(I am posting this from my Friendica as well as my Akkoma accounts, since some instances and groups don't federate with Blob.cat.)Please forgive the negative post, but this must be said. I'm sick of what I'm calling the switching crew. They constantly say things such as "switch from Facebook or Twitter to the Fediverse", "switch from Amazon to local shops), "switch from Windows or Mac to Linux", etc. They sometimes imply and sometimes outwardly state how easy it is. So let me explain something. Note that I can't speak for other disabilities, since I'm only blind, but I'm sure they have their own problems with these as well. I am also very good with computers, so I have the technical skills to do these things. Not everyone does.

1. It takes research to join the Fediverse. Not everyone wants to join Mastodon, and even for those who do, [people still must find instances that align with their goals. Not all platforms here are accessible, either. I left Facebook precisely because they shut down their basic mobile site, and their main site and apps are terrible to use with a screen reader. I joined Friendica, but had more accessibility problems. Now, I'm on Akkoma and am finally happy. But it's taken over four months for me to find my place!
2. Amazon offers free shipping, large discounts, and in some cases, Amazon Fresh to Prime members. They also have a wide variety of products, all at one place. All of this contributes to the independence, not only of the blind, but also of those who are house-bound. No one has yet to give me an alternative that has all of these features. It's great to go to local farmer's markets and little shops, but not everyone can easily get there, and even those places that do ship often require monthly payments, charge a lot, or charge shipping with every order. Are there blind people who do shop locally? Yes. Is everyone like that, or does everyone have such places near him? No.
3. Prior to joining the Fediverse, this one annoyed me the most. Most sighted people can just turn on a computer or a phone and start using a new operating system relatively quickly, as long as it's graphical. It's not the same for those of us who are blind. First, the system has to have a screen reader installed. If not, we must find someone sighted to install it for us. Many Linux distributions don't have Orca installed by default. Secondly, even if said system is installed, there needs to be an easy way to activate it via a hottkey or during setup. Many Linux distributions have Orca but don't have an easy way to start it. Then, once all of that is done, we must learn how to use said screen reader, not to mention the layout and commands of the operating system itself, and withLinux, often, one must learn how to use the terminal in order to accomplish certain tasks. Even as a DOS lover, I found it to be frustrating. . Finally, after accomplishing all of that, if there aren't many programs that work with this operating system and screen reader, or if they don't work well, why should we switch from a system that we already know, where things are accessible, to one that we don't where they aren't? Linux is great for the sighted, but not for the majority of the blind. Again, are there blind people who use it? Yes. Is it as easy as simply turning on a computer and switching? No.

#accessibility #Akkoma #Amazon #blind #blindness #Facebook Fediverse fediverse #Linux #NVDA #Orca #technology ##Twitter #Windows

*This is a note for those who wish to follow me. First, please read my profile. Secondly, subscribers are those who follow me, but whom I don't follow in return. Friends are those who follow me and whom I follow in return.

People who will never be accepted: Minors. I don't feel comfortable having anyone under eighteen (preferably twenty-one) follow me, even as subscribers.

People who will always be subscribers: Those who constantly write about politics, who always use obscenities, anti-capitalists, anarchists, extreme leftists and rightists), religious fanatics, those who hardly post in English, only post about technology and/or games (not including accessibility), or medical/mental issues.
Note. I'm not talking about having a bad day or posting once about politics. I'm talking about those who barely post anything else.

People who will always be friends: Those who post about high culture (classical music, good literature, art, history, theatre, wine, coffee, tea, snuff, fine dining, etc.), male fashion, nature, pets (especially cats), plants/gardening, good news, writing, and daily life (without constant drama).

As a grammar prescriptivist, I take writing and proper use of words very seriously. I recently saw a post about ending text messages with full stops. Apparently, some think this is a bad idea. No. It's called using punctuation correctly! Perhaps, they should read a few grammars instead of playing their silly video games! The same is true of netspeak, textspeak, corporate spaek, and abbreviating everything. Likewise, I have no use for political correctness. I refuse to use words such as visually-challenged, vertically-challenged, etc. I will say blind (or visually impaired if the person has some vision), short, fat, etc. Unless I'm writing poetry and am seeking flowery words for things, I call them what they are. Neither do I see any difference between saying "a blind person" and "a person who is blind", for example. I also have no time for so-called gender-neutral words, unless they honestly make sense and are actually descriptive, such as firefighter or police officer. But I'm just as likely to say fireman, policeman, waiter, steward, actor, chairman, etc. and change the gender when necessary. I refuse to use the singular they. There are two sexes (gender is for grammar). You're either one or the other. This absolutely doesn't mean that you can't change your sex. If, for example, I meet you as a woman and you change to a man or are a drag king/queen, I will certainly change my use of pronouns when discussing you or talking about you, either permenantly or temporarily, as the case requires. But unless you literally have multiple personalities or are a machine or an inanimate object, you are neither a they nor an it, and you're certainly not some made-up pronoun such as xe. I would never cause harm to those who use such words. I would just consider them to be silly or confused. If the sex is unknown, or if a sentence can apply to both sexes, I use the masculine, simply because it's grammatically correct to do so.

#English #gender #grammar #language #prescriptivism #properEnglish #sex #texting #writing

Early in 2024, I bought a Galaxy A15 because it was among the smallest phones I could find (which isnt saying much, as it's still unnecessarily large), has a headphone jack, good battery life, was extremely affordable on Ebay, and would be updated for at least five years. At that time, I had only used Android for a few months and liked it. I had no idea of the rift between Google and Samsung. Even if I had, I needed the headphone jack, and I wasn't about to pay hundreds of dollars for a phone, unless it was small and had a built-in keyboard. Today, I read this. It is concerning, even for those of us who don't normally use artificial intelligence and who don't rely on our phones for everything. It's also why I like systems such as Windows, where features don't depend on which device you use or who manufactured it. Plus, once you have the .exe or .zip file for a program, the odds are it will continue to work on your computer, unless ou update it. No one can remove it from your machine, and you can use older versions of the operating system for years without any problems.

Regardless, I don't like how accessibility is basically being used by Google and Samsung as a marketing tool, with no one caring about real results. Who's to say that this won't continue, and that truly important updates won't make it to older or cheaper phones?

accessibleandroid.com/samsung-…

#accessibility #Android #blind #Google #Samsung #screenreaders #talkback #technology

I normally use Windows for everything. But today, I had to use my phone for a short time. i can now confirm that the main Friendica site is almost as bad to use on an Android device as Facebook is everywhere. Instead of having a clear edit box for posting, I have to find the link to post. Then, I can't find said edit box. Yes, I can use Pachli, Tusky, or any, etc. but I shouldn't have to. For the record, I use my phone with an external keyboard (iClever bK03) and also have Chrome set to show desktop sites at the moment, which I will probably change, as I prefer mobile ones, even on a desktop! But the matter still stands. Even on Windows, I've had problems with the main site, most especially with regard to editing posts, and I'm sure the posting issue is there as well. Will someone please do something about this? It's not good for Friendica, for the Fediverse, and especially for blind people, such as myself, who came here as a Facebook refugee, when they decided to shut down their Basic Mobile site (not app).

#accessibility #Android #blind #Chrome #Fediverse #Friendica #Talkback #technology #Windows