
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Hello, that is Gregg Vanderheiden, and I’m the president of Elevating the Flooring, a non-profit for digital fairness, and that is your Assistive Know-how Replace.
Josh Anderson:
Good day and welcome to your Assistive Know-how Replace, a weekly dose of data that retains you updated on the newest developments within the area of expertise, designed to help people with disabilities and particular wants. I’m your host, Josh Anderson with the INDATA Venture at Easterseals Crossroads in lovely Indianapolis, Indiana. Welcome to episode 707 of Assistive Know-how Replace. It’s scheduled to be launched on December thirteenth, 2024. On in the present day’s episode, we’re very excited to be joined by Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden, president of Elevating the Flooring, and he’s right here to inform us all about Morphic, and all the good instruments it has obtainable to assist people with laptop entry. Don’t neglect listeners, we all the time love listening to from you. Ship us an e mail at tech@eastersealscrossroads.org or name our listener line at (317) 721-7124. For now, let’s go forward and get on with the present.
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So for those who like Assistive Know-how Replace, it’s possible you’ll very effectively love Assistive Know-how Ceaselessly Requested Questions. Once more, it’s Assistive Know-how Ceaselessly Requested Questions the place you may get your questions on assistive expertise answered, or for those who occur to have the solutions to a few of the questions requested on that present, please, please, please do attain out and tell us in order that we may help the neighborhood with the solutions that they so desperately search. Very similar to Assistive Know-how Replace, yow will discover Assistive Know-how Ceaselessly Requested Questions, wherever you like to get your podcast. And as all the time listeners, thanks for listening.
Listeners, our visitor in the present day, Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden was good sufficient to hitch us on the present over 5 years in the past, and we’re tremendous excited to have him again to inform us all about Morphic and the good ways in which it’s capable of help people with laptop entry and different wants. Gregg, welcome again to the present.
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Josh Anderson:
May you begin us off by telling our listeners a bit of bit about your self?
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Oh, boy. That is my 53rd yr within the area. I began in 1971. And I began off doing augmentative communication. It wasn’t referred to as that again then. That time period truly got here from one thing I wrote in 1979. After which laptop entry and common design, internet entry. There’s options from the analysis staff. I’ve directed the Hint R&D Middle for 50 years, and there’s options from that in each laptop, Mac, Home windows, Linux, each iOS, Android, and so on. That got here out of there. So it’s a staff that basically labored on making adjustments to what was obtainable and I additionally chaired WCAG 1 and a pair of.
Josh Anderson:
Wow. Okay. Properly, we might get into all of that and doubtless refill the remainder of the yr in exhibits. However the motive we’ve acquired you on in the present day is to speak about Morphic. So I assume, let’s sort of begin originally for folk that possibly didn’t hear 5 years in the past to seek out out about it. Let’s begin again originally and the place did the thought for Morphic come from?
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Again after I was co-chairing WCAG 1 and a pair of, however significantly on 2, it turned clear to me that we had been creating internet content material that was accessible to these individuals who had good AT, and for those who didn’t have good AT otherwise you couldn’t afford good AT, then it actually wasn’t going to be there. And so, we acquired along with others, and we shaped a nonprofit group Elevating the Flooring to attempt to determine the way to guarantee that these with the bottom degree or the ground degree of assistive expertise would have expertise that was adequate, raised sufficient that it will have the ability to truly entry the entire new dynamic content material that was popping out on the net, and so on. And so, that’s the place the group got here from. And Morphic grew out of that effort to attempt to determine how can we have a look at those that are having essentially the most hassle and have the least sources and guarantee that they’re truly capable of entry the net, which has now come to be principally important. It was once central to our lives, however now it’s important for healthcare and all the things else.
Josh Anderson:
Properly, not only for healthcare. I imply, we’re assembly over Zoom. So I imply, we’re utilizing this for communication in so many different alternative ways. So yeah, I’d say that important will not be going too far to essentially say that. Morphic has plenty of totally different options and I wish to dig into them as a lot as we are able to. So I assume we should always in all probability begin with the MorphicBar. What precisely is it?
