I introduced you to Cliff Weitzman, the creator of Speechify, and his text-to-speech applications in July of 2017. I was excited to share information about his product because Speechify created its own niche in the text-to-speech realm. It simply read text aloud, any text. It was easy to use, offered high-quality voices, and read digital text that other text-to-speech readers did not identify without having to process additional steps. Did I mention it was free? It was available for Mac,…

Life, in all its glory and wonder, can be quite confusing. As I have been confined to the bounds of my apartment for days, due to the ferocious winter landscape of downtown St. Paul, Minnesota, I cannot help but appreciate the solitude and comfort of being able to work from home. Somehow, I found a position that has set me up for success. The trick now is finding a way to improve and master my operation as an employee. I find that seeking the ultimate resources is the way to go.

I…

As a person with a physical disability, there are a myriad of things that I need to think about and plan for in my daily life. This includes my personal life, my mobility, my education, and even my career. I may need to adjust the way I complete tasks, get to a destination, complete my schoolwork, or navigate my place of employment. Any workplace that I am hired at will have to accommodate me to their best of their ability--enter Assistive Technology (AT)…

Speech-to-Speech--Using A Telephone Independently

Speech-to-Speech (STS) is a Telecommunications Relay Service (TRS). This is a service allowing persons with hearing or speech limitations to access the telephone to place and receive calls. STS enables persons with a speech disability to make telephone calls using their own voice or an assistive voice device. A caller may use a communication device such as a Tobii or Dynavox. Speech-to-Speech uses…

Nick Wilkie has devoted his career to working in the Human Services field. The last 12 years he has been employed by the Metropolitan Center for Independent Living (MCIL), working as a Transition Specialist, then shifting to Advocacy within Public Policy. Currently, he is heading the promotion, outreach, and teaching of a new…

Disney Professional Internships Starting Fall 2019

This position provides technical support for the implementation and sustainment of Disney developed Assistive Technology services for Guests with Disabilities at the Walt Disney World Resort. The Assistive Technology services are Assistive Listening, Handheld Captioning, Video Captioning, Reflective Captioning, and Audio Description Partner and interact with various…