AFB Blog

Michelle Hackman As I write this, I am watching my two-year-old nephew Ethan while my sister-in-law takes my niece to an ice skating class. Mostly, my nephew spends his time emptying his Lego basket or smashing cars together, but every so often, he does something truly worth documenting. Just this afternoon, one of those notable moments came when, upon discovering my mother's walking cane, he seized it and began parading around the house, banging it on the ground like a royal scepter. I…

Editor's note: the following post is authored by Mary Bellard, Information Technology Services Manager at AFB. On January 14, GW Micro announced, with support from Microsoft, they will make their Window-Eyes screen reader product available at no additional cost to any user with a license to Microsoft Office 2010 or newer (including users with a Microsoft Office 365 subscription). The only stipulation for using the full version of this product is that Office 2010 or newer needs to be…

Last weekend, my wife and I went to go see Anchorman 2. We love going to the movies, and I love the experience even more now that we have a local theatre that provides video description (hat-tip to Cinemark. I hope the other theaters in my area follow their example). I was pretty excited, because I loved the first Anchorman. First, a little background: It is an outrageous and inappropriate comedy that is not meant for children. Will Ferrell plays Ron Burgandy, an anchorman who leads a team…

I've just wrapped up my second visit to the mega Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas. There's been tons of coverage of all the exciting new products, especially wearable technology, health and body monitoring technologies, devices to enhance our autos and, of course, more and more 3-D printing. I want to again give a special thank you and shout-out to our friends at the Consumer Electronics Association (the trade association that hosting the conference), for inviting disability…

On Saturday, the New York Times published a stunning essay by Rosemary Mahoney, a teacher at a school for the blind, entitled "Why Do We Fear the Blind?" She opens with a quandary seemingly absurd on its face, but one that we unsighted people know all too well: A few years ago, when I mentioned to a woman I met at a party that I was teaching in a school for the blind, she seemed confused. "Can I just ask you one question?" she said. "How do you talk to your students?" I explained that…

Saturday, January 4, marks the 205th birthday of Louis Braille, the inventor of his eponymous code for people with vision loss. In celebration of his birthday, as well as National Braille Literacy Month, we’ve assembled a roundup of braille-centric content throughout AFB's family of sites. Read up, reflect, and appreciate what braille has meant to so many. Braille continues to be a driving force for people with vision loss. Throughout January, we will be sharing information relevant to…

This January, AFB's Darren Burton, director of our AFB Tech labs in Huntington, WV, will be appearing on ACB Reports, the American Council of the Blind Radio Show hosted by Mike Duke. Darren will discuss AFB's app development work, including the AccessNote notetaker app and the AccessWorld magazine app, as well as our other app testing and development work being done at our AFB Tech labs. AccessNote has now been purchased by over 1000 people, and we just released version 1.2, which includes…

Editorial note: Visit our 2014 Gift Ideas for Friends and Family Members Who Are Blind or Visually Impaired roundup for fresh ideas! This time of year, we’re all searching for gift-giving inspiration. If you have a close friend or family member who is blind or visually impaired, here are some gift-giving guides you might want to check out. From young children to working-age adults to seniors who are gradually losing their vision, AFB has you covered: AccessWorld® has suggestions for all…

Tis' the season for giving. AFB is so very thankful to all of you who support our mission to remove barriers, create solutions, and expand possibilities so people with vision loss can achieve their full potential. This holiday season, consider participating in #GivingTuesday—a campaign to create a national day of giving on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving, Black Friday, and Cyber Monday—by making a donation to AFB. Your simple gesture of generosity will make a huge difference to someone…