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A blog dealing with sensory substitution and other esoteric concepts and technologies like speech-recognition and chaos theory

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Archives for May 2013

Allow me to see what I photograph: an appeal to app developers

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A recent Newscientist article discussed an app that makes it easier for the blind to take pictures. See the following links for more information.

The idea is interesting since it simplifies the biggest problem I have with taking photographs namely labeling them for later uploading. The current implementation though does not seem to provide any mechanism for transfering the labels or exporting the image to wordpress or any other platforms.

In addition, what if I do not want to photograph people? Most of my photos are of objects, structures watterbodies etc.

I do not get any experiential feedback on lighting conditions and its impact on my subjects.

My tool of photography is the vOICe which allows me to both frame the subject and to experientially get a feel of how light is falling on a subject and how something will look. For example, I can sense the reflection of light from a stream and capture that. The same applies to trees and other objects. Moreovger, I can look around like anyone else and find objects of interest to photograph.

You may say “what about audio description?” Yes, it does help but lacks the detail required to make a determination of its photographic interest. For example, you can tell me that the trees look very nice and the light is very soft but how do I decide that I want to photograph this set of intertwined branches and leaves from these 2 trees? If I photograph based on your description, then sorry, it is your judgement I am using. Yes, I may have some input but the esthetics are yours. If I have an experiential way of perceiving the scene, then I can decide for myself.

I would like to see a photography helper app with the following features.

  • Allow me to tag the images I take and to carry over the tags when I transport the images out of the device which I have used to capture them. I usually rename the files on my camera and or phone such that a description is contained in the file name.
  • Allow me to perceive the scene so that I can decide what I want to photograph. This includes detecting the level of light falling on to my subject.
  • Help in framing the object of interest and face detection is certainly useful and is welcome.
  • Give me a warning about camera orientation.
  • Feedback on color would also be a welcome bonus.

App developers, are you listening?

iNavigate: accessible GPS on the roads of India

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There used to be a time when I could take my trusty Nokia E51, enter my destination and go on my merry way. This was made possible by a program called Wayfinder Access which was probably the only specialized GPS solution that worked outside North America and Europe. This changed when Wayfinder Access collapsed. Since then, there has been no equivalent program. Yes, the later versions of Nokia maps are accessible but you can’t see things like trip distance, time to destination, current speed and what is around you. Yes, we have Google Maps which are accessible on Android, partly accessible on IOS and inaccessible on Symbian. Loadstone GPS also exists but getting turn-by-turn directions is almost impossible.

Enter Navigon and blindSquare. Navigon is fully accessible at least on the iPhone and does not require an Internet connection to work. Its coverage of places at least in Delhi is adequate. Moreover, you can see what is around you, your current speed and trip distance. There are however a few challenges with Navigon.

  • Entering addresses is difficult. You need to enter the name of the city and then on the next screen, the place you want.An app called navigon now is supposed to help with it but it does not work for addresses in India. I get a parsing error whenever I have used the app.
  • The maps do not appear to be updated as frequently as one would like.
  • It will not automatically speak the names of places as you pass them.

Enter blindSquare. This app uses FourSquare and speaks places of interest as you pass them. In addition, you can search for places and launch a host of navigation apps like navigon, Apple Maps and Google maps with the places plotted. In navigon, I just have to hit the start button and I am good to go. Blindsquare even runs in the background and keeps talking so you can multitask on the phone.

I now use a 2 app GPS solution namely Navigon and blindSquare and I have much more information than what I had with Wayfinder Access. My search for a GPS alternative is over.

My armchair trip to the circus

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The first time I gave a conscious thought to going to the circus was when I read a Tom and Jerry story about the circus. The next time the circus impinged upon my consciousness was when I read Asterix the gladiator. That was a different kind of circus though. Finally, I read about the circus in hard times by Charles Dickens. This post is about circus 1 and 3.

The problem with a circus if you can’t see is that it is difficult to tell what is happening. Audio description may not help. You will be told that an acrobat is swinging by a rope. Um well, you say, what rope? Is the rope connected to anything? What does a clown look like? Some of you may say, well use your artificial eye you know, the eye implants and other ways to access visual information. Sorry no dice. Things happen too fast. This is why static images are the only way to go or perhaps slow motion video. See the following post titled Roll Up, Roll Up.. It’s time for the Circus!! by Hellen Cherry. It relates her experiences of visiting a circus and has nicely alt tagged images. Use your technology of choice to perceive the images.

I used the vOICe. My favorite images are those of the acrobat and the candy floss. The acrobat because of the idea of someone swinging by a rope. It is easy to sense the rope. The candy floss has an interesting rhythm too.

There you have it, a circus you can enjoy without the crouds and experience fully, all from the comfort of your chair.