However you choose to listen, we trust that you will enjoy the presentation.

I have always known Disney to take a special approach to all its guests. I mean, they’re in the business of making dreams come true, right? I have never encountered issues with accessing any of the attractions. My guide dog has always been welcomed. In fact, Hurley was riding  around with my Son and me in one of their go karts on this trip, with no one batting an eye, but I have to confess this past weekend totally rocked my view of Disney’s effort to make their park a universal experience.

The device with no real name is offered free for the duration of your visit with a refundable $25 deposit. It is a 7.2-ounce handheld computer with over the ear headphones. It provides an interactive audio and visual menu that allows you to choose the type of information you would like to receive about outdoor areas – from a description of your surroundings to information about nearby attractions, restaurants, and entertainment. It gives audio descriptions for key visual elements like action and scenery. I’ve never experienced the Carousel of Progress in quite that level of vivid detail before. The device features assistive listening for persons with mild to moderate hearing loss. The unit even features captions for various audio and dialog. While we were only able to visit the Magic Kingdom this time, the system is available for all four Disney parks in Orlando. One of the things I’m looking forward to in a future visit is going to the Animal Kingdom and using the handheld captioning feature to learn more about the animals my family and I are visiting. I think it will be great to offer my children information about the animals with the same ease as any tour guide. I can’t even begin to describe the feeling of joy I experienced being able to talk to my children about the amazing workmanship and attention to detail on attractions like “It’s A Small World” and others, and how I was able to connect with them and share my own experiences as a child at Disney. I can’t express how great it was to be able to use this technology to “see” the park like they did.

The technology is so sophisticated that at any point it would have been possible for me to venture out on my own and never feel at a loss as to where I was headed. Now, before you ask, no, the user does not get directions as to whether the facility is to your left, right, ahead or behind, but I attribute this to the early stages of any product development and the lack of pinpoint GPS accuracy that is absent in all mainstream orientation tools. Perhaps Google’s local map technology may help with this in the future?

As you may know, Disney does not believe in wasted real estate. Their idea of roller coasters consists of packed adventures that are just as capable of being heart-pounding as they are visually enthralling. Before, it was enough for me to bask in the delighted screams of my children and feel good that they were having fun. With my handheld device, however, I was plugged into an instant feed of information that allowed me to perceive the rides from a more highly involved angle. We’re not just talking front row seat here. We’re talking front and center detailed audio descriptions of costumes, props, settings and background scenery. The closest comparison to the experience I can think of is descriptive video. In 2001 I was brought to tears while experiencing “How The Grinch Stole Christmas” on DVD with my family without anyone having to tell me what was going on. As unforgetable as that day was, the problem is that video description is still quite two-dimensional. There is something completely different about a multisensory experience being aided by a voice telling you exactly what you are passing. You’ll hear details about the attraction that will in all likelihood escape the notice of even those who can see. There’s just too much competing for visual attention that the average guest will not be able to take it all in.

Like Serotek’s System Access to Go in 2008, Disney’s handheld device received the American Foundation for the Blind’s prestigious Access Award in 2011. I now know firsthand that the recognition was well-deserved. As AFB’s President and CEO Carl R. Augusto noted, ““Too often, swift advances in technology bring the rewards of convenience and entertainment to an eager world while inadvertently leaving those who are visually impaired behind.” I can testify that as far as I can tell, Disney has made people with disabilities a fully integrated part of their customer base.

Visiting the Disney World Resort prompted me to think about a couple things:

First, it occurs to me that as blind consumers, we spend so much time fighting for equal access that we too often forget to really praise the innovations of those companies that are doing it right. Apple may have needed the threat of litigation to make accessibility a higher priority, but unlike most companies, Apple rose to the challenge in such a way as to make accessibility one more selling point of their core functionality and blind people just one more highlight of their TV commercials. Olympus is another company that continues to make something as simple as voice guidance a key feature of their products to make them enjoyable for a wider segment of their customer base. So I wonder, why is it that our social networks buzz when there are critiques and gripes about the lack of accessibility in this or that product or service, but no one says a thing about achievements that are better than anything we could have hoped for? I mean, I expect to be treated as an equal by product and service providers but, as we all know, that isn’t true for the most part. So, when a company does do something right for us, shouldn’t we really let them and others in our community know?

