Re: [orca-list] Introduction

[Willie Walker <William Walker Sun COM>]

Bryen:

I forgot to say "Welcome to Orca!!!"  :-)  This is the right list for 
all discussions regarding Orca.

Will

Bryen wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I wanted to introduce myself and get involved with this mailing list.
> See what topics are discussed in this group and how I may contribute.
>
> I am affected with Usher Syndrome, which means I have both Retinitis
> Pigmentosa and hearing impairment.  I am legally blind with less than 20
> degrees of vision but still retain some decent central vision (Until a
> wall suddenly and miraculously appears in front of me with no warning!
> "Okay!  Who put that wall there?!?)  And I am profoundly deaf, although
> with a hearing aid I gain significant hearing to be considered
> hard-of-hearing.  I am a fluent ASL signer.
>
> I've been a user of Suse distributions for the past three years, but
> only in recent weeks have I become more actively involved in the
> openSuse community and participating on its openSuse-GNOME team.
> Primarily, as a participant of this team, I am focused on testing
> accessibility and usability tools from an end-user perspective in
> preparation for their upcoming 11.0 release expected in 2008.
>
> So why am I interested in this area?  Simple, not only am I interested
> in it because I am a user with impairments, but also because I am a
> systems consultant.  And quite frankly, I want to be sure that in 10
> years, as my vision continues to deteriorate, it is not computers that
> keeps me from working.  :-)
>
> I've only recently started playing with Orca.  There are some things I
> like about it and some things that I don't like about it.  But as I
> emphasize to everyone talk to, there is no one tool to fits the bill for
> everyone.  We, as people with various impairments, are as diverse as the
> snowflakes in winter.  I've been working closely with some of the good
> folks at Novell, and I can assure you they are very much enthusiastic in
> making their distribution as highly accessible as possible.  But as we
> continue to discuss new ideas and issues, it occurred to me that surely
> we aren't the first to discuss such things.  Why re-invent the wheel?
>
> And so here I am.  Enthusiastic about testing and evaluating the various
> tools available and looking forward to the day when there truly is no
> barrier left in the digital world.