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Okay, so consider Morphic in three layers. However earlier than we get to that, I wish to introduce the idea I name digital affinity. And that’s the capacity to be taught and perceive expertise. And this isn’t the identical as digital literacy. It’s a expertise. It’s some individuals can sing, some persons are athletic, some individuals can write, and different individuals can’t do any of these to save lots of their soul. However digital affinity is one other expertise. There are folks that I do know which can be blazingly brighter than I’m, who can not determine the way to use their expertise. And it’s not digital literacy ’trigger I do know individuals who’ve been utilizing computer systems for 20 years and when the pandemic got here out, they may not determine the way to get onto Zoom. I imply, these are professors who couldn’t determine the way to get onto Zoom, however they’re very shiny and so they’re very digitally literate when it comes to utilizing it, however they don’t have a expertise for studying issues. And so, every time one thing new comes out, they don’t simply choose up on it.
Now, consider that. All of us that we discuss to and are usually in our circles and doubtless listening to this podcast are on the higher finish of digital affinity. However consider the individuals on the different finish. And if we consider simply the underside 5%, the individuals who have essentially the most hassle studying and understanding expertise, even once you clarify it to them, that’s one in 20 individuals, that’s an enormous… that’s tens of millions, that’s billions, I imply, that’s an enormous variety of folks that we’re speaking about. And we have to be excited about are all of them going to have the ability to entry and use all the things that we’re utilizing as effectively.
So with that in thoughts, one of many issues we got down to attempt to do with Morphic was to make it that individuals who used AT would have the ability to apply it to totally different computer systems and their settings would comply with them. However we rapidly discovered that there was a much bigger downside, and that was that even the stuff that’s already constructed into the pc, individuals didn’t learn about who wanted it, and there’s a bunch of… Microsoft did a variety of research to… they employed corporations to exit and do analysis on it and got here again and discovered that the variety of individuals utilizing it was a small fraction of the quantity that might profit from them.
Many didn’t learn about it, however there’s a complete nother group that is aware of about them, however they’re buried within the management and settings panels, and so they’re simply so laborious to get to that it’s past them to attempt to go and get to them after they want them or determine the way to discover them or that’s too difficult. Even these of us with excessive digital affinity get misplaced within the settings panels. And in the event that they ever reorganize them, we all the time grumble as a result of it takes us so lengthy to attempt to discover them once more. And if that’s us, take into consideration the individuals who have hassle.
However then there’s the third group that’s so timid round applied sciences, they won’t go into the management panels. Asking them to enter the management panel to activate an accessibility function to make the pc work for them is like asking individuals to go beneath the hood of their automotive and make some adjustments as a result of the automotive will then run higher for them. And with a couple of exceptions of mechanics and nowadays, digital mechanics, all people’s afraid to go beneath the hood and fiddle as a result of they’re afraid they’ll break it. And that’s precisely what we hear from these customers.
You say, effectively, why don’t you simply go in and use this function? We confirmed it to 1 one that came visiting to us afterwards and mentioned, “Oh, that is superb. That is the primary time I’ve been ready to make use of the pc. It was a lot simpler.” And we got here again and every week later they had been sitting on the laptop squinting at it once more, and we mentioned, “Properly, why didn’t you go try this?” And he or she mentioned, “Properly, you possibly can go try this, however I’d be afraid I’d break it if I turned it on.” And we heard this at job facilities and I mentioned, “Oh, that’s simply job facilities.” After which I heard on the neighborhood faculty, and these are imagined to be digital natives and so they’re afraid to enter the management panels as a result of they’re afraid.
After which I heard it at a serious analysis college spontaneously. One of many college students we had been simply speaking to about laptop use and stuff like that, and so they mentioned, “Every time I sit right down to the pc, one of many issues I’m afraid of is am I going to interrupt this?” And that surprised me. After which I used to be speaking to a variety of librarians who assist individuals who have hassle on the pc. So when you have hassle on the pc, this is among the folks that comes over that can assist you. A 3rd of them don’t go into the management panels as a result of they’ve both been informed by no means to do this or they’re afraid they’ll break one thing and any individual will yell at them. In order that’s the place we put all of the accessibility options.
So one factor that the MorphicBar does is it’s a bit of icon within the tray and it really works on a Mac or a PC and simply click on on it and it pops a bit of bar, and on it are a variety of options which can be all constructed into the pc already, however they simply are out the place you possibly can see them. One in every of them says, textual content measurement, nevertheless it’s actually not textual content measurement, it’s actually display scaling. However display scaling can be sort of scary, so we name it textual content measurement. And also you click on on that and all the things on the display will get larger. It simply rescales the entire display. So you possibly can take a display for those who’re having hassle seeing it and all the things will get bigger, nothing goes off-screen. It’s not like a Zoom or a enlarge the place you enlarge it, now half the stuff disappeared off-screen. The second is a magnifier. You click on on it, pops up a bit of magnifying glass and the mouse works. It follows the mouse round and you may spotlight issues and use the mouse in magnified vogue with this little magnifier.
