This week, Jan is floating on cloud 9 as his local football team (that's soccer for those of you in the USA) seems to be doing very well. So well, in fact, that they are top of the 'kitchen' league ...better not to ask what that means! 

Our good friend Stuart Lawler gives us his own thoughts on the NewHaptics 'Codex' Braille display, which uses compressed air to raise its braille cells. It does this by hooking itself up to an aquarium-like pump. However, we are not sure if fish need to be present while the display is in operation. Once we find Nemo, we will ask him/her! 

Mohammed has at last received his Ally Solos smart glasses. What does he think? Well, tune in to find out whether you should spend your hard-earned cash or not. In addition to being a world-renowned lawyer and mathematician, Mohammed is now passing himself off as an orientation & mobility trainer, and has some views on how one should use a long cane. Do you agree? Let us know at blindguyschat@gmail.com. 

Clodagh has an email about screen readers from a listener in Poland. What's your preference, JAWS, NVDA or Narrator? Let us know. 

So, forget about cleaning out the poo from the aquarium. Slap on a pot of coffee and tune into the most radical podcast this side of a moaning Liverpool football player: Blind Guys Chat. 11 out of 13 guppies prefer it to pushing braille cells. 

Links for this show:

·       https://www.newhaptics.com/codex

·       https://www.ally.me/glasses

Support Blind Guys Chat by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/blind-guys-chat

Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/e2235512/137-i-wouldn-t-do-it-like-that-/transcript]

#137: I wouldn't do it like that!

This week we are talking to Adela Buliman from Vially here in Ireland. Adela is the Chief Accessibility Officer and what she doesn't know about the European Accessibility Act, isn't worth knowing about! So, roll up your sleeves, Mohammed, and get ready to rumble! Disclaimer: this chat is more of a girlie pillow fight than a "pistols at dawn" kinda thing, but we enjoyed it! Jan was home alone at Sight Village, London recently, and he has all the juicy tech news to share, including a new Braille note-taker from HumanWare. 

The biggest news this episode is that the guys have been working hard on a new email jingle for Clodagh – what do you think? Is it down with the kids? Send us your reviews to BlindGuysChat@gmail.com. Clodagh has an email from Nina in Canada, who wants to know about independent travel. Mohammed can answer this one as he is an expert solo traveller. 

So, pull out that list of all your inaccessible gadgets and settle in for the number 1 podcast this side of a 365-day-old Christmas tree: Blind Guys Chat. 16 out of 20 European Commission lawyers prefer it to laying down the law! 

Links mentioned in this show:

 * HumanWare, Braille note Evolve: humanware.com/en-ireland/braillenote-evolve/ [https://www.humanware.com/en-ireland/braillenote-evolve/]
 * WeWalk cane: wewalk.io [https://wewalk.io/en/]
 * Vially: vially.io/ [https://www.vially.io/]
 * Competition and Consumer Protection Commission: ccpc.ie [https://www.ccpc.ie/]
 * ICT regulation document EN 301 549: https://tinyurl.com/ITregDoc
 * National Transport Authority: nationaltransport.ie [https://www.nationaltransport.ie/]
 * Irish Aviation Authority: www.iaa.ie [https://www.iaa.ie/]

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Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/a9aab8fe/136-rocky-21-the-eaa-vs-mohammed/transcript]

#136: Rocky 21: The EAA vs Mohammed

It's celebration time here in the BGC office as Óran has news! It seems he is now calling himself a scriptwriter because his very first script has just been produced. It is for the super-fun, excellent and wonderful children's animation TV series: ‘Maddie + Triggs’. You may remember we had the star of the show, Bonnie O'Meara on the podcast, together with Turnip + Duck founders: Colm Tobin and Aidan O'Donovan. Óran’s episode is #46 and is called 'Dogs with Jobs' which is about Lolo the guide dog. There are links to that interview, along with links to Óran’s episode at the bottom of the show notes. Disclaimer: any resemblance to Larry the guide dog is not fictional!

If you are not in the UK or Ireland, Maddie + Triggs is available in these countries and broadcasters: YLE (Finland); SVT (Sweden); NRK (Norway); RTS (Switzerland); ABC (Australia); CRTVG (Spain); DR (Denmark); JY Ent (China); TFO (French-speaking Canada); Knowledge Network (English-speaking Canada); VME (US Hispanic); Côte Ouest (Sub-Saharan Africa); France TV; Minika (Turkey).

