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TAVIP Newsletter March 2024

Dear members,

 

I hope you are all keeping well and that you have had a good start to 2024.

 

I am pleased to bring you our March Newsletter which includes details of various TAVIP activities taking place this year, an update on some of our ongoing projects, as well as sector reports into the future of technology.

 

You will have seen that we have just released details of our TechaBreak 2024 weekend which is going to be in Harrogate from 11th to 13th of October. It is shaping up to be another great event with lots of opportunities to talk about the latest technology as well as an opportunity to catch up with friends over a beer or a coffee. If you are planning to come, make sure you book in by 12th March to secure a place.

 

We have another Masterclass coming up in March as well as our regular monthly TechChat so I look forward to catching up with some of you online over the coming weeks.

 

Best wishes,

 

Clare.

 

Clare Burgess, Chair of Trustees.

 

 

TAVIP TechChat

The next TechChat session will this Thursday 7th March from 7.30 to 9.00pm. Do join us if you have any tech queries, or just to join in with the conversation and to meet other TAVIP members.

 

If you have Zoom software set up, you can enter our ID (2222-397-064), or

Connect to the TAVIP  Zoom Room by clicking or tapping this link.

If you’d prefer, you can dial in on a phone using the following details:

UK Telephone:  0203695 0088

 

TAVIP Masterclass – Taking a Closer Look: Using Magnification

The next Masterclass will be on Wednesday 20th March from 7.30 to 9.00pm. The online session will explore the products available to make content on computers and mobile devices easier to see for people needing to use magnification.

 

We’ll talk about some key considerations when choosing a device, introduce the options available for magnification on Android and Apple devices and contrast the free and paid-for options for PCs.

 

If you have Zoom software set up, you can enter our ID (2222-397-064), or

Connect to the TAVIP  Zoom Room by clicking or tapping this link.

If you’d prefer, you can dial in on a phone using the following details:

UK Telephone:  0203695 0088

 

New TAVIP members might like to know that you can access recordings from some of the recent Masterclass sessions on the TAVIP YouTube channel.

 

Sight Village Central

Team TAVIP will be attending Sight Village Central in Birmingham which runs from Monday 8th to Tuesday 9th July link to Sight Village Central. If you are attending and would like to meet up for a drink and a chat on the Monday evening, email Jeff Bashton who will be our main contact at the event (jbashton@tavip.org.uk). He will also provide further details nearer the time.

 

TechABreak 2024

This year’s TechABreak will take place from Friday 11th to Sunday 13th October 2024. We will be returning to the Old Swan Hotel, Harrogate.

 

This year we’ll be making our conference programme even more interactive. Our ever popular presentations will focus on the themes of Artificial Intelligence, Navigation Apps and Tools, and products that don’t require the use of a touchscreen and we’ll be giving you, our members, the opportunity to get hands on with audio and video recording. We’ll also be asking for suggestions for a topic you’d like us to cover.

 

Last year members were able to show and share different products, and offer advice to each other. This year we’re hoping to expand this, so do bring along your favourite product or share a useful app. We’ll also be there to answer questions in our Hands On Tech Surgery. Above all, it’s also a great opportunity to catch up with fellow members and access the latest tech.

 

To be sure of a place, bookings need to be made by the 12th March. You will also benefit from a TAVIP subsidy and will have the option of paying a £50 deposit, with the final payment due by 22nd July. The subsidised rate is £265 for a single and £450 for a double / twin room.

 

Here is a link for TechABreak information and bookings.

 

Sound Without Sight – March 2024 update

Some of you will be aware that TAVIP has been hosting a new initiative called Sound Without Sight which provides information and support to visually impaired people wanting to progress in the audio and music industry.

 

Led by Jay Pocknell, ‘Sound Without Sight’ is a network and knowledge hub for blind and partially sighted musicians and audio engineers, and a platform to showcase this community to the sighted world. Here is an update from Jay:

 

It’s been a big few months for the Sound Without Sight project. Firstly, in late 2023 we welcomed Sarah and Zenny, our Music Industry Engagement Interns, to the team. They have already had a huge impact on the output of the project, having grown the knowledge hub to include over 40 articles. You can read and hear more from Sarah and Zenny at the following link: https://soundwithoutsight.org/hello-from-our-music-industry-engagement-interns/

 

Sarah and Zenny were also integral to the development of our Monthly Meet-up Sessions, which launched this month. The first session’s featured guest was producer and studio owner, Slau Halatyn. Slau discussed:

  • His journey as a recording engineer, producer, and studio owner.
  • Tips for honing the people skills involved in being a producer and recording engineer, as a visually impaired person.
  • His experience of working with Avid to improve accessibility of their products, and becoming the VoiceOver guru for Pro Tools.