The following one is Snippet. And everyone knows that is the one the place you possibly can copy any a part of the display. All people makes use of that, who is aware of the way to get to it and activate it, nevertheless it’s laborious to seek out. And for those who don’t keep in mind the key keystrokes or know the place to dig round and discover it, it’s not apparent, nevertheless it’s actually nice for everyone, however particularly for individuals who ever have hassle on a pc, one thing pops up, dialogue. They’ll simply choose it and replica it, paste it into an e mail and say, “I acquired this error message. What does it imply?” I all the time like it after I’d name up for tech assist and so they say, “Properly, what did the error message say?” And I am going, “Oh, I don’t know. One thing about one thing.” They usually go, “Properly, for those who might inform us… subsequent time it occurs, for those who can name us again.” They usually go, “Oh, nice.”
Then the subsequent one is among the strongest ones, it’s Learn Chosen and it permits you to choose any textual content wherever on the pc which you can copy. You simply choose it and also you hit this and it’ll learn it aloud to you. So that is nice for anyone with any sort of studying incapacity.
With dyslexia, you see the little characters and so they’re sort of leaping round on you and that makes it laborious to learn and it’s not… some individuals simply say, “Properly, when you have a studying incapacity, you simply have to apply studying.” And I say to them, “You’re proper. And all of you who’ve glasses, it’s best to simply do away with your glasses and it’s best to simply apply attempting to learn with out your glasses since you’re getting dependent in your glasses.” You probably have dyslexia, it doesn’t go away with apply. So this isn’t solely a barrier to you doing something or studying something, however take into consideration writing. Have you ever ever written an e mail the place you didn’t return and proper it or the place you wouldn’t return and browse it? As a result of for those who despatched it out and also you had a bunch of typos and spelling errors in it, you don’t assume it’s going to present an excellent impression to your boss?
Properly, when you have dyslexia and the letters are leaping round, it’s laborious to learn, nevertheless it’s rattling close to inconceivable to proofread. Okay? You’re attempting to look to see if one thing’s not spelled proper and the letters aren’t staying steady for you. How have you learnt what you’re ? So once more, that’s a extremely highly effective function.
The following one is colorblindness distinction. The distinction one is nice for low imaginative and prescient, however we’ve additionally discovered individuals who have migraine complications who’re telling us that it helped with their complications and that was good. And we acquired evening mode and darkish mode. And it additionally then you possibly can click on on the little Morphic icon and it’ll pop up and allow you to entry all the opposite accessibility options as effectively, with out… it truly will drop you into the management panel, nevertheless it’ll drop you on the function and it doesn’t look scary. It doesn’t appear like you shouldn’t be there and also you’re not wandering round amongst all these different issues that look very scary ’trigger you don’t know what they imply. And so, it’s one thing persons are not afraid to go do. In order that’s the MorphicBar.
We went to a few universities and we did a research the place we put some software program in that might have a look at these entry options earlier than we put Morphic in to see what their utilization was. After which we put in Morphic and we appeared afterwards and we might see one thing like 700% enhance, 17000% enhance. In some instances it was infinite as a result of there was no utilization earlier than Morphic 1 but. So it’s a divide by zero, you get an infinitely infinite %. So the three issues it does is, one is it makes it in order that persons are conscious of them. Two, it places it in order that they’re there and straightforward to entry and use, and it retains them from being afraid of them. In order that’s a MorphicBar.
Quantity two, AT-on-Demand. So let’s say you’re blind and also you want a display reader, however you don’t have a pc at residence. Both there’s 5 youngsters at residence and there’s just one laptop, and so the children all go to the library. Or there’s no computer systems at residence or there’s no web at residence, and other people go to the library or the neighborhood heart. Properly, the entire siblings and your entire friends can use all these computer systems, however you possibly can’t as a result of nobody will permit you to set up any software program, a lot much less assistive applied sciences on the computer systems in these areas. Now, typically there shall be one or two computer systems in some room which have a pair AT on it, however there’s like 60 several types of AT that you need to use to entry computer systems. So for those who don’t have a pc, then you possibly can’t use your AT, you possibly can’t be an AT person, that’s only a whole barrier.