Óran has a question about the European Accessibility Act (EAA), and while he does trust our designated BGC lawyer and senior council, Mr Mohammed Laachair, he would appreciate comments from the wider community: blindguyschat@gmail.com.

Clodagh has a reminder that there’s a ‘Seen - Unseen goes Racing’ day out at The Races in a non-visual way, in collaboration with HRI at Fairyhouse Racecourse on Saturday November 29th. Participation is free of charge. Email Claire on claremclaughlinemail@gmail.com or send a voice note or text to 086 3091653.

We also have a listener asking us to recommend TV content with good AD, see list below.

• On Netflix: Arcane, Stranger Things, and The Diplomat.

• On Apple TV: Slow Horses series 5.

• On other streamers: Game of Thrones.

And please email us on blindguyschat@gmail.com to let us know what shows you’ve been enjoying. We’re always looking for recommendations!

So, shake off the damp November weather, tell winter to hold its horses, and settle in for the number 1 podcast as voted by readers of pre-school magazine 'Sleepy Times': Blind Guys Chat. 8 out of 10 dogs with jobs prefer it to having a job!

Links mentioned in this show:

• Dogs with Jobs news article: https://www.rte.ie/kids/2025/1106/1542541-larry-the-guide-dog-maddie-and-triggs-rte/

• BGC Episode 63 - Maddie and Triggs’: The Unbeatable Team: https://tinyurl.com/BGC063

• Link to Óran’s episode of ‘Maddie + Triggs’ on RTÉ: https://tinyurl.com/MaddieTriggsEp46DogsWithJobs

• Link to Óran’s episode of ‘Maddie + Triggs’ on BBC:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m002ls4q/maddie-triggs-series-1-46-dogs-with-jobs

• Link to Óran’s episode of ‘Maddie + Triggs’ on DailyMotion (muted by default):

https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9tlxfy

• Seen, Unseen: Contact Claire on claremclaughlinemail@gmail.com or send a voice note or text to 086 3091653.

• Dutch mountain song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpCUbmAsxwQ

And don’t forget to email us on blindguyschat@gmail.com!

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#135: Mohammed knows everything about the law, but he is not a lawyer!

This week we are chatting with Freek van Welsenis, the Director and CEO of Hable One. Freek is here to talk about the Hable One, a sleek Braille device that can be used to navigate your smart devices. He also tells us about the Hable Easy, a smartphone controller, and the Speechlabel, a handy device for labelling and subsequently identifying items around the house and in work.   Mohammed and Jan's date to Jan's local football club didn't go so well. It appears that Mohammed was left to fend for himself at the ticket gate! Well, Chantal was also with him, so he wasn’t completely abandoned, and Mo is famous for being independent, so we don’t think he was in any danger, but we’re not sure Jan will get a second date!   We have an email from Sarah from ‘down under’; she is wondering if smart speakers are useful, or are they really just small juke-boxes? What do you think? Do you still use your smart speaker for anything else but setting timers? email us: blindguyschat@gmail.com   So, strip down to your #25 Juho Kilo jersey and start your warmup for the best podcast this side of a stroopwafel: Blind Guys Chat. 9 out of 11 football supporters prefer it to watching grown men cry!   Links: ·       Hable One: https://www.iamhable.com/en-om/products/hable-one-keyboard ·       Hable Easy: https://www.iamhable.com/en-om/products/hable-easy ·       Hable Speechlabel: https://www.iamhable.com/en-om/pages/speechlabel ·       Juho Kilo: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juho_Kilo

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Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/5662b964/134-jan-one-mohammed-nil/transcript]

#134: Jan: One, Mohammed: Nil

This week we find out that Mohammed is building his fan base. Yes, it appears that he has at least one! It's a lovely woman who lives in Maynooth, County Kildare. Apparently, she drives a car that looks like a frog. Let's hope her husband doesn't find out! About Mo, not the car! He knows about the car, in fairness!   Óran has been having some issues with the WhatsApp desktop application for Windows, and also with WhatsApp video calling via his Meta Ray Ban smart glasses. It turns out a WhatsApp update is required for the video to work again on the Meta glasses. Bold boys WhatsApp!   Professor Mohammed has advice on updating iOS apps and gives us a detailed answer on why he thinks there have been so many accessibility issues with the latest iOS 26 update for iPhone.   Do you use a Freesat set-top box for your linear TV viewing? Óran would like to know if the latest Freesat boxes are accessible to blind users. Let us know via blindguyschat@gmail.com.   Jan is taking Mohammed on a date. Seriously. They’re heading off to Jan's local football club to watch a live game, complete with live audio description. Will Jan get a second date, or will Mo make a hasty exit?   Finally, we tell of Stuart Lawler's recent frustration when he was trying to cancel his SKY TV subscription.   So, forget about hanging scary skeletons outside your house and instead cosy up to your device of choice, and listen to the number 1 podcast as recently voted by hibernating squirrels: Blind Guys Chat - 7 out of 10 iOS updates prefer it to being a bunch of code.

