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gawdonblue [soylentnews.org] writes:

Imagine what an airport terminal would be like for a blind person. Unable to see the signs telling you where to go — a great cavernous space full of rushing strangers.

"There's just so much noise from all the travellers and suitcases around you echoing off the floor and walls," says Mick Curran, who has been completely blind since he was 15. "Airports can be pretty overwhelming."

But Mick has had to get used to airports. He and his childhood friend Jamie Teh, who is also blind, are rock stars of the software world and they get around.

"I have learned to roll with it," Jamie tells Australian Story. "Take it as it comes."

Mick and Jamie's disabilities have not been a barrier to success.

The pair created screen-reading software called NVDA (Non-Visual Desktop Access) [nvaccess.org] when they were fresh out of university. Seventeen years later, it's now used by 275,000 people in 175 countries and has been translated into 50 languages.

Full story here [abc.net.au].

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