Here's my latest update on Newton, the #Wayland-native, #Flatpak-friendly #accessibility project for the modern #FreeDesktop ecosystem, developed as part of @gnome and funded by @sovtechfund. It's not ready for production yet, but this blog post includes a demo video and links to GNOME OS and Flatpak runtime builds you can try. As a bonus, because I'm integrating #AccessKit into #GTK, GTK apps will finally have #a11y on Windows and macOS. https://blogs.gnome.org/a11y/2024/06/18/update-on-newton-the-wayland-native-accessibility-project/
@matt Awesome! This is incredibly needed! Thank you!
Any thoughts on when the voice stop hurting, though? I think if I had to listen to that thing all day my ears would start bleeding pretty quickly :/
I understand that is probably not your area, but maybe you have some insight into what work is being done there?
@forteller Ha, I wondered if someone would complain about the use of eSpeak NG in the demo.
The Spiel project (https://project-spiel.org/), which also got some STF funding, is working on making it easy to install voices as Flatpak apps, and on distributing better voices. But that's not yet available on GNOME OS. So eSpeak NG was it.
@forteller eSpeak NG is more tolerable, even entirely acceptable for some of us, if you speed it up, but I knew I couldn't run the voice at the speed I typically use, when doing a demo for a mixed audience.
@matt Sorry for bursting in on this fantastic stuff you're doing and demoing with a complaint! I just don't want my blind brothers and sisters in Linux/Gnome to also go deaf, you know?
Thanks again! Happy to hear that there's work ongoing on the voice too!
@forteller No problem, it's a valid concern. Really though, a lot of us who use this stuff every day are fine with eSpeak. I'm using it right now, by choice.
@matt That sounds like some kind of Stockholm syndrome to me. But hey, as long as you and other users are happy, I'm happy!