Hacking Tech for Accessibility: Unconventional uses for everyday tech
Assistive technology systems for deaf and hard of hearing can cost thousands of dollars, are limited in capabilities, and struggle to keep up with pace of other advancements. Catharine McNally, Senior Program Manager at GitHub, who is deaf, has little patience for waiting for this assistive technology to ‘catch up.’ Instead, she finds new uses for existing technology that serves her accessibility needs, such as using her smart lights to flash repeatedly when a tornado watch is issued in the middle of the night. She also found a creative use of ChatGPT to serve as a homegrown accessibility accommodation for her meeting notes – saving hundreds of dollars in annual software costs. This session will inspire others to look at their lives to consider how they can extend their technology and experiences to improve their daily lives.
00:00 - 00:11: Introduction
00:12 - 08:25: New Uses for Technology
08:26 - 11:42: Deaf Accessibility Considerations
11:43 - 17:42: Evaluating Alerts
17:43 - 19:44: Setting up Smart Plug + Bed Shaker
19:45 - 22:23: Setting up Alerts
22:24 - End: Other Alerting Needs
#GitHub #accessibility #assistivetechnology #deaf
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