My understanding of the SDS100 and the entire process behind programming it is still far from perfect.
Up front I want to make several points clear since I have been blasted and flamed in other forums simply for expecting blind users to be provided with the same access and functional usage of radio scanning products as sighted consumers.
If you can't acknowledge that basic right please don't bother to respond at all.
I have more than 35 years of experience in computing and technology related fields.
I have served as a beta tester for many screen reading products as well as various devices designed to provide some sort of audio feedback related to successful operation.
In order to be effective I kneed to understand how a device or product should behave and what information is required for a blind user to interact with that product.
Because the SDS100 is new to me as well as the concepts behind its programming and operation I apologize for any errors I make in describing what I want it to do and how it fails to supply me with the feedback I need.
In addition because it is difficult to read the massive amount of posts in all the forums here and on other sites I also may touch on features or functions already discussed and that have been dismissed as impossible or unreasonable.
In general I have found the BCDX36HP software to be quite useful and most if not quite all elements are read by Jaws for Windows, one of the screen readers I run.
The most difficult areas are the tabs within the profile settings. Several of the controls are being read with the wrong labels.
I suspect this is related to where in the screen layout the label for the control is placed.
However my primary concerns are with the radio so that is the focus of this message.
Without speech output to guide the blind user the only real option is sound.
The SDS100 issues several beeps in various situations.
The triple beep is clearly an error message.
There are double beeps and single beeps and they do have different pitches.
There is also a nice pair of descending tones.
With these tones to work with maybe a change or two would help.
My biggest problem is just what the radio is scanning when I turn it on.
Here is where my understanding may be getting in the way.
My example is a set of 5 favorites lists all with lots of systems and departments defined.
Yes, all quick keys are on.
Yes all have monitor and download on in the scan selection.
Each of the 5 have a config key set from 0 to 4.
Turning on the radio and pressing 0 loads favorites list 0 as it should.
Scanning is happening, life is good!
I'd really like to turn on FL1.
I hold then enter 01 and enter.
No joy.
I turn off the radio and then back on pressing config key 1.
FL1 loads and scanning starts.
I'd like FL0 so I try to turn it on, no luck.
Feature or user error?
Next issue is systems and departments.
What is on and what is not?
Experimenting I managed to turn all of the systems in my FL0 off.
Radio turns on and I get the nice triple beep.
No problem turning on a system.
Radio comes on and scanning starts.
I turn on a second system in FL0 and now scanning two systems is going fine.
As long as I remember which two are on things are fine.
If not then accessibility becomes important.
Turning on or off a system or department results in the descending two tone sequence.
The problem is knowing whether I turned the item on or off.
Both actions result in the descending pair of tones.
A simple fix in the firmware that used a ascending two tone pair for on and descending for off would go a long way towards accessibility.
Since the tone values are already part of the code using them in reverse order should be a minor change.
If this principle of ascending pairs for on and descending pairs for off were universal to any of the user on/off operations throughout the scanner I could use them to confirm what I'm scanning if I forgot.
Not perfect since a sighted user can just look but short of a full speech output system it would be one tool that would help.
Using the software to constantly return the radio to a known state is yet another method for being able to get basic functions from the scanner.
Solving the question of the favorites lists on/off status after power up would be another tool.
With my older bank/channel style radios I simply have my defaults stored in software and when I get to lost I just reload.
The defaults have all banks off.
I then can just turn on the ones I want.
I can also toggle banks I suspect of being on and when I try to turn off the last active bank I get a warning beep indicating I can't do that.
Being able to use a similar approach on the SDS100 would only work if it was possible to toggle favorites lists.
I'd just create a profile with nothing on and start where I wanted.
Combine the tone sequence fix with the ability to toggle and I have even more control and understanding of what I'm scanning.
Timeout beeps for functions that are momentary would also be a huge help.
I'm thinking of the volume and squelch functions.
I find myself trying to change volume but if I took to long then I get the beeps and I'm suddenly changing something but no idea what.
Sighted users could easily know from the display but that's not an option I have.
Ok, wish!
I'd much rather have volume as the default function for the knob with secondary functions after push or function then push.
Really dreaming, modes that stay until canceled.
Example:
Volume after push of knob then point on the keypad to end.
Function then push knob for squelch, point on keypad to end.
I'm sure as I learn more about the radio and use it I will find other areas that could use some minor changes to improve my ability to operate it.
I hope that somebody at Uniden takes this seriously enough to consider my suggestions.
I also hope that through discussion blind users and sighted users can interact in ways that generate tricks, tips and modifications to help all of us.
