Pneuma Solutions news

BlindShell Classic 2 Integrates Sero: A Leap Forward in Assistive Technology

Pneuma Solutions Team • July 18, 2023

Over the last few years, we have witnessed incredible advancements in technology designed to aid those with visual impairments. Two companies, in particular, have stood out: BlindShell, a pioneer in assistive technology communication, and Pneuma Solutions, the current developers of Sero, the world’s most comprehensive and easy-to-navigate social network and multimedia repository for the blind.

Now, in an exciting development, the Blindshell Classic 2 Collection of accessible cell phones will integrate the Sero platform, creating an even better, user-friendly experience specifically for the visually impaired.

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Summer Shows for Us = Summer Savings for Everyone! 25% Off with Code show2023

Pneuma Solutions Team • July 5, 2023

With Pneuma Solutions back in action at summer conventions, it is time once again for some unbeatable deals! And you’re going to love this one…

25% off anything!

That’s right, anything! With the only exception being Sero due to its separate purchase process, anything available for purchase in our store via Stripe is 25% off for the month of July! A RIM Personal Unattended subscription for your machine at home? $74.25! Need to scale up? No problem, your 25% will be applied to the new price! Missed out on the Community Support discount? Never fear, you can still slash $37.25 off the $149 price, making the price $111.75!

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Sero for Android Gets a Face Lift!

Pneuma Solutions Team • June 15, 2023

The Android app for our award winning Sero community has now been updated to version 3.2.0. This version brings with it support for newer current versions of Android, including the current Android 14 Upside Down Cake beta builds.

Modernization of the app comes with the added benefit of a reduced impact on your device’s battery life.

We also have support for Android’s native media controls, so Talkback’s two-finger double tap will work for playing/pausing all Sero media throughout all of Android including the lock screen, and media controls will be present in the notifications shade and lock screen as is usual with most other media apps.

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A Mammoth Milestone: 100 Mastodon Followers!

Pneuma Solutions Team • May 11, 2023

Fediverse and Mastodon logos side by side.

We are thrilled to announce that we have just hit 100 followers on Mastodon! This is a huge milestone for us, and we couldn’t be more excited about it. At a time when Twitter is no longer blind-friendly, Mastodon is emerging as the go-to platform for people who care about accessibility. With its commitment to open-source software and decentralized networks, Mastodon is a breath of fresh air in a world dominated by closed systems and corporate control.
So if you’re tired of struggling to use Twitter, or if you’re just looking for a more inclusive and community-oriented social media experience, we encourage you to come join us on Mastodon.

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Pneuma Solutions Officially Joins the Fediverse!

Pneuma Solutions Team • May 1, 2023

Mastodon: We read you loud and clear

We are pleased to announce that we have officially established our presence on the Fediverse via a Mastodon server linked to Pneuma Solutions. A number of our staff may now be reached via Mastodon, and we invite you to follow us to stay in the know.

New to Mastodon?

No problem! Look to this very well written guide to Mastodon for newcomers courtesy of Amanda Carson and World Blind Herald.
Fortunately, there are a number of accessible apps that will make your experience enjoyable. We recommend the Semaphore web client, TweeseCake (Windows and Mac) or TW Blue for Windows,Mona for Mac and IOS,and Tusky for Android.

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The Future of System Access

Matt Campbell • June 17, 2022

In the wake of our farewell to Internet Explorer, where we announced the coming end of System Access to Go (or SAToGo), there has been some unfortunate confusion about the future of System Access in general. So in this post, as chief technology officer of Pneuma Solutions, I want to personally set the record straight. This will be a long post, but I think it’s important to be completely candid about where we’re coming from and where we’re going, so please bear with us.

The short version is that System Access isn’t going away. Its scope will be changing, to better reflect the current assistive technology landscape and make the most of our limited resources as a small company.

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The End of an Era

Pneuma Solutions Team • June 15, 2022

June 15, 2022, marked the end of support for Internet Explorer. It’ll go on being supported on some legacy servers for another seven years, but for all intents and purposes, the browser that led us through the explosion of Web 2.0 will take its place in the technology archives.

The sunset of Internet Explorer means that the end is also near for System Access to Go (or SAToGo), the first screen reader that could be launched directly from a web browser with no additional assistance. The web is a different place now than it was in 2007 when we launched SAToGo. Today’s web browsers are much more focused on both security and keeping the user in control, as they should be, and it is no longer practical for a website to talk the user through the process of downloading and running a program like SAToGo.

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Continuing Dialogue on Accessibility Overlays

Matt Campbell • August 23, 2021

Earlier this year the blindness community finally had enough with companies claiming to provide accessible overlays to make sites more user friendly. We took note of the increasing protests and did our part to mitigate these barriers that, in some cases, would not give users the ability to bypass their intrusion.

To date, none of the services we blocked through our extension have changed their methodology.

Last week we received a message from a representative from Max Access. We offer that exchange here, not as an attempt to shame any one company, but rather as an explanation to clarify our position to any other service curious about why we have blocked them.

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The Fast Food Approach to Web Accessibility

Mike Calvo and Matt Campbell • March 20, 2021

Have you recently visited a website and been told to press Alt + 1 or some other key combination to invoke some version of a screen reader mode? If so, you may have been led to believe the company cared enough about its customers with disabilities to make their website accessible. The truth is actually more disturbing than we suspected.

In a recent episode of Mosen At Large, Jonathan Mosen spotlighted one of these predatory companies falsely promoting itself as a revolutionary force in web accessibility. AccessiBe claims to use artificial intelligence to transform thousands of websites in the amount of time it would have taken to overhaul one.

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