• RT @ppatel Webaim is conducting a screen reader user survey o gather more definitive data on screen reader users: http://tinyurl.com/3rmwte # 2008/12/18
• News: Apple Releases Mac OS X 10.5.6 http://www.lioncourt.com/?p=250 # 2008/12/15
• Retweet: @cookiecrook BusinessWeek: Apple is greener than Greenpeace says. http://tinyurl.com/57v4fp # 2008/12/08
• Retweet: @vmwarefusion : Fusion 50% off today, one day only. Details: http://is.gd/9Gqi Coupon code "CyberMondayDeal" # 2008/12/01
• It's Thanksgiving Day in the United States. We're thankful for Apple's commitment to accessibility in their products. # 2008/11/27

Olearia, the DAISY playback application for Mac OS X under development by Curtain University Center for Accessible Technology (CUCAT), has reached beta status. The current version, (v0.90b), can be downloaded from the Olearia site.

Olearia is a free and open source DAISY playback application for Mac OS X. The final release will boast playback of multiple DAISY formats, VoiceOver compatibility, and support for other Mac OS X technologies, such as Spotlight.

Today, MacSpeech announced the 1.2 release of their MacSpeech Dictate voice recognition software for Mac OS X Tiger (10.4.11) and Mac OS X Leopard (10.5.2 or later.).

Features new in 1.2 include a "Spelling Mode" which gives you the ability to dictate words or acronyms by spelling them out one letter at a time, phrase Training,many bug fixes, and a "Move" command to simplify verbal editing. Improvements have been made to the interface that will enhance the user experience.

MacSpeech Dictate sells for $199.00 USD, but existing users may upgrade to 1.2 for free. MacSpeech Dictate is VoiceOver compatible.

Today in Cupertino, Apple announced significant changes to its line of notebook computers, a new Apple Cinema display model, and new pricing for these products.

The new MacBook and MacBook Pros employ a new manufacturing process which results in smaller, lighter, and more durable machines. These new MacBooks are made from a block of aluminum which is carved into the needed shape. This eliminates over half the parts needed in the previous generation of Apple notebooks.

Many of the new models include more powerful graphics processors from Nvidia. The MacBook Pro’s 15-inch incarnation includes both the GForce 9400M and 9600M GT graphics cards. The user can choose which to use at any given time.

The newer aluminum MacBooks and MacBook Pros sport a glass trackpad which doubles as a mouse. It supports multi-touch and more gestures.

The new specifications and pricing are as follows:

• MacBook — The previous generation’s white plastic MacBook model will remain at a reduced price of $999.
• MacBook — 13.3-inch display, 2GHz Core 2 Duo / 3MB L2 cache, 2GB 1066MHz DDR 3 memory, GeForce 9400M, 160GB hard drive, slot-loading SuperDrive. $1299
• MacBook — Same as above except: 2.4GHz processor, 250GB hard drive, and a backlit keyboard. $1599
• MacBook Pro — 15.4-inch LED-backlit display. 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo / 3MB L2. 2GB 1066 MGhz DDR 3 memory. Nvidia GForce 9400M and 9600M GT cards. 250GB hard drive. Slot-loading SuperDrive. $1999
• MacBook Pro — Same as above except: 2.53GHz processor, 6MB L2, 4GB of memory, 512MB on the 9600M Gt, 320GB hard drive. $2499
• MacBook Air — Mostly unchanged. 120GB hard drive and now includes the Nvidia GForce 9400M video card.
• Options — Several configuration options are available, most notably a 128GB solid-state drive is available for most models.

Additionally, there has been some changes made to the ports. The MacBooks no longer include Firewire support. The DVI video ports have been dropped in favor of the new Mini Display port.

Check back for more details as they become available.

After three years in development and extensive testing, OpenOffice.org has announced the release of version 3.0 of their office productivity suite. In addition to a native Mac OS X version, OpenOffice.org V3.0 offers support for the Macintosh accessibility API’s, including VoiceOver.

It is not yet known whether this final release sports any significant improvements for accessibility over the previous Release Candidate (RC) versions we previous reported on.

OpenOffice.org V3.0 is a powerful, free and open source productivity suite which includes word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation features, among many others.

You can download OpenOffice.org from www.OpenOffice.org.