About

G’day, and welcome to ATMac!

This website covers all Apple products with a slant towards disability. We have an interest in users with a disability, adaptive and assistive technology, and making accessible programs and content. We aim to cover all Apple products including all Mac OS X computers - the iMac, MacBook, Mac Mini, Mac Pro, and older models; the iPod range; the iPhone and iPod Touch/iTouch; the iPad range; and other products such as the Apple TV and Apple’s remote controls, mice and keyboards.

ATMac's logo is an eMac in a manual wheelchair.

As well as people with a disability and assistive and adaptive technology users, our audience includes teachers and educators, supporters such as parents and families of AT users, content producers, and application developers.

The topics we cover include:

Accessibility news about all Apple products
New and updated AT software
Software which has AT uses, although it may not be written with this purpose
New and updated AT hardware that works with Apple products
Getting the most from your existing hardware and software in terms of accessibility
Hints, tips and tutorials about all of the above
Coding accessible software
Developing accessible content with or for Apple products

Much of the accessibility information available for Apple users and developers centres around the VoiceOver spoken interface for blind users ATMac will include relevant information about VoiceOver, but other areas of accessibility will be covered in equal detail.

ATMac was started by Ricky Buchanan, who writes most of the articles. Joe Barnick and Paul Nasch are regular contributors, and several other people write less frequent guest articles. We are actively looking for other regular contributors as well as people interested in submitting occasional articles or guest posts.

Ricky started ATMac because she uses a bunch of assistive technology to access her Mac, and couldn’t find any sites that dealt with all types of assistive technology for OS X - this was before the iPod had any accessibility features and before the iPhone/iTouch/iPad had been announced. It seems important to have a central place where people can investigate all kinds of assistive and adaptive technology for all Apple products - both what’s provided by Apple and what’s provided by third party developers.

If something moves you to write an article I suggest that you contact us first just to make sure nobody’s already started writing it. Any other feedback is welcome also.

Everyone is encouraged to comment on existing posts to add experiences, ideas, or anything else related to the post. You don’t have to have an account to make a comment, and if you don’t feel comfortable leaving your name then that’s fine too - anonymous comments are also very much welcome.

You may wish to read our disclaimer and privacy policy.

As this is a regularly updated site the best way to use it will be to follow it over time. The best way to do this will be to use one of our free subscription options.

Enjoy ATMac!

- Ricky Buchanan

Comments are closed.

Newest Posts

Downloadable Proloquo2Go Tutorials

New tutorials are available for the iPhone/iPod Touch/iPad AAC program Proloquo2Go. These cover an introduction to P2G, customising the appearance and content of Proloquo2Go, and some special topics such as making backups, modifying pronunciation, and customising the voices used.

Using Dvorak Keyboard Layouts In OS X Snow Leopard

Switching to the Dvorak keyboard layout doesn’t cost anything and can help you type more easily once you learn to use the layout. Here’s how to go about it using Mac OS X Snow Leopard.

Jeff Walker Gave Me An iPad!

Yes, it’s true, I now have an iPad of my very own, courtesy of internet marketer Jeff Walker. If you want the whole story, and even the pictures, you’ll just have to keep reading… I think the good fairies have been sitting on my shoulder on this one!

WWDC ‘10 Announcements: Accessibility Implications

So the WWDC for 2010 is a bit behind us now, there’s time to take a breath and think of the accessibility implications of the things that were announced at the conference and since then. The iPhone 4, iOS 4, Safari 5, and new Mac Minis are just some of the announcements and releases.

Autism, Apple, iPhone, MacBook & Life

Web designer Jamie Knight explains how he uses his iPhone and MacBook to help manage the difficulties that his autism causes. He talks about communication, organisation, and managing problem areas in his life.

Nuance Buys MacSpeech: What Now?

It’s been announced that the MacSpeech company has been purchased by Nuance. Nuance are the company behind the Windows product “Dragon NaturallySpeaking“ and other recent Dragon products for iPod Touch and iPhone. So what does this mean for MacSpeech Dictate and the other MacSpeech products? What would you like to happen?

Remote Controls for Macs without a Remote Control

Almost all of the newer Mac models come with the Apple Remote control, and they can be used for a surprising amount of your computing. So what’s available for those of us who have a Mac that didn’t come with a remote, or who need a different remote for accessibility? There’s a huge range that will have an option appropriate for almost any user, no matter your assistive technology needs.

The Accessible iPhone 3GS

The iPhone 3GS has many new accessibility features, including a fully working screen reader. So what experiences are people having with this phone so far, and which applications are accessible?

Getting Started With Mac OS X

All Mac users have been beginner Mac users at some point. Because the use of OS X is expanding so fast, there are a lot of new and inexperienced Mac users around at the moment. This is a wonderful thing for the Mac in general - it means there’s more users! Here’s some of the best resources I have to recommend to new Mac users.

All I Want For Christmas Is Power!

Power’s what assistive technology gives us, really. The power to communicate, to read, to type, to plan, to play, to control things. The power to achieve things that we couldn’t otherwise achieve. Here are some ideas for gifts to empower assistive technology users.

ATMac

Assistive Technology for Apple and Mac Users