paces, and you’ll hear the detailed descriptions it can generate for everything from a bar chart to a frame from a YouTube video. Then, a visit with longtime blindness advocate Anil Lewis, Executive Director of Blindness Initiatives of the National Federation of the Blind. Tra…

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FSCast 241, all about accessible gaming 46:21

8M ago46:21

46:21

On FSCast 241, guest host Mohammed Laachir introduces us to the world of accessible gaming. He'll visit with Jesse Anderson, who runs the IllegallySighted YouTube channel, to talk about some of the games that you can play if you're blind or low vision. Then Mohammed talks with NightBlade, who runs an annual Game Jam to get sighted developers excite…

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FSCast 240, a visit with Doug Geoffray, and a demo of the Bitwarden password manager 1:01:42

9M ago1:01:42

1:01:42

On FSCast 240, we're joined by screen reading pioneer Doug Geoffray. We’ll hear about the development of Vocal-Eyes, Window-Eyes, and Doug’s eventual transition to Microsoft, where he helps ensure that their new products are accessible. Then, a deep dive into password managers, two-factor authentication, and a demo of using the Bitwarden password m…

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FSCast 239, archive of the November 2023 FSOpenLine 54:25

10M ago54:25

54:25

On the archive of FSOpenLine from November 2023, some Freedom Scientific developers and testers offer an inside look at our process for developing and refining new features. We also take your calls on a variety of topics including: the accessibility of the new Outlook interface and how to enable or disable it, how to use the Quick Access bar to get…

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FSCast 238, archive of the Next Big Thing finale 57:02

11M ago57:02

57:02

On FSCast 238, the finals of our November 14 Next Big Thing contest. You'll hear a presentation of the top three ideas, questions from our panel of four judges, some great entertainment, and of course, the person selected as the winner. Transcript at blog.FreedomScientific.com

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FSCast 237, a visit with Pete Torpey, plus all about Space Camp for Interested Visually Impaired Students 1:00:46

1y ago1:00:46

1:00:46

On FSCast 237, a visit with Pete Torpey. You probably know him as the co-host of the Eyes on Success podcast, but prior to that, he had a distinguished career as a research fellow at Xerox. Then, Space Camp for interested visually impaired students. We'll get all the details from Group Coordinator Dan Oates and Space Camp Vice President Robin Sopra…

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FSCast 236, a visit with Catherine Getchell, plus a focus on APH Career Connect 48:20

1y ago48:20

48:20

On FSCast 236, we’re joined by Catherine Getchell, Director of Disability Resources at Carnegie Mellon University. We'll hear about her path to the job at CMU and what motivates her to do this kind of work. Then, to celebrate October as Disability Employment Awareness Month, Lori Scharff and Richard Rueda from the American Printing House for the Bl…

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FSCast 235, archive of the August 2023 FSOpenLine 51:29

1y ago51:29

51:29

On the archive of the August FSOpenLine, news about Sharkvember and our Next Big Thing contest, features you can now try in our 2024 product betas, and of course your calls on a variety of topics. Transcript available at blog.FreedomScientific.com/FSCast.By Glen Gordon, Ryan Jones, Rachel Buchanan

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FSCast 234, a Demo of JAWS Face In View, and an interview with Billy Henry of the Northwest Association for Blind Athletes 32:12

1y ago32:12

32:12

On FSCast 234, guest host Brett Lewis offers up a preview of what’s coming in the public betas of JAWS, Fusion, and ZoomText. He’ll also do a demonstration of the new JAWS Face in View feature, and visit with Billy Henry, the President and CEO of the Northwest Association for Blind Athletes. Transcript available at blog.freedomscientific.com.…

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FSCast 233, Andrew Leland's new book "The Country of the Blind," plus accessible manufacturing at The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. 59:07

1+ y ago59:07

59:07

On FSCast 233 we’ll meet Andrew Leland. His brand new book, “The Country of the Blind,” is a thoughtful exploration of the world of blindness as he discovers his place in it. Then Ian Stenseng from The Lighthouse for the Blind, Inc. and longtime JAWS scripter Steve Clark will be here to talk about their creative ways of making The Lighthouse factor…

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FSCast 232, a demo of the new Message Center, and a visit with JAWS developer Brett Lewis 45:45

1+ y ago45:45

45:45

On FSCast 232, we’ll give a tour of the just-released Message Center. It’s a great way to keep up with product news and announcements, but to read them when it’s convenient. Then we’ll meet longtime JAWS developer Brett Lewis. In his other life, he’s a former Paralympian in judo, and loves the sport so much that he still teaches it three nights a w…

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FSCast 231, archive of the May 2023 FSOpenLine 48:48

