Resources for Disabled Members of LUGs?

A concerned Anonymous Coward asks: "A while back, our LUG was helping a blind Linux user get things going, and just recently we've picked up a deaf member. Finding software to work with their disabilities for when they are using their computers at home isn't too difficult, but are their any resources 'out there' to help integrate these people into our monthly meetings?"

Re:Good excuse to learn sign language

[Night0wl]

Another one to try and "lip read" is the phrase:

I want to vacuum

Try it with some chick.. it'll work wonders. Trust me.

Does anyone know of any accessibility layers?

[gstoddart]

A buddy of mine is a quadraplegic, and has asked from time to time if Linux is something he'd benefit from.

Problem is, he currently uses Windows which has some very good accessibility modes. Things like sticky keys (click shift, and it applies to the subsequent keystrokes, same for control and the like). Sound feedback so he can be sure he's hit the number of keys he's trying to, stuff like that. Click and drag is right out.

Does anyone know if any of KDE or Gnome (or whatever) have any good Windows-like accessibility modes for people with limited physical abilities?

first of all.

[davidu]

you might not want to refer to disabled persons as "these people" ;-)

-Davidu

Re:Good excuse to learn sign language

[Reedi]

Er... Yes, learn sign language if you want to but sign language is NOT the preffered access method for most deaf people.
Speaking clearly, whilst facing the person in question, and in good lighting does more for a lip reader (most of us lip read to some extend whether we have a hearing impairment or not or whether we realise it or not) than sign language classes for the rest of the group who aren't deaf.
If the person in question uses hearing aids then an induction loop system might be of benefit. They're relatively cheap and don't take a lot of setting up. Another alternative is a radio aid which is basically a radio microphone whose receiver output is placed next to or plugged into the user's hearing aid.
If the person in question is a sign language user then you'd be better hiring an interpreter (they are not cheap) as it takes about 4 years training to get to interpreter. But by all means if the person does use sign language then do> learn enough to be polite and sociable and order a round of drinks or whatever. I did, so it can't be too hard :-)

On an acoustics note. Many people make the mistake of simply amplifying the speaker's voice. This is good but if the room is too "boomy" then quite a lot of people with a hearing impairment will find difficulty. A nice, dead, flat room is usually the best. Though I realise the choice of room acoustics is not always yours.

Ian

PS: Subtle clue which most people miss...
Sign language users are likely to spell deaf as Deaf. Whereas people who do not (primarily) use sign language spell deaf as deaf.
At least in the UK that is.

Thanks to my partner who is D/deaf for that one.

Good excuse to learn sign language

[bluGill]

Computers are mostly text based. Indeed the terminal I sit at only has the ability to beep, and it can flash the screen instead if I set it up right. So using the comptuer won't be a problem like it would be for the blind.

For a deaf person you need sign language. Everyone talks about lip reading, but it doesn't work. (Try mouthing "island view" to someone and see what they lip read it as) It takes time to learn a language, be it sign or otherwise. It is good for you. See if the club can bring in an instructor for an hour before/after each meeting.

I personally know enough deaf people that it would be useful to know sign language. There are also times it would be nice to have a conversation without distirbing others. (Ie some of the meetings at work which I have to attend but don't really affect me)

Best tool for the disabled:

[rjh]

Doesn't matter what the disability is: the best tool is compassion without condescension from the rest of the LUG.

That said, the best way to proceed is typically to ask the person in question if you need to make any adjustments to accomodate them. The deaf member may have trouble lipreading if the speaker has a big, poorly-trimmed handlebar moustache, for instance; and if the deaf LUG member knows that s/he can say, "hey, guy, no offense, but could you please trim that thing?" and not get nasty stares, well, that's a pretty good place to start from.

If you don't know what you can do to make your LUG more accessible to the deaf and blind, the most logical place to begin isn't an Ask Slashdot. Try asking them instead.

Keep in mind that your club may have legal obligations if you live in the United States; the Americans with Disabilities Act, which is pretty broad-ranging, requires that reasonable steps be made to accomodate the needs of the disabled. You may run into similar laws in other countries as well. If you're concerned about what your legal obligations are under the ADA, check with an attorney.