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From working hard on a project to ordering a Friday night delivery, most people use computers and screens for almost everything in their daily lives. Blind and low-vision people use computers and screens in the same way, but they need screen reader software to communicate the content on the screen. Screen readers use a synthetic voice to read content and describe images.
Unfortunately, screen reader licenses are not affordable for most people, often costing as much or more than computers, making continued access to education, employment, and daily tasks a financial burden. . According to employment statistics from the American Foundation for the Blind, the unemployment rate for blind people is 50% to 70%, mostly because access to the right tools is too expensive.
Why do blind people have to pay so much when many of them are unemployed?
Mick Curran
Jamie Teh and Mick Curran are software developers and musicians from Brisbane, Australia, who met as children at a music camp for the blind, where they bonded over a shared love of computer programming and music. Now they are both married and have families of their own and are still close friends. Almost two decades ago, they began one of their most important projects that would help change the world for the better while building a community of dedicated people.
In 2006, Mick took a break from university to work on an idea he had for screen reading software. He knew that the high price prevented many blind people from finding work or using a computer, and he wanted to change that with software that was always affordable for everyone. He asked Jamie, who had recently graduated with an IT degree and was working full time, to help him develop it. Jamie was excited to collaborate, despite his initial uncertainty about how successful they could be with the software that so many companies had worked on for years.
Over the next year, Mick and Jamie worked together to create an open source screen reader known as NVDA, or NonVisual Desktop Access, for Windows computers. A year later, Mick attended the CSUN Assistive Technology Conference hosted by the California State University, Northridge Center on Disabilities. When accessibility teams at major tech companies, including Microsoft, expressed interest in integrating NVDA with their platforms and browsers, Mick and Jamie knew they had a winning product. That year, they founded NV Access as a nonprofit organization to support the development of NVDA through funding and grants, and they continued to attend CSUN for many years.
NVDA soon became available on GitHub as an open source screen reader for Microsoft Windows, allowing a global community of contributors to develop the software with the latest updates and add-ons.
I was a little skeptical. What made us think we could write this?
Jamie Teh
NVDA Co-Founder
A big part of Jamie and Mick’s philosophy is how important open source is in changing people’s lives and the benefit of everyone contributing to the common good. Today, NVDA is used by more than 250 thousand people around the world in 175 different countries, and has been translated into more than 55 languages. It is still open source and the community continues to shape the future of the product. NVDA helps people who are blind and have low vision find work, maintain employment, and navigate their daily lives within a supportive community.
Make audio production accessible
In 2014, Jamie wanted a better music recording workstation that would make digital audio production accessible. A friend encouraged him to develop a music software plugin for himself and other blind and low vision musicians. Jamie built on his interest and experience in music production and, along with others, developed what would become OSARA, software that connects NVDA to the REAPER digital audio workstation. Today, thousands of blind and low vision people find jobs and advance their careers with OSARA, and the community continues to grow. OSARA is an open source software plugin designed for everyone to use at work and at home.
Learn more about OSARA on GitHub
