Vispero Connect

On FSCast 195 we'll meet civil rights activist Ever Lee Hairston.  From fighting discrimination and demonstrating with Dr. Martin Luther King, to her journey with vision loss and becoming a leader in the NFB, she has lots of life experience to share.    Then Lil Deverell talks about mental mapping and its impact on how we navigate in the world.

On FSCast 194, Matthew Horspool shows us how he uses JAWS Speech and Sound Schemes.  He'll also talk about the perils of having perfect pitch, and the challenges of working as a braille transcriber.  Then Joe Sullivan discusses the early years of developing the Duxbury Braille Translator.   Transcript available at blog.freedomscientific.com/fscast.

On FSCast 193 we'll meet Taylor Cox.  She's our first Freedom Scientific Student of the Month.  Then it's over to Amsterdam for a visit with Mohammed Laachir.  We'll hear how he rapidly switched from using ZoomText to using JAWS full-time, and how he went from being an FSOpenLine caller to a JAWS developer.   Transcript available at blog.freedomscientific.com.

On the archive of FSOpenLine from November 2020, Your questions about a variety of issues including: Getting Chrome to automatically describe images, JAWS on ARM processors,  and multiple selection of  items in  list boxes on the web.   Transcript available at blog. FreedomScientific.com

On FSCast 191, Christy Householter talks about Computers for the Blind, a place to get a refurbished computer if you live in the U.S.  Then a visit with JAWS scripting ninja Doug Lee.  We'll learn about his life and why he scripts so many popular apps for free.  And, finally, a song about JAWS keyboard commands from the students at the Texas School for the Blind.   Transcript available at blog.fre...

On FSCast 190, news about the release schedule for Jaws, ZoomText, and Fusion 2021. Rachael Bradley Montgomery talks about escape rooms, what they are, and what Vispero has  done to prove that they can be made inclusive of people with disabilities.  Then Ed Potter drops in.  He's the man who created Playback, a cassette magazine where blind people turned for technology news long before the Interne...

On FSCast 189, the 2021 versions of JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion are just around the corner. We'll demonstrate the new Voice Assistant, OCR directly to Word, improvements to Picture Smart on the web, and the new streamlined way of reading messages in Outlook. Plus, David Kingsbury is back to talk about his new book: "When One Web Browser Is Not Enough"

News about features coming in the first public beta of JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion 2021. Plus, your questions on a variety of topics including: JAWS with Citrix, simplifying the JAWS UI, WhatsApp Web, and mail merge in Word.  

On FSCast 187 we'll get to know Dan Clark who's been the voice of JAWS training for the past twenty years.  We'll also meet Laura Wolk who just completed a year clerking for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas with JAWS by her side.

On FSCast 186, we meet blindness consultant and TV producer Joe Strechay  who helps ensure that blind people are accurately portrayed in media. There's news about the new Freedom Scientific training podcast, and Jonathan Mosen drops in with a demo of the new JAWS feature to prevent speech cut off when using certain audio devices. 

On FSCast 185, we meet Dave Leo Baker who  spent over twenty years  in the JAWS scripting department before setting off on his own to pursue a musical career. Jim Snowbarger talks about why Reaper software and his JAWS scripts are a powerful combination for doing any sort of audio production. Plus, Eric Damery with news about what's in the June  product updates, and info about special   U.S. produ...

On the May 2020 FSOpenLine, a preview of June product updates that bring a new Braille and Text Viewer, plus  a JAWS feature that prevents chopping off the beginning of words when using some laptops and Bluetooth headphones. Of course, we also take your calls on a variety of topics including scripts for YouTube and Wireshark from Doug Lee, and a new ElBraille mailing list.   Transcript available a...

On FSCast 183, we're joined by Ed Summers, director of  accessibility at SAS, to get a stereo demo of the SAS Graphics accelerator, and to  learn about accessible SAS tools for doing statistics. He'll also direct us to some of his blog posts  about how he trained himself to listen to synthesized speech at close to 600 words per minute.

On FSCast 182, we focus on coping with COVID-19. NFB president Mark Riccobono, and ACB president Dan Spoone discuss what these advocacy organizations are doing to help. Richard Tapping talks about product offers for students and employees now at home, and Rachel Buchanan lets us know about special training opportunities.

On FSCast 181, we preview Freedom Scientific sessions at the CSUN technology conference, Joseph LaFauci Offers up a JAWS Power Tip, and we get details about the latest ElBraille from Ron Miller and Adi Kushner.

On the archive of the February 2020 FSOpenLine, tips on listening to FSCast on your smart speaker, using TurboTax with JAWS, and your calls on a variety of topics ranging from accessible statistical software  to  the need for more advance Microsoft Teams training.

Details about the upcoming March 2020 CSUN Technology conference, a preview of the JAWS, ZoomText, and Fusion 2020 updates coming in early February, two Power Tips, and a demonstration of JAWS working in the new Chromium based Microsoft Edge.

Brian joins John and Larry Gassman to  discuss  his 25 year career as an assistive technology trainer, the things that motivate him to extend JAWS functionality, and what's new in the products he offers. Plus, a JAWS Power Tip from Michael Fulton.

Your calls on a variety of topics including the new Chromium based Microsoft Edge, making our non-visual products more sighted friendly,  the JAWS Skim Reading feature,  whether to take the plunge upgrading from Office 2010 to Office 365, and more.

Eric Damery is back to get you prepared for the upcoming product releases, Debee Armstrong offers up a  JAWS Power tip, and Rachel Buchanan  talks about the ongoing process of enhancing free product training and documentation.

More details about using the new JAWS Scan cursor that's part of the JAWS 2020 public beta, a reminder about bringing your SMA up to date before the end of October, and of course your calls. This time, questions about PictureSmart, additional Vocalizer voices, Home Annual license renewal, and  more.

Eric Damery joins John and Larry Gassman to discuss what's coming in the first public beta of JAWS 2020, and David Szumowski  talks  about assistive technology and his legal career.

Larry Gassman talks with John Gassman about winning the Walt Disney Legacy award, and David Kingsbury discusses his new book, "Format Your Word Documents with JAWS and NVDA." Whether your formatting requirements are simple or complex, this book has you covered.   Read the transcript at blog.freedomscientific.com

We report progress on some suggestions made in previous FSOpenLines and take your calls on a variety of issues including: future directions for JAWS, real-time document collaboration, Track Changes in Word, Wireshark Accessibility, and how to decide if the Home Annual License is right for you.

Eric Damery is back with news about saving money by purchasing products at the U.S. summer shows, Debee Armstrong offers up a JAWS Byte about  using JAWS Speech  History  to review spelling, and Dave Wilkinson lets us know about the partnership between Freedom Scientific and the American Printing House for the Blind. Transcript available at blog.freedomscientific.com