Support Blind Guys Chat by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/blind-guys-chat

Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/c6f4c6cc/133-no-ramble-like-a-snarky-ramble-/transcript]

#133: No ramble like a snarky ramble!  

This week we’re talking to Professor Pieter Roelfsema from the Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience in Amsterdam. He is chatting with the lads about a research project looking at direct electrical stimulation of the brain via cortical visual neuroprostheses, which is a promising approach to restore basic sight for the visually impaired by inducing a percept of localised light called ‘phosphenes’. We are offering Jan as a guinea pig for this one!

Meta are opening up an SDK (Software Development Kit, for those of us who are less technical) so external software developers can develop and add their applications’ functionality to the Meta glasses. Is this a good thing? What do you think? Let us know at blindguyschat@gmail.com.

We've got an email from friend of the podcast, Rene Ludwig, who is a 'TravelEyes' user and thinks it's a great service.

So, connect those electrodes directly into your ears and prepare to listen to Óran rambling on and on!

Disclaimer: Ramble tags would like to disassociate themselves from any rambling producers.

Links for this show: · Professor Roelfsema’s paper on his sight restoration research: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40578385/#:~:text=Direct%20electrical%20stimulation%20of%20the,localized%20light%20called%20&#x27;phosphenes [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40578385/#:~:text=Direct%20electrical%20stimulation%20of%20the,localized%20light%20called%20'phosphenes] · TravelEyes: https://www.traveleyes-international.com/ · Ramble Tags: https://rambletag.co.uk/

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Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/95a58a0c/132-the-rambling-producer/transcript]

#132: The rambling producer

Time to bring out the slide projector again as Jan tells us about his recent holiday adventure in France and Spain. Thank all the gods he was with his wonderful wife and children or else he might have left a trail of destruction behind him! He tells us all.   Our guest this week is eamonn linnane. For the last 25 years Eamonn has been organising the Mizen to Malin cycling event, in order to raise funds for Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, in memory of his late father, Paddy. Eamonn tells us all about the cycle and even tries to persuade the Blind Guys to do it in 2026. The guys have agreed, but only if they can drive! Clodagh is very excited about this, as Óran looks great in cycle shorts.   So, get ready to shave your chest, slap on your Oakley glasses, and start the most exhilarating ride you are ever going to experience - Blind Guys Chat. 9.6 out of 10 bicycle saddles prefer it to being sat on.  

Support Blind Guys Chat by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/blind-guys-chat

Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/d9140744/131-the-ninety-niners/transcript]

#131: The Ninety Niners   

We're back after our summer break, and as we woke up to the sound of Autumn arriving, (it’s lashing rain here!) we were discouraged to hear that the new Glide is not coming to Europe! What!?! As the characters on South Park might say "You Ba***rds! You killed Kenny!" But are we really surprised to hear this news? The Blind Guys discuss.

Guess who's just pre-ordered a new pair of Envision Ally Solos Glasses even though he already has a pair of the original ones? Yes, it's the Stephen Scott of Blind Guys Chat; Mohammed. So why has he decided to throw his €3,500 Envision smart glasses out with the rubbish and pay out for a new pair? And will it help him get lucky with the women?

Speaking of meeting up with women, Mohammed also tells us of his trials and tribulations when he recently travelled to Berlin on his very own, with nobody to mind him. BGC understands that the German police are advising people to be on the lookout for a blind man accosting tourists and locals, and demanding they bring him around museums. They are also looking for a blind man seen running around parks seeking a running partner, waving his cane wildly. Wonder who that could be?

So, pick up those fallen leaves from the front doorstep, make yourself a nice cup of hot chocolate, and settle in for the number one podcast this side of a ham sandwich: Blind Guys Chat! 8 out of 10 museums prefer it to storing old stuff!

