Stanza - Accessible E-Book Reader for the iPhone

Scanning through the Personal Tech section of the Times, I bumped into an interesting tidbit, "Tip of the Week - Turn Your iPhone Into an e-Book - NYTimes.com". I have an iPod Touch (the iPhone sans phone), so I ws intrigued, though remaining skeptical, by this tip. I just downloaded the app, Stanza, to my iPod and fell in love. On a technical level, it is a perfect application of accessibility for a visually impaired user. The font sizes can be adjusted with a very wide range. You can select font and background colors with a wide selection of choices, not just a simple reverse color scheme option. The screen rotates with the iPod, so you can read it landscape with the larger text. Pages can be turned with a simple flick on the screen. Best of all, it retains your choice of settings. I could not be happier with the accessibility.

Now I have to download the desktop version and hope that there are interesting e-books to read . . .

Apple's Vision Accessibility Information

As I posted Microsoft's Resource Guide for the visually impaired a few days ago, I felt I should add a post on Apple's Vision Accessibility page. Apple discusses several features of OS X, including a 'spoken interface', a 'Zoom' option and special Display settings. Apple also links to a number of 'Third Party Solutions'. Although I use a Windows machine, I have to admit that Apple is always a step ahead of Microsoft in both ease of use and aesthetics. Apple seems to have a done a nice job with its accessibility features.