UCAN GO October Blog Post

Megan’s Blog

October has been a busy month with a few big realizations! Firstly, we are now nearing the end of the project and we will soon have a fully functioning app. This is extremely exciting! Secondly, we still have quite a bit to do in a short space of time. Never the less since seeing the first version of what will be the finished app, we have been getting more and more excited each time we get a new update.

We have achieved a lot during theis month, from beginning to spread the word about the app to collecting all the necessary content for the Wales Millennium Centre.

At the beginning of the month Jane and I met with Hannah Rowlatt, Digital Inclusion Officer at RNIB Cymru and Robin Spinks, Principal Manager, Digital Accessibility at RNIB. We discussed the development of the app and enquired about the possibility of Welsh Siri. This was a very productive and positive meeting to have been a part of, and hearing such wonderful feedback about the app is really encouraging. It was also great to hear that we had support in beginning to campaign and look in to the addition of a Welsh Siri.

Through the combination of support from RNIB letting us use their recording studio and utilizing the fantastic skill of UCAN’s sound technician, we were able to complete all recordings of both the Wales Millennium Centre and Torch Theatre Overview sections of the app.

Mared, Louise and myself have spent a great deal of time in the WMC working to collect all the photos and additional information about each space and every floor, ready to be implemented in to the app. It has definitely been a challenging and at time confusing task to complete, but we are beginning to get to grips with our nodes and links and aim to complete what we have left in the next week or so.

Once we have all this information, we’ll be moving on to The Torch Theatre in Milford Haven. Fortunately, we hope this will be simpler as it is a smaller and less complicated venue to navigate and we’ve become something of an expert, after the WMC!

So we have quite a bit left to do! Collecting the information for the WMC and Torch, organizing a user testing sessions for members of staff at the venues and members of the steering committee, and we are hoping to arrange a last steering committee to get final feedback on everything and of course, disseminate everything we have learnt! So, plenty to be getting on with…..

 

Post Mared

Mae’n hawdd dweud ein bod ni wedi bod yn brysur iawn unwaith eto! Yr oedd yn naïf ohonom i feddwl na fyddem ni mor brysur erbyn hyn! Os unrhywbeth rydym yn fwy prysur nag erioed yn ceisio casglu a cyflawni’r holl waith cynnwys. Ta beth gadewch i mi lenwi chi mewn ar ddigwyddiadau mis Hydref…

Reit, ble ddechreuwn ni…

Cawsom gyfle i weld y fersiwn diweddaraf o’r app brodorol neu ‘native’ ar ffurf ‘beta’. Mae’n anhygoel i weld ein holl waith caled yn dod yn fyw o’n blaenau. Mae’n andros o gyffroes! Dwi’n gweld y potensial yn yr app a’r mwya dwi’n ‘chwarae’ arni y mwya mae’r obsesiwn yn tyfu!

Llwyddom ni i gyflawni tasg enfawr y mis yma! Tasg a oedd yn profi i fod yn hunllef i’w drefni! Hynny yw, recordio’r holl waith sain ar gyfer adran ‘Cip Olwg’ neu ‘Overview’. Diolch i stiwdio RNIB ac i Alex, dyn sain UCAN rydym wedi llwyddo i recordio popeth.

Yn ogystal a hyn rydym wedi bod yn andros o brysur yn casglu’r holl wybodaeth angenrheidiol ar gyfer yr adran ‘Taith’ neu ‘Route’. Rydym wedi gwario oriau yn cerdded o gwmpas Canolfan Mieniwm Cymru yn casglu ffotograffiau, enwi ‘nodes’ ac yn cyfansoddi’r gwybodaeth ychwanegol. Swnio’n ddigon syml tydi…ond…cofiwch fod yna chwech llawr yng nghanolfan y Mileniwm, a mae pob un ohonynt yn wahanol i’w gilydd! Dyna greulon! Rydym ni wedi llwyddo i gyflawni llawr 0,1 a 2…dim ond y gweddill i fynd! Diolch byth bod Calvium yn deall yn ddwys yr holl ochr technegol fel ein bod ni’n gallu canolbwyntio ar y gwaith ymarferol…mewn theori! Plis peidiwch a camddeall, dwi wedi cael gymaint o hwyl yn gwneud y gwaith yma. Bu yna adegau lle roeddem yn chwethin cymaint nes i ni grio! Ac hefyd adegau ble’r oeddem yn teimlo mor anobeithiol na’i gyd o’n i am wneud oedd crio, sgrechian a stompio ein traed…ac yna gadael! Erbyn hyn wrth gwrs mae’r holl broses ychydig yn haws felly dylwn ni fod yn chwethin mwy a yn crio llai!

Mae’r prosiect yma’n dechrau teimlo’n ddi -ddiwedd! Unwaith i ni orffen y gwaith ar Ganolfan y Mileniwm bydd rhaid inni ddechrau o’r dechrau gyda Theatr y Torch! Er, dylai’r holl beth fod yn haws ac yn gyflymach gan fod Theatr y Torch yn ‘fach’ i gymharu a’r bwystfil, Canolfan y Mileniwm Cymru!

Hefyd yn ogystal a hyn rydym am drefnu mwy o sesiynnau profi er mwyn casglu adborth gan y defnyddwyr, staff a’r cyhoedd. Hoffwn drefnu cyfarfod ‘Steering Committee’ arall hefyd fel bod ein aelodau ffyddlon yn cael cyfle i brofi’r app a lleisio’i barn ynglyn a’r fersiwn diweddaraf. Croesi bysedd fe eith popeth yn iawn!

Wel, well i fi fynd… Ma digon o waith da fi i wneud! Hwyl am y tro!

UCAN GO WMC User Testing

VI VIPs Needed

Wales Millennium Centre, Cardiff

Tuesday 23rd July

UCAN Productions is a performance and creative arts co-operative for blind and partially sighted young people.

We have been awarded funding to develop an accessible indoor navigation app called UCAN GO. This is a user-led project directed by two of our VI VIP members and the aim is to create an innovative solution that will assist people with low vision to independently visit arts venues, with confidence!

This is where we need your help…we’re developing an app for the Wales Millennium Centre and we would like to invite you to test our pilot app. We’re looking for honest feedback, discussion and ideas to co-create the app.

If you would like to participate, or you have any questions, please email louise@ucanproductions.org or call us on 02920 870554 and we can give you further information, including timings and what to expect.

You can print out a flyer to share here: UCAN_GO_USER_TESTING_WMC

If you are under 16, we will need to send you a consent form for a parent or guardian to sign.  Find out about our user testing workshops at the Torch Theatre, Milford Haven here: http://ucanproductions.org/2014/07/ucan-go-june-blog-post/.

 

Supported by the Digital R&D Fund for the Arts in Wales – Nesta, Arts & Humanities Research Council and public funding by the National Lottery through Arts Council of Wales