Vinux 1.31 - Ubuntu for the visually impaired!

[drbongo]

Dr. Bongo,

Is this Vibuntu 1.0 a Command Line Interface (CLI) Linux with optional X server? Perhaps I had misunderstood. A CLI program for the blind is much more desirable as it is difficult - and often impossible - to locate X Windows and read them as it is really a "hunting game" with a mouse on a screen that is black and unreadable to the blind!

Best

DR

Vibuntu uses the same Gnome desktop as the Ubuntu 8.10 release but with the preconfiguration of accessibility software. Although using a command line is probably easier than navigating GUI's for someone who is a fairly competant IT user, beginners and people moving over from windows find it very confusing. Also from an educational point of view, having a GUI makes it much easier for someone to teach a VI learner how to use a computer because they can see where the focus is and where the learner needs to get to etc. There is nothing to stop you using Vibuntu completely from the terminal of course. But I will try to include a terminal based screen-reader like yasr or speakup in the next version so you can spend the whole session in a virtual terminal setup by pressing Ctrl+Alt+(F1-F6) once Vibuntu is running.(Press Ctrl+Alt+F7 to return to the GUI session)

The rationale behind Vibuntu is to create a single OS that both sighted and visually impaired users can use rather than expecting VI users to use an OS and/or applications that are unfamiliar to the general population and therefore only serve to further ostracise the visually impaired from the community at large.

Thanks for the feedback, I completely understand your point of view, because some of the VI learners I work with are competent hackers at the command line. However the vast majority are not and just want to do simple things like write text, send e-mails and browse the net which isn't that difficult using a GUI based screen-reader and a few keyboard shortcuts etc.


drbongo

[drbongo]

Update: I am now working on a bash script that will enable Orca to work during installation. It kills the existing orca session, restarts it using sudo so it works with the root user account and then starts ubuiquity. This allows you to install ubuntu using Orca and then restart the computer with the original Orca settings.

I have managed to get it to work but it still needs a few tweaks to make it work smoothly such that the user doesn't even notice the change. I am hoping that I will then be able to modify this script so it runs anytime a user uses sudo to run applications as root.

drbongo

[drbongo]

I have only just started this project, but there seems to be a reasonable amount of interest, and I intend this to be a long term commitment. There is certainly a niche for a mainstream distro which is accessible for VI users.

I would like to know if there is anyone who might like to contribute to the project in whatever way they can. I intend to do most of the work but I would appreciate having a small group of people I can call on when needed as I will be doing most of this work in my own time.

You do not have to be an elite hacker, I certainly am not, all I want is enthusiasm and reliability. I envisage asking people to perform small modular tasks which do not involve anyone having to make a major commitment to the project.

For example I would be happy to hear from people who would occasionally be willing to test pre-releases and identify bugs, write (or recording) short how-to's on performing certain tasks with access technology, designing a logo, desktop backgrounds or themes, recording short audio messages to provide` users with audio feedback when a screen-reader is unavailable, writing small scripts to improve accessibility, testing apps for accessibility, hosting or mirroring the distro, providing technical advice and guidance to users and even just providing suggestions for improvements.

Having a visual impairment is not necessary, but would be an advantage to at least know or work with someone who has a visual impairment so you have an understanding of the issues involved.

I envisage Vibuntu (or Vinux - haven't decided yet!) being a simple to use OS which makes it as easy as possible for visually impaired users to get the Linux experience and give up using expensive commercial software running on an expensive commercial operating system. However I want it to be just as attractive to sighted users by keeping the standard Gnome desktop and apps instead of tailoring it exclusively for the visually impaired. I envisage it being used in schools and colleges with VI learners, as a flexible OS on a family computer, or as an easy introduction to computing for older people who are losing their sight. Thats the ideal - but it is going to take quite a bit of work to get it there...

Does anyone share my vision?

Can't wait to hear from you! Please provide an e-mail address and an idea of what you would be willing to do, and a link to anything you have already done (if applicable).

I will not reveal any of this information if you want to remain anonymous.