1+ y ago48:48

48:48

On the Archive of the May FSOpenLine, an overview of features new to the June product updates, resources for learning Slack, and your calls on a variety of topics including: JAWS getting stuck thinking menus are active, and Adobe Reader not always bringing focus to the dialog for setting document tagging options.…

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FSCast 230, Major Scotty Smiley discusses his life, and Dr. Michele McDonnall with results of the AT In The Workplace study 57:35

1+ y ago57:35

57:35

On FSCast 230, we’ll get to know retired Army Major Scotty Smiley. He was blinded by a suicide bomber when fighting in Iraq; but came back, taught at West Point, and became the military’s first totally blind active-duty officer. Then, Dr. Michele McDonnall will be here to discuss the second year of the AT in the Workplace study conducted by Mississ…

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FSCast 229,An Interview with Mandy Van Cleave, an overview of Text Viewer, and how to write compelling bug reports 46:17

1+ y ago46:17

46:17

On FSCast 229, when Mandy Van Cleave started her job as an assistive technology trainer, little did she know that she would soon need that technology for herself. We hear from Mandy about her personal and professional experience, as well as about a new ZoomText feature that might change the way you use screen magnification. We also give a few tips …

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FSCast 228, An Interview with Donovan Tildesley, and an overview of using Visual Studio Code 57:08

1+ y ago57:08

57:08

On FSCast 228 I’m joined by retired Paralympic swimmer Donovan Tildesley. We’ll hear about his odyssey of being removed from a Virgin cruise because the crew panicked when they saw a solo blind passenger, and how his social media presence allowed him to negotiate a solution. Then, a look at Visual Studio Code and why it’s an accessible way to learn…

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FSCast 227, archive of the February 2023 FSOpenLine 47:26

1+ y ago47:26

47:26

On the archive of the February FSOpenLine, we take your calls on a variety of topics including: Slack conversations unexpectedly scrolling to previous content, Notepad starting up slowly on Windows 11, Fusion sometimes scrolling the screen away from the mouse location, the newly added WhatsApp scripts for JAWS, and how to prevent Zoom from automati…

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FSCast 226, Software developer Andre Polykanine, plus Sasha Hordiiko & Igor Kushnir from the Ukrainian Association of the Blind 43:19

1+ y ago43:19

43:19

On FSCast 226, we’ll get to know longtime JAWS beta tester, self-proclaimed language nerd, and software developer Andre Polykanine. Then Andre will serve as translator for a visit with Sasha Hordiiko and Igor Kushnir of the Ukrainian Association of the Blind. We’ll hear about their work and find out what life has been like since the beginning of th…

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FSCast 225, Bill McCann of Dancing Dots, & Campbell Rutherford, a former Student Of The Month 54:17

2y ago54:17

54:17

On FSCast 225, we celebrate Braille Literacy Month with two guests for whom braille plays a pivotal role. Bill McCann, founder of Dancing Dots, has been helping blind musicians with all aspects of music creation for the past 32 years. And Campbell Rutherford, a former Freedom Scientific Student of the Month, is now studying applied mathematics at H…

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FSCast 224, archive of the November 2022 FSOpenLine 43:36

2y ago43:36

43:36

On FSCast 224, it's the archive of the November 2022 FSOpenLine. We discuss improved support for the Outlook Scheduling assistant in JAWS 2023, and take your questions on a variety of topics including: searching for commands in JAWS and Office apps, preventing mail from going to the Outlook Junk folder, and providing resources to people who create …

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FSCast 223, Kim Charlson & Thomas Reid discuss the 2022 Audio Description Awards 50:15

2y ago50:15

50:15

On FSCast 223, it’s the Second Annual Audio Description Awards put on by the American Council of the Blind. We’ll hear about some of the winners and talk about all things audio description with Kim Charlson, co-chair of the ACB Audio Description Project, and Thomas Reid, audio description narrator and host of the Gala two years running. Transcript …

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FSCast 222, A demo of how to customize notifications using regular expressions, and Leona Godin discusses her book There Plant Eyes 56:37

2y ago56:37

56:37

On FSCast 222, we’ll demonstrate how creating rules to manage notifications just got more powerful, thanks to the use of regular expressions. It may sound a bit intimidating, but we’ll take it step by step, and you’ll see just how easy it really is. Then we’ll meet M. Leona Godin and hear about her book “There Plant Eyes: A Personal and Cultural Hi…

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FSCast 221, Christine Ha talks about her career as a blind chef, and Judy Dixon discusses her book "Formatting Documents For Appearance" 58:02

