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Starting tuesday, Windows users will be able to download the first JAWS 15 public beta. The Freedom Scientific website lists all of the changes that are coming in this version of JAWS. Some of the new features include: a new cursor called the touch cursor that allows users to interact with objects found in apps in Windows 8, JAWS specific touch screen gestures in Windows 8, support for Vocalizer voices from Nuance, new FS Reader, automatic detection of braille displays, drivers of third party braille displays included in the JAWS installation, and updated Skype support.

The FS Cast this month features an interview with Eric Damery discussing the new features in the JAWS 15 beta.

Source: tubidy

Paying with your cell phone seems to be the direction that many companies are heading. Paypal has just released a new version of their iOS app that will allow you to pay businesses with your iPhone. The app will search for businesses around you so that you'll know where you can use the app. The interface works great with Voiceover allowing users to pay for items on their phone and transfer money between accounts.

Even though there are accessible smart phones on the market, not everyone is interested in having a phone that requires a data plan. Starting on September 13th, Sprint will start selling the new Kyocera Kona flip phone. The phone will sell for $50 with a two year contract, with a $50 rebate that makes the phone free. The phone has a built-in text to speech engine that reads aloud all menus, text messages, incoming caller ID, notifications, and more. Users will be able to change how fast the text to speech talks and the color contrast on the screen. The keypad has shortcut keys for 911 and well defined tactile buttons. There is also a web browser for users that are interested in connecting to the web on their phones.

Less than a week after the game launched, the developers of Codename Cygnus have submitted an update to address the concerns about using Facebook authentication to save game play. According to the press release, Jonathan Myers said, "We needed a way to support our dedicated players with the creation of save game profiles online, but requiring a Facebook login from all players was far too much to ask. We really regret it, and we're very happy to listen to our fans and make this immediate change."

Once the update goes through, players will now have the option of saving their game online without having to login to Facebook. The company is also running a limited time promotion that will give players the first episode for free and allow users to purchase all 5 of the episodes for $6.99, a dollar off the price they had at launch.

To learn more about Codename Cygnus, read our review .

Starting today, users of the Victor Reader Stream will now have the option of downloading content from NFB Newsline and Bookshare wirelessly. After downloading the newest firmware version 4.2, users can then enter their credentials in for both services and start downloading content. Users can also get the upgrade by using the Humanware Companion software on their PC.

Other features in this update include support for Windows media and speak audio files, improvements to text to speech and audio playback, and improvements to the automatic software update check.

Humanware is offering a webinar to discuss the new features in this update on September 26. Register for the webinar by visiting the Humanware Events page.

The national Federation of the Blind is seeking input on how people perceive their organization and the initiatives that it supports. They want participants of the survey to be honest in their responses. All information will be held confidential. The goal of the survey is to learn how to better serve the needs of the blind community. . The survey has less than 20 questions and should take no more then 15 minutes. The survey will close on September 12th.

GW Micro has released a free maintenance release of Window-Eyes, version 8.3. This version includes support for Windows 8.1, better support for Windows 8 modern apps, support for Internet Explorer 11 including the spell checker, improved support for apps using the QT5 framework, and numerous stability and speed improvements. It's a free update for those running version 8.0 or later.

Last month we told you about a Kickstarter campaign for a new interactive game called Codename Cygnus. The campaign was a success, and last Friday the game was released on the app store. Over the weekend I had an opportunity to test out the game.

Yesterday the U.S. Department of Labor issued new rules that change the goals for hiring people with disabilities. Companies that have contracts with the federal government will now need to aim for the goal of having at least 7% of their workforce be people with disabilities. The 7% number is not a mandate, but if they can not achieve this goal, they will need to demonstrate how they will improve their numbers. The over 171 thousand companies that this effects will have six months to comply with the new rules. They will have to document how they are reaching out to people with disabilities, and how many applicants they have had who admit to having a disability. A Washington Post article estimates that if all the companies were to comply, almost 600,000 people with disabilities could be added to the workforce. Hopefully these new rules will help lower the unemployment rate amongst the disabled community.

If you're considering upgrading to a new iPhone this year, and you're planning to sell you're old one, you may want to look at trade in options. Some of the most popular options include: Gazelle, Amazon, Nextworth, and USell. It's important to note that the amount of money you will get for your trade is greater now then it will be after Apple announces the new iPhone.

The Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communications Technologies is interested in learning more about the accessibility practices of financial institutions. The results of the study will be used to gain insights and create best practices so that banks and other financial institutions can best serve people with disabilities. The survey should take between 15 and 20 minutes. If you're interested in receiving the results, you can provide your email address at the end of the survey.

There are a number of changes that are coming in the new release of iOS. Many writers are likely going to focus on the visual changes, and Apple will release a new handbook, but the mainstream is not going to focus on accessibility and the changes to Voiceover. Jonathan Mosen who has been beta testing the new iOS 7 is writing a book that will be specifically for Voiceover users. He is offering the book at 50% off, or $9.95,if you pre-order it before iOS 7 is launched. The book will be released when iOS 7 comes out. According to his website, here are some of the chapters included in the book, "What’s new in VoiceOver, Working with the Control Center, Notifications - a New Look and Feel, Search gets the Spotlight, App Switcher Changes, Siri Comes of Age, A better App Store, and iTunes Radio."

If you are a Learning Ally member and use an Android device, you can now read books from their collection using the Learning Ally Audio App. The app has the same functionality as the iOS app. You can read any book in their collection, download directly onto your device from your bookshelf, navigate by page or chapter, and add bookmarks. In order to use the app you will need to have Android 4.1 or later. Like the iOS version, no search capability is included, so you need to log into the Learning Ally website to add books to your bookshelf. It's available now and is free from Google Play.

There are a number of reasons that people use third party apps to read their twitter feeds. For screen reader users, one of the reasons is that for a long time, the twitter.com website was difficult to navigate. The team at twitter is aware of these challenges and they are working on fixing it. In a recent post to their blog, they discuss how they are making the website more easy to navigate using the keyboard.

Two of the keyboard shortcuts that are most valuable are the J and K keys. Using the J key will jump you to the next tweet in your feed and using the K key will jump you to the previous tweet in your feed. The blog post has a video demonstrating this feature using Voiceover, NVDA, and JAWS. Note that your screen reader's browse mode may require the use of a pass-through key for website shortcuts.

To get updates about accessibility or to give feedback on your experience, follow the twitter accessibility team .

There have been events where blind drivers have raced on a track with a sighted helper, but to our knowledge, never before has a blind driver competitively ridden a motorcycle by himself. Later this year, Dan Parker aims to change that. Before he lost his sight, Dan was an experienced race car driver. With the aid of a GPS system that will audibly guide him, Dan is going to participate in the Quest for the Salt at the famous Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah. Below is a copy of the press release from the NFB who is among the organizations sponsoring his efforts.

Sendero has just announced that they have submitted Seeing Eye GPs 1.1 for the iPhone to the app store. There are a number of changes in this version and the company has decided to reward early adopters of the app by resetting their subscription date to August 20. This means that everyone has been using the app for free since it launched. Below is a copy of the release that discusses the changes and new features.

HIMS has just released a new version of their firmware for the Braille Edge 40. The upgrade includes additional braille tables including Danish and Hebrew, the ability to read and edit TXT, RTF, DOC, and DOCX files in contracted braille, ability to save text in TXT format, and automatic battery warning when the unit has 10% of battery life left. See below for the entire list of new features and instructions on how to upgrade your unit.

AI Squared has just released the newest version of ZoomText for Windows8 . Free trials are available for this release, which is only currently available on Windows 8. A Windows 7 version is planned. In addition to the Windows 8 support, support for Internet Explorer 10, Microsoft Office 13, and touch screen devices is included. They have also posted some videos to introduce the new features in version 10.1. We've included the list of new features from their website after the jump.

Going to the gym or using exercise equipment in your home can be a challenge if the machine is not accessible. A lot of exercise equipment uses inaccessible touch screens or other visual information that the blind can not access. A team of researchers is asking for feedback about how the blind use exercise equipment, what the challenges are, and how the machines could be made better.

A researcher at the University of Maryland is studying the accessibility of mobile technologies. The survey asks for feedback about what does and does not work for users. The survey should take no more then 25 minutes and at the end of the survey you will have the option to be entered to win a $100 Amazon gift card. To enter into the drawing, you will need to provide your email address.