Don’t get me wrong. I would never suggest we lay down our arms and stop asking for equal access. In fact, I am a big promoter of using Yelp, Twitter, Facebook and other mainstream channels to express our opinions of restaurants that do not have Braille menus, retailers that do not produce eReaders that speak out of the box and facilities that think adding a wheelchair ramp is enough to make a place accessible. Just this morning one of my reviews on Yelp was blasted via email throughout Orlando. People will now be able to read the opinions of a fellow foody who just happens to be blind. Perhaps other restaurant owners will see my reviews that not only talk about the quality of food and customer service but also cover things like, did they freak out about my guide dog or did they have Braille menus. What I am saying is that whether we are praising a product or damning it, we need to break out of our blindness bubble of list-serves, forums, and chatroom communities and take our comments to the general public where their impacts are more likely to be felt by the parties responsible. We need to write product reviews. We need to send e-mails, and far be it from me to suggest we do something so outdated as picking up the phone to talk to a company about our experience with their product or service. And don’t tell me that you’re just one person and your voice doesn’t matter. That’s simply not true. When you combine individual voices they become a crowd.

Every voice counts, and if we are going to gripe loudly then we need to selibrate just as loudly when a company gets it right. Our feedback should not be limited to those aspects of life that have a direct bearing on our blindness either. We need to participate as consumers to be taken seriously as consumers. If you think about it, Apple and Disney must have spent millions of dollars on research and development and implementation to make their experience more than just accessible. Universal design is creating an experience that is simultaneously enjoyable to all, as opposed to creating a hierarchy of access to the same encounter. The least we could do is say “thank you” with our wallets, our reviews, and continued encouragement to make it better. I have a feeling that such encouragement would prompt more companies to use the secret sauce of their success to create some accommodations that are out of this world.

Second, taking a little of my own advice, I call upon all companies to rise to Disney’s standard. My dollars as a blind consumer are every bit as important as the dollars of my sighted neighbor. It is not enough to add a layer of accessibility to your products and services because a law directs you to. I am using my hard-earned money to pay for the same privileges as my sighted peers, and those privileges include my walking into your restaurants and ordering from Braille menus just like all your other customers. Asking your wait staff to read the menus to me is not being hospitable. It is being patronizing. We deserve better. Just as Apple now depicts blind people actively using their mobile technology, Disney ought to consider showing blind people enjoying the same facilities as anyone else, because the same marketing strategies that feed the bottom line can go a long way toward changing public misconceptions.

The landscape for blind people has not changed all that much in the ten years I’ve been involved with Serotek. What has changed is my attitude and my approach to these types of consumer challenges. I’ve decided I can either choose to look forlornly at the world I wish I could enjoy and get angry, or I can shatter the dividing line and be an active participant in that world. I hope for the sake of our collective progress that you will join me. So, when are you going to right a review? When are you going to call that company that has gone the extra mile and thank them or express your frustration with the lack of accessibility in a product or service? In short, are you going to have a little faith? Even though every time you ask for accessibility you may not get it, you have to continue to believe that there will be companies, like  those I have covered in this post, who will heed your cry for equal access and amaze us all with the outcome.

So you think you’ve heard some great SeroTalk Podcast outtakes in years past? Trust us when we tell you that you haven’t heard anything like our outtakes from 2011. Our network has grown to five podcasts in recent months, and so have the number of missteps, restarts, and distractions that go along with making a podcast. Do you have a favorite SeroTalk personality? Over the next hour’s worth of outtakes, you are bound to hear that person’s voice more than once, and in ways you may have never imagined before. Don’t worry, though. Even when producing a show of outtakes, SeroTalk’s postproduction team still brings you the unique and extremely professional sound you have come to expect when listening to the SeroTalk Podcast Network. No podcast or personality comes away from this experience unscathed, and you, the listener, get to enjoy the resulting audio. It’s all in good fun, and we trust that you will enjoy our generous serving of 2011 outtakes from the SeroTalk Podcast Network.

