Hello our little teardrops and welcome to episode 96. It's Eurovision Song Contest time again so do watch out for the odd Eurovision song title in the show notes and also during the show. Óran is asking listeners to email in with the total number of Eurovision song titles that are mentioned during the show and in the show notes and podcast chapters. You’d never know – there might be a prize – so get emailing! And yes, we have "All Kinds of Everything" on this show - so let your "Love Shine a Light" on our 3 presenters for this week, Clodagh, Jan and Óran. Jan has been celebrating the King's birthday as it was King's Day in The Netherlands during the week, and His Majesty took his whole family on a day trip to visit the common people of Holland. He even brought his security detail with him and apparently, they have bullet proof suitcases, just in case any ne’er-do-well tries to shoot the King's underpants - "Ding a Dong!!!" Also, apparently the king's daughters are "lookers" as we would say here in Ireland, and this has not gone unnoticed in the Bloem household. Will Jan need to buy a hat for a special day out!?! It's a welcome back to our own "Rock and Roll Kid", Kevin Sherwin, back on the show to tell us all about this year’s Eurovision Song Contest entries. Will Ireland make it past the semi-finals? Will Norway get any points? Will the eastern bloc countries all vote for Australia? Will there be "Euphoria" when it's over? Listen in to hear what our wonderful Eurovision correspondent thinks. Óran's got another pain in his hoop. This time it's about the poor quality audio description on the Netflix series "Ripley" starring Andrew Scott. Have you watched the show? What do you think of the audio description. Let us know at [email protected]. Clodagh has an email from a confused person regarding Braille. Maybe they need to "Make their mind up"?! So don't be a "Diva", leave the "Arcade" for a while and listen to the number 1 podcast as voted by the Tahitian Foreign Minister for Dolphins: Blind Guys Chat!

17 and a half out of 20 European countries prefer it to the Eurovision Song Contest.

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Hello our little Galway girls and welcome to 'De Chat' as some of our listeners are calling it. We hope you are well, dry, and safe. This week it's a welcome back to Gordon Anthony aka Blind Gordon, who guest hosts again. Gordon has been a busy boy while not on the air - it seems he managed to break his arm from signing autographs on the way to see Dundee United lose another football match. But luckily, he had set up 'fall detection' on his Apple watch and the device proceeded to call the cops, ambulance service, his daughter, the pope, the prime minister of Japan and Dominos pizza. There was some good news from his accident however as Dundee United managed to win the game that day; in fact, they haven't lost a game since!! Sadly, Jan can't say the same for his local team "Ado Den Haag". While Gordon was recuperating, he managed to find a new A.I. tool called “Pi” which apparently is very good and well worth a go. Jan has been doing some research of his own and recently attended the Dutch version of ‘Sight Village’ - does that make it “Ziezo Villagen”? 😁 Anyway, he touched the “Crystal Skull” (Raiders of the Lost Ark reference, don’t ya know!), and he touched the new Emotion Braille display from HIMS, plus the Activator Braille display from Help Tech and even the Mantus Q40 from HumanWare. Phew, that’s a lot of touching, Jan!! He also spoke to the developers of a new AI app from Belgium company called  EMVI, whose tag is “EMpowering the Visually Impaired”. The EMVI developers say their technology “doesn’t just assist; it empowers”. Their “scene understanding” feature opens up “new dimensions of independence for the visually impaired. Navigate with confidence, explore with ease, and embrace a more connected and informed way of experiencing the world.” – sounds amazing – we might just try it out for the next episode! In TV Corner, Gordon is recommending ‘Meet the Romans’ which you can find on the BBC iPlayer, and also a movie on Apple TV called ‘Adjile’. Óran is suggesting ‘Sugar’ on Apple TV and ‘A Gentleman in Moscow’ on Paramount+. Clodagh’s got a voice message from Mohamed Laachir as he responds to Nora Nagle’s query on the last podcast regarding guide dogs in Muslim communities. And speaking of Nora, she writes in with some additional information on turkeys and one in particular called Terrible Tom. So, catch that blind turkey and stick it in the oven while you chillax with a nice cup of Joe and listen to the most informative podcast this side of a hen party: Blind Guys Chat 7 out of 10 fall detection watches prefer it to falling. Links in this show: ·        Pi, a new AI: https://pi.ai ·        HIMS Emotion: https://hims-inc.com/product/braille-emotion/ ·        Activator Braille display from Help Tech: Activator Braille display from Help Tech ·        Mantus Q40 from HumanWare: https://store.humanware.com/heu/mantis-q40.html ·        EMVI, a new AI app: https://www.emvi.ai/

