2014-03-30 04:45:46

I've gotten an iPhone 5S for my birthday just recently, and now I'm debating for the future to go with Android or stick with Apple...

I'm slowly catching up to everyone else, what with Windows 8 and now IOS 7, and am wondering, just exactly how different is Apple compared to Android?

I like VO's sound quality so much better than TalkBack.  However, I hear Eloquence is coming to Android.  I'm also wondering about the typing feature on Android, if you can use the standard way of typing on the keyboard (where you move your finger around, and use another finger to press the key you want, instead of lifting your finger).  I've used my mom's tablet with Talkback, but the browser was not accessible at all.  I'm imagining you can use a dictation-like program for speaking texts and such, like Siri?

Do braille displays work with Android?

Is there an Android where its size is comparable to the smallness of the iPhone?

I know this is a lot of questions, but I'm nowhere near knowledgeable in this field to make my own answers known.

Best Regards,

Luke

What game will hadi.gsf want to play next?

2014-03-30 07:26:36

Hi.

Well, I think Android is pretty good as it is right now.
It does have a few issues, but I think it's safe to say that it could be an alternative to iOS.
If you want to try Android, I recommend you to get a tablet like the Nexus 7 and keep your iPhone.
This will let you try out both platforms at the same time.
This is in fact what I'm doing. I haven't gotten an Android phone yet, although I may consider it in the future.
Android only has a few issues as far as I'm concerned.
The first, and probably most annoying is that some buttons and controls in the Google apps are not labeled.
Why Google can't follow their own accessibility standards fully is beyond me.
Secondly is the web support.
Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but you can't really navigate by things like headings or links using Chrome.
TalkBack reads the webpage just fine but navigating around it is difficult when you don't have good navigation commands.
I heard someone say that setting the granularity to section made you move by headings, but it's weird.
For instance, I load one of the forum pages in Chrome on my tablet. However, when I change to section navigation, it wants to skip a heading and read the next heading.
So, let's say I had a topic on the forum called test.
Test is a heading.
Under that is test2 which is also a heading.
Then, you have test3.
Well, I notice that when moving by section, it seems to go from test1, starts to speak test2 and then jumps to test3.
Again, if I'm just not doing things right, someone please feel free to correct me and tell me how to do it.
Aside from these issues, I think Android is pretty cool.
The platform is very flexible. You can change almost anything, from the home screen to using different tts engines with TalkBack.
The only thing I don't like about Android is the fact that carriers are able to modify the operating system.
This is why I got a tablet with stock android on it.

Grab my Adventure at C: stages Right here.

2014-03-30 08:17:45

There was a very good article posted on the audeasy list a while ago explaining that  Google have not introduced sensible web views into Android which make it dam hard for developers to  write programs that are  compatible with talkback,  (not impossible, but far less easy than on Ios or even windows).

this  is partly why there are  far fewer accessible games and applications for android, that and of course the issue that people have so many different makes and models of phones with slightly different os and versions of android that writing something accessible that covers all isn't easy.

I can see  that Android culd be an awsome platform  in the future and I do keep a watch on what is being done with it, but for me at least it was the inherent accessibility of Ios and the fact that there are so many aps and games that are accessible that I went with it over Android.

I can see android being a choice if you just want a tech toy to play with a different os, and as I said depending upon  improvements in access, more stability in the os and what gets released I'd certainly not be against getting an android tablet in the future, but  at the moment i'm personally not inclined to for the above stated reasons.

With our dreaming and singing, Ceaseless and sorrowless we! The glory about us clinging Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing; O men! It must ever be
That we dwell in our dreaming and singing, A little apart from ye. (Arthur O'Shaughnessy 1873.)

2014-03-30 08:57:30

Exactly. I've played wit Android man times over the years and so far I haven't found it nearly as intuitive as I've found IOS to be. Then of course as Dark said there's the inherent accessibility of IOS which Android doesn't yet include.

But wait, what's that? A transport! Saved am I! Hark, over here! Hey nonny non, please help!

2014-03-30 13:57:36

Hi,
Android definitely takes some setting up, but it's certainly usable. I recently got me a Samsung Galaxy s4, I purchased eSpeak from the play store for 69 pence, and I also noticed that the latest version of Talkback has an accessibility tutorial, something that iOS doesn't have built in.
One thing I found very odd was having to set up my home screen, by installing something like Nova Launcher, but the great thinga bout Nova Launcher is that, for the most part, it's accessible. The only thing Talkback does not do with this launcher is tell you where you are dragging your finger when you move icons, which, trust me when you first set up your home screen can be annoying to deal with, but i got used to it, and now have my home screen and dock the way I would like it.
I've also got the free firefox browser, but I browse more on the pc anyway.
When I switched to eSpeak, I imediately noticed a difference in the speed of Talkback. I then increased it to a similar speed that I have it on the PC, and it's now very fast indeed.
The thing I love about android is the customization. It's very easy to add new ringtones, you can even, at least on the Samsung phones, set songs as ringtones, alarms, text tones, etc, from your music library. You can also add any file you want to folders that show up as a USB device when you plug it into the pc (ringtones for ringtones, and notifications for your text and notification sounds.)
Ditto with music. NO fiddling about with iTunes, just add whatever you want to the music folder via the pc and there you go.
I'd definitely recommend keeping your iPhone though, due to the amount of apps available for that platform, and how, in general, the phone does have quite a lot more accessibility standards.
However, Android is certainly getting better, especially on version 4.3 and upwards.
Samsung have even partnered with Dropbox. I signed in when it asked me to, went to the desktop, and noticed I had a wopping 50 gb space just for signing in on the android, and this is not a bug. It's valid for two years.