However even those that do, why do we’ve all these computer systems in all these faculties, and all these school rooms, and all these libraries, if no person actually wants them as a result of all people might simply use their laptop or their cellphone or their no matter. And if it is vital sufficient to pay for the cash and to place all these computer systems in there, why shouldn’t individuals with AT have the ability to use them too? So AT-on-Demand does the next. It permits you to, for those who’re an AT person and you’ve got an AT, you’ve got a license to make use of it, you possibly can go in and sit right down to any laptop on the library, any laptop on the faculty, any laptop at any desk in any classroom, and your AT exhibits up on that laptop configured for you. And once you stand up, it disappears
Josh Anderson:
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
And it might probably try this for the primary time as a result of we’ve a manner of doing it that’s secure and safe. We take the entire set up packages for all of the AT and we put them in a bundle and we scan all of them, they’re all contemporary from the AT vendor anyway. We give it to the varsity or the library, they will scan it once more in the event that they wish to, and so they put it on their server inside their firewall. And so, when any individual is available in and sits right down to the pc, it will get a contemporary, sterile, clear copy of that individual’s AT off of the server at that library or at that faculty, places it on the pc. Then it takes the settings, which it saved for that individual, then these are saved within the cloud. And it units it up precisely the best way that individual must have it arrange. After which after they’re gone, it disappears. In order that’s AT-on-Demand.
And our objective is to have it on each shared use or public laptop, interval. Now, how can we try this? Properly, to start with, Morphic and AT-on-Demand are each free. They’re free to the person, they’re free to the varsity, they’re free to the library. So there’s no motive financially to not put it on each public or shared use laptop or every other laptop you wish to. And secondly, it’s arrange, as I mentioned, in such a vogue that it’s safe and that the locations which can be doing it don’t have to work at it. As a matter of truth, it truly decreases the trouble that the IT division has to do as a result of as soon as you place Morphic on all these computer systems, which is straightforward, it installs in about eight seconds. They not have to fret about screening extra AT when it is available in or determining which computer systems it has to put in it on.
They’ll truly, for those who do IT, you’ll know that one of many belongings you wish to do is you don’t wish to have a number of pictures. You’d prefer to have one picture you placed on all of your computer systems. Properly, proper now, any of your computer systems has AT, you place your picture on all of them, besides these, ’trigger need to have further software program on them. After which these need to be totally different. After which you must replace them individually, blah, blah, blah. With AT-on-Demand one picture, all of your computer systems. And also you by no means have to fret about anyone saying, effectively, might you put in this for this individual? As a result of it’ll robotically be there after they want it and gone after they’re finished.
One other one is individuals who say that their laptop crashes and so they’re at an organization. And what the corporate does is when their laptop crashes, they simply exchange it with one other one and it’s like, whoa, you simply took away all my software program, all my AT, all my settings, I acquired to start out throughout from scratch? And so, having one thing that they offer you a brand new laptop, it downloads a brand new software program, and your settings go into it and also you’re again up and operating immediately. Additionally, for interns, it’s nice who usually get an internship after which they get a extremely late begin in comparison with all their friends. In order that’s AT-on-Demand.
Josh Anderson:
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Yeah. Quantity three is one thing we simply got here out with, that’s referred to as Study and Strive. To begin with, we’ve been going to locations, and a few locations are utilizing Chromebooks or they’re utilizing iOS or tablets or issues like this, and you may’t do Morphic and AT-on-Demand on these as a result of they’re all locked down. You’ll be able to’t set up software program that impacts every other software program, so you possibly can’t do them. And Chromebooks, you don’t want AT-on-Demand as a result of all the things is robotically within the cloud, however even the MorphicBar, you possibly can’t add later.
So what we’ve finished with these is we’ve created a Study and Strive software, and it does the next; in it, it lists each totally different adaptive software program that we are able to discover for the entire platforms, and it consists of the stuff that’s in-built, it consists of the stuff that’s free, and it consists of the stuff which you can purchase. And you’ll then go in and simply say, I’m searching for one thing to assist with studying or blindness or low imaginative and prescient, otherwise you simply examine these bins and also you say, I’m on this laptop, and it takes this massive listing and it filters it on down to simply the gadgets that might match the issues that you choose, after which allows you to simply look via them and browse them.
After which sooner or later, not less than for Home windows, we’re going to be coupling it with AT-on-Demand in order that for those who wished to attempt a few of these issues, a lot of them you’d simply have the ability to attempt as effectively. However it would inform you for the opposite ones it would inform you the place to seek out them or the way to flip them on if you have already got them. As a result of plenty of instances these things is already within the laptop and other people simply don’t learn about it.
