VII. Listening

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The combination of the Internet and computer screen reader software means blind people now have more access to written information than ever before. But bad Web design is making accessibility difficult.

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A folded white cane lies next to piles of papers and coffee cups on

computer desk of programmer Günter Christmann. He is blind and can't see the written text on the computer screen in front of him. Christmann opens his Internet browser using the keyboard curser and types in the name of the site he wants to visit – the tap of his fingers is accompanied by a fast-talking robotic voice that reads every character displayed on the screen. Given the amounts of advertisements, pictures, links and headings on every Internet page, it can sometimes take a while for a blind user to find the actual text that they want.

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(A)……………………………………………..

Previously, if Christmann wanted to read a newspaper, he had to wait for it to be scanned into Braille. "Nowadays, with Internet, I can go to the newspaper or magazine and I can read the newspaper directly," he said. The Internet has an even more practical side. Before the advent of the Net, Christmann had to wait for someone to scan in his computer manuals so he could do his work. "Now, I can search with Google and find everything I need," he said. There are several types of screen reader software that Europe's 2.7 million blind people can use if they have computer access.

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(B)……………………………………………

Christmann works as a product manager for Baum Retec, a German firm based near the southern German city of Heidelberg specializing in products and services for the blind and visually impaired.

  One of the products he supports is MyStick, a screen reader packed into a normal USB stick that is making computers and the Internet more accessible for the blind. Because it is portable, MyStick means blind users can log onto any PC, and start using the programs and surfing the Internet without having to engage in the process of installing software first. "I can go to a library or an Internet café and plug in MyStick and start using the screen reader," Christmann said. When he's finished, he just takes out the USB stick, and puts it in his pocket.

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(C)………………………………………………

In addition to the screen reader, another piece of equipment that's essential is a Braille display (costs around 12,000 euro). It's made up of a long row of so-called "soft cells" that are made up of six to eight tiny metal or nylon pins, which are controlled electronically and move up and down to spell out a line of text in Braille.

"Just because I can hear the words, doesn't mean I know how to write them," explained Anna Courtpozanis, who has been blind since birth (which hasn't stopped her gaining a degree, having a family, and working full-time). "If I write texts, I need to see if I have made a mistake," she said, as her fingers flew over the Braille line. Courtpozanis tests Web sites to see how accessible they are for Web For All, a Heidelberg association aiming to reduce barriers for people using the Internet. 

  It can take new users a while to learn the numerous keyboard commands that are necessary for using a screen reader or a Braille line. According to Courtpozanis, however, the main barrier to web use is poor Web design.

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(D)………………………………………………….

Pictures are often a barrier because unless a descriptive text is provided, a blind person has no way of knowing whether the image is an unidentified photo or logo, artwork, a link to another page or animated elements. Courtpozanis personally finds online forms particularly annoying simply because they are an unavoidable part of daily existence but often have no description of what particular field is for.

  "If I want my daughter's birth certificate but I haven't got time to go to the town where she's born, then I have to do it over the Net, but I can't fill in the forms," she complained.

Courtpozanis and Christmann are both what you would call power Internet users. And both of them are irritated that with all the investment in high-tech software and technology, it's the simple things – a lack of descriptive words, for instance – that can render a website meaningless for the blind.

Kate Hairsine for DW, 2007