This week, as Joe Steinkamp sails the high seas and eats food of all kinds, Jamie Pauls, Ricky Enger, and Lisa Salinger discuss the top news stories of the week. Then, Jamie Pauls visits with Mike Calvo about two Bluetooth headsets that work with devices such as an iPhone. Next, Mike reviews a couple of devices which can make players such as the iPod Nano or Victor Reader Stream Bluetooth-compatible.

 CES

What mattered on CES Day 1

5 CES gadgets that caught our eye

Nuance gets jump on voice activated TV

RIM touts BlackBerry PlayBook OS: Better late than never?

Will tablets eventually replace laptops?

What you won’t see at CES: Ebook readers

Stronger Gorilla Glass 2 means thinner touch screens

Apple News

Apple to host January 19 ‘education event’ in New York

iPhone turns 5 years old on January 9^th

Comcast AnyPlay will stream live TV to your iPad

Strong sales of iPhone 4S a precursor to ‘monster’ launch of redesigned ‘iPhone 5′

iPhone cannibalizing Android sales

Self Promotion

Listen to That Android Show and Triple-click Home for the latest Android and Apple news

SeroSpectives: Dining in The Light

Listen to Lisa Salinger share her life-altering story with Debbie Hazelton on ACB Radio Mainstream

AT News

Code Factory’s Mobile Accessibility Free to Sprint Customers [with demo video]

GW Micro has a new GW-Apps list

Feature Writer Alena Roberts – The Quest to Create a Low Cost Braille Display

Upcoming New ADA Rules Will Prompt ATM Overhauls

Navigon v2.01 discussion on AppleVis

Roundabout

Intel Exploring Ways to Help Stephen Hawking Speak

Blame the Internet: London’s burglars won’t even steal CDs, DVDs

Presented by Lisa Salinger

Listen to SeroSpectives: This Year in Tech for 2011

What delights the senses more than leftover fruitcake, is more exciting than freezing in Times Square, and will change your life more than another batch of New Year’s resolutions? It’s This Year in Technology. Come join our guests: J.J. Meddaugh of Blind Bargains fame, as well as Joe Steinkamp and Jamie Pauls from Serotek, as they count down the top ten technology-related events that shaped 2011, and reveal their choice for Number One!

JANUARY

show notes page from TMIAT Jan 2011

Stories

Zoom Reader

Hope for Pandora

NVDA needs your help to continue on

Kindle for PC

FEBRUARY

Show notes page for Feb TMIAT

The Cobra Screen Reader emerges

MARCH

Show notes for March TMIAT

ATT to buy T Mobile

Mobile Accessibility for Android released

Launch of Android Access.net

Horizons for the Blind and A T Guys Join Forces to Launch Cutting Edge Product Information using Bar Codes

Here are some additional technology Top Ten Lists for your enjoyment.

The most popular stories of 2011 from Ars Technica

Mashable’s Top Ten iOS apps of 2011

ZDNet’s Top 10 Security Stories in 2011

8 Jokes, Memes and Parady Accounts of 2011

The best and worst of Sci Fi TV in 2011

APRIL

Show notes for TMIT

Mozilla launches the Aurora Channel for new Accessibility features

MAY

Show Notes for May TMIAT

Microsoft dials up Skype

DocuScan Plus launches for the Mac

Bureau of Engraving launches money reader app for iOS

Chromium OS has built in screen reader

JUNE

show notes for June TMIAT

Here come the Chromebooks

JULY

Show notes for July TMIT

code Factory releases the Accessible Browser and Music Player for Android

The BookSense 2.3 update includes Voice Recognition

Blio for iOS released

NVDA gets grant from Mozilla

Apple unleashes a Lion to the Mac App Store

Google Labs shutting down

AUGUST

Show notes for July TIMT

Steve Jobs Resigns

Google Plus Keyboard Accessibility

ACB/Google Survey on computer usage

Nuance acquires Loquendo

SEPTEMBER

Show Notes for September TMIAT

Microsoft talks Windows 8

Facebook launches major redesign

Here is a list of the Top Five things that Serotek has done this past year.