 

The recording of the session will be available soon on the project’s Sound without Sight website. It was great to have 65 community members join us for this initial session. In the March session, we will welcome Ben Price, a disability-focused artist manager, who has first-hand experience of adapting to his professional life to sight loss.

 

In other news, thanks to an anonymous donation, Jay Pocknell, Project Manager, was able to attend the world-leading NAMM Show in California. This event featured exhibitors from across the music technology and instrument industries, and Jay spoke with many designers and developers to get the scoop on upcoming releases of accessible products. Jay’s findings will be published by Sound Without Sight soon.

 

Jay also led a session about accessibility within music-making products at NAMM, hosted by the MIDI Association. The recording of this presentation will be posted by the MIDI Association very soon. Again, please keep an eye on the Sound Without Sight website for more information.

 

The SWS team was also present at the FFWD Music Industry conference in London this month, highlighting how inclusion of VI artists and individuals could be improved.

 

Elsewhere, the SWS website will have a new homepage and volunteer sign up options launching soon. To keep in touch with the project more frequently, you can sign up to the mailing list or register to contribute to the project at the following link:

https://soundwithoutsight.org/contact/

 

The In Touch radio programme – Looking at barriers to employment

TAVIP has always had a focus on employment and education, so we were interested in this recent edition of the In Touch programme which looked again at the barriers faced by visually impaired people seeking work, and which looked at a recent poll by YouGov.

You can listen to the In Touch programme here.

 

RNIB event “Using AI to build a better future for people with sight loss”

Team TAVIP were pleased to attend this event hosted by RNIB on 7 Feb. There were some great keynote presentations followed by a panel session which unpacked some of the issues further. Another attendee, Simon Jones, from web accessibility company Studio 24, provides a summary of what was covered, and shares his reflections on the event in this blog article on the RNIB AI event.

 

Technology Vision 2024

If you want a deep dive into what the future of technology may look like, then you will be interested in this report which is produced each year by Accenture. The Technology Vision 2024 report is subtitled ‘Human by design: How AI unleashes the next level of human potential’. It looks at four main areas; How AI will help us move from searching for data to searching for answers, how AI will move from providing assistance to taking actions, the impact of spatial computing, and finally (and perhaps most interestingly) how technology will interface with our bodies.

 

CSUN Assistive Technology Conference, 18-22 March 2024

Unfortunately Team TAVIP aren’t jetting off to California, but if any of you are lucky enough to be heading off to the C-SUN Conference please do drop us a postcard with your conference highlights so we can feature them in the next newsletter!

 

Those of you still enjoying the blustery weather here in the UK will be able to catch up on many of the C-SUN sessions on this CSUN YouTube Page.

 

Come sail with Visa-GB

One of our members has asked us to share these details about Visa GB, which they are involved in, and which provides sailing opportunities for visually impaired people. I know there is some great navigation tech available to help visually impaired people to helm a boat independently, so do consider giving it a try.

 

Now that the days are becoming longer and the weather is warming there’s no better time to think about this summer’s adventures.

 

Whilst admiring the warmth of the sun on your skin imagine how refreshing and satisfying it would be if you could enjoy it to its full potential out on the water… and that’s where Visa-GB comes in. Visa-GB is a charity providing sailing opportunities for visually impaired people from beginners to experienced sailors, those with useful residual vision to no sight at all, everyone is welcome on board.  Everyone is a member of the crew, and hence they get involved in all aspects of the trip with sighted assistance as required.

 

2024 opportunities include:

  • Explore the West Coast of Scotland between the 01/06/2024 and the 08/06/2024.
  • A chance to take part in the world famous Round The Island (Isle of Wight) race in June.
  • Start from Cowes on the 12/07/2024 and see where the weather takes you – it will either be a trip across the channel or to a round trip to Dartmouth – no matter which you will end up back in Cowes on the 19/07/2024.
  • A chance to try sailing in Southampton in early August.
  • A trip to Milford Haven.

 

Visa-GB trips are a fantastic opportunity to spend time with like-minded people, develop skills, build confidence and establish friendships as well as have fun!

 

To find out more about Visa-GB and its work visit www.visa-gb.org.uk.

 

Support available from TAVIP

Remember to reach out to the TAVIP Team if you need any help or guidance with your tech. There is the Discussion List, our monthly TechChat forum, the Technology for Work and Technology for Learning programmes which offer up to 5 hours of free 1:1 support and the Training Directory also lists other forms of paid-for training and support. There is also a link to useful resources on the TAVIP website.

 

So that’s it for this Newsletter. Do contact us on info@tavip.org.uk with suggestions for future newsletters.

 

Best wishes from all at the TAVIP Team.