Blind Bargains Audio: Featuring the BB Qast, Technology news, Interviews, and more

The summer brings the heat and the box fans out from their hiding places from within the closet. We have been laying low to stay cool. And there is nothing like lying under the ceiling fan on a lazy summer day with a big pile of Braille to keep you company. In this episode, courtesy of J.J., you will find two demos and an interview with Jared Rimer discussing Braille Translation. Grab a cool beverage and relax in your best outdoor lawn furniture while you enjoy BBQ 212.

The latest update to Windows 10 is not a groundbreaking release, however, there is a lot to unpack if you rely on Narrator. One area that saw improvement with speech was the Virtual Desktop feature of Windows. In this demonstration J.J. will use Narrator to customize and give a brief tour of the virtual spaces he inhabits.

J.J. notes at the top of the interview that it has been 10 years since we last discussed the Braille 2000 product at CSUN. A lot has changed in a decade and we learn that The Talking Edition is the only known tool that can read contracted braille files as naturally spoken prose. Jared Rimer, Accessibility Consultant for Braille2000 LLC, takes us through what has come along in the new Braille 2000 Talking Edition for Windows. The pair chat about the issues that can arise from converting text to Braille, the mysteries that come from Back Translation and there is even a demo of the training materials that are available that can assist you in learning the product. There is an evaluation trial available and you can find out more by heading over to the Braille2000 website

J.J. demonstrates one of the new summer products over at our sister site A. T. Guys.

The V7 USB stereo headset with microphone is ideal for Zoom, Skype, Google Meet, and other video chat applications. They feature high quality sound output and a noise -cancelling microphone, perfect for busy environments. The microphone also has 300 degrees of range to move out of the way when not in use, and it can be worn on the left or right side. The Headset has an adjustable headband and memory foam ear pads for all day comfort. The USB powered Headphones also feature a nearly 6-foot cable that has convenient in-line volume and mute buttons Compatible with most desktop and laptops PCs through a standard USB port.
Simply plug the USB cable into your Windows or Mac computer, no drivers required. On the cable, you will find three buttons. The longer, rectangular button near the top will mute or unmute your microphone. Below this are two smaller buttons for Volume Up, then Volume Down. All buttons are easily found by touch.
This is an on-ear headset and quite comfortable. It does not go over the ear.

To learn more, visit the A.T. Guys V7 Deluxe product page for the headset.

J.J. notes that the recent Windows update brings tones and more to Narrator's Scan Mode, that's Modifier Key plus Spacebar, for browsing in Edge, Chrome and even Firefox. Give it a try if you have updated to the latest Windows that arrived recently in the 2004 update.

The next episode will find us talking about news and new hardware. Then it will be all fun and games for a while.