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Hello our little spring butterflies and welcome to episode 94 of BGC. Our guest host on this show is our good friend Nora Nagle, who joins us all the way from Boston, Massachusetts. Nora's retired guide dog, Larry, is also making an appearance every now and again with woofs and pleas for treats.

Nora has just returned from a world tour of Miami beach where her husband was able to give her a very detailed review of the local wildlife and their different coloured thongs. Jan and Óran may need a minute or two here for a short break.

We move swiftly onto this year’s CSUN conference which was in Anaheim, California. Óran is intrigued by 'JAWS Kiosk' which is already rolling out in the USA. This development allows blind and low vision customers to interact with the ordering stations in, for example a MacDonald's outlet, simply by plugging in their headset where a screen reader will provide feedback just like using an Apple or Android smartphone. Brilliant!

Jan is very interested in a prototype product called Glide, a self-guided mobility aid: the device uses "real-time data from an array of advanced sensors, and autonomously steers the way. It maps the best routes, identifies targets of interest, and avoids obstacles to get you safely to your destination." Apparently, it looks a little like a vacuum cleaner so you can vacuum up the pavements while you are walking to your location. Óran is also interested in the Orbit Q20 and Q40 Braille displays which offer 20 or 40 braille cells with a QWERTY keypad. Come on Vispero... get with the program!

Ever heard of "Birding by ear"? Ever wanted to know what birds are keeping you awake in the morning? Well then try this app Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University. Nora and Larry highly recommend it.

Our guest this week is Marcel Janssen from The Netherlands. Marcel is the Director of Education at Royal Visio, the Dutch centre of expertise for blind and low vision people. Marcel has been working in education for 40 years and is responsible for the education of 2500 visually impaired students and 5 schools in the Netherlands. Unfortunately for Marcel, he was responsible for looking after Jan during their 2 trips to Nigeria in the early and mid 2000's. Marcel is also involved with the organising of the tactile reading and graphics conference which is being held in Amsterdam in June 2025. The conference brings together people within the tactile reading field, academics, and practitioners, to share knowledge and ideas, and provides a forum for international collaboration. And if that wasn't enough, Marcel is also responsible for creating Braille chocolate letters in the Netherlands.

Nora has a tip for Mohamed regarding dates and Clodagh has emails from Olivia who is not very happy with Óran, and another email from " RuPatrick".

So strip down to your flooded thongs, throw your towel on a deckchair, and get ready to soak up the wonderful nontoxic rays of the coolest podcast this side of a jewel-encrusted Miami drug dealer’s wife: Blind Guys Chat

5 out of 10 turkeys prefer it to slamming into buildings. Gobble, gobble!

Links for items in this show: CSUM: https://www.csun.edu/cod/conference/sessions/ Glide: https://glidance.io/ Orbit Q20 & Q40: https://www.orbitresearch.com/product/orbit-reader-q40/#content Birding by ear: https://tinyurl.com/MerlinBirdID Tactile reading conference: https://tactilereading.yellenge.nl/ American Braille challenge: https://brailleinstitute.org/braille-challenge/ Braille chocolate: https://www.purdys.com/assorted-chocolate-braille-gift-box-18-pc