2014-03-30 19:12:13

That's weird. You bot ESpeak? I swear that the TTS was free from the Google playstore.

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Kong!

2014-03-30 19:31:09

Greetings!
You are indeed correct. Though for the best eSpeak experience, and the most up-to-dated version, best to get the "paid" one.

Definitely getting a nexus, or a "Google Play Eddition" device, will "always" be updated with the latest version of Android.

And although you can use the "Google Keyboard" as I do, along with a Bluetooth keyboard, a lot of people prefer the "swipe" keyboard," which lets you select, cut, copy, and paste text to the clipboard, without needing version 4.3 or later of Android.

By the way, make sure to visit the "Eyes-Free Bug Tracker":
http://code.google.com/p/eyes-free/issues
, and make your voice heard if ya find a bug with anything and everything Android and/or Talkback accessibility!

2014-03-30 19:39:36

IOS has Voiceover Practice, so there is in fact a tutorial.

But wait, what's that? A transport! Saved am I! Hark, over here! Hey nonny non, please help!

2014-03-30 21:27:37

@BryanP Voiceover practice is more like keyboard help than a tutorial. On android, when you load talkback for the first time, you get a propper tutorial that not only explains gestures, but also lets you try them in a practical environment. EG, the first thing it asks you to do is drag your finger to find something, then it shows you flicking, then double-tapping, etc. The Mac does this as well so I'm not sure why Voiceover on iOS doesn't.

As far as screen readers, I'll say I like Voiceover better, apart from the braille support which is horrible IMO. However, talking about OS's in general, Android beats iOS hands down. To me, the iPhone is too limitting to be productive - moving data from one app to another, or even from and to a computer is really overcomplicated. I already wrote my thoughts down on Applevis as far as being more specific, so feel free to read that post

<Insert passage from "The Book Of Chrome" here>

2014-03-30 23:57:06

Hi,
@pitermach: where can I find that post?

2014-03-31 02:24:15

Hi.

They shouldn't be charging for e-speak.
I think that is illegal because e-speak is open source and free anyway.
Why is nothing done to make the free e-speak versions on android work with 4.4?

Grab my Adventure at C: stages Right here.

2014-03-31 02:37:32

Well Chris. i can confirm that ESpeak does work on Android 4.4. I have a nexus 7 FHD running version 4.4, and I also have the ESpeak that is free in the Playstore. It seems that it's working fine.

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Kong!

2014-03-31 03:59:09

Hi.

Ok, so I'm not really a fan of e-speak, but I got one of the free versions to work.
Apparently the eyes free version of e-speak doesn't work but the one by Cameron Wong or what ever does.
However, why is the voice monotone? It's really annoying to listen to.

Grab my Adventure at C: stages Right here.

2014-03-31 04:34:37

Hmm, that's a good question.
I'm not even sure which version of ESpeak i have, but, just like you Chris, i don't use it. I'm currently using Vocalizer Expressive karren.

You can add me on Steam.
Here is my Twitch profile page Follow me if you want.
You can also follow me on Twitter.
Kong!

2014-03-31 10:56:51

Well access to the os and use of propper filing is an   advantage I would certainly agree, which is one reason I'd be interested to see what happens with android in the future. The only issue however is  that developing  software for it is  such a pest few people do it, plus of course the need to buy exactly the right phone and version of os and even then set things up.

Regarding the tutorial, while I can see the advantage, if I remember rightly when vo was first activated on my Iphone there was a message about flicking and tapping, which was all that is needed to get started, indeed with no experience and only a vague idea I had no issues with vo when i got my Iphone, (I did have an issue with the Apple id setup but that was more due to screen layout and apple's multiple redundency than anything else).


I'd be interested to play with an Android device at some point just to see how it works, but lack of extra ap support and some of the issues I've heard about developing accessible aps on android aren't encouraging.

With our dreaming and singing, Ceaseless and sorrowless we! The glory about us clinging Of the glorious futures we see,
Our souls with high music ringing; O men! It must ever be
That we dwell in our dreaming and singing, A little apart from ye. (Arthur O'Shaughnessy 1873.)

2014-03-31 15:41:25 (edited by Socheat 2014-03-31 15:43:20)

well, for me, android is the one is good and cheep than the iPhone.
and a question: Why does ESpeak need to sale? ESpeak is the free and open source. why it would need to sale for those who running the android OS?

2014-03-31 21:51:06

The license that Espeak is using does actually allow it. As long as the source is available, you can sell it. So, you can go get the sources and compile it yourself if you want, or you can get the precompiled through the play store if you want to support the developer. This helps with future development, server costs, all that other stuff.

<Insert passage from "The Book Of Chrome" here>