5 DocuScan Plus launches for the Mac

4 iBlink Radio for Android makes Apple Vis Hall of fame

3 SAM Vets Program

2 The launch of SPN, new shows and some guy as a new host of a little old show called SeroTalk

1 The community! It sounds silly but its true. Either you guys passing around the April Fool’s GTO Notetaker announcement, the 13 days of Christmas with matt and the Guide Dogs or the wonderful way people tell other people about our convention coverage or the Rose Bowl parade. The community is at the heart of it all and we sincerely thank all of you!

OCTOBER

Show notes for October TMIAT

Tribute to Steve Jobs

Siri and the iPhone 4s

Kindle Fire, down in flames!

NOVEMBER

Show notes for November TMIAT

OCR add on for NVDA

Robot Guide Dogs?

Google releases Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich

DECEMBER

AT&T withdraws bid for T Mobile

GW Skype

Top Ten list

10 Chrome OS includes ChromeVox ScreenReader

9 Ipplex Releases $1.99 LookTel Money Reader for iOS Devices

8 Google unleashes Android Ice Cream Sandwich with Explore by Touch and other accessibility improvements

7 NFB Blind Driver Challenge

6 GW Skype Released, controversy abounds over ads in software

5 Steve Jobs dies

4 Code Factory Releases Mobile Accessibility for Android

3 Apple to launch iPhone 4S simultaneously with AT&T, Verizon and Sprint

2 Demise of Qwitter accessible Twitter client, replacements emerge

1 Amazon Kindle Fire released, completely inaccessible

If you would like to share your thoughts with us, leave us a message in iBlink via iReport, or drop us an email resources@serotek.com

What delights the senses more than leftover fruitcake, is more exciting than freezing in Times Square, and will change your life more than another batch of New Year’s resolutions? It’s This Year in Technology. Come join our guests: J.J. Meddaugh of Blind Bargains fame, as well as Joe Steinkamp and Jamie Pauls from Serotek, as they count down the top ten technology-related events that shaped 2011, and reveal their choice for Number One!

JANUARY

show notes page from TMIAT Jan 2011

Stories

Zoom Reader

Hope for Pandora

NVDA needs your help to continue on

Kindle for PC

FEBRUARY

Show notes page for Feb TMIAT

The Cobra Screen Reader emerges

MARCH

Show notes for March TMIAT

ATT to buy T Mobile

Mobile Accessibility for Android released

Launch of Android Access.net

Horizons for the Blind and A T Guys Join Forces to Launch Cutting Edge Product Information using Bar Codes

Here are some additional technology Top Ten Lists for your enjoyment.

The most popular stories of 2011 from Ars Technica

Mashable’s Top Ten iOS apps of 2011

ZDNet’s Top 10 Security Stories in 2011

8 Jokes, Memes and Parady Accounts of 2011

The best and worst of Sci Fi TV in 2011

APRIL

Show notes for TMIT

Mozilla launches the Aurora Channel for new Accessibility features

MAY

Show Notes for May TMIAT

Microsoft dials up Skype

DocuScan Plus launches for the Mac

Bureau of Engraving launches money reader app for iOS

Chromium OS has built in screen reader

JUNE

show notes for June TMIAT

Here come the Chromebooks

JULY

Show notes for July TMIT

code Factory releases the Accessible Browser and Music Player for Android

The BookSense 2.3 update includes Voice Recognition

Blio for iOS released

NVDA gets grant from Mozilla

Apple unleashes a Lion to the Mac App Store

Google Labs shutting down

AUGUST

Show notes for July TIMT

Steve Jobs Resigns

Google Plus Keyboard Accessibility

ACB/Google Survey on computer usage

Nuance acquires Loquendo

SEPTEMBER

Show Notes for September TMIAT

Microsoft talks Windows 8

Facebook launches major redesign

Here is a list of the Top Five things that Serotek has done this past year.

