[Accessibility] Via-Dux

[Greg Fields]

Hi all,

My name is Greg Fields, and I'm the Accessibility Product Manager at Research In Motion, maker of BlackBerry smartphones. I live in Waterloo (Ontario, Canada), and work with many blind advocacy organisations and blind end users around the world.  

I would like to contribute to this project as persons with visual impairments absolutely need an effective GPS wayfinding solution on mobile phones just like sighted people have. Is there a .JAD file available for download OTA to mobile phones?

Thoughts on the project: 

- Would it make sense to include rows for "Dependencies" and "Constraints" in the Requirements?  

- Smartphones, including BlackBerry devices, support Java Location API (JSR 179) (http://na.blackberry.com/eng/deliverables/6022/javax/microedition/location/package-summary.html) and provide other methods for GPS access (http://na.blackberry.com/eng/deliverables/6022/net/rim/device/api/gps/GPSSettings.html). Java Location API and GPS interfaces could be added to the General Requirements section and be referenced in applicable Requirements themselves.  

- Note that the AEGIS project (www.aegis-project.eu) will provide an accessibility API, accessible UI component set, open source TTS and open source screen reader for Java mobiles. The EC funded project is led technically by Sun, project management is by CERTH/HIT, device partner is BlackBerry, and there other disability groups and other researchers. While we have talked about an accessible mapping sample app, it's outside the scope of the project. It *seems* as if it makes sense to have an informal tie into AEGIS from Via-Dux. 


Additional points of information: 

- BlackBerry smartphones have the first Accessibility API on mobile phones, which provides programmatic access to UI info. This API was developed with feedback from CodeFactory and HumanWare, and benefits from looking at similar API found on desktop platforms - http://na.blackberry.com/eng/deliverables/6022/net/rim/device/api/ui/accessibility/package-summary.html. 

- There is a third mobile screen reader app called Orator for BlackBerry smartphones from HumanWare in collaboration with CodeFactory - http://www.Humanware.com/orator. 

- there is a plug-in for Eclipse that targets BlackBerry smartphones - http://na.blackberry.com/eng/developers/javaappdev/javaeclipseplug.jsp

- the beta version of the BlackBerry Accessibility Development Guide is available at http://na.blackberry.com/eng/deliverables/9118/index.jsp?name=BlackBerry+Java+Application+-+Accessibility+-+Development+Guide5.0+Beta&language=English&userType=21&category=BlackBerry+Java+Application+Development&subCategory=BlackBerry+Java+Development+Environment

Thanks all. I look forward to participating in this project. 

Cheers,

Greg Fields
Accessibility Product Manager
BlackBerry Handheld Business Unit
gfields at rim.com
www.blackberry.com/accessibility
www.twitter.com/berryaccess
 
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