Please send me a private message and I will send you my email
drbongo

[drbongo]

Update: From information gleaned from Orca mailing list it seems that there is a relatively simple fix for the orca/administrator problem which involves creating an orbitrc file for the root user. I have not tested this yet, I am sure it will work, but I am not certain whether remastersys will retain this file or not! If it works that will be a major improvement and I will release the second version as soon as I have remastered it.

It seems that the idea of setting up a root account has already been used successfully, and other uses have manually done what I was going to do with a simple bash script, so there are two fairly safe backup options if the orbitrc hack doesn't work with remastersys.

drbongo

[drbongo]

UPDATE: Vibuntu 1.0 is now also available from the following mirrors*

http://vibuntu.blinuxman.net/
http://blinuxman.net/vibuntu/

*Special thanks to Osvaldo La Rosa (aka Ald0) for this generous offer!

[Arrakeen]

Hi,
I found this thread just a couple of days ago after searching for a distro for my Mother - she's suffering from AMD and has reached the end of the road as far as simply making the fonts bigger on the screen.

She's been looking at a commercial system and when she said it was a £1000+ I started to think I should look for a more open solution.

I'm sure she'd be a willing tester - I've downloaded both the 2d & 3d version and will see which works better on her setup.

I'm more than willing to help - but must admit that while I work in IT networking and am pretty fluent in Linux I'm not a coder (well not for the last 16 years) and get kind of lost when asked to do installs that don't use a package manager.

I've PMd my email address and would be happy to help in anyway I can.

Keep up the good work.

Phil.

[drbongo]

Vibuntu 1.1 is ready! (I have replaced original first post with this announcement)

The new release of Vibuntu is ready for download! It incorporates several significant improvements over the first version and a handful of small changes. Vibuntu is a remaster of the Ubuntu 8.10 'Intrepid Ibex' live CD customised to the needs of blind and partially sighted users! It is designed to boot from a live cd or USB memory stick, log you in automatically and then start up the Orca screen-reader. Full-screen magnification can then be activated with a simple keystroke.

IMPROVEMENTS...

Firstly I have resolved the problem of Orca not working with applications run with root permissions by following the recommendations posted on the official Orca website: i.e. I created an .orbitrc file for the root user, disabled the gksu keyboard grab and edited the sudoers file. This allows Orca to work with applications like the Ubiquity installer and the Synaptic Package Manager etc. However, the recommended way to launch these applications is to open a terminal by pressing 'Ctrl+Shift+t' and then typing the name of the application e.g. 'sudo ubiquity'. The reason for this is that launching these applications from the panel menus or desktop icons produces inconsistent results. In other words sometimes Orca works and sometimes it doesn't. Finding a way to solve this problem is still my top priority.

Secondly I have now merged the 2D and 3D versions of Vibuntu into a single .iso image. Vibuntu will now boot into the standard 2D magnification mode by default, however you can enable/disable the 3D magnification by simply clicking on a
desktop icon or menu entry. This means that you can try the 3D version without any risk of major problems because if it doesn't work or crashes the display you can simply disable the 3D effects or restart your xserver by pressing Ctrl+Alt+Backspace'.

Some minor improvements include Braille support being enabled at boot, a slightly larger red mouse pointer to enhance its visibility on both dark and light backgrounds, some new keybindings to open a terminal 'Ctrl+Shift+t', to open the home directory 'Ctrl+Shift+h', to toggle window maximisation 'Ctrl+Shift+m' and to toggle fullscreen mode 'Ctrl+Shift+f'.

DOWNLOAD...

The new release is available from the following URL:

http://www.rnc.ac.uk/mct/linux/vibuntu/Vibuntu-1.1.zip

Inside the zip file you will find iso image and a text file containing the md5sum of the iso image (not the zip file).

The image should also be available at Osvaldo La Rosa's blinuxman.net mirror within the next 24 hours:

http://vibuntu.blinuxman.net/ or http://blinuxman.net/vibuntu/

Osvaldo has also kindly set up a homepage for Vibuntu at:

http://blinuxman.net/projects/vibuntu.php

[drbongo]

Vibuntu 1.2 Released!