5 DocuScan Plus launches for the Mac

4 iBlink Radio for Android makes Apple Vis Hall of fame

3 SAM Vets Program

2 The launch of SPN, new shows and some guy as a new host of a little old show called SeroTalk

1 The community! It sounds silly but its true. Either you guys passing around the April Fool’s GTO Notetaker announcement, the 13 days of Christmas with matt and the Guide Dogs or the wonderful way people tell other people about our convention coverage or the Rose Bowl parade. The community is at the heart of it all and we sincerely thank all of you!

OCTOBER

Show notes for October TMIAT

Tribute to Steve Jobs

Siri and the iPhone 4s

Kindle Fire, down in flames!

NOVEMBER

Show notes for November TMIAT

OCR add on for NVDA

Robot Guide Dogs?

Google releases Android’s Ice Cream Sandwich

DECEMBER

AT&T withdraws bid for T Mobile

GW Skype

Top Ten list

10 Chrome OS includes ChromeVox ScreenReader 9 Ipplex Releases $1.99 LookTel Money Reader for iOS Devices

8 Google unleashes Android Ice Cream Sandwich with Explore by Touch and other accessibility improvements

7 NFB Blind Driver Challenge 6 GW Skype Released, controversy abounds over ads in software

5 Steve Jobs dies 4 Code Factory Releases Mobile Accessibility for Android 3 Apple to launch iPhone 4S simultaneously with AT&T, Verizon and Sprint 2 Demise of Qwitter accessible Twitter client, replacements emerge 1 Amazon Kindle Fire released, completely inaccessible

If you would like to share your thoughts with us, leave us a message in iBlink via iReport, or drop us an email resources@serotek.com

The audio archive of the 2012 Tournament of Roses Parade with audio description is now available for your listening pleasure. Our thanks go out to the Los Angeles Radio Reading Service for bringing this event to us. We would also like to thank all of the listeners to SamNet Radio who so enthusiastically spread the word about the broadcast via Twitter as the event took place. Regardless of whether you are listening to the parade for the first time or listening again in order to recapture the moment, we trust that you will enjoy this podcast download of the event.

To join the event when it begins, go to

http://edge.accessibleevent.com/044017057/

The parade will take place on Monday, January 2 from 11 am to 1 pm Eastern, and will be broadcast live on SAMNet Radio. There are several options for accessing SAMNet Radio. It is available from the front page of Serotek’s iBlink Radio app for Android or iOS devices. SAMNet can also be accessed through the entertainment section of the System Access Mobile Network service. Or if you like, you can simply enter the following URL in to your media player of choice. http://streams.serotek.com/radio.mp3.m3u

If you’re unable to catch the event live, it will be available for download from the SeroTalk Podcast home page.

Our thanks go out to the Los Angeles Radio Reading Service for allowing us to share this exciting event with you.

On this week’s podcast, Jamie Pauls interviews three guests. Our first guest is Dan Aranoff, a blind food critic from New York City who began his writing career by blogging about things that frustrated him and eventually turned his writing into a passion for food.

Our second guest is Michael Barnes, a gentleman who was frustrated with the difficulty he was having in playing some old DOS games by Rich De Steno on his Windows 7 computer and ended up co-developing an iOS app that allows the playing of these games on an iOS device.

Our third guest is Russell Rowland, a student who was initially reluctant to go to college but now embraces the experience and encourages others to make their dreams come true.

Finally, Serotek’s own Lisa Salinger explores some of the more confusing aspects of Microsoft Security Essentials available from Ninite.com among other places and demonstrates how to use the program effectively with any screen reader.

What do all of these stories have in common, you may ask? Each of our four guests saw a problem or a a challenge and tackled it head on. They didn’t take no for an answer and they didn’t let obstacles detour them from their goals.

We trust that this podcast will both entertain and inspire you as you listen.