Up front I want to make several points clear since I have been blasted and flamed in other forums simply for expecting blind users to be provided with the same access and functional usage of radio scanning products as sighted consumers.
If you can't acknowledge that basic right please don't bother to respond at all.
I have more than 35 years of experience in computing and technology related fields.
I have served as a beta tester for many screen reading products as well as various devices designed to provide some sort of audio feedback related to successful operation.
In order to be effective I kneed to understand how a device or product should behave and what information is required for a blind user to interact with that product.
Because the SDS100 is new to me as well as the concepts behind its programming and operation I apologize for any errors I make in describing what I want it to do and how it fails to supply me with the feedback I need.
In addition because it is difficult to read the massive amount of posts in all the forums here and on other sites I also may touch on features or functions already discussed and that have been dismissed as impossible or unreasonable.
In general I have found the BCDX36HP software to be quite useful and most if not quite all elements are read by Jaws for Windows, one of the screen readers I run.
The most difficult areas are the tabs within the profile settings. Several of the controls are being read with the wrong labels.
I suspect this is related to where in the screen layout the label for the control is placed.
However my primary concerns are with the radio so that is the focus of this message.
Without speech output to guide the blind user the only real option is sound.
The SDS100 issues several beeps in various situations.
The triple beep is clearly an error message.
There are double beeps and single beeps and they do have different pitches.
There is also a nice pair of descending tones.
With these tones to work with maybe a change or two would help.
My biggest problem is just what the radio is scanning when I turn it on.
Here is where my understanding may be getting in the way.
My example is a set of 5 favorites lists all with lots of systems and departments defined.
Yes, all quick keys are on.
Yes all have monitor and download on in the scan selection.
Each of the 5 have a config key set from 0 to 4.
Turning on the radio and pressing 0 loads favorites list 0 as it should.
Scanning is happening, life is good!
I'd really like to turn on FL1.
I hold then enter 01 and enter.
No joy.
I turn off the radio and then back on pressing config key 1.
FL1 loads and scanning starts.
I'd like FL0 so I try to turn it on, no luck.
Feature or user error?
Next issue is systems and departments.
What is on and what is not?
Experimenting I managed to turn all of the systems in my FL0 off.
Radio turns on and I get the nice triple beep.
No problem turning on a system.
Radio comes on and scanning starts.
I turn on a second system in FL0 and now scanning two systems is going fine.
As long as I remember which two are on things are fine.
If not then accessibility becomes important.
Turning on or off a system or department results in the descending two tone sequence.
The problem is knowing whether I turned the item on or off.
Both actions result in the descending pair of tones.
A simple fix in the firmware that used a ascending two tone pair for on and descending for off would go a long way towards accessibility.
Since the tone values are already part of the code using them in reverse order should be a minor change.
If this principle of ascending pairs for on and descending pairs for off were universal to any of the user on/off operations throughout the scanner I could use them to confirm what I'm scanning if I forgot.
Not perfect since a sighted user can just look but short of a full speech output system it would be one tool that would help.
Using the software to constantly return the radio to a known state is yet another method for being able to get basic functions from the scanner.
Solving the question of the favorites lists on/off status after power up would be another tool.
With my older bank/channel style radios I simply have my defaults stored in software and when I get to lost I just reload.
The defaults have all banks off.
I then can just turn on the ones I want.
I can also toggle banks I suspect of being on and when I try to turn off the last active bank I get a warning beep indicating I can't do that.
Being able to use a similar approach on the SDS100 would only work if it was possible to toggle favorites lists.
I'd just create a profile with nothing on and start where I wanted.
Combine the tone sequence fix with the ability to toggle and I have even more control and understanding of what I'm scanning.
Timeout beeps for functions that are momentary would also be a huge help.
I'm thinking of the volume and squelch functions.
I find myself trying to change volume but if I took to long then I get the beeps and I'm suddenly changing something but no idea what.
Sighted users could easily know from the display but that's not an option I have.
Ok, wish!
I'd much rather have volume as the default function for the knob with secondary functions after push or function then push.
Really dreaming, modes that stay until canceled.
Example:
Volume after push of knob then point on the keypad to end.
Function then push knob for squelch, point on keypad to end.
I'm sure as I learn more about the radio and use it I will find other areas that could use some minor changes to improve my ability to operate it.
I hope that somebody at Uniden takes this seriously enough to consider my suggestions.
I also hope that through discussion blind users and sighted users can interact in ways that generate tricks, tips and modifications to help all of us.