I am happy to formally announce the realease of Vibuntu 1.2 and I feel that this is a significant release because I have now resolved the problem of Orca beong unable to read admin apps launched from the menus and activated USB Braille Display autoprobing. This was achieved by simply changing the entries in the admin menu so they launched as an ‘application in terminal’ using the sudo or gksu command when necessary. This simply opens a terminal, asks for the admin password if required and then runs the gui application. When you close the application the terminal closes automatically and focus is returned to the Orca window. The only exception to this is remastersys gui which for some reason does not retain focus, you have to alt+tab to move from the terminal to the remastersys gui. (This is a problem with remastersys rather than Orca/Gnome etc). Sighted or partially sighted users are advised to open the admin apps using the desktop icons which will run the admin applications in the standard way. (Thanks to Luke Davies for this suggestion) Of course this solution only works on top of the changes recommended on the Orca SysAdmin page.

The download URL’s are:

http://www.rnc.ac.uk/mct/linux/vibuntu/Vibuntu-1.2.zip
(This is a zip file containing iso and md5sum)

http://vibuntu.blinuxman.net/ and http://blinuxman.net/vibuntu/
(These are standard iso downloads)

The homepage is here:

http://blinuxman.net/projects/vibuntu.php

I would like to thank everyone who has contributed to this project by offering feedback, suggestions and criticisms. I would especially like to thank Osvaldo La Rosa who has enthusiastically taken on the responsibility for hosting a Vibuntu webpage and mirroring the images. This will in all probability be the last release of the year as I now want to take stock of what has been done, make available a list of features/changes, instructions on how to create Vibuntu from scratch and a wishlist of possible new features divided into easy, difficult and impossible!

As ever I would appreciate continued feedback and suggestions. I will set up a thread on the Ubuntu Assistive Technology and Accessibility section for people to post their suggestions!

drbongo

[drbongo]

I have written a short press release aimed at VI users who may not know about
Linux. I would be grateful if you could post it on any general
accessibility/software sites/forums you use if you think it would be a good
way of getting the uninitiated to give Linux a try! If we manage to get
enough interest from a few institutions, charities or government agencies it
may be possible to obtain some funding for a few developers to work on the
project full or part-time! Thanks for all the support. I hope people on the
mailing lists don't think I just a self-promoting megalomaniac, I really do
want to help VI users and I believe (perhaps naively) that Vibuntu is a step
in the right direction. Please feel free to shoot me down in flames! <straps
on his asbestos wings and applies liberal amounts of sun-block> The press
release follows!


Vibuntu - The first Linux distro to be fully accessible to blind and
partially sighted users out of the box!



Vibuntu is a customised version of the popular Ubuntu Linux distribution
optimised to meet the needs of visually impaired users by default. Vibuntu
comes in the form of a live CD which you place in the CD drive and then
restart your computer. Once it boots a screen-reader is activated, USB
Braille displays are automatically detected and full screen magnification can
be turned on/off with a simple keystroke. Vibuntu also provides an attractive
visual interface which makes it suitable for sighted, partially sighted and
blind users. You can navigate the menus and applications using the
screen-reader and/or Braille display or switch this support off and use the
full screen magnification. This is an ideal way of introducing visually
impaired users to the Linux operating system which offers a free and
open-source alternative to expensive proprietary software. This is very safe
and secure way to let someone experience Linux and experiment without taking
any risks or making any changes to your computer. You can continue to use
Vibuntu as a live CD or install it to your hard drive either alongside
Windows or as a complete desktop replacement. It is also possible to install
and run Vibuntu from a USB memory stick if your computer supports USB
booting. If you are interested in trying Vibuntu or would just like to know
more about it please visit the project website at
http://blinuxman.net/projects/vibuntu.php

[drbongo]

I had a message today from a large charity organisation who want to fund the development of a nvda-compatible full-screen magnifier to run on windows from a USB pendrive for third world countries etc. They where thinking of basing it on python. Is this something you would be interested in working on either yourself or together. It looks like there would be funding available to do this either as an individual or through the college. I suggested that if you took a python/SDL approach you could probably use the graphics engine to send the screen to a virtual display and then use the real display to focus on smaller areas of the virtual screen (like compiz) however the tricky bit would be getting good quality font smoothing and caret tracking. I also suggested that it might make more sense to try and port/adapt an existing linux magnifier like gnome-magnifier or the accessibility modules of compiz. A penny for your thoughts!

drbongo