So these are the three instruments. All of them are free. Morphic’s been out for a few years. It’s been used, I don’t know, three quarters of one million instances or one thing. I’ve to return and have a look at the numbers. The AT-on-Demand, we’re rolling out proper now. And the Study and Strive software, we’re additionally within the technique of simply ending up and it needs to be out within the subsequent six months. You will discover about all of those for those who go to morphic.org, M-O-R-P-H-I-C dot O-R-G. And so, for those who go there because the stuff turns into obtainable, it would present up on that web site.
Josh Anderson:
Yeah, I’m certain you’ve got fairly a couple of of those through the years, however do you’ve got a narrative about possibly somebody’s expertise with Morphic and possibly the way it made a optimistic impression on them?
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
There was one library that referred to as us up and so they had simply tried it. They put it on their computer systems someday, and so they mentioned the identical day, this lady got here up and mentioned, “Thanks a lot. That is the primary time I’ve been to a library that really cared about outdated individuals.” And he says, “What do you imply?” She says, “Properly, you’ve got your computer systems, you possibly can alter them in an effort to truly use them. That is the primary time I’ve ever been capable of truly use the computer systems as a result of the prints is all the time too small.” And what he discovered is that she had gone in, sat down, the MorphicBar popped up, and so she goes, oh. So she tried the textual content measurement and it got here bigger, and that was it. That was the primary time she had ever actually been ready to make use of it. They usually referred to as us to say, effectively, they had been now going to attempt to see in the event that they couldn’t push into all of the computer systems within the state as a result of they know greater than acquired it on and bingo, that they had somebody are available in.
And it is a downside, and that’s that the libraries, for instance, are the primary place that people who find themselves older go to attempt to see what a pc is and find out about it. Then they even have lessons for seniors. However these lessons, they are going to are available in and so they’ll have seniors who will are available in and in the event that they want assistive applied sciences or one thing to make use of the pc, they are going to simply drop out of the lessons. And even when they’ve AT, they gained’t use it as a result of they will’t see the display as a result of it’s too small, however they don’t want AT as a result of they don’t have a incapacity, they simply have outdated eyes. So that you’ll see that on Morphic there’s nothing about accessibility about it. There’s no little wheelchair icon. It simply says textual content measurement on the backside of the display. You click on on it, the textual content will get larger, and that’s good. So that you don’t need to get into it.
And mockingly, these options had been referred to as accessibility. They modified them to ease of entry as a result of individuals didn’t just like the stigma of accessibility, after which individuals can’t discover them. I’ll finish with any individual as soon as mentioned that, “All people will purchase disabilities until they die first.” So that you truly can take a alternative. You’re both going to amass disabilities otherwise you’re going to die first. You’ll be able to take a alternative. So it’s actually for all of us and other people at any age may also purchase disabilities.
Josh Anderson:
Yeah, they undoubtedly can. Properly, Gregg, what was the web site once more the place of us can go and discover out extra about Morphic?
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
morphic.org. M-O-R-P-H-I-C dot O-R-G.
Josh Anderson:
All proper. We’ll throw that down within the present notes. Properly, thanks a lot for approaching in the present day, for telling us about Morphic and simply all of the actually nice issues it might probably do for people, for companies, for different locations, and actually simply all the good instruments that it has obtainable.
Dr. Gregg Vanderheiden:
Thanks. It’s been a pleasure to be right here.
Josh Anderson:
Do you’ve got a query about assistive expertise? Do you’ve got a suggestion for somebody we should always interview on Assistive Know-how Replace? If that’s the case, name our listener line at (317) 721-7124. Ship us an e mail at tech@eastersealscrossroads.org or shoot us a word on Twitter at INDATA Venture. Our captions and transcripts for the present are sponsored by the Indiana Phone Relay Entry Company or InTRAC. You will discover out extra about InTRAC at relayindiana.com. A particular due to Nikol Prieto for scheduling our superb visitor and making a multitude of my schedule. As we speak’s present is produced, edited, hosted, and fraught over by yours really. The opinions expressed by our friends are their very own and will or could not replicate these of the INDATA Venture, Easterseals Crossroads, our supporting companions, or this host. This was your Assistive Know-how Replace. I’m Josh Anderson with the INDATA Venture at Easterseals Crossroads in lovely Indianapolis, Indiana. We look ahead to seeing you subsequent time. Bye-Bye.