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Hello our bouncy little spring lambs and welcome to episode 93 of BGC. Unfortunately, Óran is not feeling too well this week as he has a pain in his hoop! Yes, he has had an altercation with a grocery collection and in particular with the bags the goods are packed in. Do you sympathise with him? Listen to his story and email us: [email protected]. Clodagh has ordered a cup of coffee and a cake from the local café and is awaiting its arrival via a drone. Jan and Óran are somewhat sceptical and decided traditional transport i.e. getting Sjef and Larry to collect it and bring it back home is a more sensible method. But if you want to give drone delivery a go, check to see if Manna drone delivery is available in your area. (www.manna.aero) Our guests this week are Berni Warren and Melanie Prichard from The Braillists Foundation (www.braillists.org). Berni is responsible for setting up the Braillists Book Club (www.braillists.org/uncategorised/join-us-in-the-book-club) which Óran is potty about. Melanie runs the Braille for beginners course which also is an initiative of The Braillists Foundation. Jan and Óran have a great time talking to the ladies about Braille, sight loss, and everything in between. If you would like more information on the book club or Braille for beginners, then go to www.braillists.org and check out the site. In TV Corner the guys are promoting, ‘Loudermilk’ and ‘The Gentlemen’ on Netflix. And before we go, Jan gives us a rendition of the Dutch entry for this year’s Eurovision Song Contest. Can he do it justice? Good question! Clodagh has an email from Gary Hough who is not looking forward to the winter months heading his way. Also Mohammed Laachir has an audio message for the Blind Guys. Apparently, he is under a bus... So, open up your Braille books to page 1 and settle in for the most thrilling of podcasts: Blind Guys Chat 33 out of 40 hardcopy Braille books prefer it to reading print. Links for this episode: www.manna.aero www.braillists.org www.braillists.org/uncategorised/join-us-in-the-book-clubEpisode Notes

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Hello our little snow ploughs! Welcome to this episode of BGC. This week, we are joined by our guest host, Brian Dalton. Brian has had a very interesting life, as you will find out right from the start.

Jan and Óran finally discover the answer to a burning question: if blind from birth, do you see in your dreams? Brian and one other have the answer. Have you ever experienced Non-24? Well, Brian has, and he's got some very strange tales to tell when he eventually falls asleep. Not on the show of course!!

Jan has a new addition to the household, or shall we say, he managed to open his wallet using a crowbar and spend the cash inside on a new vacuum cleaner called a Roomba. He can use his Google Home to set it off to do chores, and it can even go under his bed. Watch out little dust mites!

Our guest this week is Christopher Patnoe, Head of Accessibility and Disability Inclusion, EMEA @ Google. He tells us how he got started in accessibility and all about the Accessibility Discovery Center (ADC) in London. It's a cool place and open to the public; all you have to do is send an email to [email protected] to make a booking.

Brian briefly shoves Óran off his soapbox as he wants to talk about the lack of audio description in cinemas. Are you experiencing this? Let us know at [email protected].

Clodagh's got an email from Darragh who is looking for some advice on kitchen accessories. Brian suggests a Cobalt air fryer, and Jan has a cool light meter that helps him when making coffee.

Finally, if you want to hear more from Brian, tune in to Team FM for his 'Welcome to the Weekend' radio show.

So, put your rabbit on the Hoover and watch it spin round and round with excitement. Tell Google Home to make you a coffee and settle down to be mystified by Blind Guys Chat.

19 out of 20 robots on the moon prefer it to lying on their sides after landing.

Links in this show: Google ADC: [email protected] Roomba: https://www.amazon.co.uk/iRobot%C2%AE-j7-connected-Automatic-Disposal/dp/B09CCNQDJS/ref=sr_1_2?crid=1ZYLWGKRNIHNY&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.dZFfpBUuN1qX49gI85jcLNgkvAbdiY1-fFLaORdXyvEgwyRZ5KcqPZ_WZZo-pqK5ESTSjEj4wxomDI3LEqhdxfm2AkJm-uHuGKnQ4s_Isy6uWv1YeY96iSlWpM3NpJALP-cVYJlIeOoVdcHgZ26e2lJPt9Q3x9Y50PirUiX3b66XDA6LT7zNl1QFAbhu4Zu5kI-J6yWsQz3goLvwnYd30qEKRWLKUgk4KSfCl29lBkw.VFNFqtWmd9L3KWDZ1Ck8NuysIQc9qRxFQ8ONRWbCu3g&dib_tag=se&keywords=roomba&qid=1709802700&sprefix=roomba%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-2-spons&ufe=app_do%3Aamzn1.fos.d7e5a2de-8759-4da3-993c-d11b6e3d217f&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGY&psc=1 Non 24: https://www.webmd.com/sleep-disorders/non-24hour-sleep-wake-disorder Cobalt: https://cobolt.co.uk/products/talking-air-fryer Team FM: https://www.team-fm.com/briandalton

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Hello our newborn Robins. We hope you are well and ready for another exciting and delightful episode of your favourite podcast. On this show our guest host is Mohammed Laachir. Mohammed lives in the Netherlands, and is one of the people in Vispero who brought us the fantastic split sound feature in JAWS, and also worked on the split Braille function for Braille displays.