2y ago58:02

58:02

On FSCast 221, we’ll get to know chef and entrepreneur Christine Ha. Since winning “Master Chef” Season 3 back in 2012, she’s published a cookbook, opened multiple restaurants, hosted a cooking show on AMI Canada, and more. Then Judy Dixon will be here to talk about her latest book. It’s about Microsoft Word and called “Formatting Documents for App…

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FSCast 220, Archive of the August 2022 FSOpenLine 47:32

2y ago47:32

47:32

On the Archive of the August 2022 FSOpenLine, Ryan Jones, Glen Gordon, and Rachel Buchanan take your calls on a variety of topics including: Math in Braille with JAWS, switching Braille tables on the fly, Quick Keys in Word, efficiently reading Windows event logs, and why new JAWS versions are installed along side old ones. Transcript available at …

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FSCast 219, Ryan Jones previews our 2023 software public betas, and we meet Svetlana, Freedom Scientific’s July Student Of The Month 55:30

2y ago55:30

55:30

On FSCast 219, we’ll spend some time with Ryan Jones, Freedom Scientific’s new Vice President of Software Product Management. He’ll share a bit of his background, talk about what’s coming in the JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion 2023 product betas, and demonstrate the new JAWS Smart Glance feature. Then a visit with Svetlana, the Freedom Scientific July S…

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FSCast 218, Eric Damery shares stories about his 28 year career advocating for our software 51:41

2+ y ago51:41

51:41

On FSCast 218, Eric Damery joins Glen Gordon for what will probably be the last time. After over 28 years tirelessly advocating for JAWS and other software, and always being around to help users who are having problems, he’s decided to retire. This time, rather than talking about a new product feature, Eric is here to reflect upon some of the highl…

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FSCast 217, archive of the June 2022 FSOpenLine 43:27

2+ y ago43:27

43:27

On the archive of the June 2022 FSOpenLine, we take your calls on a variety of topics including: using JAWS with the Dvorak keyboard layout, a request for better support of WhatsApp on Windows, using JAWS with the touch screen on a Surface Pro, switching from JAWS Professional to a Home license, and lack of spoken feedback when selecting messages i…

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FSCast 216, A Demo of the JAWS Notification History Manager, and a visit with Richard Oehm 54:00

2+ y ago54:00

54:00

On FSCast 216, we have an answer to the age-old question, “What do you do about applications that tell us too much?” It’s the new JAWS Notification History Manager to the rescue. With it, you can gain precise control over which messages are spoken and which are shown in Braille. We’ll get you started by demonstrating how to make Microsoft Edge less…

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FSCast 215, Joe Stephen, long time JAWS developer, and Toby Willis, Senior Product Manager for Inclusive Travel at Expedia 46:54

2+ y ago46:54

46:54

On FSCast 215 we’ll get to know long-time developer Joe Stephen. In addition to his work on JAWS, he does manual labor on his family farm in rural Tasmania and manages to find the time to add accessibility support to some handheld ham radios. Then Toby Willis will be here to talk about Expedia and their current initiatives to make booking travel mo…

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FSCast 214, Adrian Amandi discusses the upcoming National Coding Symposium, and a visit with Gary O'Donoghue, Chief North America Political Correspondent for BBC News 51:02

2+ y ago51:02

51:02

On FSCast 214, Adrian Amandi will be here to talk about the Second Annual National Coding Symposium. It’s aimed at blind students of all ages to get them interested in careers in software development. The conference is free, online, and available to people worldwide. Then we’ll get to know Gary O’Donoghue, Chief North America Political Corresponden…

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FSCast 213, Dr. Robert Englebretson discusses his ongoing research about how Braille is taught 41:23

2+ y ago41:23

41:23

On FSCast 213, Dr. Robert Englebretson, Associate Professor of Linguistics at Rice University, discusses the Braille code for the International Phonetic Alphabet, why reading Braille is different than reading print, and his ongoing research about how Braille is taught. Transcript available at https://blog.FreedomScientific.com/FSCast…

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FSCast 212, archive of the February 2022 FSOpenLine 45:51

2+ y ago45:51

45:51

On the archive of the February 2022 FSOpenLine, we take your calls on a variety of topics including: new VocalizerExpressive voices in the latest software updates, keystrokes for identifying the site to which a link points, finding out where a file will be saved, Eloquence spontaneously getting louder mid sentence, and certain video cards hijacking…

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FSCast 211, Chancey Fleet talks training workshops offered by the New York Public Library, and an intro to working at the Windows Command Prompt 51:24

