Blind Communicator - Interview with the developer of a fantastic app

Did you have any prior development or coding experience?

I have been developing Android apps since 2012. My first app is 'Cinema Gallery': an offline app that allows you to browse all the video files stored on your smartphone or tablet and add a cover to them in order to have a gallery of movies, like 'Netflix'. I also develop software in HTML5, like '3D Object Maker' (https://3dobjectmaker.lrusso.com.ar) and '3D Object Viewer' (https://3dobjectviewer.lrusso.com.ar), for industrial design and 3D printing.

What was the most challenging aspect of developing mobile app?

I think that the most challenging aspect of developing 'Blind Communicator' was that there was not enough official documentation about how to - as a software developer - manage SMS or override the controls of the smartphone on an incoming call. It required a lot of research and development to make it work properly.

_{Leonardo Javier Russo}

Leonardo Javier Russo is from Buenos Aires, Argentina. He is a 33-year old software developer, and most of his work aims to improve the quality of life of people with a visual or mobility impairment. He also designs 3D modeling software for 3D printers.

Name a few of your favorite apps and reason you love them.

'WhatsApp' because it allows you to talk and chat for free by using your phone number as your ID (so you don't have to register with an email and password or anything like it), and 'YouTube' because it offers the possibility to buy your favorite movies and TV shows.

How long have you been working on this app?

I have been working on 'Blind Communicator' for two years. I tried to spend as much time as possible on the development of this project, as I was aware of the potential that it has.

What need of the user did you have in mind when developing this app?

The idea to offer an easy and fast way to use a smartphone or tablet for the visually impaired. I think that everybody must have the opportunity to be part of this new mobile world, and this app is a way to get there.

In what way do you think your app is better than similar apps on the market? Please describe in detail what innovation you think you bring and what you are proud of in your app.

In Android, there is an app developed by Google named 'TalkBack' for the visually impaired. 'TalkBack' offers to the blind user a concept which is 'explore by touch'. This means that, when 'TalkBack' is activated, you can 'explore' the screen with your finger and a voice will tell you which item you are selecting, so that you can interact with it using different screen gestures. In theory, this approach is valid, but when you put it into practice, you will have several issues. The first one is that not all the apps are compatible with 'TalkBack'. For example, if an icon or image wasn't programmed with a text description, 'TalkBack' won't know what to say because it cannot know what the icon or image actually means or represents. Secondly, it's really hard to ask a blind user to remember the location of every icon, button, menu and app in order to use the smartphone in an easy and fast way. Thirdly and most importantly, it's very hard for a blind child or an elderly person to understand the concept of a dropdown listbox, context menu, app status, notifications, etc. when the user is only touching a small piece of glass. Most of the time, this combination of issues leads to a paid teacher or institution and even after all the lessons, a friend or close relative may be needed to tell the blind user why 'TalkBack' is not responding as expected or what went wrong. Also, no one decides to have a disability, so I don’t think anybody should earn money because of it.

What makes 'Blind Communicator' unique and innovative is that it offers a simplified GUI with a voice guide that tells the user everything that they need to know: the system events (incoming call, incoming message, screen off/on, screen orientation, device charging, battery status, etc.), the current position on the screen, the available options and the result of every action. In order to make the touchscreen a friendly element for the blind, the only thing that the user needs to do is to slide up and down to browse between menus and to slide right to select an option. The app will guide and teach everything that the user needs to know or do in each situation, and by suppressing the complexity that a GUI may represent to the visually impaired (text boxes, list boxes, buttons, icons, system notifications, etc.), it makes the smartphone really easy to use and there is no need of another person next to the blind user to make this happen. 'Blind Communicator' allows the user to listen to music, use a voice recorder, send and receive SMS, receive and make calls, create and delete alarms, create and delete contacts, browse the web with the Google search engine as a starting point and launch other apps.

When the user needs to input text, there are three ways available: using the device's keyboard, using the voice recognition system with up to 10 possible interpretations to select from (may require Internet) and using the touchscreen, sliding up and down through characters and symbols and sliding right to input the selected character. At the moment, to handle calls, the user can answer a call by sliding up and end it by sliding down. The result of the simplified GUI with the voice guide is that it makes it possible for a blind user to use a smartphone or tablet in a very easy and fast way without the learning curve that 'TalkBack' requires.

What are your future plans and expected features of the coming new versions of this app?

'Blind Communicator' covers all the basic functions of a smartphone for the visually impaired (messaging, calls, music, web browsing, alarms, contacts and voice recorder), and at the moment I'm working on getting the app available in more languages. The first version of the app was only available in English and Spanish, but the latest version is also available in Italian, French, Portuguese, Russian, German and Indonesian. 'Blind Communicator' uses a voice guide, so translations to different languages are very important in order to offer the best experience possible to users all over the world.

Assuming new users of your app are reading this page. What do you want to ask them to do (contact you about X, Share the app, etc.)?

I think that feedback is always necessary in order for me to know if the users are happy with a new feature or if they need something else. That's why I'm always receptive to suggestions and emails. Also, volunteers to translate 'Blind Communicator' to other languages are always welcome (they will be named in the app's description as a recognition for their work).