Anyone who knows me knows I am passionate about the special needs community and about Apple products. Well, those two things have come together to make the computing experience go a lot more smoothly for people with disabilities. A little while ago, Apple added something called Assistive Touch to the operating system of the iPad, iPhone and iPod Touch. Apple has always had features that do things like turn on an LED light when a person with a hearing disability gets a phone call. But Assistive Touch helps people with motor-control challenges, too. You know all that finger swiping and gesturing you do on tablet computers? Well, how can someone who is missing fingers or someone who cannot open their hand make their tablet do what they want it to do?
Apple has the answer with Assistive Touch, so I encourage you to check out this instructional video on YouTube. It gives a brief and simple overview of all the things you can make simpler if you or a loved one has special needs in terms of motor-control.
I realize a lot of awesome software developers and hardware engineers helped make this happen. But I can’t help but think Mr. Jobs may be looking down on us, still trying to make our lives better one device and one app at a time.