2+ y ago51:24

51:24

On FSCast 211, Chancey Fleet discusses training workshops offered by the New York Public Library, many of which are online and available to everyone. She’s also quite the expert on 3D printing and will share some resources for doing that accessibly. Then Glen demonstrates using the new Windows Terminal, and gives an introduction to working at the W…

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FSCast 210, Marine Biologist Maureen Hayden, plus Independence Science making experiments accessible 1:01:45

3y ago1:01:45

1:01:45

On FSCast 210, a focus on accessible science. Maureen Hayden will share her experiences being low vision and doing her Ph.D. in marine biology. Then Dr. Greg Williams and Ashley Neybert from Independence Science demonstrate the Talking LabQuest and Logger Pro® software, tools for making science experiments accessible. Of course, JAWS plays an activ…

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FSCast 209, Ryan Jones' Christmas light show, and international blindness advocate Pedro Zurita 55:26

3y ago55:26

55:26

On FSCast 209, Ryan Jones is here to talk about the process of running is annual Christmas light show involving thousands of lights choreographed to music. He does everything from putting lights on the roof to sequencing the light display using special software that JAWS makes accessible. Then we'll meet Pedro Zurita who has spent his life advocati…

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FSCast 208, archive of December 2021 FSOpenLine 56:57

3y ago56:57

56:57

On the archive of the December FSOpenLine, we take your calls on a variety of topics including: ideas to improve Text Analyzer, JAWS failing to announce word count when reading the Word Status Bar, shortcut keys for JAWS speech history, simplified Braille tables for Braille learners, and the status of JAWS running on computers that use an ARM proce…

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FSCast 207, What's new in Windows 11, Cassandra McNabb McKinney interview 46:58

3y ago46:58

46:58

On FSCast 207, improvements to Tandem security require JAWS and Fusion to be up to date, and Richard Kuzma tells us how he’s using a combination of Tandem and Voice Assistant to support a fellow blind user. Though Windows 11 sports a new visual look, it’s very much like Windows 10 if you’re a JAWS user. We’ll demonstrate some of what’s changed to h…

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FSCast 206, Accessible McDonald's order kiosks 25:05

3y ago25:05

25:05

On FSCast 206, McDonald’s has partnered with Freedom Scientific and TPGI to develop their accessible self-order kiosks. Over 500 have rolled out throughout the U.S., with more coming before the end of 2021. Ryan Jones will give us a demo. And then we’ll talk with Kelsey Hall, a product manager on the McDonald’s Digital Accessibility team, about how…

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FSCast 205, More with Eric Damery about new product features, and a visit with stenographer Daniele Casarola 42:32

3y ago42:32

42:32

On FSCast 205, Eric Damery is back with more about what’s coming in JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion 2022, and how you can try those features early. Then we’ll meet Daniele Casarola. He spent over two years teaching himself stenography and now works as a court reporter in Italy. He does it with the help of a JAWS plugin for Plover, his stenography progra…

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FSCast 204 - Archive of FSOpenLine, August 2021 48:46

3y ago48:46

48:46

On the archive of August FSOpenLine, public betas of JAWS, ZoomText and Fusion have been released, home annual licenses are now available in Canada, and severe memory leaks on many computers running Dell Waves Audio. Plus, we take your calls on a variety of topics including: a request to show a running clock on Braille status cells, a desire for ad…

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FSCast 203, Eric Damery with news about new 2022 product features, and a visit with Cory Jackson 49:41

3y ago49:41

49:41

On FSCast 203, Eric Damery is here to talk about some of the new features coming in JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion 2022, and how you can try them out early as part of our public betas. Then we’ll get to know Cory Jackson. He’s an escalation specialist in our tech support department, but in his free time has developed a sizable YouTube and TikTok follow…

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FSCast 202, Financial Educator Chris Peterson, Plus Emoji Accessibility with Garreth Tigwell and Benjamin Gorman 58:22

3+ y ago58:22

58:22

On FSCast 202 we’ll get to know financial educator Chris Peterson and learn about some of the advantages of opening an ABLE account. Then, to celebrate World Emoji Day, I’ll be joined by Garreth Tigwell and Benjamin Gorman, two authors of the paper “Emoji Accessibility for Visually Impaired People.” Transcript available at blog.freedomscientific.co…

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FSCast 201, Judy Dixon discusses her new book about audio description, and a visit with blind math professor Betsey Doane 54:49

3+ y ago54:49

54:49

On FSCast 201, Judy Dixon is here to discuss her new book “Audio Description: What It Is, Where to Find It, and How to Use It.” Then we’ll meet blind math professor Betsey Doane. She spent over 30 years teaching sighted students, and came up with lots of creative ways of showing math visually. Transcript available at blog.freedomscientific.com/fsca…

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