Information from the INDATA Project is now available via podcast! Every Friday, the INDATA Project will release two podcasts featuring new assistive technology projects. The podcasts are available for viewing on the INDATA Project website and on iTunes. The “Assistive Technology Update” is a fast-paced weekly update for AT professionals and enthusiasts. The “Accessibility Minute” is designed for all listeners to provide assistive technology tips and tricks.

Assistive Technology Update: Agrability (Steve Swain), Wolfram Alpha, Tobii Sono Flex, Ultra Cane, Free , Visual Strategy Templates, iOS 5 voice over, Baja Racer
 Accessibility Minute: QWERTY KeyboardIf you have trouble viewing these podcasts, please visit the INDATA website.

Inspired by the introduction of the new iPhone 4s, the INDATA project thought it might be nice to mention some augmentative applications that have garnered our attention recently. From organizing your life to talking through pictures, these apps make the daily grind a little easier. It does not matter if you have a physical disability or just need a little reminder now and then, the five apps below have you covered.

Tap to Talk: Designed with the special needs children and families in mind, this app strives “to make communication fun” by tapping pictures and letting the app do the talking. Each picture can lead to another screen of pictures and they are even customizable by visiting www.talktotap.com. As it stands, the app includes a library of over 2,000 pictures. The app is free, but customization costs.

MindMeister (mind mapping): This app, combined with the www.MindMeister.com service aims to help you be more productive throughout your day. Do you have a brilliant idea? Enter it into the app and begin mapping different concepts as you think of them. You can save them, brainstorm with colleagues and friends or manage personal/meeting notes. PLEASE NOTE: MindMeister for iPhone automatically backs up all your mobile maps with the MindMeister.com service, and thus asks you to create a FREE account on the first start. This app offers a free trial, but after that, a subscription is necessary.

Wolfram Alpha: This app allows you to quickly gain access to all kinds of information, no matter the subject. Great for students and professionals alike, the app sifts through all of the information on the web related to your search and gives you only the most specific and relevant results. With its simple interface, the Wolfram Alpha App lets you instantly compute answers to questions across thousands of domains—from finance and food to math and medicine this app covers all bases.

Cozi: Cozi is a FREE online organizer and mobile app that helps you manage the family schedule, organize shopping lists and to do lists, and capture favorite memories—all in one place – now available in an app. Because it’s mobile, the app can be accessed by anyone on any computer or mobile device and they will all see the same information. Cozi makes it easier to balance a family’s busy schedule, shopping and to do lists and it even has a family journal function that allows you to jot down a special moment and add photos to your library.

Pocket Picture Planner: The easy interface of this app allows you to keep your day organized by way of a visual calendar that you can create in Picture Planner on your Mac or Windows computer. You can schedule your activities by using stock photos and symbols or use your own imported images. “An ideal self-management app for children, users with autism and other cognitive disabilities, elders, second language learners, and anyone who likes working with pictures or who prefers a simple user interface for scheduling activities and getting reminders.”

Many applications are available from Apple for the iPhone and serve as assisistive technology. These apps are opening a new world for people who are blind or have vision impairments because it allows them to virtually see. In previous blog posts, INDATA featured Looktel Money Reader and VizWiz in our weekly Tech Tip videos. Below, I’ve highlighted a few other apps that are especially beneficial to people with vision impairments.

Ariadne GPS assists with navigation by announcing visual clues to people as they walk or ride a bus. Talking maps allow people who are visually impaired to explore the world independently. For example, crossing a street is signaled by the phone vibrating. This app works anywhere that Google maps do. It’s $2.99 and created by Giovanni Ciaffoni.

Color ID Free is designed exclusively with the vision impaired in mind. It’s easy to use; simply point the iPhone at the item you would like to know the color of and the device will state the color aloud. This app works well for determining the color of clothing, food, make-up and so many more items. Color ID Free is created by GreenGar Studios and free to download.

Google Search is so simple to use. Download this application and turn on the voiceover option. Say what you would like to search for and Google reads the results aloud via VoiceOver. It’s created by Google and free to download.

oMoby allows you to search the internet using pictures taken with the iPhone camera and works well with VoiceOver. After you take a photo, the app automatically searches the internet for matching. Then, you are presented with the option to shop or search for the item. It’s a bit slower than Google Search, but it offers a unique feature of image recognition. It’s free and is created by IQ Engines.

Talking Timer is pretty self-explanatory-it’s a timer that talks! A great feature of this app is that it will speak over music. The timer can be set at intervals or be set to count up or down. It’s also fully VoiceOver accessible. It’s available for $.99 and created by 7Zillion.

Evernote has been around since basically the beginning of the app store, but it’s longevity hasn’t made the app lose any popularity. This application stores voice notes, photographs and text so these documents can be accessed on numerous devices. It also has VoiceOver support. It’s created by Evernote and free to download.

Image from BusinessWeek.com

If you’re a loyal follower of the INDATA Blog, you know that we are crazy about Apple products. We’re also crazy about downloadable assistive technology applications for the iPhone, iPod and iPad. After a lot of research and many trials, we’ve created one comprehensive list of apps that we recommend to use for assistive technology purposes. We’ve got an entire page on our website dedicated to listing AT apps. The apps are sorted based on what service they provide. New applications are constantly being created, so if you discover any more apps you think are worthy of being on our list, shoot us an email at tech@eastersealscrossroads.org.

During our research process, we found another great resource, Scribd, for learning about assistive technology apps for Apple products. You can find their list of recommended apps for special education here.

Thanks for you continuous support of the INDATA Project!

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