Have you ever tried skiing? Well Jan has, but apparently, he has problems hearing his instructors and has ended up in the trees a few times. No such issues for Mohammed as he snowboards on the baby slopes, ahem… indoors!!

Have you ever lost your balls? No; not those balls! The roller ball from your cane? Well, Mohammed has, and apparently not even a Jesus-loving preacher could find it for him. Oh, and Mo has a cool cane called the All-Terrain Cane (ATC) from AwareWolfGear.com. Do you have one? Let us know what you think: email us on [email protected].

Mohammed is also doing great things for our demographic as he is down with the kids. Yes, he has played video games and also uses dating apps like Bumble. But the poor fella has had some bad experiences. Can you believe this - sometimes his date leaves because they realise he is blind. How rude! However, Jan and Óran come to the rescue; they suggest he gets a guide dog because that'll get him into a relationship quicker than a formula 1 car on 3 wheels trying to get into the pit lane.

Have you heard of the Google Accessible Discovery Centre? Well Jan has been to London recently to visit the Centre. It's a space where engineers, researchers, product teams and partners can build new kinds of accessible technologies to help remove barriers that people with disabilities face every day. We are going to be chatting to Christopher Patnoe from Google in a couple of weeks, so keep your ears peeled for that, but in the meantime let's find out from Jan what it's all about.

Clodagh's got an email from Etta who is informing the guys that it's snowdrops that are white and beginning to blossom and that daffodils are yellow. Get it right lads! And we have an audio message from some bloke called Stuart. Then Clodagh has a bone to pick with her husband. Oh nohhhhh, duck for cover!

So why not take a city break this weekend in Alaska, and as you sit snuggled in your igloo, let the warm and sultry voices of Blind Guys Chat distract you from the wolves trying to eat your face off. Blind Guys Chat: 7 and a half out of 10 skiers prefer it to slamming into trees.

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Hello our refreshing Braille cells, and welcome to another episode of BGC: the show everyone is talking about. Our guest host this week is Marc Wijnhoven, who lives in the Netherlands not too far from our Jan. Marc is chomping at the bit to get going and of course his favourite topic, just like Jan and Óran, is the weather. Marc has a lot of strings to his bow - he is a fluent Norwegian speaker which might be handy as he tries to decipher what Jan and Óran talk about. Marc has recently bought a Google Chromebook and he talks us through its capabilities when connecting a Braille display. Do you have a Chromebook, or are you considering purchasing one? Let us know at [email protected]. Also, Óran asks the guys if they are finding the new “split Braille” option with JAWS and Braille displays useful? Speaking of Braille, Óran has joined the Braillists Book Club and is loving it. You can find out more about the Braillists Book Club here: https://www.braillists.org/testevents/book-club-143/ In TV Corner, Jan has gossip on a new Dutch version of 'The Crown'. Will it have juicy storylines? Maybe... Clodagh has an email praising the last episode’s guest host, and another all the way from Slovakia, apparently a listener there is using the podcast to learn English! Cool! …though it may lead to an odd balance of vocabulary on weather and assistive technology, and very little else. Be warned Bruno! So, if you are looking for a moment of pure relaxation that’s as smooth as a bar of Swiss chocolate; then look no further than your favourite podcast: Blind Guys Chat. 16 out of 20 Norwegians prefer it to the Norwegian language. Links for this podcast: Braillists Book Club: https://www.braillists.org/testevents/book-club-143/