Support Blind Guys Chat by contributing to their tip jar: https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/blind-guys-chat

Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/16ce2553/130-stop-drooling-on-me-pants/transcript]

#130: Stop drooling on me pants  

Hello and welcome to BCG129. Jan is off soaking up the rays with his family so Mo and Óran are home alone with Clodagh babysitting them. Mo is about to go on his own holidays, he is off to Berlin all on his own! Will he be ok? Will he be able to find the hotel all by himself? Do the German women need to lock their doors? And what is a museum island? None of these questions will be answered in this show! However, Mo is going to meet up with some of the local Berliners and run around their parks. Have you ever done a 'Park Run'? Let us know how you got on: blindguyschat@gmail.com.   Óran is banging on about useful GPS navigators for the blind and vision impaired, as usual. It seems that Larry and he went off on a walk into the unknown, solo, and could have benefited from a good navigation app, but Google Maps just wasn't up to the job, apparently.   Clodagh has an email from a brand-new listener to the podcast (you’re very welcome, Charles from Texas – we’re delighted to have you in the gang!). Then BGC regular, Blind Gordon, tells us to get down with the kids and be 'drip snatched'. (For those of us not in the know, in Gen Z slang, drip means clothes/accessories. It can also refer to a person's sense of style being sexy or cool. And snatched means amazingly good, very attractive, flawlessly styled, etc.)   So, switch off the telly now that the women’s Euros are over, launch your favourite podcast app, and take a listen to the number one podcast as recently voted by the New Yorker: Blind Guys Chat. 17 out of 20 country stone walls prefer it to being stone!

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Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/7e0d7eee/129-mind-your-p-s-and-q-s-/transcript]

#129: Mind your P's and Q's!

Don't worry folks, Unlike the Icelandic volcano 'Eyjafjallajökull', we have not erupted, but we are quite hot and sweaty in the BGC office. Jan is just back from Washington DC where Abraham Lincon and his mates were sweltering in 35-degree heat (95 degrees in old money. Jan was a bit peeved, as his ‘Look and Tell’ feature on his Meta Ray Ban glasses is still not working. Oh dear! However, perhaps he might purchase a pair of the new Oakley smart glasses, or as Jan calls them, the new UGLY glasses! (Oakley will not be pleased at being called that – as they’re a very proud fashion brand!) Do you plan on spending your hard-earned cash on the limited edition gold Oakleys? Let us know: BlindGuysChat@gmail.com.   Mohamed has been slaving over a hot soldering iron and has just released the latest update for JAWS and Fusion. Apparently, you can now have JAWS run off to the cloud when you encounter an unlabelled button in an app, pdf or webpage – it will find the correct label for you. All you do is press the keystroke JAWS key (insert or caps lock), with the letter G, and JAWS will label that button for you. How cool is that?! You can even save these labelled buttons on webpages that you frequently use. Woohoo!! And there's more. When using Vispero's FS Companion you can now get Google help. You can search for shortcuts for Google Docs, Google Sheets etc. But can it find Mo's underpants? (Óran! Don’t be bold! -Clodagh)   We chat about the emotional rollercoaster that is deciding whether to apply for a new guide dog or not. Please let us know your stories around this. It will help us, and more importantly, other listeners through their decision-making processes.   And if you would like to hear Óran talking about writing for the TV series ‘Maddie + Triggs’, you can listen to him (link below) on the 'In Touch' podcast produced by the BBC, where he and producer Colm Tobin and lyricist/writer Deena Diamond talk about the show with Peter White.   So, strip down to your ugly nethers, take a cold one out of the fridge, and lie back for a listen to the sultry, ice creamly voices of: Blind Guys Chat! 55 out of 65 thunder storms prefer it to making scary crackly/banging noises!   Links for this week’s show: BBC In Touch: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m002fjp9 insert (starts after 8 minutes) BlindGuysChat@gmail.com  

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Read transcript [https://pnc.st/s/blind-guys-chat/82019f21/128-eyjafjallaj-kull/transcript]

#128: Eyjafjallajökull

Blind Guys chat is a biweekly podcast, produced by three blind guys in Ireland and the Netherlands. The show takes an easy and breezy approach to life, disability, technology, and just about anything else that the blind guys think of! We'd love to hear from you so get in touch by email to BlindGuysChat@gmail.com and follow BlindGuysChat on Twitter.

Stuart Lawler

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