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Hello our little windswept listeners and welcome to episode 89. This is an exciting show for Jan, Óran and Clodagh as we welcome our first guest host to the podcast. Let's say hello to Gordon Anthony, aka Blind Gordon who joins us all the way from Livingston in Scotland. Gordon, a former Miss World (who knew!) is literally taking this one lying down. Wait until Mrs Blind Gordon finds out! Have you ever used Aira? (Yes, that’s the correct spelling – we double-checked!) Aira is a visual interpreting service for people who are blind or have low vision. Well Gordon has used it, and he thinks it is great, especially when he is heading to a football match. Unfortunately Aira can't help Dundee United win matches, but at least it can get Gordon home safely afterwards. Our guest this week is Maeve McCluskey from Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind. Maeve is the Breeding Programme Supervisor and Jan and Óran have a great conversation with her all about how to breed super guide dogs. Gordon has a TV Corner tip: he has been watching Criminal Record on Apple TV and thinks it is great. Clodagh has fallen for the Scottish fleet of gritting trucks, and we have an email from Ciara Mac. You know how much we love hearing from our listeners so keep your emails coming in: [email protected]. So, hop into your favourite cozy pyjamas, tuck yourself into your snuggly bed, and get ready to be soothed by the only guys worth listening to: Blind Guys Chat. 6 out of 10 storms prefer it to being fierce windy. Links for this podcast: Aira: https://aira.io/ Scottish gritters truck names: https://swtrunkroads.scot/winter-service/meet-our-gritter-fleet/

Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind: https://www.guidedogs.ie/. If you love Irish Guide Dogs and their work as much as we do, you can donate here: https://www.guidedogs.ie/ways-to-help/donate

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Hello our little frozen hibernating hedgehogs and welcome to episode 88 of the podcast. What is the weather like in your part of the world? Well, it's feckin' freezin' here in Europe and the Blind Guys cannot wait for spring. Have you heard of 11 Labs? It's a text to speech and AI voice generator and Stuart has been playing around with it to try to clone his voice. Does it work? Hmmmm... yes and no, we'll hear more from Stuart on it. (Link: elevenlabs.io/) Óran is asking the guys if it is time to think about a qwerty refreshable Braille display. He reckons his typing on a qwerty keyboard is faster than typing on a Perkins-style keyboard but Stuart is not too sure, what do you think? perhaps you have a Humanware Mantis Q40 or a Helptek Activator display. Let us know what you think at [email protected]. Our guest is the lovely Nora Nagle from Boston; south Boston to be precise. Nora talks to us about what it’s like having a guide dog in the US and she shares lots of stories including one about an unpleasant experience when a security guard tried to remove her and her guide dog out of a building. It's a great interview so do have a listen. We have information on events you might like to sign up for: ·       The first is happening this evening, January 11th at 5pm (Irish) 6pm (CET) or 12pm (EST) and is called ‘Celebrate Braille Literacy with Focus’. This webinar hosted by Freedom Scientific will demonstrate how to set up "split braille'" on Focus Braille displays, how to connect more than 1 device to your display, and how to improve braille literacy with a refreshable braille display. Register here for this event: us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_XoFHxDqWTQ6jkWuiWy-LVg#/registration ·       If you are interested in joining a Braille book club, then look no further than the Braillists Foundation. The book club happens every Thursday and caters for all levels of braille reading including speed and which braille code you prefer to read in. More information about the Braillists Foundation book club is available here: www.braillists.org/uncategorised/join-us-in-the-book-club/ or you can register for it directly here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0ucuqqrDsjHtMzH4ytq2NPV0rUpYAGRXEm Clodagh has an email from Anna Cody who is as succinct as ever! And we finish up with an announcement from Stuart. So, strip down to your thermals, and bathe yourself in the revitalising warm, silky-smooth, dulcet tones of a Blind Guys Chat podcast. 4 out of 6 newborn puppies prefer it to play-fighting!

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Welcome to another of our BGC bites. In this podcast we are talking to some more service providers who had stands at Sight Village Southeast recently.

You will hear from Greg Hargraves from Paige Braille who will talk about Paige Connect, a Bluetooth circuit board that connects to old-school Perkins Braillers allowing the text to be displayed on a PC, which is a pretty cool trick.

Clodagh is busy on this podcast as she is talking with Andy Farrell from Guide Dogs UK, Richard Black from the Talking News Federation, and Rose Woodall from Queen Alexander College

So, forget about the long dark nights for a moment and tune in for some relaxed chat from Sight Village 2023. Links to organisations in this podcast: Paige Braille: https://paigebraille.com/buy Guide Dogs UK: https://www.guidedogs.org.uk/about-us/ Talking News Federation: tnf.org.uk Queen Alexander College: https://www.queenalex.co.uk/

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